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Brent Jessee of Audiotubes.com retired, Audiotubes to reopen soon under new ownership

zwuttoo said:
It´s ( to my old ears) in the MM input where's the "magic" lies, the MC transformers do what you can expect for the money ( not bad at all) but I have other MC transformers (SUT ́s) that are much more refined (Tamura, Uesugi, Hashimoto & Lundahl)
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Since I have the Hana SH, that's what I'm using. In fact, the only reason I even have an outboard phono stage is so I can send the signal into my Decware Zrock3. And it's working out now that I have the Mullards in. Someone suggested I use the supplied power cord, so I'm going to dig that out and try it. The Softone is a very nice piece of equipment with the right tubes.
 
Maybe, a separate post re: Softone or Decware preamps is warranted ?

Tube sellers and fellow tube collectors probably do not usually have your favorite preamplifiers on hand.
 
tubeactive said:
I find it very interesting that Brent Jesse had such a large following. He rarely had New in Original Box tubes.

Brent tested tubes well and offered a good warranty. Folks were obviously satisfied with his service. However, note that his prices were well above average !

Fast forward to today. Folks who ordered tubes weeks ago still wait for their tubes and/or responses. We don't need to know why the delays occur. The new owner is obviously a busy guy. Blaming a helper does not invoke anything positive. Yet, we all still hope this tube seller gets the biz going...

I have a recommendation for fellow tube users and collectors. AK has the Barter Town classified ads, available via augmenting our membership. With a step-up to "Subscriber" status, we can place Wanted to Buy, Wanted to Trade, plus For Sale ads, as well as receive other benefits, including the ability to edit our posts. The Subscriber status costs $25. per year, always available at the top of the opening page.

Within the Barter Town, reside friendly, fellow collectors. Placing a "Wanted to Buy" or WTTrade ad will invariably result in numerous responses from helpful Folks.

Keep in mind that the Subscribers who buy, trade or sell at BT are subject to Feedback, readable by all AK members. This is a significant assurance policy.

Tube audio is a large part of our audiokarma.org.

Consider placing Want Ads for tubes you need, within Barter Town.
Since many of us fellow collectors like trading, a la the "one turn-on for another" approach, also consider offering Wanted to Trade ads.

Lastly, I want everyone to know that the benefits of AK are well evidenced by becoming a Subscriber.
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Tube boxes were designed to be as durable as any other consumable product. Few cereal boxes survive 50-80 years after all. Not having original boxes is no great sin for old tubes as long as they measure well.

You make a good point about AK membership and access to sales. I will consider it as I start to trim my tube collection down.
 
isaacc7@cox. said:
Tube boxes were designed to be as durable as any other consumable product. Few cereal boxes survive 50-80 years after all. Not having original boxes is no great sin for old tubes as long as they measure well.
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a significant amount of tubes came new in trays, no boxes.
isaacc7@cox. said:
You make a good point about AK membership and access to sales. I will consider it as I start to trim my tube collection down.
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barter town is fantastic
 
I also used Brent on many occasions and was always very happy with his advice, service and warranty. I wish him a well earned retirement. Upon contacting Jon I placed 2 orders for a Quad of
VT-231 and two Tung sol 6SN7 Black Glass to complete a quad. Ordered and Paid on July 2nd and 4th. Still nothing from Jon. Plenty of emails to him with just a few back apologizing for the delay and stating he would check with his shipping assistant. Still have not heard the results of that. To say the least I am worried this transaction and/or company may be a bust.
 
shipping assistant? i dont think so.
the out-of-service phone numbers are still up on the website.
 
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I just completed my 6th email with Jon. Took 4 to get a response. He stated he had the tubes I inquired about and would send an stripe invoice. That was a week ago and nothing. I did get apologies for the missed emails etc. Funny thing is, this was all after the website posted they were filling orders. Later, I got an email letting me know the business was under new ownership and since I was one of Brent's customers i was receiving this email. I think Jon is overwhelmed. Same as Dan at Tubes4HiFi. Hopefully, they both get those well respected businesses back on even-keel.
 
geode said:
I just completed my 6th email with Jon. Took 4 to get a response. He stated he had the tubes I inquired about and would send an stripe invoice. That was a week ago and nothing. I did get apologies for the missed emails etc. Funny thing is, this was all after the website posted they were filling orders. Later, I got an email letting me know the business was under new ownership and since I was one of Brent's customers i was receiving this email. I think Jon is overwhelmed.
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geode said:
Same as Dan at Tubes4HiFi. Hopefully, they both get those well respected businesses back on even-keel.
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dan has been mia for 3 years or so
 
geode said:
Did not realize it was that long. He did respond to my recent email. I did not order anything, though.
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yup. i found the same message board and forum posts from different people at different times saying the same thing. i ordered fom vta's ebay store, where at least a refund can come pretty swiftly. i received my order, but dan of course would not return communication of any kind--email, ebay message, phone, facebook message. roy started making his own upgrade boards.
 
ceylon said:
yup. i found the same message board and forum posts from different people at different times saying the same thing. i ordered fom vta's ebay store, where at least a refund can come pretty swiftly. i received my order, but dan of course would not return communication of any kind--email, ebay message, phone, facebook message. roy started making his own upgrade boards.
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I check Dynacotubeforum often enough. Hope Roy makes a new pcb for the MKIIIs.
 
If anyone has to wait over a month to get a reply for what you requested, ordered or paid for, I can only ask you this: Why are you still trusting ?

How about placing a Wanted to Buy ad in the AK Barter Town ? At the BT, there are numerous, even many, FELLOW COLLECTORS, willing to share their tube collection via sales or swap trades.

As previously posted, Barter Town costs only $25. per year and helps to support AK.

Recently, a fellow, tube fan placed an ad to trade a # of 12AT7 tubes for a similar # of 12AU7 tubes. We exchanged emails, describing test results of our tubes and made an even trade. We each paid our own postage and both of us packed our tubes well.
We were both happy to help one another !
Fellow collectors abound here, at AK...
 
ceylon said:
the ones theyve had for years, both noval and octal. i thought they were designed by bob latino.
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Pretty sure Roy designed the PCBs. Bob handled the amp kits using Roy's board, Roy also handled the various preamp kits. At least I think this is right.
 
tubeactive said:
If anyone has to wait over a month to get a reply for what you requested, ordered or paid for, I can only ask you this: Why are you still trusting ?

How about placing a Wanted to Buy ad in the AK Barter Town ? At the BT, there are numerous, even many, FELLOW COLLECTORS, willing to share their tube collection via sales or swap trades.

As previously posted, Barter Town costs only $25. per year and helps to support AK.

Recently, a fellow, tube fan placed an ad to trade a # of 12AT7 tubes for a similar # of 12AU7 tubes. We exchanged emails, describing test results of our tubes and made an even trade. We each paid our own postage and both of us packed our tubes well.
We were both happy to help one another !
Fellow collectors abound here, at AK...
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New to AK and tubes, but have sent a handful of emails to Jon. One returned. It seems like attempting to run a business on a previous owners reputation is only going to get you so far. Life is short, and your recommendation seems solid to me!
 
Jon finally found and replied to my last email. It took two weeks before I got the answer. He had the tubes and sent an invoice. Problem is, I figured I had been lost in the shuffle, again, and bought tubes somewhere else. I think he is getting it together at last. Hoping he continues righting the ship, we all need reliable places to get NOS tubes.
 
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