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Thread: Mid price 300B valves

  1. #1
    Join Date: Apr 2016

    Location: Bishops Stortford

    Posts: 1,250
    I'm Chris.

    Default Mid price 300B valves

    I want to get some new production 300B valves at a price of up to about £300 per pair

    Lead candidates seem to be

    JJ £260pp
    Electro Harmonix EH £158pp
    Electro Harmonix Gold Grid £192pp
    Genalex Gold Lion £249pp
    Brimar £196pp (Possibly Softek sourced?)

    Any opinions or alternatives. Thanks
    Last edited by bumpy; 03-12-2021 at 13:27.
    Source
    SW1X Universal Music Server UMS I Signature with Power Supply Unit PSU I Signature
    SW1X USB II
    SW1X DAC III Special
    Audiolab 6000 CDT transport
    Amps
    Pre amps -- Hi fi Collective twin mono ladder stepped attenuator, with Charcroft Z-foil and silver wired. And First Watt B1 active no gain buffer.
    Power amps -- Welborne 45 SET monoblocks 1.8W / Decware Taboo 6W / Elekit 300B TU-8600SVK plus further improved components 9W / ICE Power 1000W
    Speakers
    Highly modified Endorphin P17 open baffle speakers containing both vintage and modern alnico drivers and paper cones. All silver wired - 8" Cube Audio FC8 full range drivers and vintage 15" Altec VOTT 416 bass drivers. All sat on Townsend Audio Podium seismic isolation platforms.
    BK Electronics XLS400FF Sub.
    Cabling
    Silver mains cables, interconnects and speaker cables by SW1X
    Headphones
    HRT HeadStreamer and SennHeiser HD650 headphones

  2. #2
    Join Date: May 2018

    Location: Woking

    Posts: 803
    I'm Chris.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by bumpy View Post
    I want to get some new production 300B valves at a price of up to about £300 per pair

    Lead candidates seem to be

    JJ £260pp
    Electro Harmonix EH £158pp
    Electro Harmonix Gold Grid £192pp
    Genalex Gold Lion £249pp
    Brimar £196pp (Possibly Softek sourced?)

    Any opinions or alternatives. Thanks
    All the EH models and Genalex are produced at the same factory, or at least they were a few years ago. They are then graded and become "Genalex Gold Lion" if they pass certain parameters. The gold pin EH's do sound better than non gold pin (silly I know) and are pretty much as good as the Gold Lion's. I have the Gold Lion's and I'm very happy with them.

    Not much experience with the JJ 300B's but I really like their KT88's. Lovely thick glass and a very well rounded sound.

    You have nice kit, I'd go with the Lion's as they're pretty much guaranteed to be the best of the 'non stratospheric' priced tubes.
    System 1: - Amp - Musical Paradise MP-701 mk2 - Neurochrome 686
    - Source: Audio Technica LP-5 - Custom 6V6 stage - Novafidelity X30 - Soekris 1421 (LPSU) - Custom TDA1541 C3G DAC -
    - Speakers: Martin Logan Prodigy's - Subs: - REL T3's -

    System 2 - Amp: Musical Paradise MP 303/Custom 300B SET - Custom 6SL7 Pre -
    - Source: Pioneer N-30K - SONCOZ SGD1 -
    - Speakers: Loth X BS1's - Sub: REL T3 -

  3. #3
    Join Date: Apr 2016

    Location: Bishops Stortford

    Posts: 1,250
    I'm Chris.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Opti-cal View Post
    All the EH models and Genalex are produced at the same factory, or at least they were a few years ago. They are then graded and become "Genalex Gold Lion" if they pass certain parameters. The gold pin EH's do sound better than non gold pin (silly I know) and are pretty much as good as the Gold Lion's. I have the Gold Lion's and I'm very happy with them.

    Not much experience with the JJ 300B's but I really like their KT88's. Lovely thick glass and a very well rounded sound.

    You have nice kit, I'd go with the Lion's as they're pretty much guaranteed to be the best of the 'non stratospheric' priced tubes.
    Excellent feed back thanks Chris. I would very much like to support the new Brimar venture, but can find very little in the way of reviews of their 300B. I have asked some questions on their Facebook page
    Source
    SW1X Universal Music Server UMS I Signature with Power Supply Unit PSU I Signature
    SW1X USB II
    SW1X DAC III Special
    Audiolab 6000 CDT transport
    Amps
    Pre amps -- Hi fi Collective twin mono ladder stepped attenuator, with Charcroft Z-foil and silver wired. And First Watt B1 active no gain buffer.
    Power amps -- Welborne 45 SET monoblocks 1.8W / Decware Taboo 6W / Elekit 300B TU-8600SVK plus further improved components 9W / ICE Power 1000W
    Speakers
    Highly modified Endorphin P17 open baffle speakers containing both vintage and modern alnico drivers and paper cones. All silver wired - 8" Cube Audio FC8 full range drivers and vintage 15" Altec VOTT 416 bass drivers. All sat on Townsend Audio Podium seismic isolation platforms.
    BK Electronics XLS400FF Sub.
    Cabling
    Silver mains cables, interconnects and speaker cables by SW1X
    Headphones
    HRT HeadStreamer and SennHeiser HD650 headphones

  4. #4
    Join Date: Mar 2008

    Location: Galashiels

    Posts: 13,669
    I'm inthescottishmafia.

    Default

    JJ all the way IMO in that price bracket.
    “Music has always been a matter of energy to me, a question of fuel. Sentimental people call it inspiration, but what they really mean is fuel. I have always needed fuel. I am a serious consumer. On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio”

    Hunter S Thompson

  5. #5
    Join Date: Mar 2008

    Location: Galashiels

    Posts: 13,669
    I'm inthescottishmafia.

    Default

    I've read of unreliability with Genalex btw.
    “Music has always been a matter of energy to me, a question of fuel. Sentimental people call it inspiration, but what they really mean is fuel. I have always needed fuel. I am a serious consumer. On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio”

    Hunter S Thompson

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