Would you buy a tube amp if you were unable to use vintage tubes in it ?

@steakster So, what are those things that look like space heaters with rows of piezo tweeters across the top? Subs? I bet you’re also going to tell me all of your equipment is so esoteric that I’ve never heard of any of it with the exception of the bargain priced Denon CD player you’ve got there. The Denon built tray in my McIntosh transport whole sales for more than that. The after photo of your cable routing is worse than the before and what’s all the blue tape stuck here and there on the loose wires? I hope you keep a fire extinguisher handy!

faustuss

 Further I think all the suggestions regarding tube "rolling" is a little insane . . . What a crock!

I nearly spit out my coffee when I read that comment.  LOL. Another flat-earther’s credibility shot to hell.

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The best location for my JJ 12AU7’s in the storage closet.

 

If you can't hear the difference between say an Amperex Bugle Boy 12AX& and a vintage Telefunken ECC803s and current manufacture tubes, either there is something wrong with your gear, or your ears, or both.  I don't go crazy with tube rolling myself, but I do hear substantial differences.  So much of what is right is a matter of matching a system and personal taste.  The only 12AX7, or similar tube type, that I run in my system are the vintage ECC803s tubes in my phono stage.  A good friend of mine cannot stand that, or any other Telefunken tube.  Tastes do differ.

@whart , hey bro, sorry to be tardy: I just saw your post. Yes, still running the H3000, although I supplement it with the MC/MC phono in my VAC preamp and a last-gen K&K Maxxed Out with silver Lundahls, which is a gem. The Allnic is still top dog, though. Like you (of course!) I ran a GEC for years until it died. Wonderful tube: harmonically rich and detailed with great dimensionality. I located what I think is another, although it’s labeled CV575. It has a brown cup base, like the first one, and a similar sound. Expensive like the first one, too. But I have to admit, for my system, it’s been superseded by a recent creation, the Richard Kron Anniv 5U4G, which is sadly no longer made.This tube offers much of the GEC and CV575 but has more extension on top. I’m a big fan and luck to have found a couple extras.

You’re right that the H3000 is mostly influenced by the rectifier--to an almost bizarre degree. All the other tubes, as you know, are weird ones and NOS only.But I have found that USA-produced E810F sound noticeably inferior to the Holland-made ones. Too bad, because I have a bunch! Otherwise, yeah, no tube rolling to done outside of the power supply.

I see, complicated subject regarding amp designs and how gentle or not the amps are on tubes. I won't bother the VAC designer with these questions, especially considering that his answers won't change anything for me. I will continue with the best vintage tubes I can find and afford.

Tastes differ, but when something sounds good everyone with hearing will agree that it does indeed sound good. The rest is a matter of preference. You prefer Stradivarius and I prefer Guarneri . 

@wrm57- not a problem. I mistyped your screen name earlier. I did find another cup base GEC U-52, this time a black base, not a brown base. I think it is an earlier production, although someone else who had a lot of these said that the brown base was preferred (my brown base tube still has some life but had some time on it), and the fresh black base sounds fine. Doesn’t surprise me that Kron is not readily available. Are they still in business?

When I retubed everything (all components, not just the Allnic), I did get old stock Holland E810Fs. I had bought some a few years before, never used them, but they were printed on the glass as made in Great Britain. I later learned they were made by Amperex in the States. Apparently, during the golden age of tubes, affiliates took overflow and since both were owned by Philips, no problem. My seller was surprised to learn that- I didn’t return them, they are in one of those boxes of "fresh" old tubes stashed away here.

Even having been in this market for decades as a consumer, there is a lot to learn and nuances that aren’t obvious to the uninitiated- all the more reason to source tubes from a trusted seller. Andy is one of the best I’ve encountered in the States since the Great Disappearance™ of Elusive High End Tubes, but you have to be patient. He can’t always scratch the itch when you need a tube, pronto.