Now THAT is a good idea! 11/10 for attention to detail - as usual.
I’m going to replace the 6111 in the DAC in case I sell it at some point, and since I have no means of testing these valves, a base of some kind would be ideal - do you have a part# / link for them?
They look very handy, but it’s yet another example of Farnell’s very weird pricing policy.
You’ll know all this Simon, and you may well too Paul, but for the benefit of anyone else who might be looking to buy stuff from them, CPC is owned by Farnell. There is a good deal of overlap between their product ranges.
Simon’s link takes you to the Fischer TF 58 socket which costs £5.07 ex VAT from CPC. They have 1 (yup, 1 !) in stock. If you order 4 then that’ll total more than £20 so you’ll get them posted for free, but because they only have 1 in stock they’ll come in two packets. They often use UPS for delivery so 1 socket could be with you tomorrow. The lead time for the others is down as 4 weeks.
The identical item is also available from Farnell https://uk.farnell.com/fischer-elektronik/tf-58/socket-transistor-to5-8pin/dp/1466129. They have 247 in stock but now they cost £12.11 ex VAT (and oddly the lead time for any more is 15 weeks).
If you buy from CPC then they will have to pay UPS for 2 drops. They could get their mates in Farnell to send you 4, since they have 247. You’d be a happier customer and they’d have saved themselves the cost of an extra UPS drop. Win-win. But no, they do the dumb lose-lose thing instead. WTAF ?
aaannndddd I got a quote for a good quantity from the official UK distributor, which ended up costing more per unit than the CPC 1 off price… so CPC it is, and frequent small orders to maintain stock
makes no sense at all
For additional weirdness you can find the same item on eBay at a Buy-It-Now price equivalent to £8.66 ex VAT, again with free postage TF 58 Fischer Elektronik Socket Transistor, To5, 8Pin | eBay. That’s less than Farnell but more than CPC, however if you need more than 1 then this guy has more than 10 available.
I swear I’ve seen items being re-sold on the Bay like that that are still in their CPC plastic bags, with something of a price markup but now available in useful quantities. When other people are re-selling your product at a higher price than you are because you simply don’t hold enough stock then you know your marketing strategy is fucked. Yes, I’m looking at you Morgan Motors. But in CPC’s case another part of their business actually does hold the stock !
Bet they all come from the same distribution centre, too. CPC-Farnell have never managed to get their business to run properly, but their margins are so massive on enough stuff, that it doesn’t matter. They need someone like Sam in charge.
FWIW, Mouser have these in stock, which while TBT instead of Teflon-bodied seem to have similar connector quality and are less than half the price. Be more than good-enough for the little ANUK DAC.
They get some decent kit in that shop, been a few times.
Saora is quite rare, but pricing is a bit optimistic if it needs retipping
Is it the same Soara thats been flipped a couple of times recently?
Emporium have added £200 to the IO since they advertised it previously.
What a surprise 
For best results orientate the wood grain with the north magnetic pole.
Location of Glastonbury, in case you hadn’t guessed.
Nope, same one that’s been on ebay for quite a while.
Where does this one sit in the general hierarchy of Kondo/ AN carts?
They look to be more expensive but is this to cover the cost of new tooling, that ANUK don’t need to pay for?