I started this thread to post the spreadsheet that I use to keep track of vacuum tubes that I have dealt with. I keep it updated as needed. I have posted older versions on diyAudio before, but they get lost in the crowd.
I have used this spreadsheet for years and have fixed several mistakes. I can't guarantee that there aren't any more. Use at your own risk, and consult a tube manual if in doubt.
I made this spreadsheet for my own use over a period of at least 20 years. It is not always consistent or complete since it was intended for my own use.
If there are any questions, requests, or comments feel free to post them, especially if you think that there is an error.
I'm sure that there are more goodies hidden in a dark corner of my 20 TB NAS drive box. I'll add them as found.
I have used this spreadsheet for years and have fixed several mistakes. I can't guarantee that there aren't any more. Use at your own risk, and consult a tube manual if in doubt.
I made this spreadsheet for my own use over a period of at least 20 years. It is not always consistent or complete since it was intended for my own use.
If there are any questions, requests, or comments feel free to post them, especially if you think that there is an error.
I'm sure that there are more goodies hidden in a dark corner of my 20 TB NAS drive box. I'll add them as found.
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Thanks so much for posting this! It’s a very handy resource. Interested to see what else is in the tubelab archive.
A suggestion, feel free to ignore, is to convert it to a public Google Sheet. Then you don’t have to periodically post it here since anyone with the link will always get the latest version. Plus it’s readable by everyone with a browser, not just those who have Excel.
Making it a google sheet isn’t a bad idea. That being said, you don’t need Excel to read this spreadsheet. I opened it up in Numbers on my Mac no problem. There are also several free office suites that would work just as well.
Hope to see other components you've experienced have their own collected knowledge as well. Example, I'm aware you know some stuff about transformers as a component. Understandably, tubes may yet be far more obtainable than the transformers they go with...
The tubes spreadsheet has existed since I got my warehouse full of tubes in the late 90's and spent several years sorting them all. There were other spreadsheets that got lost along the way, but most were not audio related. Things like grouping the various pin configurations of vacuum tubes are easy to categorize in a spreadsheet. Transformers are a much more subjective subject. A long time ago I did engage in a small scale shootout of OPT's with one of my amps, two different sets of speakers, and 5 listeners. NO clear cut winner could be determined as listener tastes and music choice are more variable than the OPT's themselves.
As far back as the late 90's I was diagnosed with a degenerative middle ear issue called Meniere's Disease. This causes episodes of dizziness, vertigo and hearing loss along with ever increasing tinnitus. I can't tell the difference between great and mediocre sound unless the volume level is high enough to mask the tinnitus. Most of my daily listening is via mid priced Sennheiser headphones plugged right into the audio interface on my PC.
I got a bunch of different OPT's back in the early 2000's and use them for testing amps. I have not bought anything new in at least a decade except a few cheapies for guitar amp experiments, so I can't say much about OPT's that are currently available. There may be something related to guitar amp building in the future depending on where that path takes me.
The tubes spreadsheet was culled from tube manuals, and other resources that I found online. There was a vacuum tube spreadsheet that made mine hide in a corner. Google just confirmed that it still exists. Look here:
https://www.angelfire.com/electronic/funwithtubes/tube_select_guide.html
I tried to drop a few old tube manuals below that I use to verify my info but the files are too large. Google can probably find them. The RCA RC-30 and an older version like the RC-18 for tubes that it doesn't show are good. Here are a few other bits.
The sweep tube list was created from the master chart with some additions learned with my RF amp building experiments. Somehow it never god put into the master chart. I may do that when I have time.
The angelfire spreadsheet certainly has a lot of info but crucially, at least for me, it does not allow sorting by pin out. Thanks again for your and the link to this one.
Thanks for considering! I have it too. Right ear mostly. I have a hunch that transformers - after the tube - are the most important component in audio electronics. Mostly because of what they do to sound electrically and apparently having such a broad-stroke of preference among recording engineers, guitarists, and audio playback enthusiasts.
I realize stumbling upon a warehouse full of various audio transformers sometime in life is far less probable than for tubes. Being kind of expensive things, it makes sense that you're not going to have a similar lot to have played with over the last few decades. I understand a database entry of parameters and experience for something presently unobtanium isnt the best use of someone's time.