Are all of these NOS tube inventories real? How have we not consumed them already?
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A lot of milspec valves were not boxed, just so you know, more like cases. with crap to seal them. Use to come 144 in a case of small valves and 6V6. 6L6 and 6550, came the same 12 X 12. Out of the pacific theater they had cosmoline on some of the metal valves, they were real fun to clean up and use... I knew one guy that boasted over 270 working valve amps. Valves for all of them. BIG time mac guy...Tube inventories sound close, 30,000 valves... Not close to Saginaw, Michigan are they? Regards |
Oh yes we have consumed it long ago, what remains as NOS even NIB (different thing) is any surplus from the 80’s for military use and most likely for the non popular ones. Otherwise term NOS is catchy and a good trap. That does not mean that a used tube is no good but is silly to pay as NOS. Still some collections will surely have gems and hunting them down is fun. G |
I recently bought a small lot on the evil site, mainly for the Sylvania Type 80 (ST enclosure) for the princely sum of $12.94 including tax and shipping. I’m pretty sure it is NOS, and it is a STUNNING rectifier in my Zen Amp. What I usually look for is a reliable seller who knows how to test tubes and includes all relevant measurements. NOS has NOT been consumed. |
Thanks all. Yes I was asking about new old stock not NIB. The whole NOS moniker seems to be everywhere from 5-6 large scale retailers and many other smaller specialists. I was able to get what was listed as new old stock circa 1969, with measurements and a taxonomy of the screen printing on the tube that I cross verified prior to purchase, and after 4 days use it really is beginning to sound amazing. Ironically though, after buying what was marketed as a single item, the dealer has more... so I thought hmmm. |
Tubes in the 40s, 50s and 60s were as common as transistors and all the chips of all varieties are now. Radios, TVs and just about any kind of electronic device were full of them. Radio and TV stations and many other large scale businesses used tons of them. The first computers used massive amounts of tubes. The changeover to transistors, etc. was pretty quick so there were very large numbers of them stashed all over the world. Although only a few varieties of tubes are used in audio, there are still a lot of them around. People like us who still use tubes are a very small number. As far as tube audio gear goes there is much more of it around now then there was in the 70s and 80s. So we don’t use them up very quickly. A smaller number of them are never used, or NOS. NIB means new in box. Whether it’s the same box the tube came in, who knows? It’s another marketing point. Buy your tubes from reputable dealers and you’ll get what you're paying for. |
Note that new tubes, or "currently manufactured tubes" for those who are seemingly confused about what NOS actually means, make up a lot of tube stock (not to be confused with "tube socks"), especially guitar and bass amps (of which I am certain use far more tubage than hifi)...making lots of room for the classic tubes of yesteryear to be used and eventually used up. I use both new (Gold Lion, KT120s, etc.) and NOS tubes because I can...people who don’t own any tube gear should still have a few tubes around simply to look at and because they will make anybody at least "seem" more interesting. |
NOS Mullards 12AX7 is an ECC83. Stock piles are though the roof of ECC83. They have a ways to go, to hit Tellies silky smooth old school valve sound, THAT is an ECC83. A 12AX7 that can hold its own and better most is the black plate RCA. yet the grays suck from the same time frame. GE 12AT7 gray plate, will best a lot of the the new stock.. Their problem, LOL they would do the under water deal.. Weird valve.. Good sound weird valve. Easy to figure that one. Tap test the valve at low volume. They will act up.. I'm tinkering with PSVANE too, that valve is really starting to peak my interest.. TAD is different to..close to JJ they have their place.. One of the deals of all time was an organ, left to me with a case of valves.. I had to pick it up in Texas. I long sense gave the organ to an up and coming church... I kept the valves..And put in JJ and EH. Still using it 5 years ago. The valves are hamon volvo, tellies and baldwin, also where I learned about gray plate RCAs. YUK.. Regards |
Wow very interesting and thanks everyone! Sounds like there indeed are that many real examples of NOS tubes out there and some have literally stockpiled enough to take them to the grave. @dill if you could take a pic or two and post, it would be wild to see even a fraction of the 30k tubes in that collection. :) Continued happy listening! |
would agree with @oldhvymec, at least on the preamp and low signal level tubes. There were tons and tons made. When tube production shifted from the US and Europe to Japan, many back then thought that was it, so hoarded US tubes by the boat load. Last year was out at RMAF. Ran into a guy and started talking tubes. He pulled out his phone and showed me pics of his 10 ft by 30 ft storage locker packed floor to ceiling with NOS tubes.......was something to see. |
Note that new tubes, or "currently manufactured tubes" for those who are seemingly confused about what NOS actually means NOS and NIB are descriptions that only apply to OLD STOCK tubes. These terms shouldn’t be used with current production tubes. All of those should be unused and come in a box. Many current production tubes use the names of the premier tube companies from the past like Mullard, Telefunken, Genelex, etc. All the current production tubes have in common with the old stock tubes are the names they have licensed from whoever owns the rights. The materials and construction are very different. I’m not knocking current production tubes, Many people like the sound of current production tubes for small signal (preamp) tubes, and they are about the only type you can get for power tubes. |
Whether it is a dealer or eBay, there is a lot of marketing fluff. The only way to know the life left in a tube is to have a transconductance and gas test. That said there are many tube testers in use that are not calibrated and the results are not accurate. An old tube that is not correctly tested and sold as good could quickly go bad and take out bits of your amp and preamp. |
Just like with old Roman coins, there are caches of tubes to be found and there are those that do the job of finding them. Your best bet is to find a reputable dealer and one of them is Brent Jessee: http://www.audiotubes.com/ Take a look at the chart, choose your tube, and then proceed to read the history of the tube, the types available, and what he has in stock. All the best, Nonoise |
There may be lots of NOS or NIB tubes around but try finding a truly NEW late 1950's early 1960s Siemens and Halske Cca 6922 grey plates or a late 1950's pinched waist Valvo Cca 6922. Abot a decade ago a dealer told me NOS was anything that still tested OK, and NIB was anything that tested OK in any box. Just look at the pins... they tell a tale and beware fakes. You can print just about anything on anything. |
To write off someone like Brent who's been at this longer than most and is honest as the day is long because one dealer told you something tells me a lot. Just like one can print anything about anything is like anyone can post anything about almost anything. Have you ever dealt with the guy? All the best, Nonoise |
You really just have to do your homework with vintage valves or NOS. You need to know what labels, plates, and getter constructions look like, and be able to look up valid date codes. The vacuum tube industry was just as incestuous and precarious as the record pressing industry. Many brand name tubes were assembled at other tube companies factories and the tooling changed hands as well. There’s a lot to know. Often, someone like Andy at VTS is one who could tell you what’s what. Fore mentioned Kevin from Upscale and Brent Jessee are all good resources, but you pay for what you get. Many other folks are just talking out of their arses. Parroting what someone else has said on the internets. Crazy. If high quality signal tubes last 5-10k hours, it’s not much of an argument that they are a value even at several hundred dollars apiece if you find the right tubes, in the right condition, for the right circuit! But now, or cry later. |
"new old stock in white boxes" you should be wary. Especially if these NOS are not military (JAN) tubes. A box doesnt prove that the tube is NOS, but the lack of an original box usually is very telling. I find this to be true, of all the tubes I have purchased the only one that failed was one that didn't have an original box. |
Well, I filled up the Tahoe with almost half of the collection. I thought this was a collection that was purchased from an avid McIntosh collector and where mostly NOS. I was wrong. True he was a McIntosh collector, however the tubes are not mostly NOS, but have all been tested with the bad ones decarded. There are quite a few ham tubes but thankfully no TV tubes, plus some really bazaar ones. This is just half the batch so far but I did get a look at his secret stash, now we are talking. Several bins of
Genalex, Western Electric, RCA, Telefunken, Mullard, Valvo, etc. all tested on his Amplitrex tester complete with printout. I will be selling those after all the others are gone. Not sure yet if there are 30,000 tubes, however there are certainly 5 figures total. This project will take quite awhile. |
Found 9 pc of NOS Western Electric 300b tubes in an attic a little over a year ago, been sitting for decades. So yea, stuff is still out there.Also purchased a tightly matched quad of old Tungsol 6550 that were NOS from a friend at a bargain price, tested as new on a Amplitrex tester. They were in a box that was normally sold to bulk purchasers along with a lot more of them. Bulk purchasers didn't get individual boxes for each tube, just dividers in the box to protect them. He found them at a garage sale for next to nothing and was not into tube gear at all. Hence selling them cheap.I'm sure there are still stashes out there but they are getting harder to find. BillWojo |
