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300B replacement

I recently had a Western Electric 300B die on me. If I replaced the one with a new or newer tube, would i hear an imbalance in the two channels?

Other options i am considering are the Sophia mesh plates, Sophia princess mesh or carbon plates, valve art, or Shuguang nickel plates.

Any opinions will be greatly appreciated.

thank you in advance,

Buxter
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philjolet's avatar
philjolet
2,306 posts
 
fwiw I have a pair of these and they sound terrific

http://www.sophiaelectric.com/pages/se/princess_300b.htm
lacee
811 posts
 
Use a bias meter.
cincy_bob
270 posts
 
I'm currently using a pair of the Sophia Princess Carbon Plate 300Bs in my SET amps, and the sound is phenomenal. The Sophia tubes are notably better than the current production model Western Electric 300Bs in my SET system.

Philjolet, have you been able to compare the Princess Carbon Plate 300Bs with your Princess Mesh Plate tubes? I would like to hear that comparison in my own system, but I have not yet sprung for a pair of the Mesh Plate tubes for myself. Maybe some time later this year...
lapierre
547 posts
 
How about sending in the good used tube to a select vendor to test it and perhaps get a better match before buying a second tube.

Sophia are great tubes. Have not listened to the Western.
vonhakemarine
55 posts
 
It's my understanding that the WE 300B may have come with a spec sheet. With that knowledge, WE can at least come close to matching some of the parameters. It may even be feasible to send them your present tube for matching, why not give 'em a call? SET's are one thing, but on my VAC 30/30 push pull, matching is very important for overall performance for the individual channel, noise among other things. Good luck
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