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Are MULLARD NOS EL34s and LTA ZOTL40 REF worth the price of admission?

I'm considering giving an older Linear Tube Audio (LTA) ZOTL40 Ref amp an audition.  LTA has a factory upgrade that includes upgrading to Mullard NOS EL34s for $800 (or less with additional discounts).  I am wondering if quad set of old-stock Mullard EL34s are worth the $800 price of admission?  I don't pretend to know what anyone else's budget is but $800 for quad EL34s seems like a lot.  If I'm paying the premium, it better be across the board and not just improvements on chamber music or obscure Chinese opera (no offense intended).  Does anyone have experience with either NOS Mullard tubes or LTA ZOTL40 Ref amp?  If so, please chime in.  Thanks.
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Showing 1 response by akg_ca

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akg_ca
2,151 posts
 

I bit the bullet by recently replacing the tubes in my REGA ISIS VALVE cdp/DAC with NOS MULLARDs.

Were they better ? Yes. No surprise here.

Were they worth it ?
(1) That is a personal value judgement, because they are comparatively expensive. (2) In short …. “YES” for me, because it’s for a $13,000+ unit wherein

(a) the added outlay for NOS MULLARDs is a very modest percentage of the sum total , and

(b) the added performance improvement quotient in a highend unit actually capable of the added resolution in NOS MULLARDs is clear and unambiguous.

Would I spend the cash for NOS MULLARDs on a modestly built and modestly priced unit? No…it’s a very risky poker shoot at best for units in this pricepoint strata , and a highly likely disappointing outcome in a common sense approach for failures …for the same reasons highlighted above. They alone won’t be a silver bullet fix providing a Jesus moment here.

 

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