Joe Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Do cooling fans extend tube life? Seems like I've gone through a lot of tubes lately.
mars_hall Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Yes, anytime you pull the heat away from the tube, you are reducing a contributor to what eventually will cause the metal to turn brittle and fracture. That is why Mesa and others usually have a cooling fan in their products.
Joe Posted January 17, 2012 Author Posted January 17, 2012 Yes, anytime you pull the heat away from the tube, you are reducing a contributor to what eventually will cause the metal to turn brittle and fracture. That is why Mesa and others usually have a cooling fan in their products. Recently saw a guy with one for his home made rig. I'm definately adding one to my amp. Thanks.
212Mavguy Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Military research confirms that tube coolers do have significant effect on extending life of thermionic vacuum tubes, particularly the hotter running power tubes. The reason is that power tubes get their glass envelopes hot enough for the glass to become slightly more porous than at cold temps. This allows vacuum contamination and the eventual premature failure. I have and use two types of coolers, the finned and o-ringed Tube Coolers brand and the military/aerospace IERC tube coolers. Both types reduce microphonic behavior at least slightly, Both types work very well in their intended function of cooling the glass on 12__7 pre tubes as well as power tubes, all coolers must be properly selected for size of tube bottle diameter and length.
pressure Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 My Metro has a fan. Its the first amp I have had with a fan.
Gitfiddler Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Boogie fans keep boogie fans coming back for more Boogies.
Joe Posted January 17, 2012 Author Posted January 17, 2012 Military research confirms that tube coolers do have significant effect on extending life of thermionic vacuum tubes, particularly the hotter running power tubes. The reason is that power tubes get their glass envelopes hot enough for the glass to become slightly more porous than at cold temps. This allows vacuum contamination and the eventual premature failure. I have and use two types of coolers, the finned and o-ringed Tube Coolers brand and the military/aerospace IERC tube coolers. Both types reduce microphonic behavior at least slightly, Both types work very well in their intended function of cooling the glass on 12__7 pre tubes as well as power tubes, all coolers must be properly selected for size of tube bottle diameter and length. Are these coolers not a small fan? I was thinking of installing a fan.
tulk1 Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Are these coolers not a small fan? I was thinking of installing a fan. Don't think they are just fans. If you do install a fan, I'd install it to pull the air over the tubes, rather than blowing on them.
212Mavguy Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 No, they are basically metal sleeves that are slipped directly on the tubes. No fan needed, they work by absorbing, then convecting and radiating heat away from the glass bottles.
pegleg32 Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Why do so many amps have a metal container that slips over there AX_7 tubes? Doesn't that just contain the heat? Should they be removed?
212Mavguy Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 That shield is to prevent RF noise escaping from the tubes from causing unwanted noise in output. Also cooks tubes inside it hotter than naked tube by far. Traps heat inside like tinfoil around a freshly baked potato. Sometimes the shield on preamp tubes helps reduce microphonics.
H Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 No, they are basically metal sleeves that are slipped directly on the tubes. No fan needed, they work by absorbing, then convecting and radiating heat away from the glass bottles. Do they work well with amps that have the tubes suspended underneath (e.g. Fender Tweed Deluxe)? Are they just for the power tubes?
pegleg32 Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 I have not seen shields on power tubes, although some makers might do that also. I think I'm understanding that the coolers that Mav is using are different from the metal sleeves that I'm referring to. I guess I'm a wee bit confused yet.
H Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 I have not seen shields on power tubes, although some makers might do that also. I think I'm understanding that the coolers that Mav is using are different from the metal sleeves that I'm referring to. I guess I'm a wee bit confused yet. Don, google for Pearl Tube Coolers. All will be revealed
Guest HRB853370 Posted January 18, 2012 Posted January 18, 2012 My PV Classic 50 has a fan inside to cool the tubes.
Joe Posted January 18, 2012 Author Posted January 18, 2012 My PV Classic 50 has a fan inside to cool the tubes. Does it blow to the outside or inside?
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