300B tubes


I'm considering tube rolling on my Nagra 300p. It comes with 4 JJ 300bs, and I am curious about the Gold Lion re-issue 300B (had a great experience with their KT88s in the past). I am also considering the re-issued GE 300B and the Shuguang Treasure. Reliability and sound are both required in this price range. No troubles with the JJ - just curious to experiment.

I've read prior threads and searched the net. Thus far, very little on the Gold Lions, lots on the Shuguangs. Cheers and thanks.
hatari
I purchased 2 pairs of the GL 300b for a push-pull I got recently. I like their sound and they behave perfectly.

Some tubes just work better in certain circuits. Staying south of KR/EML/WE prices, I like the Sophia Meshes also.
"Some tubes just work better in certain circuits.”

I agree. I’ve also heard the same from some amp designers of note. FWIW, for me, the Sophia Royal Princess has been right on the money. And from what I recall of my auditions with Nagra (some time ago), I would find some way to listen to this tube in your amplifier. Talk to Sue at Sophia. I’ve known them to be very accommodating.
Jfrech - thanks! I love this amp - simple, small, sounds terrific. I have a VPS and PLP now too. Any advice on interconnects or power chords? Have you tried any battery units for the VPS (ie Red Wine Audio). I use stock cables. Also, what speaker cable was your dealer using in your listen on the 300p/i?
Thanks for the tube advice. The Sophia Royal Princesses are the most expensive tubes I've seen! I will look into them and call Sue. I may experiment a little with the Gold Lions first as a "reasonable" starting point.

Further input absolutely welcome and thanks.
So I love the Transparent Cables. Some of this might depend on your speaker choice, but they are just wonderful for me. Power cords I am using Shunyata again a great match.

Powercords are a big deal with Nagra, I've also found the power supply on your VPS likes good support (cones etc). Are you using the VFS shelf like your 300p amp has? It really helps the PLL and VPS (I stack these two-see my system pics)

I did try the red wine power supply. It really helps the VPS. Lowers the noise floor, everything is smoother, better flow to the music, better details. I'd go this route over a power cord.

Good luck on the tube hunt!