Vacuum tube tester software

Test results will vary depending on the type and brand of tube checker. Tubes should be tested in everything from vintage radios to contemporary guitar amplifiers, and its easy to put all of your valves through a tube checker. Curve captor is a free distributed under gpl vacuum tube modeling software that brings the advantages of modern computer simulation tools to design of vacuum tube electronics. Tubes should be tested in everything from vintage radios to contemporary guitar amplifiers, and it s easy to put all of your valves through a tube checker. Listed under the technical reference vacuum tube category that is about vacuum tube resources. These are used to test preamp tubes for noise, microphonics, gain, and triode balance. Ive had a number of testers over the years on which ive tested thousands of tubes, and the only one i put much trust in is the amplitrex at. The computerized tube tester has speeded up our tube testing and it tests an amazing range of tubes. If the tube is still fine by such a tube tester, then transconductance etc suits normal applications. An additional test significant for some tubes and in some circuits is a test for gas. Parts express 9 pin chassis mount ceramic vacuum tube socket for 12ax7 12at7 12au7 type tubes.

Anyone who has a sizeable investment in vacuum tubes or vacuum tube hifi equipment owes it to themselves to have a good tube tester on hand to periodically check the tubes they are using. Mar 03, 2017 like many of you with a positive slant towards vacuum tubes, and in possession of a few hundred of these glow fets often from messrs. If you are concerned with testing a wide range of tubes, getting accurate readings, and want to accuratelycorrectly match power tubes then this is the tester for you. The hickok 539b and the 539c are the top of the line in the hickok service tester category. The sofia digital tube tester by audiomatica italy. Parts express 8 pin chassis mount ceramic vacuum tube socket base el34 kt88 kt66 5881 type. I found the orange tube tester a sight for sore eyes, very easy to use and quite easy to comprehend and incorporate in the testing of all the tubes in my amp giving me a value to each and able to match tubes for best performance in a nice small package. A tube tester is an electronic instrument designed to test certain characteristics of vacuum tubes thermionic valves. Forex tester 3 is a software that simulates trading in the forex market. Used vacuum tubes used electronic test equipment bmi surplus. I have some vintage vacuum tube testers for sale, and are listed here on this page. New tubes just like used ones will vary considerably in their mutual conductance measured in micromhos or gm for short.

So to be able to test valves at specified operating points, a valve tester needs to generate a range of test voltages for the plate and screen of the valve under test. The software includes a growing database of common tubes. A digital vacuum tube analyzer and curve tracer part one. Though i was able to use a usb to rs232 cable under windows7, the accuracy under a non.

The pc port is rs232, and here comes a bit of a problem setting up modern pcs for an rs232 port. Sencore tc28 the hybrider solid state vacuum tube tester. I took tv2cu military tube tester a couple of month ago. Phils tester is the center piece of our quality assurance process. Simple vacuum tube tester design electrical engineering. The hc leakage tab allows user to test the leakage current between the heater and the cathode of a vacuum tube. Charles, mo 63304 phone 6369399190 24 hour fax 6369220601. All tube testers are test equipment and will require maintenance and calibration from time to time. The point in question now is whether the emission or transconductance test is the best this is determined in part by the circuit in which the tube is to be used, in case of an rf or if amplifier tubes, the stage gain is proportional to the transconductance. As always, the matcher is there to help you make the best possible choices for your audio system by producing the best information possible about your tubes. The most dangerous of these home tube testers i have seen is the ez tube tester. The flexibility of this tester allows it to be used to plot tube curves. These include testing the tube for shorts between pins, checking for filament continuity, a check for gas, and grid current. The first tube testers were simple units designed for specific tubes to be used in the.

Tube lore ludwell sibley published in 1996 three addenda have been released sibley is the president of the tube collectors association historypreservationapplication one of the rarest of references for good reason. Like many of us, any time an amp went down, tubes would be replaced to get the show going and end up in boxes. Because this particular tube tester was in a service station, it was not in a nice dry. This link is listed in our web site directory since friday feb 9 2007, and till today vacuum tube software has been followed for a total of 9803 times. Sure, i do own a tube checker, but that apparatus mine is heathkit tc2p typically does no more. Bmi surplus offers a broad range of new and quality used vacuum tubes in the used electronic test equipment product category. The common belief is that a tube tester will tell you if you tube is good or bad but it doesnt work out that way. Sylvania 5u4g tubes wwii vintage in a bulk pack therefore will. Nobsound vacuum tube amp amplifier plate bias current probe tester 8 pin socket for el34, kt88, 6l6, 6v6, 5881, 6550, kt66, kt100, kt120, 7027 ct1p, plate current 3. The first tube testers were simple units designed for specific tubes to be used in the battlefields of world war i by radio operators, so they.

This one is little complicated to use but my friend told me it is very nice one. About vacuum tube software the resource is currently listed in in 5 categories. We are the manufacturer and exclusive distributor of the at electron tube test system. This 1952era tube tester was made from a standard 3 x 5 file card box and a piece of wood with a nightlight lamp mounted in it.

At least the covering isnt coming off in tatters like many of the hickok cases. Building an etracer vacuum tube tester and curve tracer. But it comes down to features, functionality, accuracy, repeatability and price. This mode is useful for testing a tube lot of the same type. Used vacuum tubes used electronic test equipment bmi. In case if an output or power rectifier tube, it must be capable of supplying large amounts. Nobsound vacuum tube amp amplifier plate bias current probe tester 8 pin socket for el34, kt88, 6l6, 6v6, 5881, 6550, kt66, kt100, kt120, 7027 ct1c, cathode current. Tube testers evolved along with the vacuum tube to satisfy the demands of the time, and their evolution ended with the tube era. The tube inventory was replaced by a route salesman who would stop buy periodically and replenish the stock and bill the store owner at wholesale for the price of the tubes that were needed to restock the inventory contained inside the tube tester cabinet. Most testers give you results that are not relevant to actual life.

Building an etracer vacuum tube tester and curve tracer part 2 of 2 duration. While i cannot offer training on how to use any testers, if you have questions or concerns about which tester may be right for you, please email me, or phone during business hours weekdays at 8474964546. The current drawn by the tube will change its pin voltage hence change the measure. Diodes and voltage regulators cant be subjected to a gm test. Digital vacuum tube tester posted on february 15, 2011 by jwk im in the early stages of brainstorming another project idea that will combine vacuum tubes with modern microelectronics in a useful and innovative way. Maximatcher audio vacuum tube tester store and support. The ttt3 is a tube tester curve tracer that allows the user to verify the performance of vacuum tubes in comparison to the manufacturers specifications. Dont get too upset when your tube tester declares a tube suitable for duty, and then the tube proceeds to blow fuses in your amplifier. For years i have been using a valve tester that i had developed in the past.

Introduction to the etracer vacuum tube curve tracer project the differences between etracer and utracer the impact of working temperature to pulsetype vacuum tube testers why you need a tube tester that goes up to 750v. The database contains information about most tubes found in guitar amps, radios, and other electronic gear. Like many of you with a positive slant towards vacuum tubes, and in possession of a few hundred of these glow fets often from messrs. Can the tester do the line of tubes you plan on testing, tube sockets, operating voltages, test data available. Another very popular tube tester to find for auction through ebay is the jackson 648, which can be seen above center. They have one test signal level, one power transformer, and 3 gm test ranges as mentioned above. The values shown are very good, however, and a traditional tube tester would report the tube as being in excellent condition. Transconductance vacuum tube tester, model tv12, circa 1955 898209860. The orange vt tubevalve tester paid for itself on day one i was able to select tubes from new and old batches for current use and go through the boxes of pulled tubes accumulated over the years. Sure, i do own a tube checker, but that apparatus mine is heathkit tc2p typically does no more than a simple cathode emission test on tubes, and a. As the tube wears out, the transconductance decreases and the plate resistance increases. Still others allow you to listen through headphones for microphonic noisy.

Like the fet, the relationship between the control voltage and resulting current is expressed as transconductance g m i p v g and has the units of siemens s which are amps per volts. Feb 16, 2016 building an etracer vacuum tube tester and curve tracer part 2 of 2 duration. We had to keep several tube testers around to test different tubes. The orange vt tube valve tester paid for itself on day one i was able to select tubes from new and old batches for current use and go through the boxes of pulled tubes accumulated over the years. Vacuum tube testers if youre working with any kind of vacuum tube assembly, then youll need to have a tube tester on hand to make sure that all of your valves are working properly. Hickok lowcost types like the 533, 533a, 534, 534a, are good testers for most service type work and for testing tubes with gm values below 15,000 micromhos mutual conductance values. Tube testers may perform several tests on a vacuum tube besides indicating output emission. Test trading strategies on 15 years of free historical data, dismiss losing methods, discover the systems that can provide you with profits in future. For very old tubes like the 45, or old rectifiers, i prefer an old but good tester like for instance the hickok i177. Anyone who has a sizeable investment in vacuum tubes or vacuum tube hifi equipment owes it to themselves to have a good tube tester on hand to periodically check the tubes they are. Vacuum tubes, electron tubes, tubes, tube testers and.

The basic params and the load line tab allows users to perform realtime analysis of the fullscan data. These are popular to the point that some people are auctioning off the instructions manuals separately. Vintage hickok dynamic mutual conductance microhmo vacuum tube tester, model 6000a, circa 1967 889478158. An inexpensive, easy to build diy valvetube tester for quite some time i have been looking at developing a design for a diy valvetube tester that is easy to build and uses readily available, low cost parts. Emission type checkers will only measure emission and this reading is very unreliable and will vary significantly with various tube tester models. Improving on the well known classic tester, the matcher 2. Extremely detailed 273 page pdf added to the design page. The way to do so is to measure the gm on a tube tester that designed to measure such. A voltage divider has too much output impedance to feed the dozens of milliamp tested vacuum tubes will need to be tested accurately. This is useful for matching power tubes, checking and verifying the performance of separate triodes within preamplifier tubes. The main category is vacuum tube resources that is about vacuum tube, electron tube, thermionic valve, valve resources.

Finally a tube tester that i can test all those pesky old tubes lying around the house. Heres the inside story on the devices designed to gauge the vacuum tube s basic health part 1 checking for shorts and for noise by g. A vacuum tube acts as a voltagecontrolled current source, or vcvs. All higher functions are managed by the dos software, which is not run inside the tester but on the pc. Vintage antique hickok vacuum tube tester model ac47 mutual conductance box measures about 1614 x 1034 x 5 not including handle circa early 1930s with data sheets as shown in sample photos. Like many of us, any time an amp went down, tubes would be. Special purpose tube testers include those types that are used for a specific purpose, such as the small signal tube testers made by george kaye audio labs and vacuum tube valley. Forex tester 3 backtesting software that allows to speed up your learning on forex by 2000 times.

Bg221 assembling the tube socket panel, completing the build, installing the software, and testing a tube showing the various functions like quick test, curve trace, corners test, etc. I use a hickok model 539c, considered buy many to be one of the most accurate and desirable testers available sans laboratory models the posted values on its charts are the minimum acceptable. An invaluable source for information on vacuum tubes, their use and history. This is our new 2015 advance design, a tube tester with build in microprocessor control, automatic tube tester for beginner and professionals, you dont need to operate a very complicated vintage tube tester just to test out a simple tube, this unit can test both emissionma and dynamics transconductanceus at the same time, it can also display both section of a dual triode testing result. If youre working with any kind of vacuum tube assembly, then youll need to have a tube tester on hand to make sure that all of your valves are working properly.

This tester was commercially speaking not a success, but i think that was only because audiomatica was ahead of its time. Their idea was, to sell it to companies, but buyers were mostly. This one can test many kind of tubes but i coundnt find data for 572b on the setting data. Nobsound vacuum tube amp amplifier plate bias current probe tester 8 pin socket for el34, kt88, 6l6, 6v6, 5881, 6550, kt66, kt100, kt120, 7027 ct1c, cathode current 4. Heres the inside story on the devices designed to gauge the vacuum tubes basic health part 1 checking for shorts and for noise by g. It has both the short lamp testing method and the ability to use the gm meter. The ez tube tester was manufactured by the ez tester co. If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you must check out this incredible tube tester click here.

A very popular tube tester to see on ebay is the eico 666, which can be seen above left. Kens triode tube tester 2016 some images of plate curves produced by the device under development. Bobs antique tvsmid 50s utestm drug store tube tester. Recently i was informed, only 80 pcs were ever made. These readings are explained and specified in the testing data for the particular model tube tester in their manual. Even a basic tube tester is not a simple project but an interesting one, especially regarding the power supply. This ez tube tester tested tube filaments by applying 110 vac. Interestingly, the amplification factor mu remains essentially constant throughout the lifetime of a tube. Sep 19, 2014 kens triode tube tester 2016 some images of plate curves produced by the device under development.