TUBE TESTERS
Some information about my three tube testers
EICO 667
This section will eventually have a lot of information and buttons. I'm just getting started.The area in the yellow box in the third photo is where I added a terminal strip for the silicon diode upgrade mentioned in the document below. The second photo is my 667 testing an 8122 RF tube using a homemade socket adapter. The 667 power supply handles the drain imposed by power tubes like the 8950 and 8122 with ease.
HICKOK 800A
THIS IS MY MOST-USED TESTER BY A SMALL MARGIN OVER MY TV-2B/U.Expect to find a lot of information here, too.I was concerned about heat build up inside the case so I measured the case and found a good location for a vent. The vent came from a hardware store that sold upper-level fittings for cabinets and so forth. It works well.
This tester is heavily affected by the filament load imposed by power tubes like the 8122, 6950, 6LB6, and so forth. The 8122 requires a substantial readjustment of the Line Adjust control. But it's also my most consistent tester, especially for small signal tubes like 12AU7's and other audio tubes.
DON'T replace the 5U4 tube rectifier with a solid-state replacement. That will throw off the tester's accuracy, and the solid state ones don't last anyway. I bought the expensive one with the built-in fuse, which is encapsulated with epoxy, so changing that fuse is impossible. It blew, so now that 5U4 replacement is a display piece.Mine came with a cold solder joint on one of the pins.
This tester is heavily affected by the filament load imposed by power tubes like the 8122, 6950, 6LB6, and so forth. The 8122 requires a substantial readjustment of the Line Adjust control. But it's also my most consistent tester, especially for small signal tubes like 12AU7's and other audio tubes.
DON'T replace the 5U4 tube rectifier with a solid-state replacement. That will throw off the tester's accuracy, and the solid state ones don't last anyway. I bought the expensive one with the built-in fuse, which is encapsulated with epoxy, so changing that fuse is impossible. It blew, so now that 5U4 replacement is a display piece.Mine came with a cold solder joint on one of the pins.
MILITARY TV-2B/U (Hickok, Victoreen, etc)
This is more of an analyzer than a tester, All you need is the tube pinouts and typical ratings from a tube manual or the Internet and you can derive settings of your own to imitate, as closely as possible, the conditions that exist in your actual piece of equipment. Those can be further duplicated if you have tube test adapters. I'll post a couple pictures below soon. This is the "Cat's Meow" of tube testers.
