My Tube Collection, Welcome to share yours

[oldvinyl]

I have a few View attachment 154943

It all starts with one tube ...


And then you find one to match it ...

And then you find another matched set ...

And then you realize that you might need some spares ....

And then an irresistible set come along to add to the others ...

By this point, your tube dealer realizes that you are hopeless and they make other makes of this type available ...

And then, 30 years later, you sort through them ...

 

[Dr Morbius]

Absolutely it always starts with one tube, or in my case 4 tubes!

 

[Dr Morbius]

Or this:

 

[oldvinyl]

Absolutely it always starts with one tube, or in my case 4 tubes!

But wait - you'll run out of room!

 

[oldvinyl]

But you know you're in over your head when people start to talk about Holy Grail types of tubes. Examples include the Tung-Sol VT-231 with round plates.

And of course you somehow manage to find some.

 

[adrian cheng]

But you know you're in over your head when people start to talk about Holy Grail types of tubes. Examples include the Tung-Sol VT-231 with round plates.
View attachment 155016
And of course you somehow manage to find some.
View attachment 155017

I don't have these Tung-sol 6sn7, not sure how they sounds like

 

[oldvinyl]

Here's some Philips 5R4GYS.


I haven't worked out the date code. Any ideas?

 

[adrian cheng]

Here's some Philips 5R4GYS.
View attachment 155072
View attachment 155073
I haven't worked out the date code. Any ideas?
View attachment 155074

Made in France Philips Suresnes factory 1975 47 weeks

 

[oldvinyl]

Made in France Philips Suresnes factory 1975 47 weeks

Thank you!

 

[adrian cheng]

Thank you!

You are very welcome

 

[adrian cheng]

Mullard M8137 with shiny plate, the only shiny plate in the whole production .

 

[oldvinyl]

Has your system lost its spirit and soul?
Does your stereo need its essence resurrected?

These tubes will save your system. The inner light and halo of sound will be restored.

Perhaps the Vatican had a little business on the side?


These were made in Belgium by Mazda, June 1951.

 

[adrian cheng]

Has your system lost its spirit and soul?
Does your stereo need its essence resurrected?

These tubes will save your system. The inner light and halo of sound will be restored.

Perhaps the Vatican had a little business on the side?
View attachment 155099
View attachment 155100
These were made in Belgium by Mazda, June 1951.
View attachment 155101

Mine's are exactly the same but with Mullard print

 

[oldvinyl]

Mine's are exactly the same but with Mullard printView attachment 155102View attachment 155103

My Mullards are this variant:

oops, sorry about the blurry image

 

[adrian cheng]

My Mullards are this variant:
View attachment 155106
oops, sorry about the blurry image
View attachment 155107
View attachment 155108

These are Brimar

 

[Dr Morbius]

Mine's are exactly the same but with Mullard printView attachment 155102View attachment 155103

I’m so jealous!

 

[oldvinyl]

I’m so jealous!

and perhaps saner!

 

[DasguteOhr]

These are interesting - Telefunken label, marked "SELECTED TUBE". Red tip. Made by Mullard. So .... why would Telefunken need Mullard to make them a tightly balanced, low noise, selected tube? Surely, they could produce them.
View attachment 154672
Date codes are Mullard.
View attachment 154673
Mullard Blackburn August 1967. ECC83 3rd production change.
View attachment 154674
No Telefunken <>, but there is an E.
View attachment 154675

Another one ---
View attachment 154676
View attachment 154677

When production was at full capacity, Telefunken outsourced work , mainly to ITT or RFT (GDR) and others. The best example is the GZ 34 with the Telefunken imprint. Telefunken never built the GZ34, it was always e.g f32 Mullard or Valvo, but they wanted to be represented on the market with their name.
Mostly the Made in Germany imprint was missing or intentionally misspelled " Western Germany

P.S
From 1967 when AEG and Telefunken merged, from 1970 it suddenly appeared in the tube primer..everything strange after that Telefunken was sold to Thomas Brandt later to Mercedes Benz the downfall was sealed end of era of tubes..

 

[oldvinyl]

These are Brimar

Ah! Thanks again. All the labels and codes ... trying to sort it out.

383 is a Brimar code for CV1988.
3E6 is 3rd week of May, 1956. It's 1950's since the code is 3 digits.

I was thrown off by the KB/FE.

 

[oldvinyl]

The eye of Sauron. This is an indicator "eye" tube used in amps. Also called magic eye and used for tuning indicator.

Used as power indicator.