Online ordering of a few select tubes (more to come) is active and available on the online ordering page and those orders will be shipped within 2 days.
One of several tube testing consoles to ensure your purchase is up to your standards.
DEAR MUSIC LOVER
Welcome to the Vintage Tube Services 2024 catalog. VTS was founded to provide properly selected & prepared tubes for those seeking the very finest in music reproduction. At Vintage Tube Services, art and science are combined with old-world personal service as an alternative to the proliferation of so called "premium suppliers" that (as with so many things today) for reasons of efficiency and quick results, use a high-speed computerized testing system to select from a large number of highly questionable candidates. And this only refers to the distributors of currently manufactured tubes. The true madness started about 28 years ago with absolutely every Tom, Dick & Harry on the block with a pile of tubes and a tube checker getting a web site or going on the bay as big-time expert tube dealers. 98% of those guys don't seem to know anything accurate about tubes, the history of tubes, Electronics, the history of electronics or even audio or the history of the same! (not to mention the High-End)! From what I have seen of their work they seem to be more interested in finding out the highest price a tube can sell for, rather than have any concerns as to how or if it will give YOU pleasure in your music system year after year! Vintage Tube Services was the first to provide properly selected & prepared Vintage tubes for Hi-Fi, musical instruments & studios, that tradition continues with ongoing, hard work, in research & development. Vintage Tube Services starts with the longest lasting, highest quality tubes that have ever been made. These tubes have stood the test of the last 100 years! And despite the claims of hopeful salesmen and the ongoing sham in advertising and press, no amount of salesmanship or "consulting with European audiophiles and engineers" is going to bring back the greatness of the real thing.
Tube Tonal Balance Profile Diagram
Below is an illustration of Symphony Hall Boston with relative tonal balances of the main brands of tubes as it would relate to sitting placement in the hall. As you would hear sitting towards the rear of the hall, the Mullard and other British tubes have the deepest darkest tonal balance. As you would hear sitting towards the front of the hall, the perspective is lighter and more close up with the West German and Dutch tubes. Strangely, this seems to go by geography and seems to be set mainly by the chemistry in the tubes.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How Do I Place An Order?
I tend to get more done when I have a two-way rapport with you. This is done better and more clearly over the phone. The matching of the tonal balance of tubes to a particular system is akin to matching proper cables. Over the past decades of direct experience with thousands of systems, and feedback from thousands of audiophiles, much has been learned and advice is given freely. Please feel free to call me at 616-454-3467. Phone hours typically are 8:00am to 8:00pm, Monday - Saturday EST.
What Kind Of Payments Do You Take?
I'll accept a cashiers check, money order, and personal check. The debit/charge cards accepted are Visa, Master Card, and Discover.
What Is Your 100% Money Back Satisfaction Guarantee?
Individual service and customer satisfaction is paramount to VTS. Every tube purchase is backed by my guarantee. If for any reason you don't like the tubes, you can return them within 14 days of receiving them with generous exception if notice is given. Tubes are guaranteed 90 days against manufacturing defects with the exception of 6DJ8 type moving coil phono input tubes and certain rare models that simply chew up tubes.
What Is Your Return Policy?
A decent sized square box of at least the size they were sent in is proper. Any tubes returned in padded envelopes or "little flat-ass" (video tape sized) boxes will be returned to sender and charged accordingly.
Why are Vintage Tubes so sought after?
1. Sound quality. Need I say more?
2. Long life. It's a well known fact that 1920-1960's vintage tubes outlast current production tubes by 4 to 16+ times!!! Current manufacturers have been promising to fix this for over 30 years. It's now 2018 and we are still waiting.
3. Reliability. The reliability of Vintage Tubes is legendary, and when combined with skilled selection, I have found over the years that I can reach a state of trouble free operation on par with high-end solid state gear. Here is another promise broken by modern manufacturers and distributors - we are still waiting for the claims of "as good" and "better than the original" to be fulfilled.
Are Your Prices Competitive?
Absolutely and often below my imitators. VTS is a one-man operation and will remain so. I have tried other systems and the simple fact is that if I don't do everything from answering the phone to the final packing of the box, the system does not work! As there is no other service such as this, the prices in this catalog cannot be fairly compared to those on others "tube lists". Even then, amazingly enough, many of the other dealers prices for raw "tested" tubes are the same and even some far higher! The alternative is to compromise the service and I will end it first.