Does anyone know what has become of Andy Bowman of Vintage Tube Services? The telephone number on his website, (616) 454-3467, is no longer in service. I need to speak with him urgently.
I have bought from him before and been happy with the service and expertise. About a month ago, I called looking for a pair of vintage 6922s. A message with his voice said he would be back the next day. I tried for several days after that with no answer, and gave up. I bought the tubes at Upscale.
I'm trying to reach Andy at Vintage Tube Services and it is one of the strangest things I've ever seen. I dial his number and get a message that the phone is disconnected BUT the number given is NOT Vintage Tube! I've done this with my office phone and my cell. Very weird. Does anyone have any fresh info on his status? steven
well in these days its hards to get primium nos tubes when most of them has been sold all over asia what its left is lot of junk and clonks outthere here where a lot get rich scheme kink in a heaven of clonk and junk for you don't worry i recently got had by brent jesse with 4 nos junk and the worst part he manage to not refund my money so stay away from this merchant you could see under his website i got rip off by brent jesse my advise buy from a solid open store where you can access owner and associates in a real physical store example like upscale not a flight by nigth store(bat cave) god knows and they know and can get away with it knowing that a court settlement cost more than damm tubes win a case but lose a lot of money is it worth ? hell no
Andy is still in business and great to deal with I recently visited him and bought tubes and had him look a my tube preamp. He's as good and honest as it gets. FYI he is in the process of updating his website and his 2015 stock list but as always it's best to just call him.
T ramey: I ordered tubes from Andy a couple of years ago or so - he's slow - it took about three weeks to receive them. Just be patient - you'll get them.
I'll only say this, if you want to GET what you pay for, sometimes, often less. Andy is the best vendor I've come across and I've dealt with virtually all of them at one time or another, several NEVER again. He has great testing equipment and he KNOWS his tubes. "Never let the truth get in the way of making a buck", NOT Andy. The guy is as much a hobbyist as a businessman preying on the unwary like some of those guys. NOS tubes have become a cottage industry and it is important for the novice to be cautious lest they fall prey to the unscrupulous. It's easy to get ripped off.
From the little bit I've been reading about tubes and tube vendors Andy at Vintage and Kevin Deal at Upscale seem to have the most positive feedback from everybody I've read about. Thanks again for the replies!
Received my tubes this week from Andy. They sound fantastic! 1960's RCA clear tops. I had asked for two matching pairs for my Rogue Perseus pre and Andy sent me a quad matching set.
I called to thank him today and ended up ordering some Amperex to try out. Nice guy!
I just placed an order yesterday with Andy and am awaiting delivery. This guy seriously knows his stuff! He's a straight shooter, and will not try to oversell you.
Very true on all counts. I have known and been dealing with him for years (he even spent a few days in my house doing some nice modifications on my Jadis preamp, back when he did those mods), and in addition to selling vintage tubes that are the real deal and work he has been a great source of advice for tubing the amps and preamps I have owned. The vintage RCA 6SN7s he recently sold me for my Phi 200 have been a significant musical improvement over the stock tubes, but had I preferred a more detailed sound he suggested and would have sold me some Sylvanias. His business that is a true labor of love, and he deserves our support.
+1 on Andy. It can take him a while to fill your order but he gets it right. A no nonsense kind of guy and doesn't play games with availability and pricing like one well known guy on the west coast seems to.
This is an old thread. However, here is an update. I ordered a Mullard 12AU7 from Andy three days ago for my Musical Concepts Chameleon Elite level preamp. It arrived yesterday and is fantastic. I was not prepared for the degree of transparency I am now getting from my system. Wow is all I can say.
Just picked up a Telefunken 12AX7 and a pair of Telefunken 12AU7's from him...a great guy who is a passionate pro at what he does...he cares a lot about what he sells and is very informative AAA++++
Just received a pair of Tungsol 12AX7 and 12AU7 for my phono preamp. A pair of 6dj8 Telefunken for my amp and a single Amperex 6dj8 bugle boy for my preamp from Andy. Going forward I will always buy my tubes from Andy.
My system has not sounded this good. I'm enjoying the music. Noise level virtually gone. Black background. Clarity, detail, transparency and dynamics in spades.
ordered tubes from andy last friday...they came in less than a week....preamp has never sounded this good(conrad johnson pv4)....WAS A BIT SCARED...to order nos tubes ...they came in old looking boxes ...but like i said ...they sound great...just got off the phone with andy...called him to let him know how pleased i am..would order again
Andy's still in business. Just ordered some 6sn7s from him yesterday. Nice guy and I'm glad to see a one man shop hang in there during these difficult times.
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