Electronic Overload

wsuffa

wsuffa

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Bill S.
Never thought I'd say this but I am under electronic overload.

I wandered through Akihabara yesterday. What a sight... I didn't realize vacuum tubes have gotten so expensive. Time to value the junkbox. :yikes:

On my way home... thought it was worth a quick stop...
 
wsuffa said:
Never thought I'd say this but I am under electronic overload.

I wandered through Akihabara yesterday. What a sight... I didn't realize vacuum tubes have gotten so expensive. Time to value the junkbox. :yikes:

On my way home... thought it was worth a quick stop...
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That is an amazing place. Yes tubes are expensive, mostly because there are so few companies making them anymore and the market is really geared towards speciality uses. A lot of the good tube these days come out of Russia.

BTW are spycams still all the rage in Akihabara?
 
smigaldi said:
That is an amazing place. Yes tubes are expensive, mostly because there are so few companies making them anymore and the market is really geared towards speciality uses. A lot of the good tube these days come out of Russia.

BTW are spycams still all the rage in Akihabara?
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Plenty of spy cams and everything else. Games and DVD were bigger, I think

The cheapest tube I saw was a 12AL7 for 3000 yen. There was a 6V6 in the case for well over 20000 yen. :yikes: I think I have a 6V6 in a box in thee junkbox at home.... None of these were Russian tubes.

The really sad thing was walking by the test equipment store that had a display of old test equipment (labeled): GR Radio bridge... 1960's vintage Oscilloscope... 1970's marker generator.... etc.... etc... I've seen every one of them before and used the same model (except for the Japanese units). Sigh.
 
The 12AL7's are getting a lot of use as instrument amp tubes for guitars these days. My current bass amp uses one as a preamp. Although a lot of crazy sound guys, the ones that really want absolutely perfect sound are putting in Sovtek 12AX7LPS
 
wsuffa said:
Plenty of spy cams and everything else. Games and DVD were bigger, I think

The cheapest tube I saw was a 12AL7 for 3000 yen. There was a 6V6 in the case for well over 20000 yen. :yikes: I think I have a 6V6 in a box in thee junkbox at home.... None of these were Russian tubes.

The really sad thing was walking by the test equipment store that had a display of old test equipment (labeled): GR Radio bridge... 1960's vintage Oscilloscope... 1970's marker generator.... etc.... etc... I've seen every one of them before and used the same model (except for the Japanese units). Sigh.
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Hmmm. I bet I could make substitutes for most low powered vacuum tubes (e.g. 12AL7 or 6V6) using MOSFETs. If I put them in an unsealed glass envelope with a dimmed lamp simulating a heater most folks would never know they just went "solid state" if they used one to replace a dead tube.

But I did a quick search and found I could buy a 6V6 for about $10 online so I guess there's not as much money to be made there. Oh well.
 
gismo said:
Hmmm. I bet I could make substitutes for most low powered vacuum tubes (e.g. 12AL7 or 6V6) using MOSFETs. If I put them in an unsealed glass envelope with a dimmed lamp simulating a heater most folks would never know they just went "solid state" if they used one to replace a dead tube.
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What! and lose that 'warm tube' sound?? :rolleyes:

I have a hard time really hearing the difference that sound aficionados claim. But I do like the distortion I can get out of a tube than a transistor preamp.
 
smigaldi said:
I have a hard time really hearing the difference that sound aficionados claim.
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When you consider that audiophools will spend $500 on a volume knob to put on their $9000 volume control...

I wish I wasn't kidding.
 
smigaldi said:
What! and lose that 'warm tube' sound?? :rolleyes:

I have a hard time really hearing the difference that sound aficionados claim. But I do like the distortion I can get out of a tube than a transistor preamp.
Click to expand...

But I can easily include the same distortion in a FET design so it would sound identical to the tube.:D
 
gismo said:
But I did a quick search and found I could buy a 6V6 for about $10 online so I guess there's not as much money to be made there. Oh well.
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But if you have the right cork-sniffer holy grail 6V6 where the getter was flashed by virgins in flowing robes you can cash in...

Just don't mention double blind tests to a tubeophile.


Trapper John
 
jmaynard said:
When you consider that audiophools will spend $500 on a volume knob to put on their $9000 volume control...

I wish I wasn't kidding.
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I know. Quack, quack.

Plus, there are still a lot of NBA players wit' cash and "This one is better! It costs LOTS more!"
 
If I visited there I'd never be seen again. My house has enough of that stuff.
 
Akihabara is a trip. My last trip, we strolled through Aki before dinner and drinks in Shinjuku, and finished the night at a whiskey bar in Ginza.

I love Tokyo.

-ars
 
If you can't find it in the Akihibara, it probably doesn't exist. That place is VERY entertaining. OK, I'm a geek. I admit it. However, watch the prices. I haven't seen any values there. And the ham radio stores seem to be getting fewer. At least based on the few times I've been there.
 
Ghery said:
If you can't find it in the Akihibara, it probably doesn't exist. That place is VERY entertaining. OK, I'm a geek. I admit it. However, watch the prices. I haven't seen any values there. And the ham radio stores seem to be getting fewer. At least based on the few times I've been there.
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Ham stores are very few now and the prices not all that great.
 
Ghery said:
Plus they're the Japanese market models. Wrong band coverage for VHF/UHF bands, etc.
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My callsign in Japan is JN3XCV

There are some cool things there. My 6 meter antenna is a Japanese purchased HB9CV design that is not sold anywhere in the US. I also got a good deal on a .44 to 1.5 GHz log array that I used as a roamer in VHF/UHF contests.
 
smigaldi said:
Ham stores are very few now and the prices not all that great.
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Yep, I counted 4 or 5. Most stores selling computers.

Ghery said:
Plus they're the Japanese market models. Wrong band coverage for VHF/UHF bands, etc.
Click to expand...

Nothing a little internal programming won't cure (use to be a jumper cut, now generally done in software/firmware). ;)
 
Is the stuff endless Chinese knock-offs or are these mostly really Japanese made (quality now. Whatta world) stuff?
 
mikea said:
Is the stuff endless Chinese knock-offs or are these mostly really Japanese made (quality now. Whatta world) stuff?
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With apologies to Arlo: "you can get anything you want..."
 
mikea said:
Is the stuff endless Chinese knock-offs or are these mostly really Japanese made (quality now. Whatta world) stuff?
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A lot of Japanese stuff. There are a lot of Japan only products from companies too. Stuff that the big names will only sell in the domestic market.
 
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