Post by Dan NicoteraAny one know about these?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=5724444929&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT
Yeah, I know *all* about 'em.
In fact, I had the first four samples that were released
outside the New Sensor company.
First, let me debunk some of the hyperbole in the e-bay
item description:
"GREAT LATE BREAKING NEWS: The tube manufacturer
and distributor has purchased the MULLARD brand name
and is now manufacturing genuine MULLARD brand EL34
tubes to the ORIGINAL Mullard specifications!"
Well, not quite. It's easy enough to see that these new
Mullard EL34s share the plate structure (and hence, the
narrow bottle diameter) of the venerable Sovtek EL34s of
days gone by - the same plates which are currently used in
the Electro-Harmonix EL34 and the Svetlana-badged EL34
currently produced in the Reflektor factory. Both of which,
BTW, are *excellent* tubes for use in guitar amps. (Since
I neither know nor care how they perform in audiophool
equipment, I'll leave comments in that direction to the Logo
Snobs duly assembled on RAT and AGA. ;-) The metal
suspension prongs and the micas appear to be identical also.
The differences are all on the inside, according to JC,
chief design engineer at New Sensor. First, the screens are
now gold-plated and the wire diameter has been increased.
Second, the cathode temperature has been lowered a couple of
hundred degrees. Third, G1 is now wound exactly the same as
the old Mullards, instead of with the variable pitch common
today. The sonic result is indeed similar to the classic
Mullard signature, at least in guitar amplifiers.
"This auction is for a factory fresh PAIR OF BRAND NEW
MULLARD EL34 TUBES. This auction consists of one
matched pair. These tubes are brand new recently
manufactured stock and are supplied in brand new Mullard
boxes."
The boxes are indeed gorgeous. ;-) By dint of trade law,
they can indeed be called Mullards in the same sense that
the Ampeg bass amps currently produced by St. Louis Music
can be called Ampegs. They are indeed factory fresh, and
they do indeed bear the Mullard badge. Are they *exactly*
the same as the old ones, as this e-bay glass hustler (no
negativity implied; I'm a glass hustler myself, although I
don't mess with e-bay) so frothily claims? No, they are not.
They are, however, excellent tubes. They do indeed produce a
similar sonic signature in guitar amps, especially Marshalls.
I like 'em, and I'm carrying them. Whether or not they can
live up to the Mullard heritage in the longevity department
is yet to be seen, since they simply haven't been out long
enough to establish any sort of track record. The tests I've
been able to perform on them in the small amount of time I've
had the samples tell me that they're rugged enough to function
reliably in guitar amplifiers, and that's all I care about.
We'll see. ;-)
"These MULLARD tubes are not vintage NOS but they
are genuine MULLARD tubes made to vintage Mullard
EL34 single getter specifications (see below)."
See above. ;-)
"Note to eBay: These tubes are not counterfeits. The tube
manufacturer and distributor has legally purchased the
Mullard brand of tubes. He has had the engineers in his
Russian factory reverse engineer these EL34 tubes to match
the specifications of the original single-getter Mullard
EL34 tubes. These tubes are Russian manufactured genuine
Mullard brand tubes and do not violate any copyright or
trademark regulations."
The glass hustler is engaging in a bit of CYA here, and rightly
so. I'd have done the same thing, given the same situation.
I'm sure we'll be seeing plenty of abuses in this direction,
as shady e-bay operators begin to use these new tubes to fleece
unsuspecting noobs who can't tell the difference between these
new Mullards and the original ones.
"These genuine single getter MULLARD EL34 tubes have a wonderful
sound quality and clarity which is unobtainable with any other
currently manufactured EL34 tube, and matches the sound of the
vintage MULLARD EL34 tubes."
They do indeed sound good. (In my experience.) A finer point
may (and will, inevitably) be put on this by the audiophools,
who have no problem spending $1.5K for a six-foot AC line
cord to improve the sound of their $50 tubes. ;-)
"These brand new Mullard EL34 tubes are first being marketed by
us on eBay. These are introductory prices, which are expected
to rise soon. Stock up while they are still available at a
reasonable price."
Well, that one certainly set off the Lord's Bullshit Detector.
The initial supply is limited, of course, as Mike is a good
businessman and is understandably cautious about producing
tens of thousands of something that might not catch on in
the marketplace, Glass Snobs being the fickle and unpredictable
folks that they are. The prices, however, are certainly *not*
going to rise anytime soon; in fact, they'll go *down* when
the "new" wears off and demand picks up. This seller's $75
"buy it now" price for a pair is ridiculously high as it is;
given the dealer cost on this item, $49 is more like it (I'll
be selling pairs for that figure or less, depending on the
yield rate after burn-in, QC, and matching) and as I stated
above, that should come down in the coming months if demand
picks up and Mike increases production.
"On a personal note, I have heard these same model tubes in
my two Altec mono amps, and the sound is absolutely amazing.
I cannot tell the difference between vintage Mullard
single-getter EL34 tubes and these new Mullard EL34 tubes."
That's sales-weasel hyperbole. I can hear a difference in
Marshall amps. They sound very similar, true, and most of
the difference is in the overdrive characteristics - I think
the new Mullards sound *better* than the old ones when driven
into distortion; they cream up *very* nicely. Of course, I'm
a lowly ivory-smasher and I'll defer to the hallowed opinions
of the string-plinkers, once I get enough feedback from the
cats who buy the first batch.
"Don't just take my word for it..."
I'm not. ;-)
Bottom line: good tube. One man's opinion, of course, but
I *have* had a bit of experience in picking glass. As with
every new tube I evaluate, I'm completely unconcerned with
the logo on the glass or how the box looks, or which country
it was manufactured in, etc. - all I care about is how it
sounds in a guitar amplifier. (Or, in my case, a Hammond
or a Leslie.) So far, I like 'em. 'Nuff said.
Lord Valve
Tone Chaperone
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