I have found the Mullard CV4003 to be about the most balaced of the bunch. The romantic tubey blush with very good resolution. Another under the radar small signal tube that is equally great (depending on the component used in) is the La Radiotechnique 12au7wa - never imported to the US but a few retailers and specialty shops have had them in the past. I use them in my DAC - thy are spectacular. Just my opinion
Anyone ever have, use or hear this tube?
I always thought that the pinnacle of the ecc82/12au7 type tube was the Telefunken ecc802s. Even better than the Amperex 7316. But, I recently found out that there is an extra special designation for some ecc802's dubbed the G73R. These are supposed to be unmatched in quality and longevity, said to last 40,000+ hours! Anybody familiar with, heard or own these things??