Telefunken vacuum tube E88CC-TK; NOS versus brand new.

@melm- Upscale Audio tests and rates their tubes for noise, as do some of the other tube mongers.     Look for his, "Platinum" rating, for the quietest.                  https://upscaleaudio.com/pages/grading-matching     Brent Jessee’s noise testing procedure, about half way down this page: http://www.audiotubes.com/6dj8.htm       Can’t go wrong, with either of those sellers.

"For my Fosgate Sig phono-pre Musical Surroundings used to provide Chinese 6922 tubes whose principal quality was that they were especially quiet. The pre is all tube w/60db gain, no solid state, no SUT. The pre (while still great) has not been made or sold for a long time and those tubes are no longer available from MS. I keep looking for quieter and quieter, phono-pre quiet, 6922s at a good price. Any suggestions?"

melm-

I have the Fosgate-version 2. If you want NOS, 7DJ8 as another alternative.

 They can be found at reasonable prices compared to other 6DJ8's.  I use the Japanese Matsushita. Can't say I actually hear any improvement. According to the manual, the Foz himself says the 12ax7 in the V3 slot is the "money tube". Triode matching in both halves of the tube is important for that position, based on the manual.

I just took a look at what the tube I use is going for. It used to go for half of what it is now, when I purchased them just a couple of years ago. Still less than some of the others. The new Russian tubes are probably fine, and reasonably priced.

Guys used to buy obsolete Tektronix oscilloscopes, in order to harvest from them the Telefunken 6922s, for use in their audio systems. I suppose they are all gone by now. In my one piece of gear that uses 6922s, I have been very happy with Siemens CCa types.

NOS Telefunken 12AX7s are available at more reasonable prices from Victor Kung at  vkung821@gmail.com.  He imports the EleKit amps and more. Tell him Boomer Bill sent you. They work amazingly well for me.

Music is very important to me, not stereo equipment; however, the importance of stereo equipment changed after I wandered into a high end emporium in 1990. Before that time, I had absolutely no idea how good music could sound when played on "High end equipment". That was also when I discovered tubes.

The thought never occurred to that I had been listening to tubes from the time I was born, and that transistors were what was new. Somehow "they" made me believe transistors were the thing, but after "re-discovering" tubes.....you know the rest.

It's nice to be communicating with people who know just how far a good pair of tubes can elevate a phono or preamp, and I am learning a lot. I have a question for you, with NOS tubes, it's difficult to ascertain how much of the price is due to scarcity, and how much is due to the outstanding ability of the product to deliver the goods. Do you have any comment on that?