question about 6Av5ga tubes

[tubelab.com]

The 6FW5 has higher ratings than the 6AV5GA too, IIRC.

Yes, the 6FW5 has a newer plate structure that came from one of the GE compactron sweep tubes (I don't remember which one). They will take more abuse than any of the 6AV5GA's except for the Sylvanias. I have found some later GE 6AV5GA's that have 6FW5 guts in them. These obviously can take more abuse than the early 6AV5GA's.

[frank754]

tubelab: I just read your thread not 3 or 4 days ago, where you had found a tube source (one vendor) that had (was it 6BG6's?) for a very low price, but the one manufacturer had used 6L6GC innards.
You said only this one source would work, no others.
It has a plate cap and different pinouts.
So basically it seemed you were saying you could use these in a 50 watt guitar amp, with just an adapter (which came as a kit).
Just wondered if you could kink again to that info. I'm thinking of trying another design soon, after I get done with my current prototype.
Thanks

[tubelab.com]

That would be these:

http://www.vacuumtubes.com/6BG6.html

I haven't tried the adapter thing, but I torture tested a pair of these tubes in one of my SE amplifiers and came to the conclusion that these are not 6L6GC's they are 7027A's which are also known as 6L6STR's. These can take more power than "normal" 6L6GC's. They are on par with the Sovtek 6L6WXT. Both can live at 35 watts of plate dissipation.

There may be other vendors selling these tubes, but do not attempt to run this kind of power levels through an ordinary 6BG6, 807, 1626 or any other 6L6GB type tube, they will blow up rather quickly.

[jrdmedford]

I'm confused. If the 6AV5 amp that you are interested in
does 40W, wouldnt your life be awhole lot easier with a
30W amp using KT88 in triode ??? There are so many
good designs out there for the KT88 as well as wide selection
in good new production tubes?

The 6AV5GA family is for DIY cheapskates who know value...
The moment someone builds product-amps on this tube is
when it goes from being a $3.00 tube to a $20 tube. Sooner
or later the 6AV5 will get "discovered" and hoarded and it will
cease being a bargain.

I use 12AV5GA's in a Lynn Olson Amity clone on 98 eff speakers.
It is an experience to be heard. What I hear is more topology
than the tubes in play. My motivation for using them is I happened to stumble on 35 12AV5GA's new all of the same
brand for $0.50 ea. I obviously have enough matched pairs
to totally justify building a great amp using them...


If you are in Spain, I'd be more inclined to seek out Soviet tubes.
The military spares are very very well built. There are lots
of options here. How about the GU50 ? For Fostex, why not
6AS7GA PP ?

-- Jim

[frank754]

Thanks. tubelab. Duly bookmarked and written into my hard-copy notebook as well. That's one great tube from the looks of it, and hopefully they have a good supply. I'm going to design my next amp around these. It's a great find

[juanito]

thanks jim,

I'm still looking for the right amp. The 6AV5GA amp from ideal innov. have an additional problem wich can cost as much as the whole amp, and it's power ratings in europe. He can fix it to european voltage and to 50 Hz, wich is more important this one. I don't know much about, but an electrician, so as the seller told me that that amplifier would last for a few hours, and then gone.
i look in the States because there isn't much choice here in spain, and the cost of shipping from abbroad for such heavy machine doesn't really make a big diference, if it comes from germany or from USA or Thailand.

I'll check out the tubes you sed, this afternoon, and thanks for the idea.
BTW, do you know by any chance any good amp maker/seller from eastern Europe?


see what happens then,

bye

juanito