Tube rolling newbie- how to choose NOS tubes

+6 on Brent Jesse.

But first start with reading user experiences here. Go through a ton of them so that you have a fairly good idea on the "flavor" for each brand of NOS.

Then reach out to Brent Jesse and don't ask him about the NOS tubes you shortlisted. Just tell him YOUR preference - what you like your music to sound like or what you would not like. TBH, in my mind (reading experiences here), I would have thought about Amperex Bugle Boys. Based on my needs he advised  on Mazda Grey plates 1960s tubes. All I can say is I am super thrilled with these tubes. One thing about NOS is - they are so good that I did not feel the need to break them in. Of course, they will get better with time. But starting with hour 1 itself was a revelation.

The thing I do not like about NOS is - they are like drugs - you can check them out, but you cannot get off 🤨

"To void risk of being skimmed, buy current tubes."

Buy from credible vendors and you don't have to worry about it

Another vote for Brent Jesse. Having said that, different tubes have different tonal qualities.  So when you call BJ, let them know just what you’re looking for.

All the best.

@facten Credible vendors do almost same but from different "position".

Didn't you know that there are so many positions that you can get "poked". Read the ENTIRE Kamasutra to gen an idea how :) 

complete waste of time and money to buy nos or other tubes without significant run in time for your new component…. burn in, listen critically, discern where you want to go… (  IF you don’t know where you are going, ANY road ( and $$$$ ) will get you there…..