New to tubes.

[LUMBERMAN]

Well, I have just purchased and hooked up my very first tube set-up.

I must say that it sounds pretty good. I didn't go "all out" by any means since this was my very first expierence with tubes.

Not sure exactly what to be looking for but i do notice a very smooth rich what I describe as a full sound.

Here's what I got:

Speakers- Tube Audio Design TAD 803sd

Amp- Dared VP-16 12wpc

CD Player- CEC CD3300

And open to suggestions.

I also thought that I'd mention that I have access to thousands of tubes. Not sure if any of them are good for this type of stuff but can't see why not. My grandfather was a TV repairman and then went on to become an engineer for Bendix. Over his life he accumulated quite the tube collection. I will be going over to my grandmothers house this weekend and was curious what to look for. My father said that there is an old tube tester that my grandfathr had that would not only test tubes but also repair them. He said he used to use it to fix bad tubes in televisions. Anyone ever heard of such a thing?

Let me know what to look for and maybe I'll get lucky and run accross some good finds.

[Miles Prower]

Originally posted by LUMBERMAN
I also thought that I'd mention that I have access to thousands of tubes. Not sure if any of them are good for this type of stuff but can't see why not. My grandfather was a TV repairman and then went on to become an engineer for Bendix. Over his life he accumulated quite the tube collection.

Absolutely no good at all. I suggest you send them to me for disposal.

My father said that there is an old tube tester that my grandfathr had that would not only test tubes but also repair them. He said he used to use it to fix bad tubes in televisions. Anyone ever heard of such a thing?

Yeah, it's sometimes possible to fix an internal short by burning it out with a high current pulse. Also, weak cathodes can sometimes be brought back by overheating them. As to what the characteristics of the "repaired" VT are like, or whether it'll work in that application, or for how much longer, that's anyone's guess.

Sounds like something done in the really olden times when it wasn't so easy to simply replace a bad VT.

[Geek]

Originally posted by Miles Prower


Absolutely no good at all. I suggest you send them to me for disposal.

Ahhh, You beat me to it!

Look for vertical sweep triodes for some good beginner amps. They are super linear, run off relatively low voltage and most sound really good.

Things like 6FD7, 6EW7, 6AH4GT, etc.

Cheers!

[tubelab.com]

TV tube "rejuvenators" were comonplace for "shocking" some new life into the CRT (picture tube) in color TV sets. A color TV set cost 1 months salary or more in the 1960's. The picture tube often lasted only a few years and cost at least a hundred dollars to replace. The rejuvenator operated the heater at 1.5 to 2 X the normal voltage and then dumped a charged cap between the cathode and control grid. The resulting arc would burn the "dead" layer off of the cathode oxide coating. I performed this operation on many CRT's back then and it did often provide another year of life. It is of little use today. A tester of this type was often only used for testing TV CRT's. Look for the letters CRT on it. Another clue is the fact that the tube socket is on the end of a long cable. A conventional tube tester (many sockets on the face of the instrument) is useful to test tubes.

There are many TV type tubes used in audio amplifiers. A search of this forum will turn up some useful type numbers. Tubes made by Bendix were regarded as the best there were, since they were designed for military and aircraft applications. Many are useful in audio applications, and some fetch outrageous money on Ebay.

[LUMBERMAN]

Originally posted by tubelab.com
There are many TV type tubes used in audio amplifiers. A search of this forum will turn up some useful type numbers. Tubes made by Bendix were regarded as the best there were, since they were designed for military and aircraft applications. Many are useful in audio applications, and some fetch outrageous money on Ebay.

My dad said that most of what my grandfather has for tubes are infact old Bendix tubes. He worked as an electrical engineer for them for 40 years, and would often bring home boxes of tubes that he used for his ham radios. But I also know that I have seen a few old philco tv repair boxes with tons of tubes laying inside them.

I will do a quick search and see what I come up with.