To all you Cary SLI 80 owners, I'm looking for tube suggestions

Try some Gold Lyons all around. And I would switch to EL-34s if you want more tube goodness.

I didn't think that the (reissued) Gold Lion made a EL34?  Or is the KT77 synonymous with EL34?

I was hoping you would catch that. Looks like Glennewdick has the inside line. I haven't used the KT77s yet but have used the KT-88s. I guess my favorite EL-34 is the Tesla. Quicksilver has some but don't know if they will sell them to non-Quicksilver customers.

@russ69  , I don't want to hijack the OP, but since I run a dozen EL34s in my Cary V12, I always paya attention to the EL34 threads.  (Currently I am running my 3rd set, which are the reissued Tungsols that I bought from Jim McShane back sometime around 2020, and I like them, but when replacement time comes I am looking for something else).

Anyway, I did some quick googles, and now Tesla is a branch of JJ?

Thanks to OP's thread, I am getting some great ideas for EL34 replacement.

I prefer RAM Labs EL34's over RFT EL34's and Gold Lion KT88's.   The RAM Labs are a steal @ $140 for a quad.   Using NOS Amperex 7308's and TungSol 6SN7WGT's from Brent Jessie.

@pdreher , Are RAM tubes made by various  manufacturers and tested and matched  branded by RAM?  Did you buy your RAM tubes from the RAM site?

 Cary used Ruby tubes on my six-pacs but those exact tubes aren't made anymore

@russ69  , my Cary V12 came with Rubys.  At the time, I thought it was a great sound.  I was under the impression that these were EL34s that were rebranded by Ruby?  For some reason, and I may be wrong, at the time ('01) I was under the impression that the Ruby EL34s were Chinese?

@immatthewj  yes to both questions. 

@pdreher , although the write up on RAM's site didn't come right out and say so, I am thinking what I did get out of it indicated that RAM's EL34s are the reissued Mullards?

@decooney and ​​​​​@pdreher , thanks for the helpful info on that.

I really loved the Gold Lion KT77 in my EL34 amp of the current modern offerings of EL34 tubes I thought it had the best tone and frequency response and overall excellent sound.

@jond , I am pretty much clueless about this stuff, so the last time I needed a dozen EL34s I emailed Jim McShane and told him I was kind of interested in the GL KT77s. He actually suggested the reissued Tungsols El34s, as he said there might be issues with biasing the KT77s in my amp (Cary V12). I replied back that if he thought I’d be happier with the EL34s, by all means let's do that. He replied back with something to the effect of that wasn’t what he said; what he said was biasing might be problematic. I don’t know if ’might’ was the operative word, but I bought the reissued Tungsols. I have been really happy with those tubes and I was really happy with Jim’s service. (He emailed me two or three times to tell me how the burn-in and matching was going. If he wasn’t getting out of the business, I’d buy my next set from him.)

As an aside, I see that on the site that @decooney listed, Dougs Tubes, JJ has a KT77 available.