Seeking best sounding El-34 tubes for my power amplifier

Thanks to those regarding the Psvane EL34PH, I have yet to try that one. Rogue just updated my 180’s to Dark level and shipped back with Psvane KT-88’s. I did some break in but not a final setup, so no opinion yet. I see a couple mentions on sources, but are most of you buying direct from Psvane China ? In my case I’d need an octet hopefully matched. I’m also curious if anyone has done a direct comparison with nos Mullard FX EL34’s ? I have a few musician friends I swap tubes with and they would be interested in an opinion, if so please PM me. Regards , Mike B. 

Amperex EL 34, are the best I have heard in 50 years of Audio.today $1200 for a quad .

There is no best sounding EL34. I learned this the hard way. I have about 300-400 tubes in my collection and thought the same way you do. All tubes will have their own unique sound. Many are really good sounding while others aren’t. But at times even the tubes that aren’t very good sounding are the best sounding in a particular place. For instance, on one of my tube preamps, a tube I actually think is the worse sounding from the tubes I have actually is the one that sounds the best because it’s a synergy thing. But if you want my opinion on a great sounding EL34, I always recommend Tesla brown base double halo getters made in the 70’s. I compared them to many tubes including 1960’s Mullards and I personally like the Tesla’s. But like I was saying, you need to put the tube in your circuit and hear if you like it, there is no best when it come to audio and something matching with the rest of your setup. 

There is no best sounding EL34. I learned this the hard way. I have about 300-400 tubes in my collection and thought the same way you do. All tubes will have their own unique sound. Many are really good sounding while others aren’t. But at times even the tubes that aren’t very good sounding are the best sounding in a particular place. For instance, on one of my tube preamps, a tube I actually think is the worse sounding from the tubes I have actually is the one that sounds the best because it’s a synergy thing. But if you want my opinion on a great sounding EL34, I always recommend Tesla brown base double halo getters made in the 70’s. I compared them to many tubes including 1960’s Mullards and I personally like the Tesla’s. But like I was saying, you need to put the tube in your circuit and hear if you like it, there is no best when it come to audio and something matching with the rest of your setup. 

Dear Low Tubes:  Since I need 16 tubes, 8 per monoblock, it seems important that I purchase a reliable tube. I do realize that there is no best tube and a great deal of subjectivity is involved. I have limited my search to new production tubes such as the Mullards made by New Sensor in Russia and the PS Vane tubes from China. Looking for a seller that has match quads or octets. I see many dealers selling the same tube for a selling price that varies as much as 30%. Is the higher priced dealer selling a better product such as testing the tube before its sold? Appreciate any opinions.