6CW5 substitutions?
- Thread starter jaymanaa
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The 6CW5 is an EL86 & of course the 6BQ5 is the EL84. They are similar but I believe there's a voltage vs current trade-off (see below) - apparently the EL86 needs lower plate voltage but higher plate current for the same power output vs the EL84.
http://www.r-type.org/exhib/aad0122.htm
I've not used the 6CW5 but here's a discussion on the two:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread/t-46767.html
http://www.r-type.org/exhib/aad0122.htm
I've not used the 6CW5 but here's a discussion on the two:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread/t-46767.html
I seem to remember a thread here a few months back on this, using 6GH8, 6U8, 6AN8, & others as various subs. IIRC the Scott LK-72 has two versions, one with 7199 and one with 6U8/6GH8 PIs.
Edit: the 6GH8/6U8 is not a direct replacement sub for the 7199 but was used with appropriate pin/wiring changes.
bricktop
Couch woofer
Seems like a useful tube, being able to get 25 watts out of a pair with 1% THD and only a 3ka-a load (which makes it easy to get really good frequency response from the OPT)...
http://tubedata.milbert.com/sheets/093/6/6CW5.pdf
http://tubedata.milbert.com/sheets/093/6/6CW5.pdf
Re. the 7199 - 6GH8 discussion, I think this is the thread I was thinking about:
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=51923
Notice down at Post #5, Tubular Joe suggested the 7687 as a good tube that behaves like a 7199 (the 7687 pin out is same as 6GH8 - and different from 7199).
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=51923
Notice down at Post #5, Tubular Joe suggested the 7687 as a good tube that behaves like a 7199 (the 7687 pin out is same as 6GH8 - and different from 7199).
Sylvania introduced the 7687 as an alternate to RCA's 7199, but in the pinout of a 6U8 / 6GH8 (it's taller too). I think their data sheet says that the characteristics are the same as the 7199. I doubt you'll be able to find any for much less than a 7199, though, as it isn't very common. 6BL8 may be the next closest one in the 6U8 pinout, but 6U8 and 6GH8 are sometimes used. 6AN8 may be closer than any of those, but it has a unique pinout different from all the above.
Back to the original question - 6BQ5 MIGHT work for 6CW5, but don't try the reverse - 6CW5 has much lower voltage rating. Russian 6P15 (SV84) may be close... also 6HL5 is listed as a sub, though the pinout is slightly different. But having FIFTY 6CW5s and ZERO 6HL5s, that doesn't strike me as particularly useful information...
Back to the original question - 6BQ5 MIGHT work for 6CW5, but don't try the reverse - 6CW5 has much lower voltage rating. Russian 6P15 (SV84) may be close... also 6HL5 is listed as a sub, though the pinout is slightly different. But having FIFTY 6CW5s and ZERO 6HL5s, that doesn't strike me as particularly useful information...
holmesuser01
Active Member
The 6CW5 was used as a vertical sweep output tube on Motorola televisions, and others, for many years. I've never swapped one into a 6BQ5 socket.
soundmotor
super modified
I seem to recall doing this with a Fisher 30A and the EL86 plates began glowing.
The 6CW5/EL86 makes a GREAT low mu triode as well!
If I remember correct it's like gain of 7 and plate resistance of 1.2K?
They sound really really nice, and you can find the good ones for dirt cheap, (For now)
Hmm. Would be interesting to compare a triode-strapped 6CW5 to a 12B4...
Regards,
Gordon.
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