Worldwide new tube shortage..is this the end?
- Edited
Just in case anyone was hiding under a rock : https://www.guitarworld.com/news/electro-harmonix-russia-tube-exports-ban
As EHX owns and operates a factory in Russia which manufactures tube brands – including Tung-Sol, Electro-Harmonix, EH Gold, Genalex Gold Lion, Mullard, Svetlana and Sovtek – it says supplies to its tube customers will be halted for the foreseeable future. The move will likely lead to shortages across the guitar industry.
Russia isn't t he only supplier though : https://hackaday.com/2020/08/06/just-who-makes-tubes-these-days/
So, I'm going to say...no. Guitarists are horribly old skool, even though there are better designs, better materials - Les Pauls are still heavy, break headstocks if you look at them funny, don't have stainless steel frets and are made out of unsustainable materials (Remember the CITES thing a few years back? )
There'll be plans made, sadly prices will go up in short/medium term but will stabilize after a year or two when other factories come online. I recall hearing plans a few years ago to start producing tubes in the US, plus Korg has that nu-tube tech that might also get more interest now.
Bear in mind there's a general shortage of semi-conductors, so it's not like modeling/solid state amps are not facing their own 'supply chain' issues. But there's a ton of 2nd hand stuff available, so I think that balances out in the short/medium term.
What is interesting in this debate is that Audio/ Hi Fi amplifiers that for a long time from the 60 's on, were solid state, have in some cases gone back to tubes. There's quite a few brands out there. There has to be a reason for that..why are people saying their classical or Jazz records sound so much better amplified by a tube amp ? and with that of course is the revival of Vinyl records...something that had fallen out of favour to CD's ...
Cerise why are people saying their classical or Jazz records sound so much better amplified by a tube amp ?
Not being a audiophile or audio engineer, I'll hazard a guess that vacuum tubes could have a more natural sounding distortion. SS has a tendency to clip, which sounds really harsh (to me) at higher gain w/o compression/limiting?
But that is me thumb sucking...Let's say you've got this wonderful vintage Fender Twin Reverb/Marshal Super Lead and before it you have a TS9/Klon 
I've given up on lusting after gear, I just use what I can get my hands on and makes me wanna play. If that's a Metal Zone into a 10W practice amp, so be it.