Electro-Harmonix 6H30pi Gold vs Sovtek 6H30pi eb


Hi, first, I can't afford 8 of the 6H30 dr's. My preamp tubes are over 4 years old, I almost replaced the preamp, but my BAT VK 51SE is here to stay for awhile (poor me, it's pretty good!)

1)Has anyone compared the Sovtek 6H30's to the Electro-harmonix 6H30's?

2)Several places like thetubestore.com and tubedepot.com offer matching on the Sovtek 6h30's. Does anyone know a supplier that matches 6H30 tubes for Electro-harmonix? I emailed both the above places and they currently don't offer matching for the EH 6H30's.

Thanks in advance!
128x128jfrech
In answer to your first question, I've not compared the electro harmonix's to the sovteks but I have compared them to the 6h30 dr's and they compare very favorably particularly when you consider price. The 6h30 dr's are better but not $250 a pair better!not even close. I can live with the electro harmonix's they sound very good!!
I purchased mine from the tubestore but can't remember whether they were matched or not, all I know is they sound great.
I would talk to audio research and see what they recommend as electro harmonix is their stock tube for all of their equipment.
I have a set of Sovteks and EH Gold Pins for my BAT VK-51SE. Sovteks are new. I'm waiting for them to break in. They have about 50 hours, which is probably enough but to have a piece of mind I will let them run for a total of 100 hours. So far from what I remember the EH Gold Pins possibly had a bit more bass and just a tad more midrange lushness and also highs were a bit softer. But then again, until I swap them this weekend, I won't know.

Sovtek are fine tubes though. Probably a bit more durable than the EH and less noisy. May be a bit more neutral.

Anyway, I'll report back if you're interested.
Electro harmonix 6H30pi gold,sounding more sweet and a bit warm than Sovtek ,but sovtek have better transparency & more dynamic.