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. The 6L6 is a beam tetrode that utilizes formation of a low potential space charge region between the anode and screen grid to return anode secondary emission electrons to the anode and offers significant performance improvements over power pentodes. The 6L6 was the first successful beam power tube marketed. In the 21st century, variants of the 6L6 are manufactured and used in some high fidelity audio amplifiers and musical
Key facts
- Vacuum tube.heater_voltage
- 6.3
- Vacuum tube.heater_current
- 900 mA
- Vacuum tube.max_dissipation
- 30
- Vacuum tube.max_voltage
- 500 Specification listed is for type 6L6-GC
- Vacuum tube.image
- 190x502px
- Vacuum tube.caption
- A 6L6 tube manufactured by Sylvania
- Vacuum tube.classification
- Beam power tetrode
- Vacuum tube.service
- Class-A amplifier, class-B amplifier, class-AB amplifier, (audio amplifiers)
- Vacuum tube.height_in
- 4.25
- Vacuum tube.diameter_in
- 1.438
- Vacuum tube.cathode_type
- Indirectly heated
- Vacuum tube.pinout
- thumb|left|125px|The 6L6 Pinout, metal versions had the shell connected to pin 1 Pin 1 – n.c Pin 2 – Heater Pin 3 – Anode (Plate) Pin 4 – Grid 2 (Screen) Pin 5 – Grid 1 (control) Pin 6 – n.c Pin 7 – Heater Pin 8 – Cathode & beam-forming plates
- Vacuum tube.class_a_anode_voltage
- 350 V
- Vacuum tube.class_a_anode_current
- 54 mA
- Vacuum tube.class_a_screen_voltage
- 250 V
- Vacuum tube.class_a_bias_voltage
- −18 V
- Vacuum tube.class_a_anode_resistance
- 5 kOhms
- Vacuum tube.class_ab_power_output
- 55 W
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Vintage General Electric 6L6GB Vacuum Tubes, Made In USA (15835756272).jpg
Show 2 more facts
- start time
- 1936-00-00
- Commons category
- 6L6
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~4 min read
Article
9 sectionsContents
- History
- Variations
- Application
- Characteristics
- Improved substitute
- Similar tubes
- See also
- References
- External links
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. The 6L6 is a beam tetrode that utilizes formation of a low potential space charge region between the anode and screen grid to return anode secondary emission electrons to the anode and offers significant performance improvements over power pentodes. The 6L6 was the first successful beam power tube marketed. In the 21st century, variants of the 6L6 are manufactured and used in some high fidelity audio amplifiers and musical instrument amplifiers.
== History == In the UK, three engineers at EMI (Isaac Shoenberg, Cabot Bull and Sidney Rodda) had developed and filed patents in 1933 and 1934 on an output tetrode that utilized novel electrode structures to form electron beams to create a dense space charge region between the anode and screen grid to return anode secondary electrons to the anode. The new tube offered improved performance compared to a similar power pentode and was introduced at the Physical and Optical Societies' Exhibition in January 1935 as the Marconi N40. Around one thousand of the N40 output tetrodes were produced, but MOV (Marconi-Osram Valve) company, under the joint ownership of EMI and GEC, considered the design too difficult to manufacture due to the need for good alignment of the grid wires. As MOV had a design-share agreement with RCA of America, the design was passed to that company.