![6V6 - 6 L6 Tube pin-out diagram](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/6V6_-_6_L6_Tube_pin-out_diagram.JPG)
The 6V6 is a
beam-power
A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space charg ...
tetrode
A tetrode is a vacuum tube (called ''valve'' in British English) having four active electrodes. The four electrodes in order from the centre are: a thermionic cathode, first and second grids and a plate (called ''anode'' in British English). Th ...
vacuum tube
A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric voltage, potential difference has been applied.
The type kn ...
. The first of this family of tubes to be introduced was the 6V6G by
Ken-Rad Tube & Lamp Corporation in late 1936, with the availability by December of both
Ken-Rad and
Raytheon
Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
6V6G tubes announced. It is still in use in audio applications, especially electric guitar amplifiers.
Following the introduction in July 1936 of the
6L6
6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
, the potential of the scaled down version that became the 6V6 was soon realized. The lower-powered 6V6 was better suited for average home use, and became common in the audio output stages of "farmhouse" table-top
radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
s, where power pentodes such as the
6F6 had previously been used. The 6V6 required less heater power and produced less distortion than the 6F6, while yielding higher output in both single-ended and
push-pull configurations. Although the 6V6 was originally designed especially for use in automobile radios, the clip-in
Loctal base
Tube sockets are electrical sockets into which vacuum tubes (electronic valves) can be plugged, holding them in place and providing terminals, which can be soldered into the circuit, for each of the pins. Sockets are designed to allow tubes to b ...
7C5, from early 1939, or the lower heater current 12V6GT, both with the identical characteristics to the 6V6, but with the smaller T-9 glass envelope, soon became the tubes of choice for many automotive radios manufacturers. Additionally, the 6V6 had applications in portable battery-operated radios.
The data sheet information supplied by the tube manufacturers' design centers, list the typical operation of an audio output stage for a single 6V6 as producing about 5 W of continuous power, and a push-pull pair about 14 W. Amplifier manufacturers soon realized that the tube was capable of being used at ratings above the recommended maximums, and guitar amplifiers with 400 V on the plates of a pair of 6V6GTA claim to produce an output power of 20 W RMS at 5%THD with 40 W Peak Music Power, and with 490 V on the plates, as much as 30 W RMS.
History
![6V6 tube bulbs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/6V6_tube_bulbs.png)
![Coin Based RCA 6V6GTA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Coin_Based_RCA_6V6GTA.jpg)
![6V6s](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/6V6s.JPG)
Following the 6V6G, RMA Release #96 – 09 Nov. 1936, sponsored by
Ken-Rad Tube & Lamp Corporation, with the ST 14 shouldered glass envelope, the 6V6 was announced with a metal mantel in January 1937 by
Hygrade Sylvania Corporation. The RMA Release #125 – 03 Jan.1938, Sponsored by
RCA
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
. for the 6V6 tube has led to some confusion as to the origins of the 6V6. The 6V6G but not the 6V6 is in the RCA manual RC-13 from July 1937, but the 6V6 is to be found in the 1937 tube manuals of other manufacturers, such as Raytheon. Tube manufacturers were keen to promote the superiority of the metal tube construction that was introduced on April 1, 1935, and large quantities of the 6V6 tube were produced in the following decade, many as military supply
JAN
Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to:
Acronyms
* Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN
* Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code
* Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group
* Japanese Article Num ...
tubes, and the price of the metal and glass versions were held to closely the same retail price level for the first few years of their production. The introduction of the 6V6GT, RMA Release #201 – 10 July 1939, was sponsored by Hytron Corporation. By 1940, the 6V6G production was largely superseded by this smaller "GT" T-9 glass envelope. On April 17, 1942, the War Production Board ordered radio tube manufacturers to discontinue within seven days the production for civilian use of 349 of the 710 types of radio tubes on the market, amongst these were the 6V6G and 6V6GX. By 1943, we find that the price of the metal version is almost twice that of the GT version, and this proportional difference in price seems to have remained constant, right through to the end of the 1970s. The 6V6GTA – RMA Release #1681 – 2 July 1956, sponsored by
Hygrade Sylvania Corporation, has a controlled warm-up period. The various different NOS (new old stock) tubes of the 6V6 family, depending on manufacturer, model, series, strength and condition, will vary enormously in scarcity and therefore usually in price. The metal NOS 6V6 tube, once costing almost twice the price of its now highly valued glass enveloped counterparts, is now considered to be fairly common, and is usually the cheapest NOS tube available, with many current production tubes costing more than its 60 to 80 year older classic predecessor. In the final years of U.S. production, several of the major manufacturers switched to using the so-called "coin" based GT bulb.
Current use
Now, eighty-five years after its introduction, and still retaining its original characteristics, the 6V6 has one of the longest active lifetimes of any electronic component, having never been out of production in all this long period of time. Although historically widely used in all manner of electronic goods, many of which are still in service, it is in guitar amplifiers where its use has become archetypal. Not only are there very many existing amplifiers in regular use that rely on the 6V6, with contemporary reproductions of the more iconic models still being made, modern designers are still keen to develop new creations that rely on its use.
Generally speaking, 6V6 tubes are sturdy and can be operated beyond their published specifications (the Soviet made 6P6S,
and early Chinese 6V6 versions were not as permissive of exceeding design limits, although current production has improved). Because of this, the 6V6 soon proved itself to be suitable for use in consumer-market musical
instrument amplifier
An instrument amplifier is an electronic device that converts the often barely audible or purely electronic signal of a musical instrument into a larger electronic signal to feed to a loudspeaker. An instrument amplifier is used with musical ins ...
s, particularly combo-style guitar amps such as the
Gibson
Gibson may refer to:
People
* Gibson (surname)
Businesses
* Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment
* Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based
* Gi ...
GA-40, and the
Fender Amplifiers
Fender amplifiers are a series of electric instrument amplifiers produced by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. The first guitar amplifiers attributed to Leo Fender were manufactured by the K&F Manufacturing Corporation (K&F) betwee ...
;
Champ,
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...
, and
Deluxe, some of which drive their 6V6s well in excess of the
datasheet
A datasheet, data sheet, or spec sheet is a document that summarizes the performance and other characteristics of a product, machine, component (e.g., an electronic component), material, subsystem (e.g., a power supply), or software in sufficie ...
specified maximum rating. This ongoing demand encourages
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
,
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
n and
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
n tube factories not only to keep the 6V6 in production to this day, but to further develop the supply.
The 6V6 Family and equivalents
6V6G – Glass "Shouldered Tube" ST envelope.
6V6GX – Glass "Shouldered Tube" ST envelope, Ceramic Base.
6V6 – Metal jacketed envelope.
The metal envelope of 6V6 is connected to pin 1 of the base, and was normally used as a ground.
Pin 1 of the other members of the 6V6 family of tubes are usually not internally connected, although some may have the gray RF shield connected.
6V6GT – smaller "Glass Tube" T-9 envelope.
6V6GTA – with a controlled warm-up period.
6V6GTY – a GT with a low loss micanol brown base.
6V6GTX = HY6V6GTX – a GT "Bantam" selected for high gain, with a ceramic base, 15W plate dissipation rating, produced for a limited period around 1941 by Hytron.
5871 – Ruggedized 6V6GT for operation under severe vibrations found in aircraft and similar applications. Radio Valve Co. of Canada Ltd., 1954 : RMA #859A.
5992 – Premium, ruggedized 6V6GT with heater current raised to 600mA.
Bendix and
GE known manufacturers.
7408 – 6V6GT with additional zero-bias characteristics.
6V6S – A modern production, large plated tube, heater current 500mA, with a higher plate and screen voltage rating. Made by
JJ Electronic
JJ Electronic, s.r.o is a Slovak electronic component manufacturer, and one of the world's remaining producers of vacuum tubes. It is based in Čadca, in the Kysuce region of Slovakia.
Most of its products are audio receiving tubes, mainly used f ...
.
6V6GT(A)(B)-STR – Modern production valve, STR signifying "Special Test Requirement." Claiming to be heavy duty, suitable for high plate voltage.
Military specification 6V6 tubes and their equivalents
American military services contracted tubes from many sources through the
U.S. War Department
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, a ...
. They used a
Joint Army-Navy Nomenclature System (AN System. JAN) Most of these tubes bear the JAN marking as well as a VT number (VT = vacuum tube).
![OSW 3106](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/OSW_3106.jpg)
VT-107 – Metal 6V6.
6V6Y – Metal, with a low loss micanol brown base.
VT-107A – 6V6GT.
VT-107B – 6V6G.
British Ministry Of Supply valves for the Military & other governmental agencies have a CV number (CV = common valve). Old stores reference numbers with the prefix ZA are also sometimes used. Supplied by
Mullard
Mullard Limited was a British manufacturer of electronic components. The Mullard Radio Valve Co. Ltd. of Southfields, London, was founded in 1920 by Captain Stanley R. Mullard, who had previously designed thermionic valves for the Admiral ...
&
Brimar.
CV509 = ZA5306 – 6V6G
CV510 – 6V6
CV511 – 6V6GT & 6V6GTY
The British GPO also used their own VT (Valve - Thermionic) numbering system
VT196 = CV509 = 6V6G – General Post Office (GPO)
Swedish Military supplier Bofors, had tubes made by Standard Radiofabrik (SRF) at the Ulvsunda plant in Stockholm.
5S2D - Premium, ruggedized 6V6GT with triple micas, low loss micanol brown base.
Other tubes cited as being equivalent
6P6S (6П6С in Cyrillic.) Also 6П2 - In the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
a version of the 6V6GT was produced since the late 1940s which appears to be a close copy of the 1940s
Sylvania-issue 6V6GT – initially under its American designation (in both Latin and Cyrillic lettering), but later, the USSR adopted
its own system of designations.
6P11S (6П11С in Cyrillic.) = 6П6С-Y2 - Military consignment, ruggedized 6P6S. OTK tested. Higher Voltage ratings.
1515 - Premium version of the 6P6S (6П6С).
6P6P - Chinese version of the 6V6GT made by Shuguang, but now obsolete, different from Shuguang's current production 6V6GT.
3106 – East German production 6V6GT from OSW (Oberspreewerk Berlin, later HF, then WF with 6П6С & 6V6 marking). Open, split-plate design.
6AY5 – East German production 6V6GT
VT227 = 7184 – Cited equivalent, made by Ken-Rad, inadequate documentation, no RMA registration.
WT-210-00-82 – Cited equivalent, inadequate documentation, no RMA registration.
WTT-123 – Cited equivalent, inadequate documentation, no RMA registration.
6V6HD – NOT a 6V6, but relabeled Sovtek 6L6GA / 6P3S.
Similar tubes
![6V6 der](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/6V6_der.jpg)
These tubes have very similar characteristics to the 6V6, but differ either in the heater rating, or use a different socket and pin-out
5V6GT – Same as the 6V6GT, but with different heater ratings - 4.7V, 0.6A, controlled 11 sec. warm-up time.
12V6GT – Same as the 6V6GT, but with different heater ratings - 12.6V, 0.225A, suitable for automotive receiver applications.
7C5 – Clip-in Loctal B8G base, T-9 Bulb.
Raytheon
Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
– 1939 RMA #162. Other version of this tube are 7C5-TV, 2C48, 2C50, N148, CV885
7C5LT = CV886 – Same as the 7C5, except with a small wafer Octalox base 8-pin T-9 Bulb. RCA – 1940 RMA #234.
14C5 – Same as 7C5 but with 12.6V Heater.
6BW6 = CV2136 – British made miniature-tube 12W equivalent of the 6V6, 9-pin base B9A.
6061 – Premium, ruggedized 6BW6. Brimar STC London. 1951 : RMA #965
CV4043 – British made miniature-tube 13.5W equivalent of the 6BW6, 9-pin base B9A.
6AQ5
The 6AQ5 (Mullard–Philips tube designation EL90) is a miniature 7-pin (B7G) audio power output beam tetrode vacuum tube with ratings virtually identical to the 6V6 at 250 V. It was commonly used as an output audio amplifier in tube TVs and radios ...
– slightly lower specifications to the 6V6GT, miniature glass envelope, 7-pin base B7G. Other equivalents of this tube are the CV1862,
EL90, 6005, 6095, 6669, 6928, BPM 04, CK-6005, M8249, N7277C5, 6L31
12AQ5 - Same as the 6AQ5, but with different heater ratings.
6P1P The 6P1P (Russian: 6П1П) is a Soviet-made miniature 9-pin beam tetrode vacuum tube with ratings similar to the 6AQ5, EL90 and the 6V6. Because of a different pinout (a 9-pin base versus 7-pin base) than an 6AQ5/EL90, it cannot be used as a plug ...
(6П1П in Cyrillic.) – 9-pin B9A Noval base Soviet version, not identical characteristics, but very close
6973 – US version, 9 pin Noval base tube, higher plate voltage ratings, intended for high fidelity output applications.
6CM6 – 9 pin Noval base tube, equivalent type primarily intended for vertical deflection amplifiers in television receivers.
12CM6 - Same as the 6CM6, but with different heater ratings.
12AB5 – 9 pin Noval base tube with 12V heater, suitable for automotive receiver applications. Equivalent to the 7061
The
pentode
A pentode is an electronic device having five electrodes. The term most commonly applies to a three-grid amplifying vacuum tube or thermionic valve that was invented by Gilles Holst and Bernhard D.H. Tellegen in 1926. The pentode (called a ''tripl ...
EL84
The EL84 is a vacuum tube of the power pentode type. It is used in the power-output-stages of audio-amplifiers, most commonly now in guitar amplifiers, but originally in radios. The EL84 is smaller and more sensitive than the octal 6V6 that was ...
/6BQ5 - 9 pin Noval base tube, that although different enough from the 6V6 not to justify rating it as an equivalent, because of its popularity and ready availability, plus having a close enough similarity to make it possible, if bias is altered, adapters have been developed commercially to allow an amplifier designed for 6V6 use, to accept the noval based
EL84
The EL84 is a vacuum tube of the power pentode type. It is used in the power-output-stages of audio-amplifiers, most commonly now in guitar amplifiers, but originally in radios. The EL84 is smaller and more sensitive than the octal 6V6 that was ...
tube. Likewise, the inverse adapter is also available.
See also
*
List of vacuum tubes
This is a list of vacuum tubes or ''thermionic valves'', and low-pressure gas-filled tubes, or ''discharge tubes''. Before the advent of semiconductor devices, thousands of tube types were used in consumer electronics. Many industrial, military or ...
*
KT66
KT66 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Marconi-Osram Valve Co. Ltd. (M-OV) of Britain in 1937 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies and driver for radio frequencies.Editors "The New Valves" ''W ...
*
KT88 The KT88 is a beam tetrode/kinkless tetrode (hence "KT") vacuum tube for audio amplification.
Features
The KT88 fits a standard eight-pin octal socket and has similar pinout and applications as the 6L6 and EL34. Specifically designed for audio ...
*
6L6
6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
* 6CA7/
EL34
The EL34 is a thermionic vacuum tube of the power pentode type. The EL34 was introduced in 1955 by Mullard, who were owned by Philips. The EL34 has an octal base (indicated by the '3' in the part number) and is found mainly in the final output st ...
/KT77
*
807
__NOTOC__
Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire
* Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, on ...
*
Beam tetrode
A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space charg ...
References
{{Reflist
General references
* Stokes, John. ''70 Years of Radio Tubes and Valves''. NY: Vestal Press, 1982.
* ''Radio News'' magazine, March 1937, page 567, "The Radio Workshop."
* ''Radio-Craft'' magazine, October 1937, page 204, "New Tubes for the Radio Experimenter."
* RMA (Radio Manufacturers Association) "Electron Tube Registration List"
* Fender Musical Instruments, Amplifier Owners Manual's, 1983.
* Jim Kelley Amplifiers, Amplifier Owners Manual.
* ''Guitar Player'' Magazine, June 1983.
* O'Connor, Kevin. ''T.U.T. Vol.5''. Powerpress Publishing, 2004.
* Receiving Tube Manual, RC-20. RCA corporation. 1964.
External links
Duncan's Amps TDSL.Tube Collector's Association website.American Radio History website
Vacuum tubes
Guitar amplification tubes