Seems that TAD 6L6WGC is discontinued... Suggestions

[Charlie Wilson]

There is a guy on Ebay selling pairs for $90.
CW

[pdf64]

The fire looks to have been quite a while ago, August 2019 https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?thread ... wn.685231/
So 2 years later, it’s not impossible for a new facility to have been started up by now, though the pandemic makes that even less likely.
Is it certain that the new red base TADs are from Russia?

[Bombacaototal]

I just got a set of the red base tubes which replaced my previous blackbase ones and in all honesty, to my ears they sounds as close as I could hope for. Construction wise they seem identical as well. Hope it helps

[gktamps]

+1 on Tung Sols. Just put a pair in my ODS type amp to replace worn out RCA tubes, and am happy with the tone.

[Roe]

lots of strange claims here. TAD still offers new tubes from China. They write (text underlined by me):

(As of 16 March 2022)

Without a doubt, the current situation on the tube market can be classified as dramatic. In any case, for years, there have been only three noteworthy manufacturers of audio amplifier tubes such as 12AX7 / ECC83, EL84, EL34 and 6L6GC.

In August 2019, the largest manufacturer Shuguang closed its factory in order to move to a larger and more modern location. Unfortunately, the new production facility has not been granted permission for two years now. In the meantime, leading employees have left or have been compensated. This probably means the end of the Shuguang Electron Tube Factory.

The second major manufacturer in Russia, known mainly for the Sovtek, Electro Harmonix, Tung-Sol and Gold-Lion brands, can no longer export tubes since the Russian sanctions came into force.

This leaves only JJ as the smallest of the three big manufacturers. And their delivery time was already up to 18-20 months, even before the Russian sanctions.

REDBASE®

As we anticipated the development with Shuguang at a very early stage, we had already intensified a new cooperation with a small manufacturer in China in 2020. We knew that they had acquired the production facilities of another tube manufacturing plant that had been closed in the early 2000s, but had not yet used them for the types of tubes we required so urgently after Shuguang ceased production.

Working closely together, we facilitated a massive expansion and modernisation of the production facilities and started with the TAD 6L6GCM-STR REDBASE in spring 2021. This was followed by the TAD 6L6WGC-STR, the TAD EL34-STR, the TAD 12AU7A / ECC82 and the TAD GZ34-STR.

Currently, we are expecting the start of volume production of the new TAD ECC83WA, 7025WA, 12AX7A/7025, 12BH7A-STR and KT88-STR right now, followed by more models such as the 6V6GT-STR, 6550A-STR, 12AT7 / ECC81 and EL84-STR REDBASE series in the near future. https://www.tubeampdoctor.com/en/curren ... fier-tubes


See also https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index ... k.2552175/

[dorrisant]

Thanks for digging that up, Roe!

[didit]

Hello --

Recent agreeable result with a set of these ::

https://www.thetubestore.com/preferred-series-6l6wgc

Said to be their updated take on TAD's 6L6WGC, a brand which they had dropped -- packaging says "Canada"; everything else implies made in China to Canadian specifications, and then their own burn-in, QA, and of course their packaging.

Best ..

[Guy77]

Another nod to these short bottle Tung Sol tubes.

https://www.thetubestore.com/tung-sol-6l6gc-str

They sound great.

Happy New Year everyone!!
Cheers
Guy