RAY Tube Brand

pearsall001 · January 30

Anyone have any listening experience with the RAY brand tubes... their 6sn7 Reserve in particular. Any other recommendations welcome.

maxward · January 30

Coupla reviews on Positive Feedback.

heiney9 · January 30

No, but.....

https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/hardware-reviews/ray-tube-vacuum-tubes/

A Chinese tube company that seems to take it seriously. Pretty pricey. Looks like attention to detail is very high. 12 month warranty is pretty impressive.

I would whole hardheartedly recommend 60-70's Russian 6H8C. Direct 6SN7 sub. I have some here that are really impressive. If you search for them they can be pretty economical in cost. They have a balance that is uncanny, great bass, just enough midrange bloom and a sweet high end.

But anyway that's my .02c

H9

Toolfan66 · January 31

If you have the space, don’’t overlook the LinLai E-6SN7, great tubes..

Edit: Looks like the RAY Tubes are similar in size as the LinLai, I might just have to give them a try as well.

Where are you looking to purchase them from?

Toolfan66 · January 31

So going through Apos to clad my Cary SLP 05 it would be $276.00 a tube.

For some reason buying a pair cost more then buying two single tubes, and buying a quad cost more then buying two pair.
Can't seem to find any reason why they do this..
Single Tube $242.00
Matching Pair $552.00 = $276.00ea
Matching Quad $1173.00 = $293.25ea

Pretty Pricey..

pitdogg2 · January 31

Sounds like there is a cost to match the tubes, there's no cost to match just one tube, so that is the price for one. Then the cost of the container to ship the tubes to you goes up in cost with multiple tubes.
There is no way I'm spending that kind of money on new production tubes.

heiney9 · January 31

Toolfan66 wrote: »

So going through Apos to clad my Cary SLP 05 it would be $276.00 a tube.

For some reason buying a pair cost more then buying two single tubes, and buying a quad cost more then buying two pair.
Can't seem to find any reason why they do this..
Single Tube $242.00
Matching Pair $552.00 = $276.00ea
Matching Quad $1173.00 = $293.25ea

Pretty Pricey..

That's for the top level tube. They have 2 levels below that. Not sure how you get 3 levels of quality out of the same tube line.

heiney9 · January 31

I am glad someone is taking the time and putting in the effort to make new tubes. But they are expensive and obviously positioned as a boutique product. I bet they are high quality, just not sure how they sound.

Toolfan66 · January 31

They definitely come off as a boutique product, you can’t purchase them from common tube outlets.
They make the LinLai’s that much better of a buy for new production tubes..

pearsall001 · January 31

Thanks for all the information guys! Yeah they do indeed seem pricey. I'll keep my eyes open for something more reasonable.
Any specific tube vendors you like to deal with?

heiney9 · January 31

So many have gone defunct.

There is Brent Jesse. He's solid, but I've noticed his stock dwindling and prices going up......but what prices aren't going up.

Viva Tubes - Again NOS tube stock is dwindling and prices have gone through the roof.

Tube World - his prices for some stuff is looney bin high, IMO.

TC tubes, prices are decent, not a lot of NOS left. But he has some good 6SN7 pairs

These are very nice 6SN7's for not a lot of money, IMO

https://www.tctubes.com/RCA-6SN7GTB-matched-pair-1950.aspx

H9

pearsall001 · January 31

Thanks Brock, I'll check them all out.

pitdogg2 · January 31

Over the years I've done real well from sellers on ebay.

heiney9 · January 31

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Over the years I've done real well from sellers on ebay.

I've bought 97% of my tubes off Ebay and I think in 20 years I've only had a few bad situations. Over time, reading ads over and over you know what to look for. Many times (most times) I've had to ask several questions about the tubes for sale. Like, codes, plate type, getter type, etc to verify what the seller has.

By nature I'm cheap......err I mean a responsible buyer, so I have been willing to wait for exactly what I was looking for, and a price I was willing to pay. Sellers with dodgy answers, or no response, I move on to the next seller.

I've posted this site before. He's more about how they sound vs. highly detailed visual cues. But it's been very helpful and I mostly agree with his opinions.

https://tubemaze.info/

He's a solid seller and he knows what he has so his prices are higher than typical Ebay seller, but not as high as some of the crazy NOS dealer/sellers.

NOS tubes are disappearing and I've seen crazy prices on Ebay, but in general the crazy priced sellers don't sell much, so you see the ad for months and sometimes years.

Look at feedback and how long they've been selling.

H9

P.s. IMO, with Old Stock tubes they don't need to be unused. The true NOS tubes that have never been played are through the roof in price. Good used pulls of the exact same tube is much more economically priced (usually). Used tubes will last a very long time, so buying slightly used is the best practice.

mhardy6647 · January 31

FWIW, I concur wholeheartedly with @heiney9's valedictory comment above.
Nothin' wrong with good used pulls.

pitdogg2 · January 31

Sellers with dodgy answers, or no response, I move on to the next seller.

heiney9 · January 31

I'm still amazed, and one of the reason I'm so fascinated by vacuum tubes, is what a time capsule they represent. Hard to believe in this throw away world these little glass bottles are still doing their thing 50-60-75 years later.

Its so fascinating to think where and with whom these tubes have been.

H9

Toolfan66 · January 31

heiney9 wrote: »

I'm still amazed, and one of the reason I'm so fascinated by vacuum tubes, is what a time capsule they represent. Hard to believe in this throw away world these little glass bottles are still doing their thing 50-60-75 years later.

Its so fascinating to think where and with whom these tubes have been.

H9

Agreed. 👍

The only thing on my end is owning the SLP-05, and me being very anal on how things not only sound but how it looks as well, it’s not easy to find a full nice set of tubes for this unit.
Not saying I don’t have nice full sets, I do, but hunting is tough when you’re as anal and obsessed like an addict looking for that perfect high as I am..

The LinLai’s have helped slow that roll for me, they are fantastic tubes, they sound great, and look great on this unit.
I would be all in for trying the Ray’s if they were closer to the same cost of the LinLai’s, not worth it for the price owning the Cary..

Yes, I said I have nice full sets.. LOL!!

invalid · January 31

The Linlai is really great sounding tube, it didn't last quite as long as my kenrad's but still lasted over 2 years when powered up 24/7, the kenrad's still test good after over 3 years of continuous 24/7 besides when I go on vacation or thunderstorms. The best tube seller of NOS tube I know of is Andy at vintage tube service, he coined the phrase chrome Dome back in the 70,s.

pitdogg2 · January 31

Nice !! Just added vintage tube service to my favorites!!

invalid · January 31

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Nice !! Just added vintage tube service to my favorites!!

You have to be patient with vintage tube service he does take longer to ship tubes than most other vendors. He tried hiring people many years ago and they didn't do the job as well as he did, he is a perfectionist.

RAY Tube Brand

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