Western Electric looking for consumer feedback to make new tubes!

@jonwatches1 The best commodity tube would be anyone’s guess. I personally sell more 300B amplifiers than any other, and more 6SN7 pres than 2A3, 845 or 211 amps. I also read an interview with WE posted two days ago that states their new facility was built intentionally larger than they required and that tooling and machinery for other types of tubes is already in place and has been for some time. Also stated was that 300Bs are much more involved and costly than making say, a 12AX7 or other Noval or Octal based tubes.  Apparently they also do not want to make all of their tubes at a premium price, but understandably they will be priced higher than Chinese or Russian tubes as they want to maintain a higher level of quality. It I can find the link I’ll share it.

All the best, Aric

@jonwatches1 Oops. Yes that's the one. 

@facten Ah. Did not realize there was another thread. 

@tooblue WE never made a 6SN7 tube. The Chinese companies coined the name "Western Electric" for a series of tubes they started making a few years back- PsVane has them as well as Linlai. It's just a name that they picked up after the branding had worn out and the company had all but vanished (just like the British "Cossor" name that PsVane had on one of their lines). It's simply cheap marketing, and more so likely the fact that nobody has filed a cease and desist order on them (yer) ;-)

Best, Aric

@rocray Very cool- thanks for the link!

@facten No worries, I get it. Absolutely, I'm also stoked to help get the word out! I for one would love to see WE producing various Hi-Fi tubes again and becoming a more prominent name as they once were (aside from their 300B claim to fame). At this stage, I think the only thing that they would have to worry about is keeping up, and that's not a bad problem to have! My 2 cents. 

Best, Aric

It seems there's going to be a massive array of various tubes being requested, and of course I believe it will take considerable time to get the machines, staff, space and resources to probably make 1/4 of the different types, so WE will go with what is most requested. Alternatively, regarding the current state of tube availability, I will still be stocking tubes with all of my products and have no intention of raising prices for a good "stock" set of tubes. Tube life varies of course, but typically a year can be expected out of a good 6SN7 or a good EL34, and a lot can happen in a year, so I personally wouldn't sway from buying tube gear based on New Sensor's ban until the end of 2022. PsVane makes both the TII and Hi-Fi (standard) versions of all of the popular KT series tubes (EL34 included), 12AU7, 6SN7, etc. so purchasing a set of backup tubes shouldn't necessarily break the bank and should give the user another year. Perhaps I'm being optimistic, but that's just how I roll. 

@facten Thanks for the link! I love this, it reminds me of the fiber-optics plant I used to work in 20 years ago, very clean, lots of Hydrogen and lots of glass :-) Seriously though, the plant looks top notch and it appears they have lots of space. As far as growth is concerned, this could really be an opportunity for WE to step up and expand their current facility and employees- all while getting us some new tubes. Could be a win-win!

Aric

I would assume (and you know what that does), that WE would make them in house. I mean, there's not really too many options for places to make them- as far as I know. The Psvane plant, the Linlai plant? Seems unlikely.