I have been using 6P3S-E tubes in my EL34 amp off and on for 6 or 7 years. Recently I have noticed people on the auction site selling them that have "gold grids".
I know about how gold can be used in a tube, I was an electronics tech in the 70s, but I had never heard the 6P3S-E sold like that.
Just wondered if there are ones made differently or have they always been gold grid? Or is it just hype?
I know about how gold can be used in a tube, I was an electronics tech in the 70s, but I had never heard the 6P3S-E sold like that.
Just wondered if there are ones made differently or have they always been gold grid? Or is it just hype?
As a "tube noob" (or would that be "toob noob"? 
) I also wondered about that.
A few searches with google seems to suggest that "gold plating is commonly used on the grid wires to reduce electron emission".
And if it's really commonly used, then using it as a major selling point in an ebay listing is essentially just hype.
) I also wondered about that. A few searches with google seems to suggest that "gold plating is commonly used on the grid wires to reduce electron emission".
And if it's really commonly used, then using it as a major selling point in an ebay listing is essentially just hype.
Gold plated control grids are used for some valves and not for others; it is common in the sense that it is not rare, but it is not common in the sense that almost all valves use it (they mostly do not). They are most likely to be used for power valves, and valves where the grid is very close to the cathode (i.e. high gain valves). It is possible that a particular valve type is available from some makers with gold and others without. In any case, it is irrelevant unless you are pushing the valve quite hard.
What I do not understand - the appreciation of soviet tubes.
Very unstable on parameters, practically unreliable if pushed to the limits... what is the point of using that garbage no matter how much it's been gold-plated?
For each piece of soviet technology you can find an US counterpart that is great as much, but most likely is better (except maybe the 6S33S)
In fact, they were pirate-copying the NA and British tubes all the time...
I know that "industry" from inside, we had a joke in 80s about soviet electronics components, widely known/spoken (literally and directly translated): Each and every crap has a QA stamp on it - meaning "confirmed by QA that this crap is a truly crap" - pardon my French, but that's the exact meaning.
Very unstable on parameters, practically unreliable if pushed to the limits... what is the point of using that garbage no matter how much it's been gold-plated?
For each piece of soviet technology you can find an US counterpart that is great as much, but most likely is better (except maybe the 6S33S)
In fact, they were pirate-copying the NA and British tubes all the time...
I know that "industry" from inside, we had a joke in 80s about soviet electronics components, widely known/spoken (literally and directly translated): Each and every crap has a QA stamp on it - meaning "confirmed by QA that this crap is a truly crap" - pardon my French, but that's the exact meaning.
My experience with soviet tubes says, that the same tube kind can sound very differently, since they produced by various plants, from various materials, on various equipment. After the years 1960-70s grid gold plating was very uncommon, and soviet tubes quality, materialwise and assemblingwise was going down from that time.
When I play with various soviet 6N8S (6SN7), sound effect is tremendous, depending on plant, year, plate material, grid etc. This is a reality with soviet tubes, some are great, some are garbage. In other words, buyer should have some reason to believe to seller, and the last should really know what he says.
Good sounding soviet tubes are not cheap, and can be close to best western examples. To my opinion, copper plate (not graphite) GM-70 by FOTON plant is unbeatable by any western transmission tube.
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No. 6S33S is a crappy tube. There are good Soviet tubes that have no English-Speaking equivalents, and they are really great. Particularly, repackaged Telefunken military tubes like GU-50, 4P1L, 12J1L, and similar tubes.
However, 6L6-oids like 6P3S were made initially for British and American Land-Lease equipment during WW-II, and you are right, spread of parameters of them is wider than barn gates. They are quite hard to match.
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