[Boatanchors] tubes

[Horace W. Hall]

>
I must be missing something.  4 brand new 12AU7 tubes by telefunken just
sold for $220.  $55 per tube!  wonder if there's any differnece in the
sound out of them compared to my regular 12AU7's?  =

>

I have been mystified by the demand for certain tube brands, plate shapes=
 &
colors, and even getter shapes. I doubt there is a real difference in
sound, but there are people in the audio community who believe there is. =
Or
perhaps having certain tube brands is a bragging point, like snagging a
12-point buck, or a record bass (no pun intended!). Sometimes, its just
that someone needed tubes more urgently than they needed the cash in thei=
r
pocket, so they paid whatever it took to get them. That is what makes som=
e
folks angry about auctions - the highest bid determines who gets the item=
.
Auctions don't favor who would love the thing the most, or even who may
have needed it the most. In that sense, they are no worse than fixed-pric=
e
first-come sales. The arbitrary factors are just different.
--Wayne

 =