"Western Electric" considering expanding US tube operations; seeks input

[Brian Roth]

There is another guy who has designs on starting a tube company, and that would be cool too. He's the guy who makes those Adapt-A-Cap PCB replacements for multi-section caps. But he's probably years away from production. Maybe more.

That would be Dylan Wahl. I worked with him a few years ago when he installed the new computer on the lathe here at The Mastering Lab. I heard he was going to start a new tooooob factory in SoCal.

Bri

 

[Brian Roth]

Tubes?

Maybe they can get a vinyl record company to help....

JR

LOL.......don't give any ideas to the owner of the QRP pressing company here!

Bri

 

[Brian Roth]

I don't know if you guys are aware but it is very difficult to get tubes right now. EH & JJ are not taking new orders and there is little back stock. Most of the distributors are out of stock as well.

I wonder why JJ isn't taking orders? They are not based in Russia.

Bri

 

[JMan]

I’d assume JJ isn’t taking new orders because they need to make sure they aren’t overwhelmed by everyone flooding them with orders that previously might have been made elsewhere. Gotta make sure you can keep up with current clients before taking on new ones, and with the panic around this issue right now, they might be trying to preempt an overload.

 

[Brian Roth]

I’d assume JJ isn’t taking new orders because they need to make sure they aren’t overwhelmed by everyone flooding them with orders that previously might have been made elsewhere. Gotta make sure you can keep up with current clients before taking on new ones, and with the panic around this issue right now, they might be trying to preempt an overload.

Sort of reminds me of when the Apollo/Transco factory making blank lacquer disks (used for the first step in vinyl record manufacturing) burned down a year or two ago. The only remaining lacquer manufacturer in Japan was taking no new orders.

Bri

 

[Ricardus]

That would be Dylan Wahl. I worked with him a few years ago when he installed the new computer on the lathe here at The Mastering Lab. I heard he was going to start a new tooooob factory in SoCal.

Bri

That's him.

I wonder where he's at in his adventure. I left him an email and asked.

Two of his domains that used to work aren't working, so I imagine things aren't going well.

 

[rmburrow]

The owners of the Western Electric trademark have apparently been making 300B triodes for hi-fi enthusiasts in Georgia (USA) for a little while.

In light of recent events, they're apparently considering expanding into other tube types.

The ones they are considering so far seem to be primarily centered on guitar amps and a few trendy HiFi tubes, but they're asking for input via an online poll on their site:

https://www.westernelectric.com/expand
For all I know this is just a ploy to increase their e-mail marketing list, but there's at least a chance they're open to having the direction of new product lines shaped by consumer input.

I'd love to see them include a 12AY7/6072, a proper good 5AR4/GZ34, and a 6386 at least.

The dream would be to have a good VF14M and AC701k, but those seem like the longest of long shots. The other socketed glass-envelope tubes could be very possible, though.

Agree on the AC701. The manufacture of the VF14 would be difficult considering the vacuum steel case and other parameters. Maybe a version in a glass envelope is possible. But at $3 grand a pop for a VF14 there has to be some incentive to build something.

 

[soapfoot]

Maybe, but it's not like they can bring a vacuum tube plant online in a few months. This has to be a year long undertaking, even with massive resources.

I think TAD is close. This has been underway for awhile apparently, the timing appears as though it may be just coincidental, or perhaps accelerated a little

 

[JPO]

I filled out their form and suggested some tube types. 6L6/EL34 as well as 12AX7/12AT7 are total no-brainers and would most likely see the most sales. I would love to see some strong options from the US and getting the most common tubes in production first will give them the strong base they'll need to make additional tube types.

I suggested 12AX7/AT7/AY7 and power tubes like 6L6, EL34, KT77/88. I didn't really think of tube rectifiers but they would be nice to have as well.

If they can get a strong base of everyday tubes, then there's a chance they could get the capital to make some of the more obscure tubes.

There is a company in Chicago tooling up for VF14 tubes! I have been in contact with him and supplied him with the special funk W19tube tester for them!

 

[JPO]

Agree on the AC701. The manufacture of the VF14 would be difficult considering the vacuum steel case and other parameters. Maybe a version in a glass envelope is possible. But at $3 grand a pop for a VF14 there has to be some incentive to build something.

 

[JPO]

There is a company in Chicago tooling up for VF14 tubes! I have been in contact with him and supplied him with the special funk W19tube tester for them!

 

[amplexus]

I wonder why JJ isn't taking orders? They are not based in Russia.

Bri

My understanding is that JJ gets some internal components from Reflector in Russia and that’s causing some issues for them to work around.

 

[rock soderstrom]

There is a company in Chicago tooling up for VF14 tubes! I have been in contact with him and supplied him with the special funk W19tube tester for them!

Interesting news. I guess this will get expensive. BTW, brand name of these high quality tubetester is Funke.

 

[Ricardus]

I recommended all of the usual suspects. 12A-7, 6L6, EL34, KT88, and 6922s because I need some! I figured as long as I was asking, I asked for 6386s too, for some upcoming builds.

 

[Gold]

That's him.

I wonder where he's at in his adventure. I left him an email and asked.

Two of his domains that used to work aren't working, so I imagine things aren't going well.

I’ve known Dylan for over 20 years. He hasn’t been making many friends lately.

 

[Ricardus]

I’ve known Dylan for over 20 years. He hasn’t been making many friends lately.

Oh? Anything you can share?

 

[Gold]

Oh? Anything you can share?

.

He’s been having trouble finishing projects. That’s about all I will say. He is a lathe dude so we travel in the same circles.

 

[Brian Roth]

I am always intrigued by trademarks, so I went to the USPTO:

https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=searchss&state=4804:t55kvj.1.1
Type in Western Electric for search term.

The second, third, and fourth "live" trademark registrations are of interest.

Be sure to click the "logout" button at the top of the page when done looking.

Bri

 

[mikebalboa]

My dad passed in the 1950s RIP so I never got to pick his brain about WE but from his papers and notebooks WE was big in the early movie business.

My dad also worked at Vitaphone the joint venture between WE and Warner Brothers to make talking pictures.

JR

The early Vitaphone movies were so good! They play a lot of them on TCM. “Doctor X” is a great Sci-Fi film in an early version of Technicolor. …and don’t get me started about all the Vitaphone pre-code movies. I wish we could have heard some of your dads stories about that time. So much technology that we still use today was developed during that time (late 1920s through the 1930s-during the Great Depression). They spent lots of money innovating in order to rescue the economy. Anyway, that’s really cool that your dad was part of WE!

 

[JPO]

Interesting news. I guess this will get expensive. BTW, brand name of these high quality tubetester is Funke.

Autocorrect