Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

Usurper666

New member
Are the Groove Tubes GE 6L6 & GE 6CA7 reissues actually made in California? I heard the first lots were but now Aspen has moved production to China. Can anyone confirm this? I know his Chinese Mullard 12AX7s are crap, I had three die on me within one week of the warranty expiring. Sure, they sound great, when they work! Just want to know if his GT power tubes are going to be the same disaster that the Mullards reissues are turning out to be.

Cheers,

CJ
 
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Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

IIRC, the innards are made in CA and shipped to China for bottling.
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

Usurper666 said:
Are the Groove Tubes GE 6L6 & GE 6CA7 reissues actually made in California? I heard the first lots were but now Aspen has moved production to China. Can anyone confirm this? I know his Chinese Mullard 12AX7s are crap, I had three die on me within one week of the warranty expiring. Sure, they sound great, when they work! Just want to know if his GT power tubes are going to be the same disaster that the Mullards reissues are turning out to be.

Cheers,

CJ

I've got a Mullard reissue in my Valvetronix and I think it sounds great. When you say disaster do you mean they sound bad or the quality or reliability is bad? I had seen nothing but good reviews for them so I'm very interested in hearing what you've got to say before I get any more.
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

aleclee said:
IIRC, the innards are made in CA and shipped to China for bottling.


Yep... but still enough reason for me not to buy these particular tubes ;)
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

75lespaul said:
I've got a Mullard reissue in my Valvetronix and I think it sounds great. When you say disaster do you mean they sound bad or the quality or reliability is bad? I had seen nothing but good reviews for them so I'm very interested in hearing what you've got to say before I get any more.

It’s a reliability issue. If they work they sound great but I myself as well as several others have had them die right after the warranty expires. If GT is going to charge $25 a tube they had damn well better last longer than 90 days! Also, when looking for replacements I ran across several GT Mullards that were bad right out of the box. Buyer beware... I'll avoid those GE reissues as well.

Cheers,

CJ
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

Usurper666 said:
It’s a reliability issue. If they work they sound great but I myself as well as several others have had them die right after the warranty expires. If GT is going to charge $25 a tube they had damn well better last longer than 90 days! Also, when looking for replacements I ran across several GT Mullards that were bad right out of the box. Buyer beware... I'll avoid those GE reissues as well.

Cheers,

CJ

Wow--that's too bad. Well I've got a few backups like a Ruby and a few NOS Mullard 12AT7s that sounded great as well. This tube is still kickin' after a few weeks so I'll cross my fingers I got a good one. Has there been any rumor or public statement that they've addressed these problems?

Thanks for the answer by the way. Much appreciated.
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

FWIW, I think that the EH 6CA7s are very comparable to the GTs at 1/3 the price. At $25-30/pair, they're hard to beat.
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

tons of '59 bassmans are shipped out with them every day, if that was an issue i think they woulda switched tubes by now
 
Re: Groove Tubes GE reissues (6L6/6CA7)

aleclee said:
FWIW, I think that the EH 6CA7s are very comparable to the GTs at 1/3 the price. At $25-30/pair, they're hard to beat.


I completely agree, just a fantastic deal. I just make sure I get em from a good source.

I thought I heard GT was gonna stop with the 6CA7 manufacture. Anyone else hear this.
 
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