"No More Russian Vacuum Tubes in 2022"

[professormudd]

https://www.gearnews.com/mike-matthews- ... s-in-2022/

So I guess that leaves Chinese and Slovakian tubes, eh? It would be great it we could manufacture tubes in the USA again, but as I understand it there are too many environmental considerations for it to be feasible.

[martin manning]

...as I understand it there are too many environmental considerations for it to be feasible.

Thanks for the link. It's a matter of producing within the environmental regulations at a competitive price. That defines feasibility, I suppose.

[ChopSauce]

Within the environmental regulation legal bounds, given the cost of setting up a factory, given the fact that supplies need also to be fabricated, etc - for just a niche market used to buy at... well, unfair competition prices, somewhat...

All that industry has been dismantled over the years, since decades...

[martin manning]

If there is still demand, and reduced supply causes the prices go up, a new modern factory might be possible. There is probably a lot of recent manufacturing technology that could be applied that the older facilities didn't have.

[professormudd]

Hey... At least we still have toilet paper on the shelves.

[romberg]

So I guess that leaves Chinese and Slovakian tubes, eh?

I think the Chinese factory had a fire and it is unclear if/when they may even be back. So, that leaves just the Slovakian factory to supply all the demand. Not looking good for this hobby at the moment...

Mike

[BenTobith]

So I guess that leaves Chinese and Slovakian tubes, eh?

I think the Chinese factory had a fire and it is unclear if/when they may even be back. So, that leaves just the Slovakian factory to supply all the demand. Not looking good for this hobby at the moment...

Mike

There’s still Psvane tubes from China, if you don’t mind paying NOS prices for new production tubes. Ha.

[Roe]

I'd expect russia to export tubes to china, which may then resell them, if not relabel them

[Thermionic/EL-34]

I'd expect russia to export tubes to china, which may then resell them, if not relabel them

Don't count on it.
I spent all day searching for an EL-34 quad. Every source ive had had last 15 years 0.00 unless you pay $600 to $1600 for NOS.
Right now the new production EL-34 is basically extinct overnight or been bought up & those that have tube stock are parked on it.
This has been a long time coming but reality.

[professormudd]

Looks simple enough... Just need a bunch of specialized equipment and a lifetime of knowledge and skills and voila, make your own tubes at home.

https://youtu.be/8n4WVRKkmww

[Guy77]

Looks simple enough... Just need a bunch of specialized equipment and a lifetime of knowledge and skills and voila, make your own tubes at home.

https://youtu.be/8n4WVRKkmww

Looks like we will have to begin the life long learning process !
A lot of online tube dealers have closed their websites due to too much traffic. Hopefully the companies currently making them can ramp up otherwise I can see long delays coming.

Cheers
Guy

[professormudd]

Man, I just went and looked at AmplifiedParts, and they are already almost all out of stock for anything matched.

I was just getting ready to build out a Soldano SLO clone.... bummer.

[Phil_S]

I realize, for commercial purposes, we want the same tubes that are in common use. I suggest this will change. For both amateur and commercial use, we diehards will be cleaning out old but usable stock of alternative tubes. When the tube dealers don't have them, we'll be turning to eBay, and yes, sometimes we'll be buying unusable junk. Examples of viable tubes:

6GK6, noval, instead of EL84, perfect sub, different pin out
6BM8, noval, triode has enough gain, but not 12AX7 territory, and pentode is somewhat like EL84 or maybe 6V6 and very guitar amp compatible
6CM8, noval, somewhat similar to 6BM8, but triode has less gain, still viable for guitar amp use
6AQ5/6005, 7-pin, perfect substitute for 6V6 but I don't think it will take the 300V+ B+ punishment we often use for 6V6
6CM6, noval, that looks like a direct substitute for 6V6
807, octal top cap pentode, 6L6-like
7027, octal, pentode, 6L6-like
Not sure what you'd sub for EL34 and it's ilk.

You get the idea. Get used to it.

Then, with a bit of luck, someone might be able to open a factory somewhere, where the environmental restrictions are not so difficult. It might take a decade and it will not be a business venture that will quickly be profitable. The best bet is that someone will recover or find old equipment and move it to a more neutral country. This, too, will be difficult to accomplish. Maybe someone will revive the failed Blackburn project.

[Thermionic/EL-34]

Us boomer GP's from the JFK admin have seen the writing on the wall for decades as far as vacuum tubes.
In 1985 my EE Professor predicted vacuum tubes would be obsolete. Yes & no.
It pays to stash. You 30 & 40 somethings that have enjoyed stable EL-34 tube stocks are in for a bumpy ride.
Overnight new Russian production tubes have become the new "NOS Blackburn Mullards".
Tube prices like gas & taxes never go down.
Have fun finding stable EL-34's the next 25 years and beyond.
And no JJ is not capable of meeting the needs of the world as the only tube supplier and those tubes were my least favorite plagued with QC issues.

[martin manning]

Opportunists will try to profit from it, but I have to believe this interruption in the supply will pass. Things may be different on the other side, and I would love to know what Fender and the other high-volume amp manufacturers are thinking.