Opinions of Electro-Harmonix tubes?

I just went though a series of tests, which included the new Electro-Harmonix branded EL-34 and 12AX7 tubes. Electro-Harmonix tubes are distributed by New Sensor in New York, who is also the importer/ distributor of the Sovtek line of tubes. In my opinion, there is very little or no performance difference in these two lines of tubes. I have only tested the 12AX7 and the EL34 so far, but can assure you, they are not competition for NOS European tubes. I am just now testing the Electro-Harmonix EL34 against the Tesla E34L. I would give the Tesla the edge right now, with my "reference" tube ( Mullard EL34 ) destroying them both in the regions of midrange resolution and purity, as well as delicacy of highs and the signature mid bass "punch" the Mullard is known for. I should point out that the EH and Tesla both retail for approximately $17.00 each. The NOS Mullard can easily run as high as $100.00 each, making this comparison hardly equal in the budget department. I should commend the Russians for making very good tubes available for a very reasonable price, as the NOS variety are not available in sufficient quantity (or value) for ANY manufacturer to be able to offer them as original equipment.

I have experience with the Elecro-Harmonix EL34, he JJ (Tesla) E34L, and the Mullard EL34. The Electro-Harmonix is quite sloppy in the bass compared to the other two and is rolled off in the treble to the point of sounding muffled. The JJ is more extended at the frequency ranges but lacks the presence of the Mullard to obvious degrees. It's the best compromise but the Mullard is the best tube, easily commensurate with the attendant premium.

I ALWAYS try to steer people away from tubes such as this. I am speaking on Electro-Harmonix, Groove Tubes, Gold Aero, etc. The reason is that they are simply rebadged tubes from the companies who make them(Sovtek, Svetlana, JJ, Ei, Shuguang). They take those tubes, culled from NORMAL production lots, put them through a more QC, and mark the price WAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY up. Unnecessary and an ill advised purchase. You may get a prettier or more colorful graphic on the tube, or some QC test info(even written on the tube), but they can NEVER be any better than the lot they come from. I am not sure whose 6L6 they are using(only saw their 6L6 ad once), but they very well may be from Sovtek or Svetlana. I personally normally prefer output tubes from Svetlana over Sovtek. On top of that I prefer output tubes from the former Czechoslovakia(JJ, formerly Tesla and Teslovak) over Russian tubes. For EL34, I only recommend two tubes. Svetlana EL34 if you want a mellow sound(closest to the old Mullard), and JJ E34L as the best everyday EL34 made today. I like the JJ E34L better in most cases. If you are interested in 6L6 tubes, allow me give you my STRONGEST recommendation to go with Sovtek KT66. They have a KILLER tone, and easily best ANY 6L6 currently in production. Whenever I turn a guitar person onto these tubes(they are the big 6L6 users these days), they ALWAYS remark that they think they just bought a better amp. And, if I do the work for them, they swear I upgraded their amp in some way.