If you have tubes that have a fragile silkscreen (practically all old stock tubes) and you put them in boxes, the silkscreen will be rubbed off every time you take the tube out of the box to use it or just to look at it :). To save the beautiful silkscreen from wearing off, just use a small plastic bag. I use 2×3 inch bags I get from Amazon. Put the tube inside the back and then insert the tube back into a box. It fits even very tight fitting boxes. Now you can take out the tube without being afraid that it will be damaged.
Category Archives: Guides
A brief history of 12ax7 tubes

The 12ax7 tube is arguably the most popular audio vacuum tube that has ever been created. It’s popularity is driven by use in many Hi-Fi tube amplifiers and especially guitar amplifiers, where it’s pushed really hard and burns out fairly quickly. Introduced in May of 1947, the tube gained almost immediate popularity due to its very high gain – mu: 100, so it amplifies voltage 100x! Although I’ve seen JJ and Sovtek 12ax7 tubes go as high as 115, but that’s not up to spec.
Soviet/Russian Tubes Equivalents
This is a list of Soviet and Russian tubes and their American/European Equivalents.
Continue readingGE Five-Star Brand tubes
Another post in a series of legendary tube brands. This time I will go into details of General Electric (GE) Five-Star Brand.
Continue readingSylvania Gold Brand tubes
Practically all tubes in Gold Brand series have earned legendary status among audiophiles. In this article I will go into details of the brand and what makes it so special.
Continue readingWhat is a Foil Getter?

There are so many great tubes with what’s called Foil Getter. But what is it? How does it look?
Continue readingThe Best 6SN7 tubes

Which 6sn7 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 9th, 2020
Continue readingThe Best 12au7 tubes

Which 12au7/5814 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 7th, 2020
Continue readingThe Best 12ax7 tubes

Which 12ax7/5751 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 5th, 2020
Continue readingWhich tubes reign supreme?

Since we started this site in 2012, a lot of people contributed their reviews and ratings for various vacuum tubes. So 8 years have passed, which tubes have the highest rating?
Updated August 2nd, 2020
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