Vacuum Tubes

Outside of "new old stock" vendors, is there anyone selling/making new vacuum tubes in the US in 2022? Are they totally obsolete?

I have some projects from 1950s era popular electronics that I would like to undertake, but many of them require tubes that you can only buy from some hording boomer for like, $50.
I could use semi-conductor diodes I guess, but it would take away from the projects. (Plus, who doesn't like the hum of tubes as they warm up).

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  1. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >(Plus, who doesn't like the hum of tubes as they warm up).

    Make your own you dirty hippy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzyXMEpq4qw

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      there are, i have a friend who's an aficionado and i can ask him if the thread's still up tomorrow

      https://i.imgur.com/iOunof6.jpg

      Outside of "new old stock" vendors, is there anyone selling/making new vacuum tubes in the US in 2022? Are they totally obsolete?

      I have some projects from 1950s era popular electronics that I would like to undertake, but many of them require tubes that you can only buy from some hording boomer for like, $50.
      I could use semi-conductor diodes I guess, but it would take away from the projects. (Plus, who doesn't like the hum of tubes as they warm up).

      that's real neat but not all of us have access to glass-blowing equipment

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Sweet, thanks Anon.

        https://i.imgur.com/DbjNOUw.png

        >(Plus, who doesn't like the hum of tubes as they warm up).

        Make your own you dirty hippy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzyXMEpq4qw

        This is really cool, I don't have almost any of that equipment, but saving this for the future. Who knows, if we ever need diodes for radios in the apocalypse, might come in handy.

        In the US? No. Chinks and Russians still make em tho.

        I have seen the Russian ones, figured the chinese would too. I try to buy domestic, but makes sense that there wouldn't be many.

  2. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    In the US? No. Chinks and Russians still make em tho.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      hey op, no luck reaching my friend today. iirc is correct, a lot of the new tubes come out of russia these days. if i hear from my guy about an american manufacturer i'll let you know

  3. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    If some homies in the past were making these with some wood and hammers, I bet they're home-gamer-able nowadays. I bet you can find some guy on youtube showing you exactly how to DIY your own tubes.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >I bet you can find some guy on youtube showing you exactly how to DIY your own tubes.
      He's a woman now.

      hey op, no luck reaching my friend today. iirc is correct, a lot of the new tubes come out of russia these days. if i hear from my guy about an american manufacturer i'll let you know

      Tung Sol is long gone.

  4. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    No but there might be startups looking to do so since new Russian manufactured tubes will be unobtanium for the foreseeable future. But really the unavailability of most tubes has been an issue for quite a while with only certain ones suitable for audio amps being readily available (12AX7, 6L6GC, EL84 etc). Tubes particular to radio like pentagrid converters, sharp cutoff pentodes, diode-triode detectors haven't been in production since the 70's. Most NOS tubes floating around for cheap are TV tubes.

    Tube substitution is probably the best bet. Maybe essentially the same tube you need is available in a different package like the EL84 is essentially an Octal 6V6 in a Noval base or the 12AX7 is just two high mu triodes from a 6SQ7 (dual diode + triode) in a Noval base by way of the repackaged 6AU6. The extremely expensive 1L6 pentagrid is just a 1LA6 in a different packaging.

    Another class of substitutes are the same tubes with a different heater voltage or amp draw. 12SA7 = 6SA7 with a 12volt heater. 1U6 = 1L6 with a little more heater draw. You can find tube substitution data easily and maybe with a little modification of the heater circuit.be good to go.

    Then there is the fact that most of those DIY circuits are using tubes in diode or triode mode which almost any tube can fit with a bit of circuit mods. All tubes with a control grid can operate in triode mode and all tubes can function as a detector diode. There are only a few types that can't be subbed like cold cathode tubes and other low plate voltage types. The possibilities are endless.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      OP here. Yes, substitution is an option.
      I actually have a RCA tube substitution manual laying around somewhere. Still kind of sucks that someday, no one will be able to do these projects with OG parts at all though.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >Russian manufactured tubes will be unobtanium for the forseeable future

      Meanwhile me:
      >Just got a matched pair of EL34Bs and 3 12AX7s originating in the New Sensor factory.

      Just live in a non-russophobe country, I.E.: somewhere where the red scare isn't a thing.

  5. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >Outside of "new old stock" vendors, is there anyone selling/making new vacuum tubes in the US in 2022?
    Selling new vacuum tubes? Yeah, but most of them were manufactured in Russia, and as retaliation for a bunch of the sanctions placed on them Russia has decided to stop exporting them so they're not as readily available as they were a few months ago. As far as an American manufacturer, there's some company that bought the rights to the Western Electric name and has started producing 300b vacuum tubes somewhere in Georgia to the same specs and using some of the same equipment I think, but they're expensive even by 300b pricing. They plan on expanding their production, but their other offerings are probably going to cost a shit ton as well.

    >I have some projects from 1950s era popular electronics that I would like to undertake, but many of them require tubes that you can only buy from some hording boomer for like, $50.
    Russian & Chinese NOS surplus is available on the web on sites like eBay and Aliexpress still for similar prices as it was before the Ukraine shit happening. A bunch of their tubes are equivalent to some American offering. They may or may not have different pinouts though.

  6. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Before Putin decided to frick up things for everyone, there was an American company who bought a vacuum tube factory in Russia. They specialized in tubes for amplifiers.

    As far as I understand it, tubes still outperform ICs even just ten years ago. At least in high output situations like very powerful broadcast systems.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      New Sensor going under might just be one the best things to come out of this shit show. Same tube just repackaged over and over and I'll never forgive those jack asses for running Svetlana "Winged-C" tubes out of the market in a coordinated legal harassment campaign. Frick those guys.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Shit, really? I knew they existed, but I never needed their products so didn't look into them too much.

        Shame they were douches.

  7. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Last I heard on the subject circa like 2017 the last remaining operational vacuum tube factories on the entire planet were in Russia. Which currently isn't good news for everyone not in Russia if they want any.

  8. 2 years ago
    ∆nonymous

    JJ electronic in Slovakia still makes common tubes for audio

  9. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Slovakia makes em too. And with the war now going on now it will be tougher/more expensive so we'll have to rely on the Slovaks more now

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