Tube tester...anyone own their own?

I too took the Amplitrex plunge. Yes is was expensive. Yes it was worth every penny. I couldn't live without it.

The bad news? A lot of the tubes we buy are not near as good as advertised. There is no ambiguity with the AT1000, it tells you exactly what you have. Few new production tubes I've bought even comes close to NOS.

Get headphones, plug them into the Amplitrex, gently touch the top of the tube with the eraser of a pencil. It's amazing how many tubes are microphonic.

I have five, i.e., Stark, Marconi, B&K, Heathkit, and a Western Electric KS-15750-L1 from estate of Alan Douglas who wrote The Book of Tube Testers and Classic Electronic Test Gear.

They are all sweet :)

I hadn’t been aware that Alan Douglas had passed away, but I see via a quick Google search that he died unexpectedly in 2015 at the age of 72. Very sad.

I have the definitive and beautifully done series of books he authored on "Radio Manufacturers of the 1920s."

On another note, Grant (Tvad), great to see you back here! Hope all is going well for you.

Best regards,
-- Al

@ the OP, if you are testing drivers ok, for testing output power tubes not really worth the money
Tube testers are old instruments, with degraded parts, right now Roger is trying to rebuild the transformer of a 752 A I sent him some time ago, Roger he is one of the best if not the best, very honest and straight person. With the tester calibrated and ready to go it is advisable to use a variac to supply plate current to the tube so the measurement is more accurate if your tester is old like most are.

Don expect you will be able to measure tubes with high precision, unless you spend a lot of money and time. I own a BK707 too and it is a toy it constantly drifts.

Not trying to discourage you but it all depends on what you want it for. Which tubes and amp / preamp will you be using? How often will you be measuring?