What makes Telefunken tubes sound better?


I've reached the point in sampling 12AU7 tubes below $100 per tube where I'm having to buy tube crates to keep the pairs I've sampled. I've tried NOS and new, but out of all I end up back with Telefunkens as having the least distortion and fastest transient response. Yet the Telefunken internals are not the best materials/quality; NOS Mullard CV4003 or the new Gold Lions have higher build quality for materials and precision.

Are there links somewhere that talk to what is different for the internal design/construction of a Telefunken tube? I'd like to support newer tube manufacturers based on educated consumerism, and hope that we can get someone to replace Telefunken at an affordable cost before NOS stock is no longer an option.
128x128davide256
looking for technical details.. was there a particular design, materials or construction principle? What would say of a newer tube "they are emulating how telefunken tubes are constructed"? I can see tube manufacturing differences but which mattered?
Actually; some of the best tubes were manufactured for, "Post Germany" in the 1950's -60's. ie: The CCa is a special low noise, low microphonic, long-life E88CC/6922. Philips had similar designations for the Dutch Post, some tubes that were selected had PTT and BP lettering or etched designations, but they were the same as a top specification E88CC. The, "German and Dutch Post" consisted of telephone, telegraph, and telex, tube technologies, which required a very low noise E88CC/6922. A CCa is the same as a 6922 but was tested and certified with high mA, RP, and Mu and lowest-noise audio threshold. Most of the telephone centrals used vacuum tube technology equipment for telephone equipment, requiring a "noise-free" environment. The ECC803S(1950's) was selected for long life(10K hrs), S/N ratio and ultra-low microphonics, for use in avionics/aircraft radios. The letters, "CC" probably equate to, "double triode." For a special low-noise design, in the 6922 family; the frame-grid inner construction, was actually invented by Amperex USA, and appeared everywhere in the 6922/E88CC designs of the day, including Siemens Halske, Telefunken, Amperex, Philips, and many other brands.
@Mr J- The author of that article would have made Julian
Hirsch very proud. I'm certain, if he had reviewed tube
equipment; he wouldn't have heard much difference either. The
sonic differences between various iterations and year of
manufacture, within the same
family of tube, and the various brands, are usually anything
BUT subtle or, "tiny." Nor, in my experience, are
the differences dependent on the equipment(usually).
I don't think you'll find anyone emulating the materials or manufacturing practices of Telefunken today. Totally different eras.

Today's manufacturers use computers, modern materials and manufacturing techniques to optimize the sound of their tubes while Telefunken used materials and manufacturing techniques that are no longer feasible.