|
|
|
|
| Re: Tubes from Russia [message #99835 is a reply to message #95342] |
Thu, 01 October 2026 01:10   |
Kurt
Messages: 37
Registered: December 2025
|
Baron |
|
|
Hey man,
Looking back from 2026, yeah, the sanctions hit Russian tubes hard.
I run Tung-Sol and Sovtek tubes in my Evo 400 and Rogue Cronus. They’re still made at Reflector and sound excellent when you get a good matched set — sometimes better than old NOS. Reliability stays solid if the power supply is right and you don’t push them.
Getting them here has been patchy for years, though. Shipping, payments, and tariffs made stock uneven and prices higher.
I keep JJ tubes as my everyday ones now because they’re consistent. Chinese fill the gaps. I still buy Russian when a decent batch shows up because they work great in my amps, but I don’t count on them like before.
Demand for real tubes isn’t going away. Plenty of us still want that feel. Heat’s still an issue in summer, so I switched around, but the tubes keep going.
Is anyone still finding good Russian stock regularly?
|
|
|
|
| Re: Tubes from Russia [message #99838 is a reply to message #99835] |
Thu, 01 October 2026 11:32 |
Rusty
Messages: 1468
Registered: May 2018
Location: Kansas City Missouri
|
Illuminati (4th Degree) |
|
|
I haven't looked into Russian tubes for any reason because I'd laid in a supply of over 100 Sovtek 6C19PI output tubes for my two monoblock OTL amps prior to the sanctioning. I'm grateful now I unwittingly did that just because even then, buying those tubes domestically was overly expensive.
I think I paid about 2 or 3 bucks a tube from a Russian supply house. I've retubed these amps with them with satisfying results. Each amp uses 16 of them. So, I'm REALLY glad I got that deal while it lasted. For an OTL topology, which has always been noted for high consumption of vacuum tubes. This brand, Transcendent Sound, does justice with the load put on output tubes. My original tubes lasted close to two decades. But I run my solid state amp in the hot midwestern summers. That helped.
Alas, Transcendent Sound no longer exists. Bruce Rozenblit was a pioneering DIY tube designer.
|
|
|
|
Posting Rules
Members
Search
Help
Register
Login
Get a T-Shirt!
