Buying Tubes Again; Maddening


Has anyone tried the new production Genalex 'Gold Lion' 12AX7's and 12AT7's? I've been using the pricey Sophia Electric's but they just don't last long enough in my Hovland HP-100 phono-stage to justify the cost (they do sound pretty good though)...
stickman451
Now what do you call long and short lasting tubes? Just curious.
As for complaining, audiophiles and people in general always find something to complain about.
Post removed 
Every since I went to NOS tubes, I haven't had that problem. There is a thread here someplace that confirms that.
Changing tubes frequently to avoid costly breakdowns and also the cost of tubes was the reason I bid tube gear a found farewell after many years . With the type of solid state gear thats available the last five years or so , plus careful selection I lost nothing in sound quality .
I have the HP-100 also, Stickman... the very unit used by a 'Famous 6Moons Reviewer' and tube "collector"/reseller for about 8 years as the reference. Unfortunately it's packed away for now until remodeling/reconfiguring is completed here, and I can't easily get at it to pop the top. However, it went through rounds of tube rolling by the previous owner -- to his, I'd tend to vouch, very balanced, musical tastes -- and interestingly, he found the cheerfully inexpensive JJ 12AX7's to be optimum in the phono stage, combined with the selected NOS he chose to employ elsewhere inside (which I don't recall, except for a Mullard, I believe, at the phono stage's output). So you might want want to give the JJ option(s?) a try: I suspect the Mullard adds a touch of addtl. warmth to the mix.

All the usual H. Grails were available, BTW. Also, his circumstances meant that a variety of different amps got hitched to the Hovland, which I understand retained a consistent, neutral character throughout. This result significantly influenced my purchase decision, being (I like to think) a practical guy. Write me, if you'd like, but I'd put it at < 50/50 that he'll remember the total tube mix exactly. Caution: this unit has had all the factory upgrades performed (you didn't say in your case), so your Hovland may be a somewhat different beast.