300b Tube Compendium

I had WE 300's with my stock Studio B and they had noise problems so I wound up returning them, but from my brief audition I would need more wetness to get the Studio B to the tone that I'm looking for.

 

I have thought about it yes, it's just a significant investment. I have @Josh Schor modded version wtih the following mods:

Dueland copper/silver interstage caps installed 0.01
Kozmo 50kohm top of the line shunt pot
Mercury 83 tube power supply, work done by Craigs Tech

So not the Muse ES caps but not stock either.

 

Yeah one of my sets is noisier than the other. Although weirdly they are less noisy in the Glenn vs the Envy.

 

Another option would be adding a good OTL preamp into the 300b. I usually use our Decware OTL for that but others would work as well.

 

the interstage caps could be changed to all copper dueland

 

FWIW, I bought @Josh Schor 's WE300b's and they were a marked improvement over the Linlai Cossor's that I had been running (I agree with your "dry/lifeless" characterization of the Studio B/Cossor combo)

 

@dasman66 I wish I got those WE tubes! I bought WE 300b tubes for my stock Studio B and they both were noisy with weird rubbery squeaking sounds among the noises. But Josh's WE 300b tubes were made specifically for the Studio B. Very cool!

There must be other options for wet tubes though, I mean look how long that list is of 300b tubes! I'm thinking about the Sophia Electric Classic 300b tubes right now. But I have no idea really, there are so many choices.

That's where you guys come in!

 

Of the tubes I've tried which isn't many the one I found to be the lushest and wettest sounding on my Studio B were the JJs. Though the price for these seem to have gone up quite a bit the past year or so and not something I would consider at it's current pricing.

 

Thanks. What other 300B tubes have you tried?

 

I’m currently using a pair of linlai e300 and have used a pair of jjs prior to that. Also tried a pair of acme and some black tube chinese made 300b. The jjs are the lushest of the lot. I do prefer a more neutral tonality for my zmfs thus my linlai purchase but they are definitely drier than the jjs to my ears but at almost 400 dollars a pair for the jjs I’m not sure I’ll make that purchase again.

 

Giving some impressions of 300B tubes I've tried. Chain used is Yggdrasil A2 -> EC Studio Jr. -> Utopia

Electro Harmonix 300B - I really liked this tube. Tonally the most balanced of the 300Bs I've used so far. Liquid presentation and just gets out of the way to present the music. To my ears, the midrange is a bit more recessed than the Chinese tubes, but I feel it works well with the lower mid forwardness of the Utopia. Driver control was great with the EH being able to rein in the overly dynamic/overshoot-y tendencies of the Utopia. Ironically, it's not as warm as the Chinese tubes, but in terms of timbre, I felt it had less of the metallic sheen associated with the Focal drivers. The downside is one of the EH tubes died on me after less than 2 weeks of use. Reviews online have been mixed about the quality control on these tubes.

PSVane 300B (standard white base) - As @Lickumms mentioned, really weird and lean bass response. The highs are sparkly, but it feels forced in a way like turning the contrast setting to high. Mids are more upfront, with more grain. The Chinese tubes seems to have this dry and grainy presentation to them. The PSVane seems more detailed than the EH, but in an unnatural way. There's less space in between instruments and there's a warm hue to the sound.

TJ Full Music - Similar to the PSVane except in the bass. Bass has more slam and presence compared to the leaner PSVane. Mids and highs are similar. The TJ, maybe just a bit more resolving and smoother, but overall, there are more similarities to the presentation than differences. It's very high contrast in an unnatural way. Midrange grain is less on the TJ's than the PSVane, but it's still there. Overall, a more grand sounding version of the PSVane, but it still shares this vintage hued, oversharpened character.

 

ELROG ER300B-Mo impressions



Chain used is Schiit Yggdrasil A2 -> Eddie Current Studio Jr. -> Focal Utopia

The first thing I noticed about these were the lack of grain across the spectrum. The Chinese 300Bs, such as the PSVanes and TJ Full Musics, both had this grainy and dry quality to the mids. The Elrogs are smooth and completely free of this. That is not to say that the Elrogs sacrifice detail for this smoothness. Far from it. These are the most resolving 300B I've had so far, but they don't shove the detail in your face. It's all there for you to hear if you want to search for it, but these do it in a very cohesive manner. In terms of placement, vocals on the ER300B are placed a bit further back compared to the upfront Chinese tubes. I would say the Electro Harmonix is probably farther back in the mix, but the Elrogs have the more realistic staging. Dynamics and speed are right up there, but I really love how controlled they are with the Utopias. There's no overshoot-y behavior here, but it retains the Utopias first class dynamics and transient response. The ER300B makes it quite easy to follow the rhythm and beat of the music, as if there is a line in the middle which you can draw on. Bass goes quite low, with tightness and precision unlike the usual flabbiness in other 300Bs. Highs are extended, but never harsh. I don't find any of the "metallic" timbre of the Utopias showing through here, but at the same time, it doesn't do it by adding any extra warmth or euphony to the sound. It's closer to a solid-state sound, as what you would find on other 300Bs which lean on that warm, organic tone. Imaging and placement of stage is quite impressive, with each individual element easily found in proper space. Whereas the Chinese tubes tended to compress the stage towards the middle, the ER300B has a more spherical stage. It's not the widest in terms of lateral width, but images are more "solid" and perceptible, rather than diffuse because of this. Tonal balance is very neutral, with none of the warm leaning tendencies of other 300Bs. You can almost mistake this for another tube. You get the feeling that Elrog didn't just want to copy the WE300B here, but give their own modern interpretation of it. Technically, this is clearly levels above the Electro Harmonix and Chinese tubes.



Build quality is excellent, as it should given the price. At $3380, this is the most expensive 300B I know, outside of NOS WE300Bs. The glass is thick, and there is a nice heft to the build. The modern aesthetic really lends well to the sound character of these tubes. It comes with some basic measurements of the tubes themselves, but not to the extent of the WE300B or the Full Musics which come with a more comprehensive spec sheet. Elrog has a 1 year warranty on these tubes as long as you get them from authorized dealers.



The big question is "are they worth it?" If you must have the best of the best, but dislike the general warmpoo 300B sound, I feel that the Elrogs have achieved that. That being said, the asking price is already worth an amp or two. I don't feel the Electro Harmonix tube is THAT far off the Elrogs, but if you must scratch that itch for the final few points of improvement, then consider the ER300B a safe buy. The best thing I can say about these is I did not find myself picking out flaws in what I heard or tuning out of disinterest in the music. I was completely glued to whatever I was listening to at hand.

* I was originally supposed to get the regular ER300B, but the local dealer no longer had stock of them and so I was pointed towards getting the Molybdenum version, which is twice as expensive. From what I understand, the standard version has the same general character, but the Mo improves on it by a bit with the use of the Molybdenum plate.

* I have not heard the WE300Bs as the local distributor was not able to secure my order for it. However, the guy I got the Elrogs from is sort of a local tube Jedi here in our part of the world. He's tried almost every 300B tube under the sun. His top 3 were the Elrogs, the WE300B and the Takatsukis. The Elrogs were his favorite pick as he felt they were closer to the 845 tube sound (which were his preferred tubes). The WE300B and the Takatsukis are more of the general 300B tube character. Take that as you will.