Hunt for Valvos John. They sound great and aren't so popular that they've been faked a lot like many of the more popular brands. Counterfeits are the biggest risk when doing NOS and NIB.
I just purchased a Jolida JD9v2 phono preamp that uses a pair of 12AX7 tubes. I'll be picking up the unit on Saturday and can let you know what tubes are inside. I've been told that changing tubes would be highly beneficial and am looking for some suggestions. I am a complete novice when it comes to tubes, so anything you have to say will be received with much appreciation.
I've linked you to Parts ConneXion as they are only a 20-minute drive from my place, and they seem to have a good variety of tubes in stock.
Thanks!
What ECC83/12AX7 does Jolida use?
the tubes in the jolida only act as a buffer, the actual gain stages are a pair of op amps per channel. I don't think matching and selecting for lowest noise is crucial with this design, ymmv.
Does that mean I shouldn't look for different tubes? What would you recommend I do (if anything)?
No, just you can save a little money.
Does anyone have an opinion on Cryoset tubes. A friend of mine recently put a pair of Gold Lion gold pins into the Unison Research integrated and it was a big step up from the standard Tung Sol gold pins the came w/the unit. I think the cost was $45 per tube.