Valves Update and New Products
I have not posted for a while. We have had the perfect storm of loads of amps to service, expanding the product line and sourcing valves.
We have seen the insides of Voxes, Marshalls, Fenders in the past few weeks. I have a dead Fender Frontman 212R solid state amp as it was supposed to be unfixable. One hour later and it is basically working. It does need new pots though.
Here is a valves and new products update.
Valves Update
Russian Valves
The large Russian factory seems to have shut down in June and so far has not re-opened. UK sanctions on Russia have, in effect, made these product unavailable. The key question is whether this factory can survive long protracted sanctions.
No new factory deliveries in the UK . This covers EHX, Genalex/Gold Lion, Sovtek and Tung Sol products in the UK. Other countries are impacted by Mullard and Svetlana re-issue valves. We cannot expect ro see any of these brands exported from Russia anytime soon.
We are still finding some stock of these brands in various corners of Europe. We have to be very careful in our sourcing because the fakers are still active.
Our stock sill includes Tung Sol 6L6GC-STR, EL34B , 12AX7, 12AU7 and EHX preamp valves
NOS Russian stock for common types such as the EL84 are on their way to us These will be on sale as matched quads and pairs by 14th September.
JJ Electronic Valves
JJ is still quoting 22 months delivery and we have had orders placed with them for many months. No sign of any product arriving. We have blanket orders placed but just need JJ to send us some valves!
PSVane Classic series ECC83 are on the shlef and customer feedback is that they like it. It is a good subsitute for the JJ ECC83S
Tube Amp Doctor ( TAD)
We are now official TAD dealers and we have started stocking their product range. Their new factory in China ( NOT SHUGUANG as they are gone) is making a small range of valves and we have stock of their newly introduced valves. They are sold using the “REDBASE” family name.
Our objective is to continue to expand our valve product line as new products enter production.
Here is a list of the upcoming new REDBASE production valves we can expect to see in the coming months :
- ECC83WA
- 7025WA
- 12AX7A
- KT88-STR
- 6550A-STR
- 12AT7 / ECC81
- EL84 -STR
Western Electric
Western Electric in the USA is planning to manufacture valves for the musical instrument amp market and we are keeping a watchful eye on availability from this new supplier. Their focus to date has been on the hi-fi market. They currently make the 300B power triode and have recently introduced their 6V6’S, 6L6’s , El34’s , 12BH7’S. .
New Products in Our Shop
There is a new catogory in our shop – Amp Parts
New stock includes :
- Virtually the whole range of JJ’s axial and radial can electrolytic capacitors with 500 and 560 volt ratings.
Belton valve sockets and also screening cans - Bear trap retainers for octal base valves.
- EL84 spring retainers
Drop us a line with suggestions on what products you think we should stock. We started stocking the JJ caps because I found it challenging to find stock of 80uF and 40uF+three 20uF in one can. These are found in Fender amps. The Fenderpurists dont want the 80uF substituted with a 100uF !