Linlai E 6sn7 tubes

New tubes from the dealer on Ebay and the pins are shiny new. I did not want to muck them up with the High Fidelity contact treatment. I could try the old standby solution, Deoxit.

I'll send these to Dan so he can try them regardless.

@bugredmachine IF one tube can get rattled apart in shipping, the tube sitting next to it in the same box, taking on the same drops, blows, or crushing during handling, can get damaged too. Triple boxing with stuffing will become a cheap fix of the future. One of my sources learned this after two years of multiple DOA sets.  

Or, maybe it has nothing to do with shipping, so (as you are) it sure seems worth trying a second pair and letting someone else try out the first pair for ya and compare notes. Good idea.  

This is the inner box they come in:

Blurry, but pins in new condition 

I also ordered a pair of the "black plates" from your recommended source. I am okay with hoarding tubes since I believe this Sachs is a keeper. Mated with my Coda 8, I am very happy. I also ordered a bunch or rectifier tubes including a rare 5852 Bendix.

I have a box of 6SN7's from my days with a Dude but those tubes are not as musical as these globed tubes available these days.

Mine came in the same display box with sculptured foam.  I thought that was pretty solid packaging.   @bugredmachine, is it possible your tubes somehow made it past QC?  My tubes are dead quiet with the volume up way past the volume I would ever listen.  The Dude. That is a pre I lusted after.  My interest with Aric’s Motherlode II came about after reading that the original Motherlode was an attempt to duplicate the Dude topology.  Changes were made,thus the Motherlode II.  I would love to do an A/B comparison between the two preamps.   Now back to our regularly scheduled program.  Also,please give an update if you swap out your cables.