6sn7 valves

[mr l]

there are some 6sn7 valves for sale on ebay aust,different brands including: marconi,sylvania & philips.
all valves are used but tested.
would they be worth purchasing vs new electro harmonix 6sn7's & what brand would have better quality/reliability?http://electronics.listings.ebay.co...omZR4QQsacategoryZ3284QQsocmdZListingItemList
can be viewed on this link.
thanks,
mike

 

[Geek]

I have several and of different brands. The 6/12SN7 was a very well built, well thought out tube. While different brands may sound different, there will be none dissappointing. Just my humble $0.02 😉

 

[EC8010]

If you need 6SN7 because you have classic equipment designed to use them, then ebay might be as good a place as any to buy them. Those Philips Miniwatts were tested with an AVO CT160. Like most testers, it's just about capable of discriminating between duds and useable valves, and that's about it. Only a curve tracer or a test in the proposed circuit can establish quality or matching that's worth paying for.

If you are prepared to change the valve base, there are loads of NOS 7N7 and 14N7 that can be had far more cheaply.

 

[audiousername]

7N7/14N7 also has been found to be a little lower distortion than 6SN7GT/12SN7GT. About 2dB less H2, the same H3 and 1dB less H4.

In Australia, a source for NOS 7N7 and Loctal (B8G) sockets is Evatco here in Victoria. It is a bit of a shame that the sockets are nearly the same price as the valves, but this is a problem with most Loctal types.

BTW, the distortion figures were not from my work. They are quoted from Morgan Jones' Valve Amplifiers.