300B king of tubes?

The cost difference is not in just the sound. With an approximately 40,000 hrs of usable service in the tube it is actually less expensive than others.

I've tried the Valve Arts, JJ's, KR these tubes have their own strength and weakness. But these are only pieces of the
puzzle. But the WE are the complete picture. From high to low, pace and rhythm, ease, musicality to cut it short it's
a complete tube. But the newer production has an edgy and
hard sound compared to the older ones. Specially the the one
from the 1940's, 50's.

It is important to ensure that your 300b amp has a more than adequate transformer so you get good bass. Also, the matching of the amp to the speaker is important. A 2A3 tube amp might be better but they are typically very low powered.
Carl

I have tried other brands of 300's in my Audio Note amps and found the WE to be much better in every regard. Yes they are expensive but worth every dime.

Enjoy The Music (www.enjoythemusic.com) has a review of all major brands of 300B tubes in their archives. They pronounced the TJ Meshplates as the best 300B. The Westerns were second, I believe. You can pick them up new for $350. a pair. That said, I had them in an amplifier and wasn't impressed. Don't know if it was the tubes or the amp. I didn't have it long enough to find out.