• WARNING: Tube/Valve amplifiers use potentially LETHAL HIGH VOLTAGES.
    Building, troubleshooting and testing of these amplifiers should only be
    performed by someone who is thoroughly familiar with
    the safety precautions around high voltages.

What part of DIY do you LOVE?

Status
This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.
The process of having an idea, snoop around here and other places to see if its doable and prototyping. And just try it if it cannot be confirmed. I don't like the final process of making things look good. Don't have the patience. Too

many projects and ideas.

Also the fact that my entire system is second hand or dumpster dive items repaired and put to work. Troubleshooting can be a lot of fun!
 
Get an old air filter from a Tektronix tube scope and burn it for that old tube equipment smell.
Better yet, just run the scope as a room heater.

I like bringing new old TV tubes to life again with audio, new tube circuitry never dreamt of, like Crazy Drive, "new" series Schade (UnSet, CED), differentiator gm wing plots, and reminiscing about old days and ways, Heathkit, Eico, Knight, Dynaco, .... Too many things got passed in a hurry to get to the future, which obviously isn't working too well lately. So many great great things sit quietly in the past, never discovered, and lost to irreversible complexity now. Maybe I can start a new burial trend soon, a casket filled with TV tubes. Nah, I'd need a shipping container. :D

6HZ8, 6LU8, 6197, 6JC6, 6AH6, 12HL7, 6HB6, 5687, 12GE5, 22JG6, 12JT6, 22JR6, 12GT5, 21HB5, 17KV6, 6HJ5, 6EX6, 6CB5, 21LG6, 35LR6, 26LX6, 36MC6, 36LW6, 6F12P, 4P1L, 1E7G, 6JH8, 6FM7, 6GF7, 38HE7, 6BN11, 6EW6, 6AH9, 6GF5, 8136, 8532, 6KR8, 6KV8, 6LQ8, 6LY8, 5902, 5639, 6JT8, 5755, 5744, ......

Hmmm, which combo should i use for the next amp? Decisions, decisions...
 
Last edited:
I love the whole process or circuit design, mocking up the amplifier on a board, to the final chassis layout and design. I just need projects in my life to sink my teeth into.

I love the smell from my TV-7 tube tester. I don't know if its the anti fungal conformal coating on all the solder joints, or the mercury tube rectifier. For me it's the ultimate old equipment smell, even if it does cause cancer in the state of California...
 
I like it when I think that I am becoming more honest to my ears and music through this DIY hobby. :)
Also toying with alligator clips!
 

Attachments

  • 2A3s.jpg
    2A3s.jpg
    145.2 KB · Views: 97
What Do I love about this?

How many people have told us that clip lead messes like these will not work. If there's any sound at all it will oscillate or hum.

I love it when I make a mess like the first picture, flip the switch and hear nice clean sound on the first power up.

There is an experiment involving clip leads and a perf board prototype on my workbench right now. It is a Voltage Controlled Amplifier intended for a vacuum tube based electronic music synthesizer. I's basically a vacuum tube pot whose setting is adjusted by a "control voltage." Zero volts gives a large signal loss, 10 volts gives a medium gain. I'm measuring a total dynamic range of over 96 dB on a proto board with no hint of shielding anywhere and clip leads or test probe wire for input and output. Output is 20 volts RMS with 10 volts on the control, and 275 MICROVOLTS of mostly 60 and 120 Hz with 0 volts on the control input.

There are multiple tube sockets so that I could try many different kinds of tubes to see what worked best. Several more experiments will be performed on this proto to optimize frequency response and THD before building a new proto board with one set of tube sockets, and possibly different transformers.
 

Attachments

  • P3990293_x.jpg
    P3990293_x.jpg
    633.3 KB · Views: 29
  • P3990289_x.jpg
    P3990289_x.jpg
    640.1 KB · Views: 32
  • P3990284_x.jpg
    P3990284_x.jpg
    669.3 KB · Views: 26
  • P3990287_x.jpg
    P3990287_x.jpg
    649.6 KB · Views: 66
Status
This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.