Korg company made ready this one :
KORG INC and Noritake Co., Limited Release Innovative Vacuum Tube: the Nutube | News | KORG
KORG INC and Noritake Co., Limited Release Innovative Vacuum Tube: the Nutube | News | KORG
That could confuse the op-amp verses discrete argument
They can show new vacuum technology for audio
are not science-fiction or old school
Can't find a site in English to order a couple of samples, I'll have to get a guy in the Tokyo office to get me a few. I'm intrigued and it might be fun to use them as an input stage even though they have pretty low transconductance and probably are not too quiet (the push seems to be the "tube" sound i.e. effects box).
That sample app is pretty silly, it does look like simply a replacement for 12AX7's in their gear that needs the "tube" sound. I realized after reading a little more that they might simply have reused packaging from the fluorescent display application. The microphony might be a little much in a foot pedal.
> I suspect this will remain vacu-ware.
The VFD "tube" is funny. It has been in production for many years. Recently other display technologies are eating its lunch. VFD production is closing-out.
But meantime KORG asked for some slight change and offered to buy some quantity. Even if the mega-production VFD lines are scrapped, they surely have some small machinery they could run once a month if KORG will pay the overhead.
The circuit confirms what I'd guessed when this first came out a while ago. The VFD "is" a vacuum triode, but an exceptionally poor one. Current is very low, hence the 330K load and output buffer. Input conditions are not clear, especially in a "tube distortion" where massive overdrive may be the norm, hence a low-Z grid path and an input buffer.
I don't see real use in "quality audio". If the price comes way down you could go massively parallel and get something out, but target might be under $1 each (I don't think 20 of these equals one Chinese 12AX7). That is a long way down from $50 asked, and some way down from what they cost when we had one in every microwave and VCR.
The VFD "tube" is funny. It has been in production for many years. Recently other display technologies are eating its lunch. VFD production is closing-out.
But meantime KORG asked for some slight change and offered to buy some quantity. Even if the mega-production VFD lines are scrapped, they surely have some small machinery they could run once a month if KORG will pay the overhead.
The circuit confirms what I'd guessed when this first came out a while ago. The VFD "is" a vacuum triode, but an exceptionally poor one. Current is very low, hence the 330K load and output buffer. Input conditions are not clear, especially in a "tube distortion" where massive overdrive may be the norm, hence a low-Z grid path and an input buffer.
I don't see real use in "quality audio". If the price comes way down you could go massively parallel and get something out, but target might be under $1 each (I don't think 20 of these equals one Chinese 12AX7). That is a long way down from $50 asked, and some way down from what they cost when we had one in every microwave and VCR.
Hope we get them quickly
Tnx for interesting article
Best regards
My pleasure.
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