$1500 for a pair of 300Bs, wow ....... it seems so weird to budget that much money for a pair of tubes, doesn't it? Not long ago the new production matched Western Electrics were $800, Emission Labs were $495, KR $525, and so on. I don't know why tubes have gone up so much, but they have.
, so WE are probably out although I have seen pairs for around that figure but how reliable would they be.
Man,,, I would never buy anyone's "NOS" WE 300Bs for the kind of money they are going for. Most of the tubes that I have seen barely have any
getter material silver flashing left. You know they are well used, worn out, and on their way out. Your best bet is to move on and stop trying to get "that sound". You can't wake the dead. (IMHO of course.)
You mentioned that you owned EML XLS. I take it that you don't have them anymore? I would buy a pair of the regular solid plate, 300Bs from EML. I still think they are the best value right now. I say "right now" because KR just raised their price to $925 for their standard 300B. Last year I bought a pair of the standard ST shape KR 300B at the old, lower price during a 20% off sale from tubedepot. At the old price plus discount I would have recommended the KR over the EML because the KR does sound a little more refined than the EML in my amp and with my gear. But since the KR and EML sound more similar than different to me, there's no way the KR is worth an extra $375. Not to me anyway.
Having said that I would not be surprised if EML raises their prices soon. Why not, everyone else is. I would buy a pair and just enjoy some music for a while. That will give you some time to get to know your new set up and what kind of 300B flavor you think you need.
EAT should be releasing their re-issued 300B in the coming months. I think they will cost around $1200 a pair, but I could be wrong about that price.
As a recent 300B owner myself, I've found this thread over at Audio Asylum interesting
http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/set/messages/7/75165.html
I don't think "depressing" is a very appropriate term for today's 300B choices, except maybe for some of the pricing. I suppose if the only type of 300B sound that you can tolerate is from the Western Electric Era of days gone by, then sure. You can't get there from here. But EML and KR are not "solid state" or "electric" sounding to me. I would call them more transparent and dynamic. They are less pillowy soft, velvety warm, and cuddly than Western Electric, but then what isn't? Maybe Gordon designed his amps around the WE sound, and now he is painted into a corner. Who knows......
This amp was built specifically for low impedance cans. The lundahl transformers were wound to 40 ohms to match my LCD-3s. The sound is great. it is the best sounding phones amp I have ever heard.
Wow, that is a nice looking amp. Can you post more about it, either here or in the headphone circle? Was it a one time custom made project or is it something that anyone can purchase? Just curious.
(Sorry for the multiple edits.)
