Request A Quotation
How the main audio output types differ, what matching means in practice, and how amplifier makers and repair shops should plan supply.
The 2A3 300B and 845 family are directly heated triodes, used mostly in single ended amplifiers where the tube character is a large part of the design intention. They run hot, they take high voltage in the case of 845, and they need sockets and chassis layouts designed for them. Within one type number there are several envelope styles, and an amplifier built around one style may not physically accept another.
KT88 EL34 6L6 and 6V6 are the workhorses of push pull amplifiers and of most guitar amplifiers. They are more forgiving to build around than directly heated triodes and are usually bought in pairs or quads because push pull stages want tubes that behave alike.
The 12AX7 12AU7 12AT7 group and their equivalents do the voltage gain work, and types such as 274B and 5AR4 handle rectification in classic supplies. Small signal tubes are where microphony and noise show up, so this is the position where a careful choice is most audible.
Matched pairs are selected so that the tubes behave similarly under the same conditions. It matters most in push pull output stages. Ask for matching at the time of the enquiry and state the quantity, because matching is a selection process carried out before shipment rather than something that can be applied afterwards.
If you sell amplifiers, the tube has to be available again next year. That argues for building around types that are in current production rather than around a stock of new old stock that will run out. Where a design does depend on a scarce type, buy the reserve early.
Order sockets with the tubes. The GZC range covers the four pin octal and nine pin layouts used by these types, and a new socket during a retube prevents the contact heating that damages the next set of tubes.
Shuguang marked audio tubes including 300B 2A3 845 KT88 EL34 and the 12AX7 small signal family, for valve amplifier builders and r
20 typesFull Music branded audio tubes including 300B 2A3 274B PX4 and 12AX7 types for valve amplifier builders who want a premium envelop
17 typesFuller branded audio tubes covering 2A3 300B 845 EL34 and KT88 types in several envelope styles for amplifier builders and dealers
44 typesCeramic and metal tube sockets, cap sockets, chimneys and fixing hardware matched to the base layout of the tube they serve.
Ask for matching with the enquiry and state the quantity, and we will confirm what can be matched for that type.
Yes. Single tube orders are normal, alongside production quantities for amplifier makers.
Send the designations you have identified together with quantities. Price and availability come back by email.