Preferred Series 7189 Premium EL84 Power Vacuum Tube (Matched)
Need matched power tubes? Don't worry! Price includes matching in any quantity you need for no extra charge. Need a matched pair? Just order "2" tubes. For a matched quad order "4" tubes. Matched sextets and octets are available as well.Our Preferred Series 7189 vacuum tube is a versatile high quality option for EL84, 6BQ5, and 7189 power tube circuits because of its clean headroom, power, dynamics and harmonic content. Please see John Templeton's review of this tube. This 7189 tube is rated for higher power and plate voltage plus longer life making it a premium upgrade for amps with tough operating conditions. The solid construction and heavy glass also minimize microphonics. For the hifi crowd, this tube is the perfect choice for Scott, Eico and Fisher amps. Our Preferred Series 7189 starts life as a NOS (New Old Stock) Russian 6P14P-EV as translated from Cyrillic. It is a military build that meets or exceeds the 7189 specifications
6P14P = 6BQ5, EL84 and 7189 tubes.
E = Extended or long life (>5,000 hours)
V = Mechanically ruggedized for low microphonics and reliability
We have been selling this particular tube for years but have found the production from the 1980’s to sound and work the best. We sought out and purchased as much NOS as we can find from this time period. They are then burned in, tested and matched on our digital high voltage equipment to make sure the tubes selected for you will provide outstanding tone and performance. The Preferred Series 7189 tubes carry a 6 month extended warranty.
Other Preferred Series tubes 
EL84 Tube TypesAdditional Information and Downloads
Reviews:
EL84 Tube Review
Tube Matching Information:
Power Tube Matching FAQ
Perfect Pair System
Downloads:
Preferred Series 7189 Datasheet (PDF)
Download Adobe Acrobat PDF reader
Warranty Information and Return Policy
Warranty Period: 6 monthsPreferred Series tubes have a 6 month warranty from date of purchase. (Any exceptions will be noted on that tube's Warranty tab)
If you receive a tube that does not perform to the manufacturer's specifications, please do the following:
- contact us to get a return authorization
- return it via regular mail within 180 days from when we shipped it, and we will provide an exchange or refund of the full purchase price of the tube.
Returns not related to warranty or defect will be considered at our discretion, and are subject to a 15% restocking fee.
We can not accept returns that don't have an authorization, are past 6 months, or are returned improperly.
These guidelines may be updated without notice.
Ratings & Reviews
42 reviews
Can't compare these fairly with new EL84s, but...
by Seth
I have a neat bunch of 6973, EL84, and 7189/7189A powered amps. The Vox vintage stuff is out of my price range, but I do have some amps that are dead on Vox knock offs. I shan't mention the names or models here, but these tubes are a delightful blend between a softer Mulllard UK EL84 and the more brash and hard RCA 6BQ5. In my Epiphone model 100 4 watt the Mullard was hi fi clean. The RCA was a bit raunchy but very cool sounding. These are absolutely the best of both combined! They do not do well in the Magnatone Estey M series amps for very long. The B+ can be in excess of 450VDC so these do not last very long. They sound great though!
The Tube Store does a nice job of matching these and culling out the crappy tubes. I am using a curve tracer now, and can attest to this fact. Every parameter is measured and monitored at all times and 10 curves are plotted per tube test. I suppose the JJ EL84 is okay, but these Preferred Series are a true sonic gem.
The Epi is a 4 watt SE with an Amperex 12AX7, Mullard UK 6X4 and one of these tubes in the output. She has a Weber Signature Alnico 10". The tone is wonderful! Not as edgy as the RCA, or Sylvania 6BQ5, and not as soft as the Mullard UK NOS. JJs are too muddy. These are just right! Very bubbly, but not fizzy. If I opted for these over NOS Mullard, RCA, GE, Sylvania, etc. Think about it! That amp was definitely designed with RCAs in mind, but these took some edge off in a beautiful way.
Glasnost revisited...
by SI Picker
If you're a fan of non-Fender, early '60s low-powered American amps (Ampeg, Gibson, Sano, et.al.), but can't quite capture "that sound" in the current crop of EL84 Brit-inspired designs, a set of these little Soviet-era tone bottles might just be the ticket. I'm currently running a #47 "Perfect Pair" (with a trio of matched-section Preferred Series 7025's in the preamp) in my Bugera V22 and, in tandem with the Eminence Swamp Thang speaker I installed at the same time, the tone is strongly reminiscent of the best original blue-check, New York studio "key club" Ampegs: big, bold, clean, and almost 6L6-like in terms of punch and headroom - it'll hang with my 6L6WXT+ Sovtek-equipped Super Reverb reissue with no problem whatsoever (keep in mind that this is a 22-watt, bargain-basement Chinese amp we're talking about here). Definitely not for the metal crowd - you don't really get into the characteristic EL84 power-tube drive until the controls are almost full-up (although they might make a great practice rig for a 7-stringer) - but if you're a country, jazz, rockabilly, surf, or R&B player into old-school tube tone, there's nothing else even close. Every bit as good as the reviews say they are, and highly recommended...