300B tube recommendation for SET amp?

Jeffreyds-

Yeah, I've condidered the WE route. Many people say the old 40's & 50's vintage is the way to go. Ebay seems to be the only place to pick these up but at $1200 and upwards for a pair!? I don't want to risk buying a bad tube or a fake...alternately, the newer production WE is tempting but I gotta' think about the loved ones this X'Mas season.

I'll place the WE at the top of my X'Mas wish list and see what happens. But for now, I'll just settle for a Russian or Chinese quad set....sigh : (

Dogpile,

I haven't heard NOS WE 300b's from the 40's or 50's. No doubt, they are very good and likely better than the new production. Mine were manufactured in the last quarter of 2004. All I can say is that the new version is extremely good, and the best I've heard in my system. Plus, with a 5 year warranty and no fear of getting a fake or bad tube, it's tough to go wrong. Fortunately, I only needed a single pair for my system. It would have been a lot tougher for me to justify a quad. Good luck with your choice!

Jeff

I have dual monobloc Push Pull 2A3/45 amp from Vu using vintage Chicago transformers. I use it to drive various Spendors (SP100's, S3/5's ) and Soliloquys 5.3 and SMA 2A3's with tremendous success and even my Quad ESL 63's. It is sweeter and more dynamic than any SS or SET I have tried including my Korneff 2A3/45 which can get close on high effeciency speakers or horns. The Sophia 2A3 and 45 mesh plates sound the best in it next to vintage RCA 2A3's. If the sophia 300B's are as good as their mesh plate 45's I would suggest trying them.

My experience with the 300Bs is limited in recent years to using them in my Reimyo PAT777 amp. I initially heard the amp with 1960s WE 300Bs, but when I got mine it had new production 1990s WEs. Later I managed to get some 1960s WE and found them incomparably better than what I initially had. I have a pair of TJ 300B mesh plates which I have also tried. I actually preferred the initial 1990s WEs better. I once tried the KR 300Bs versus the TJs in another 300B amp and did not like them.

I know that older WEs cost lots of money, but nevertheless, they are superior in my amp in my opinion.

The dealer that sold me my SET amp told me to stay away from Electro-Harmonix. On the other hand, their 6922 gold pins are a mainstay in my push-pull amp. I would like to know if the 300B from EH is actually bad. I'd like to think that, if they can make a 6922 that whoops NOS tubes, they can make a pretty decent 300B.

Cheers.