Tube amp fan?

holsen · 10th November 2005, 02:14 AM

Hey there

I need to source a fan for my tube amp head unit. I'm running some matched hi-gain tubes on the low side and a set of tubes that go into distortion early (#30) on the high side and I'd like to make them last a little longer by pushing some air past them.

I'm thinking a small unit like a computer fan. My kids have several of them that light up, but they're only 12v and I'm looking for some 110 / 115v stuff. Got any Ideas?

tubelab.com · 10th November 2005, 02:56 AM

Most of the computer fans run on 12 V dc, which drives a solid state drive circuit. The 110 volt fans are usually AC induction motors that run at a fixed (high) speed and are usually quite noisy. If you can't find a quiet one, you can run the 12 volt computer fans off of 9 volts, which can be made with a diode and a cap off of the 6.3 volt filament transformer. This is what I use on my amps. At 9 volts these fans make almost no noise, yet move enough air to prevent meltdown.

holsen · 11th November 2005, 01:44 PM

Hummf! Shoulda thought of that. A friend of mine told me it's not your memory that's going, it's just full and kinda plugged up. I feel so much better knowing that.

I went to your site the other day...man how do you do it all?
C???k? And married too! Sheesh! I have trouble taking out the trash and my wife ditched me cause I left the toilet seat up.

Thanks mucho for the idea, I'll get er done.

tubelab.com · 11th November 2005, 02:08 PM

I have come to the realization that my memory is full. For every new thought, an old one goes away, there are no more gigabytes up there! The solution is to not think too hard.

How do I do it? I don't know any more, that's why I am so far behind, too many projects. I thought I would have more time when the kids left...... NAH!

Nordic · 11th November 2005, 02:32 PM

NOt realy on topic, but I just want to point out that if you remember something, even after some effort, you still never forgot it...

PS you don't even need to push 9V into it, many of us silent PC freaks run fans at only 5V, if you have the spaec, I would aim for a 120mm fan as it runs at even lower revolutions to push the same amount of air as smaller fans

holsen · 15th November 2005, 08:09 AM

Federated here I come!!

10th November 2005, 02:14 AM	#1
holsen diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2005	Tube amp fan? Hey there I need to source a fan for my tube amp head unit. I'm running some matched hi-gain tubes on the low side and a set of tubes that go into distortion early (#30) on the high side and I'd like to make them last a little longer by pushing some air past them. I'm thinking a small unit like a computer fan. My kids have several of them that light up, but they're only 12v and I'm looking for some 110 / 115v stuff. Got any Ideas?

10th November 2005, 02:56 AM	#2
tubelab.com diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: South Florida	Most of the computer fans run on 12 V dc, which drives a solid state drive circuit. The 110 volt fans are usually AC induction motors that run at a fixed (high) speed and are usually quite noisy. If you can't find a quiet one, you can run the 12 volt computer fans off of 9 volts, which can be made with a diode and a cap off of the 6.3 volt filament transformer. This is what I use on my amps. At 9 volts these fans make almost no noise, yet move enough air to prevent meltdown. __________________ Too much power is almost enough! Turn it up till it explodes - then back up just a little.

11th November 2005, 02:08 PM	#4
tubelab.com diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: South Florida	I have come to the realization that my memory is full. For every new thought, an old one goes away, there are no more gigabytes up there! The solution is to not think too hard. How do I do it? I don't know any more, that's why I am so far behind, too many projects. I thought I would have more time when the kids left...... NAH! __________________ Too much power is almost enough! Turn it up till it explodes - then back up just a little.

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11th November 2005, 01:44 PM	#3
holsen diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2005	Hummf! Shoulda thought of that. A friend of mine told me it's not your memory that's going, it's just full and kinda plugged up. I feel so much better knowing that. I went to your site the other day...man how do you do it all? C???k? And married too! Sheesh! I have trouble taking out the trash and my wife ditched me cause I left the toilet seat up. Thanks mucho for the idea, I'll get er done.

11th November 2005, 02:32 PM	#5
Nordic diyAudio Member Join Date: Sep 2005	NOt realy on topic, but I just want to point out that if you remember something, even after some effort, you still never forgot it... PS you don't even need to push 9V into it, many of us silent PC freaks run fans at only 5V, if you have the spaec, I would aim for a 120mm fan as it runs at even lower revolutions to push the same amount of air as smaller fans

15th November 2005, 08:09 AM	#6
holsen diyAudio Member Join Date: Nov 2005	Federated here I come!!

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