Audioxpress May 2022

INNOVATIONS IN AUDIO • AUDIO ELECTRONICS • THE BEST IN DIY AUDIO
www.audioxpress.com
Fresh From the Bench

Western Electric's New Production 300B
Birds of a Feather
By Michael Boele
You Can DIY!

Adding Bluetooth to a Tube Amp
By Merlin Blencowe
Meet the Pentriode

By Alan Kimmel
Audio Electronics—Tubes
Testing Vacuum Tubes (Part 2)
By Mark Driedger
Hollow-State Electronics
Graphical Analysis
of Class-A Amplifiers
By Richard Honeycutt
You Can DIY!

Building a Guitar-Controlled
Synthesizer: Frequency
to Volts and Back
By Ethan Winer
Fresh From the Bench
Sound Control Orchard Audio
Effect of Air Conditions Starkrimson Stereo Ultra
on Sound Propagation By Stuart Yaniger
MAY 2022
MANUFACTURING / DESIGNING
TRANSFORMERS & ENCLOSURES
SINCE 1917
Hammond Manufacturing | www.hammondmfg.com

ax
The End of Cheap Tubes
May 2022 ISSN 1548-0628 Every year, when I focus on this Glass Audio issue of audioXpress, I like to
dive into the archives and revisit a selection of the issues that Ed T. Dell produced
www.audioxpress.com
twice a year, beginning in 1988. In 1990, in his column “Valve Views,” contributing
author Ken Kessler wrote “As you sit there poring over the latest Glass Audio,
audioXpress (US ISSN 1548-0628) is published monthly, perhaps a small part of you is wondering: Am I devoted to a branch of hi-fi so obscure it could
at $50 per year for the US, at $65 per year for Canada, disappear at any moment? Believe me, such doubts affect us all at times, and not only when you hear
and at $75 per year Foreign/ROW, by KCK Media Corp., of another tube amp manufacturer (or tube manufacturer, for that matter) closing up shop.”
P.O. Box 417, Chase City, VA 23924, US Periodical Postage The harbinger was there, but this was shortly after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, in December 1989,
paid at Chase City, VA, and additional offices. leading to the end of Soviet Union, and Russian tubes flooding the market. Anticipating the revival of tube
audio in hi-fi, Kessler, also predicted in that article: “Tubes are going to be around for a long time.”
While browsing Glass Audio issues, two years later I noticed a text-only ad from New Sensor,
announcing the availability of Soviet “selected military” tubes, which mentioned the fact that Eric
Head Office: Clapton had “replaced the Philip/Sylvania 8L6 STRs in his custom Soldano amp, which he uses live
KCK Media Corp. with Soviet 5881s because of their “milky smooth sound.”” The same ad also promoted GE, Siemens,
P.O. Box 417 EI, Sylvania/Philips, and other tubes, sold at the time by the New York, NY company, owned by Mike
Chase City, VA 23924, US Matthews (Electro-Harmonix).
Phone: 434-533-0246 In later editions, an Old Colony Sound Lab house ad promoted Charles Hansen’s book, A Brief
Fax: 888-980-1303 History of Bendix Red Bank Tubes, (https://cc-webshop.com/products/a-brief-history-of-bendix-red-
bank-tubes) revealing the mystery around those “highly reliable tubes made for the military for use
in guided missiles.” Charles (Chuck) Hansen (the audioXpress author) was himself employed at Bendix
Subscription Management:
Aviation Corp., based in Eatontown, NJ, from 1966 to 1998. When Hansen joined Bendix, the company
audioXpress
had by then stopped making tubes and used all-discrete transistor designs exclusively. His father worked
P.O. Box 417
Chase City, VA 23924, US
there as well, as a tool and die maker, and developed much of the tooling used in the Red Band Tubes
Phone: 434-533-0246 manufacturing until the 1950s. As Hansen recalls in his book, his grandfather and uncle worked at the
E-mail: custserv@audioxpress.com S&S Manufacturing Corp. tube assembly business in Newark, NJ in the 1920s and 1930s. That company
Internet: www.audioxpress.com made plates, grids, tube supports, and other parts for Chatham, Tung-Sol, and Arcturus.
In the 1990s, a large surplus of these military tubes were still being auctioned, and the market
was flooded with cheap tubes coming from Russia and other Eastern European countries that were
Postmaster: Send address changes to: part of the former USSR. It just didn’t make sense to keep manufacturing tubes in the US or even in
audioXpress Western Europe.
P.O. Box 417 When, in the early 2000s, the last remaining tube manufacturing operations, mainly producing
Chase City, VA 23924, US tubes for televisions and computer monitors gradually closed, musical instruments, recording studio
equipment, and hi-fidelity were the only markets left for tube makers.
Advertising:
Fast forward to 2022, and the war in Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Russia are having a
Strategic Media Marketing, Inc. significant impact on the global supply of tubes to the audio industry. As I wrote in The Audio Voice
2 Main Street newsletter, both Ukraine and Russia are important suppliers of raw materials, and in China there are
Gloucester, MA 01930, US also significant disruptions caused by pandemic lockdowns and transportation challenges, resulting in
Phone: 978-281-7708 huge cost increases.
Fax: 978-281-7706
There are not many tube manufacturers left in the world, and the ones that exist, still depend on
E-mail: audioxpress@smmarketing.us
this challenging global supply of parts and materials. This means that the tubes required in the audio
Advertising rates and terms available on request. industry will remain scarce, and that prices are certain to increase exponentially.
On a positive note, while targeting the higher end of the audio market, Western Electric has
successfully resumed manufacturing 300B tubes in its state-of-the-art Rossville Works in Rossville, GA,
Editorial Inquiries: as reported by audioXpress and accounted with a review in this issue. To bring tube manufacturing
Send editorial correspondence, suggestions, back to the US, Western Electric also acquired the know-how and machinery from many of the former
and contributed articles to: leading European tube factories and is now equipped to handle production of multiple tube types.
audioXpress, Editorial Department On March 2022, Western Electric sent out a (soft) announcement confirming “plans to expand tube
P.O. Box 417 operations” to produce other tube types. We hope to report more information about this in our next
Chase City, VA 23924, US Glass Audio special, in May 2023.
E-mail: editor@audioxpress.com
J. Martins
Legal Notice: The Team

Each design published in audioXpress is the intellectual Publisher: KC Prescott Associate Editor: Shannon Becker
property of its author and is offered to readers for their
Controller: Chuck Fellows Graphics: Grace Chen, Tori Zienka
personal use only.
Any commercial use of such ideas or designs without prior
Editor-in-Chief: João Martins Advertising Coordinator: Nathaniel Black
written permission is an infringement of the copyright
protection of the work of each author. Technical Editor: Jan Didden
Regular Contributors: Bruce Brown, Bill Christie, Bob Cordell, Joseph D’Appolito, Dimitri Danyuk,
Vance Dickason, Jan Didden, Scott Dorsey, Gary Galo, Chuck Hansen,
© KCK Media Corp. 2022
Printed in the US Richard Honeycutt, Charlie Hughes, Mike Klasco,
David Logvin, Oliver Masciarotte, Nelson Pass, Christopher Paul,
Bill Reeve, Michael Steffes, Nora Wong, Stuart Yaniger, Ethan Winer
4 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

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Contents
Features
16 Orchard Audio out, and their key characteristics. In this continuation,
Starkrimson Stereo Ultra the article discusses how tubes are tested, the
different types of tube testers, and selecting a new
Pushing Power Amplifier Performance Boundaries
commercially available tube tester.
By Stuart Yaniger
Leo Ayzenshtat, the founder of Orchard Audio, took
GaN Systems’ gallium nitride (GaN) power transistor
54 Building a Guitar-Controlled
technology, which Stuart Yaniger evaluated for Synthesizer
audioXpress in the April 2022 issue, and designed his Frequency to Volts and Back
Starkrimson Stereo Ultra audio amplifiers. Of course, By Ethan Winer
Stuart Yaniger had to investigate. This is the second article in a DIY journey of a
guitar-controlled, all-analog synthesizer project that
48 An Introduction to Testing will include multiple stages and modules. Following a
Vacuum Tubes (Part 2) Sample & Hold circuit designed to retrieve previous
voltages that no longer exist, this article details
Choosing the Right Tube Tester
voltage control and how the playing is converted to
By Mark Driedger voltages and back to frequency.
Part 1 of this article covered how tubes fail and wear
Columns
SOUND CONTROL HOLLOW-STATE ELECTRONICS
44 Effect of Air Conditions on 62 Graphical Analysis of
Sound Propagation Class-A Amplifiers
By Richard Honeycutt Developing a Love of Designing
Sound systems need to be readjusted under variable Hollow-State Electronics
atmospheric conditions, affecting temperature, By Richard Honeycutt
relative humidity, and barometric pressure. This This article discusses optimizing an audio amplifier
article discusses how these changes affect different for B+ supply voltage; voltage gain; and distortion
acoustical parameters and what can be done to adjust behavior, eventually aiming for a Class-A stage to
for the changes. achieve the best performance.

Volume 53 – No. 5 May 2022
Market Update—Phono 2022 Report Departments

8 The Enduring Appeal of Vinyl
By J. Martins 4 From the Editor’s Desk
Sales of vinyl records are again a respectable revenue source for the music industry,
representing more than $3.4 billion of the $26 billion USD in global revenues achieved in 5 Client Index
2021. This market update discusses record players and related products available for all
price segments.
Glass Audio
22 Birds of a Feather
Western Electric’s New Production 300B
By Michael Boele
Websites
This is the highly anticipated long-term review of a pair of 2021 new production 300B www.audioxpress.com
directly heated power triodes made in Western Electric’s production facility at Rossville,
GA. Michael Boele received a pair to test at the end of March 2021, and has been www.voicecoilmagazine.com
extensively using them since they arrived. www.cc-webshop.com
www.loudspeakerindustrysourcebook.com
38 Meet the Pentriode www.circuitcellar.com
By Alan Kimmel www.linuxgizmos.com
This article delves into the concept of connecting commonly available pentode tubes as
triodes, creating a circuit that excels in linearity. The author proposes different possible
approaches, including for a mu stage.
40 Adding Bluetooth to a Tube Amp

By Merlin Blencowe
Some may find it heresy, but these days we can buy tube amps with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or
LAN connectivity installed. In this article, Merlin Blencowe details how to derive +5V from
an existing heater circuit without upsetting things and allowing us to connect existing
modules with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and more. @audioxp_editor audioxpresscommunity
linkedin.com/company/audioxpress

ax Market Update – Phono 2022 Report
The Enduring Appeal of Vinyl
By
J. Martins
(Editor-in-Chief)
Sales of vinyl records are again a respectable revenue source for the music industry, representing
more than $3.4 billion of the $26 billion USD in global revenues achieved in 2021. No wonder, the
audio industry is responding accordingly with new products for all price segments.
Three different groups, across generations, currently have Then there’s the younger generations of vinyl explorers who have
completely different perspectives about the world of vinyl records. rediscovered the pleasures of “touching” music and appreciating
There are obviously the experts, composed at the extremes by the cover art and liner notes while playing records. That is the
historians, collectors, and preservationists, side by side with extreme demographic responsible for the vinyl revival, and the ones who
high-end aficionados willing to devote personal fortunes for the generated news headlines when vinyl sales resumed growth. In
ultimate gravitation-denying turntable mechanics and ultrasonic reality, this is a diverse group of consumers, most of which maintain
cleaning machines. The majority in that group are simply those users a relationship with music that transcends media formats.
who remain attached to vinyl, have kept their record collections, The younger generations are actually buying vinyl in the
and keep a decently working turntable at home. same way they would buy App Store gift cards. It’s a collectible
Then, there’s the intermediate group of people who have lived physical object that can be appreciated, includes a code for digital
most of their lives with the convenience of the Compact Disc (CD) download, and now increasingly also a subscription voucher for
and digital, now disillusioned by the demise of digital downloads. In music streaming services. A clever way for music subscription
most cases, for that group, records and turntables are synonymous services to get new users to sign up for their premium services.
with rumble, scratches, clicks, pops, record skips, and bad pressings, While consumer characterizations are always debatable
and most importantly, unbearable inconvenience. Strangely enough, generalizations, the audio industry is well aware that the general
a small percentage within that group were DJs, and kept an intense knowledge about the equipment required to enjoy vinyl is very
relationship with a different kind of turntable, while amassing large superficial. Understanding what makes playing vinyl records a
quantities of records. pleasant and unique experience varies even more. And that explains
why cheap, plastic portable turntables and record players in traveling
suitcases with built-in speakers are making a comeback.
What’s Phono?
Phonograph, gramophone, record player, and turntable, are now
all generic names associated with rotating discs, called “records.”
Some of these names used to be trademarked, and for current
generations they are all distant—and sometimes confusing—
references. Let’s not even discuss what current vinyl enthusiasts
know or understand about a stylus, cartridges, or tonearms.
A more interesting discussion is related with the term phono.
Outside of the hi-fi world, very few people know that the RCA Phono
connector, now commonly used to carry audio and video signals,
derives from the original Radio Corporation of America design
intended to connect a phonograph to a radio receiver. Overtime,
Global Recorded Music Revenues by Segment 2021, according to the IFPI phonograph was abbreviated to “phono” and the connector, which is
“State of the Industry - Global Music Report 2022” still used in phono inputs, became known as just the RCA connector,

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while “phono” is understood by consumers as the pre-amplification

input required for a turntable. But for younger generations who
never heard about Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
equalizations, don’t understand the specifications of millivolt “phono”
signals, and don’t really want to deal with the technical aspects of
connecting audio equipment, more and more turntables are now
available with standard line level outputs (same RCA cables and
connectors!) or even USB interfaces.
Let’s not forget that, at least until approximately 2010, one of the
largest “pro audio” equipment markets was the DJ (disc jockey or
Deejay) segment, which traditionally used turntables and helped keep
vinyl alive throughout the golden age of CDs (late 1980s to 2000).
From dance music to scratch and turntablism that was the market
that allowed Technics to stay in business, and the products that
helped fuel growth in companies such as Numark, Stanton, Denon,
Pioneer, and even Audio-Technica. It also helped companies such
According to the RIAA, for the first time since 1996 US physical music as Audio-Technica and Ortofon keep developing and manufacturing
revenues have seen growth in both CDs and vinyl records in the same special cartridges and styli.
year. The resurgence in vinyl records continued for the 15th consecutive With the DJ market transitioning fully to digital, today’s “phono”
year, as revenues grew 61% to $1 billion USD in 2021. The last time
market is again dominated by a focus on the consumer mid-level
vinyl records exceeded $1 billion was 1986. Vinyl accounted for 63% of
segment, with companies such as Pro-Ject Audio Systems, founded
revenues from physical formats, and 7% of total music revenues.
in 1991 by one of Austria’s leading high-end audio distributors and
genuine music lover, during the onslaught of the compact disc era.
Heinz Lichtenegger, the company’s founder and CEO, invested in
manufacturing electronic components, including phono preamps,
and gradually challenged the common “cost-is-no-object” approach
to analog audio equipment that still dominated the high-end/
hi-fi market by manufacturing turntables, tonearms, and related
accessories at a reasonable price, without compromising build quality
or sonic performance. Pro-Ject’s brilliant strategy and state-of-the-
art factory in Litovel, Czech Republic, helped create a global company
that has licensing agreements with major brands and corporations.
The high-end segment also allowed the revival of classic brands
such as Thorens, and inspired all the main audio companies to launch
turntables to expand the catalog, some after more than 20 years
without a single product in the segment. And Japanese companies
Technics and Audio-Technica are now again leading names in the
In 2021, The House of Marley launched an unpretentious bookshelf
speaker design, expanding its popular “Get Together” line of Bluetooth product category, exploring all price segments.
5 speakers that is a great match with the brand’s “Stir it Up” wireless
turntable in matching bamboo finish. State of the Industry 2022
While the vinyl market is still highly motivated by collectors who
still enjoy existing stock of old records—now again available through
dedicated retail and online stores—the amount of new pressings
of classic catalogs and new music is now significant enough to be
characterized as an economic activity. And that’s what is motivating
the sales of new turntables and related hardware and accessories.
To understand the size of this market, the just-published “Global
Music Report 2022 – State of the Industry,” from the International
Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) provides a very
precise overview of the associated content and media formats. In
2021, global recorded music revenues posted growth of 18.5%. This
was the seventh consecutive year of global growth, with increased
Consumers will be easily lead to think that vinyl is an affordable option revenues in every region represented in this comprehensive report.
when they see this Crosley T160A-GY T160 two-speed turntable and While digital revenues have increased steadily over the past
matching speakers retailing for just $189.95. few years and streaming continued to be the dominant format

globally, accounting for 65% of global recorded music revenues
(total revenues for 2021 were $25.9 billion USD, increasing by 24.3%
in 2021), the demand for physical music continues, especially in
younger age groups, and represents nearly 20% of the overall music
business and growing +16.1% compared to 2020.
By the end of 2021, there were 523 million users of paid audio
streaming subscription accounts globally, helping to create a massive
$16.9 billion USD market.
With lessons learned from the rise-and-fall of digital downloads,
record companies are also now fostering growth by not focusing
on a single media channel or format, but by expanding a broader
music ecosystem that includes all physical formats.
It’s important not to forget the diversity of the current global
music market, with local artists and genres selling much more than The Andover Audio Spin Collection of products and accessories for vinyl
they ever did, high-growth across Asia, Latin America, and Africa, fans includes the SpinStand for up to 150 vinyl records, Andover’s own
and basically all formats remaining viable in all those regions. SpinDeck turntable, the SpinBase powered speaker system, and more
recently the SpinSub that can fit inside the SpinStand or just be placed on
That even includes the revived music cassette, increasingly used
the floor.
for promotional fan-based campaigns, the CD now growing again
globally, and of course, vinyl, which is now clearly established
worldwide.
Asia now accounts for a significant share of the global physical
revenues (49.6%) with vinyl generating record business as the
resurgence of interest in vinyl expanded 51.3%. The two largest
markets, US and Canada (an IFPI region) and Europe all grew
significantly, with the US market alone growing by 22.6%.
For the first time since 1996, recorded music revenues reached
the highest revenue levels this millennium, and both CDs and vinyl
records experienced revenue growth in 2021. According to the RIAA’s
latest annual report, the resurgence in vinyl records continued for
the 15th consecutive year, as revenues grew 61% to $1 billion USD
in 2021 in the US alone. The last time vinyl records exceeded $1
billion in the US was 1986. Vinyl now accounts for 63% of revenues
from physical formats, and 7% of total music revenues.
A very useful overview of the formats and revenue sources for
the music industry is provided by the historical database maintained
by the RIAA in its website: www.riaa.com/u-s-sales-database The Debut Carbon EVO represents the epitome of Pro-Ject’s philosophy:
high performance, clean aesthetics, and superb value. Combined with a
The Entry-Level Products factory-mounted Sumiko Rainier phono cartridge and a low-mass carbon
Within this framework, we have witnessed significant activity in fiber tonearm, the Debut Carbon EVO was an instant best-seller, retailing
for $499 USD.
the audio industry with frequent product launches in all hardware
categories. The past two years—with the effects of the global
pandemic restricting live entertainment and in-person experiences,
and allowing consumers to spend more time listening at home—have
enabled increasing sales of turntables and associated products. At
the entry level, consumer audio manufacturers are offering “vinyl
bundles” or affordable turntable and speaker packages, including
wireless streaming to Bluetooth speakers.
An example comes from The House of Marley, the company
created in 2010 by the late Bob Marley family, inspired by the
possibilities of using eco-conscious audio products in entry-
level lifestyle audio products. The House of Marley uses socially
responsible materials, including FSC-certified wood, upcycled fabrics,
and recycled silicone, plastic bottles, and bamboo, as a greener
alternative, while leveraging all the improvements in wireless audio This special-edition Pro-Ject Debut PRO turntable is hand-crafted in Europe
technology for true wireless earbuds, speakers, and even turntables. and is available in the US with a suggested retail price of $899 USD.

The brand offers Bluetooth speakers with phono inputs, ideal to Of course, users requiring a bit more from their record players
connect its affordable “Stir it Up” turntables, also available in a will quickly start looking for improved alternatives. An example
Bluetooth-enabled model, both featuring an Audio-Technica cartridge of a small company that successfully leveraged that entry-level
and a unique Bob Marley quote engraved on the tonearm. enthusiasts market is Massachusetts-based Andover Audio.
At that affordable, entry-level consumer segment, there are Although Andover Audio only licenses and resell the turntables
currently many great-looking turntable options, such as the 2022 at the center of its business, it created a business in the vinyl space
Crosley T160A-GY T160 two-speed turntable with pitch control around its “Spin” product system. In 2019, the company created
that features a built-in Bluetooth receiver, pre-mounted Moving the Model One Record Player integrated audio system, combining
Magnet cartridge, and a full-size aluminum platter, selling for just a custom turntable based on the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Espirit SB,
$189.95 USD with matching stereo speakers. An irony considering directly over a high-grade audio speaker system with integrated
that modern vinyl pressings of popular music retail at an average streaming capabilities. In 2020, Andover launched the Spinbase, a
price of $35 USD. streamlined version of the Model One speaker solution for under-
turntable placement, fitting basically any turntable. It also continued
to sell its Spinstand Record Stand to create a self-standing system
with the Spinbase, and later added the SpinSub active subwoofer
that recreated the convenience of the original Model One system,
with a versatile full-range listening solution.
Andover, as well as similar companies in the US, Europe, and
Asia, haven’t even attempted to get into the turntable business.
Mainly, because they just need to bundle and resell existing products
from companies such as Pro-Ject or Clearaudio. With the Model One
Record Player, Andover offered a custom Pro-Ject Debut Carbon
Espirit SB turntable with an Ortofon OM2 Silver cartridge, a carbon
fiber tonearm, and acrylic platter, delivering the ease-of-use that
quality-conscious entry-level user’s desire, with the flexibility that
advanced listeners want. To match its Spinbase, Andover now offers
The Technics SL-1500C ($1,199.99 USD) uses all the technologies acquired the Spindeck, an affordable belt-driven turntable, custom designed
through the development of the SL-1200 Series and the high-end SL-
by Pro-Ject for Andover.
1000R model inserted into the single-rotor, coreless direct drive motor.
A great demonstration of the way Pro-Ject Audio Systems
The aluminum die-cast chassis is rigidly integrated with a special
material consisting of ABS mixed with glass fiber to achieve a two-layer
dominated the segment is given by the brand’s own Debut range
construction. The tonearm is a static-balance universal S-shape tonearm, of turntables, which after 20 years, became one of the best-selling
another Technics tradition. The SL-1500C has a built-in phono equalizer products in the history of hi-fi, with more than one million units sold.
amp compatible with MM cartridges and the dedicated power supply In 2020, Pro-Ject launched the Debut Carbon EVO (for Evolution),
for the phono equalizer is isolated from the power supply. The supplied an updated and refined version of the original turntable design,
universal head shell is mounted with an Ortofon 2M RED cartridge. featuring the brand’s famous one-piece carbon fiber tonearm
technology, electronic speed selection, suspension elements from
the EISA award-winning X1 turntable, and a factory-mounted Sumiko
Rainier phono cartridge.
Increasingly working with cartridge maker Sumiko in the US
market, Pro-Ject also launched the new Debut PRO 30th anniversary
turntable, retailing for $899 USD, and featuring a pre-adjusted
Sumiko Rainer cartridge and one-piece carbon/aluminum tonearm.
The Debut PRO is a precision belt-drive turntable with electronic
speed control in a MDF chassis, featuring a heavy-duty, nickel-
plated machined aluminum bearing block, allowing the tonearm
to track precisely across the entire surface of the record, over a
die-cast aluminum platter with integrated TPE damping. New to the
Debut series, the tonearm height and azimuth are both adjustable,
allowing for the use of a wide range of cartridges.
More recently, Pro-Ject also launched the A1 Turntable, bringing
back automatic turntables for a new generation of vinyl enthusiasts,
making the whole experience even easier and simpler for new users.
The new limited-edition Celebration 40 phono cartridge was launched in
honor of Sumiko’s 40th anniversary and is the latest refinement of the The Pro-Ject Automat series of turntables includes a factory installed
award-winning Pearwood Celebration II cartridge with a solid, ultra-low- and aligned Ortofon OM10 cartridge, an 8.3” aluminum low-mass
mass Microridge stylus in a plumwood body. tonearm, and a built-in, switchable phono preamp.

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The Hi-Fi Turntables

Another clear market trend that resulted from the consistent
growth in vinyl record sales was the return of classic hi-fi brands with
new turntable models at different price segments, while Technics
and Audio-Technica also responded with more models to defend
their positions. At the same time, the market has witnessed the
return of some legendary names.
The revival of Thorens (now as a company based in Germany)
and the introduction in 2020 of the TD124 DD, an evolution of its
popular TD124, one of the most renowned turntables in consumer
electronics history, was a significant event. An homage to the original
TD124, the new TD124 DD combines the beauty of the original design
with state-of-the-art technology, updated components, cutting-edge
Ortofon was established in 1918 by Danish engineers Axel Petersen and materials and unique design flourishes.
Arnold Poulsen. Now Ortofon is a micro-mechanical powerhouse, which Side by side with the Elektromesstechnik (EMT) 930, upon
develops and manufactures hearing aid components and phono cartridges its introduction in 1957, the original Thorens TD124 turntable
for vinyl records. In 2021, Ortofon expanded its Exclusives Series of immediately became THE reference standard for both professional
high-performance moving coil cartridges with a new flagship model—the and home applications, and both models have been used for decades
MC Verismo. Meeting a growing market for premium cartridges, the new in broadcast studios around the world. (Thorens, together with
Ortofon Verismo is made of titanium and uses Ortofon’s Replicant 100
Studer/Revox, distributed the EMT turntables, and EMT later adopted
diamond stylus and solid Diamond cantilever.
the Thorens tonearm and belt-drive design for its EMT 928 consumer
turntables.)
With time, music lovers from all over the world recognized the
superior performance of the TD124, and an enthusiastic consumer
base remains devoted to that turntable design to the present day.
In 2020, Thorens honored this tradition with the all-new TD124
DD, where a height-adjustable aluminum chassis now rests on
vibration-damping elastomer elements whose viscosity is identical
to the original’s rubber “Mushroom” isolators. Instead of the idler
wheel and belt-drive system employed in the original, the new
TD124 DD uses a 12-pole “High Precision” Direct Drive motor with
Delrin bearing mirror (thrust plate).
Like the turntable, the new TP 124 tonearm is an aesthetic
reproduction of the EMT tonearms often fitted to original 124 models.
With more than 100 years of rich heritage, in 2020, Goldring announced The TD124 DD also comes with a second, heavier counterweight
the Ethos moving coil cartridge that combines a top-quality diamond that matches the Thorens SPU TD 124 pickup, which is included in
stylus, and aluminum alloy cantilever, with Goldring’s hand-built GOL-1 the TD124 DD North American Edition. The SPU 124 is an updated
moving-coil generator. version of another legendary piece of vinyl equipment: the famous
Ortofon SPU Phono Cartridge, created in collaboration with Ortofon.
Traditional British hi-fi brands are also entering or re-entering
the category after decades. Even in cartridges, as UK-based Goldring,
one of the world’s leading manufacturers of phono cartridges and
an industry standard for electro-magnetic pickups, now returns
under the management of Armour Home Group (Q Acoustics). With
more than 100 years of rich heritage, Goldring still offers a range of
moving magnet, moving coil, and moving iron cartridges, together
with stylus and vinyl cleaning kits.
Also in the UK, Cambridge Audio has announced two new
turntables—the Alva TT V2 and the Alva ST—one being a direct-
drive design and the other a belt-drive, priced at $1,999 USD and
In 2020, the revived Thorens company introduced the TD124 DD, an
$999 USD, respectively.
evolution of its TD124 turntable, representing the pinnacle of 21st century
Unveiled at CES 2022 in Las Vegas, NV, the new Alva turntables
turntable design, available in the US in a limited 120V edition, at an MSRP
of $14,000 USD, including a Thorens SPU TD 124 phono cartridge, a TP build on the success of the company’s previous Alva TT turntable
124 tonearm, a piano black plinth, a custom flight case, and a signed launched in 2019 as the world’s first turntable with built-in aptX
Certificate of Authenticity. HD Bluetooth.

Targeting the modern vinyl lover who doesn’t yet have other
components except maybe an amplifier and a pair of speakers,
the Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 turntable is an upgraded next-
generation model, while the ST enters the company’s range to
provide further choice and flexibility. Both models are ready to be
plugged into any line level input in amplifiers or active speakers,
since both models feature a built-in phono stage based on the
company’s prized Alva Solo and Alva Duo phono pre-amplifiers.
Naim Audio has also placed considerable resources to design a
very sophisticated vinyl reproduction system. The result was the
Naim Solstice, the first turntable in the British brand’s almost 50-year
history, launched in 2021. It comes with a next-generation version
of its own Naim Aro tonearm, an Equinox MC cartridge, external
Solstice Series Phono Stage, and a dedicated power supply unit.
The Solstice Series NVC TT phono stage and NPX TT power supply
are hand-built by Naim in Salisbury, UK, while the NVS TT turntable,
Aro arm and Equinox cartridge are manufactured by Clearaudio, the
The Naim Solstice Special Edition turntable features a magnetic bearing
Erlangen, Germany-based turntable specialist. This turntable was
supporting a high-mass, highly polished aluminum platter, with a unique,
also offered as an exclusive collector’s item and a commemorative self-calibrating motor drive system, retailing for $20,000 USD. The limited
product for those devoted to the British brand—now part of the edition set is complemented with a Naim Equinox MC Cartridge featuring
Vervent Audio Group since its merger with Focal-JMlab in 2011. a microline stylus shape with a boron cantilever, a stiff-but-light design
In the US, Harman’s Mark Levinson recently unveiled an expanded that faithfully transfers the stylus movements to the moving coils.
line of 5000 series products that also includes the Mark Levinson
Nº5105 turntable, built upon a nearly 2” thick, solid aluminum
plinth. While all the Mark Levinson 5000 series are designed be released in the company’s new Classics initiative: Restoring
and manufactured in the US, the 5105 turntables are contract- and reimagining classic products to demonstrate Bang & Olufsen’s
manufactured in Germany. The iconic Mark Levinson hourglass capabilities and design principles that can extend the lifespan of
knob design features as a record weight—bead-blasted machined future products.
aluminum with a gently curved profile mass-loaded with solid brass. Bang & Olufsen identified 95 units of the Beogram 4000 series
The tonearm tube is 10” high-gloss back carbon fiber fused to a turntable and brought them back home to Struer, Denmark—to the
solid aluminum headshell. The 12V synchronous motor’s control same facility where they were first created nearly five decades ago.
signal is digitally generated to eliminate temperature drift and The turntables were then disassembled and thoroughly inspected by
ensure speed stability and low wow/flutter. a team of skilled engineers. Once this process was completed, each
As vinyl is trending, turntable options are also expanding in Beogram was individually tested then fine-tuned to meet Bang &
every price segment and we couldn’t close this market update article Olufsen’s exacting specifications, before being reintroduced in the
without mentioning the Bang & Olufsen initiative of resurrecting its market to be enjoyed for decades to come. Each turntable is fully
iconic Beogram turntable with an automated tangential tonearm, restored, uniquely numbered and comes with a five-year warranty.
now on the Beogram 4000c Recreated Limited Edition. This turntable, To complete the experience, each turntable comes in a crafted solid
originally introduced in the early 1970s, is the first product to oak box with aluminum details. ax
Resources Crosley, www.crosleyradio.com

“IFPI Global Music Report 2022 - State of the Industry,” International Goldring, www.goldring.co.uk
Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), www.ifpi.org
Harman International, www.harman.com
“RIAA 2021 Year End Music Industry Revenue Report,” Recording Mark Levinson, www.marklevinson.com
Industry Association of America (RIAA), www.riaa.com
Nagra, www.nagraaudio.com
“Vinyl Records Market by Product and Geography - Forecast and Naim Audio, Ltd., www.naimaudio.com
Analysis 2021-2025,” Technavio, www.technavio.com
Ortofon A/S, www.ortofon.com/hifi
Sources Pro-Ject Audio Systems, www.project-audio.com
Andover Audio, www.andoveraudio.com Sumiko Audio, www.sumikophonocartridges.com
Armour Home Electronics, www.armourhome.co.uk The House of Marley, www.thehouseofmarley.com
Bang & Olufsen, www.bang-olufsen.com Thorens, www.thorens.com
Cambridge Audio, www.cambridgeaudio.com

ax Fresh From the Bench
Orchard Audio
Starkrimson Stereo Ultra
Pushing Power Amplifier Performance Boundaries
By
Stuart Yaniger
Photo 1: The Orchard Audio Starkrimson Ultra has a
simple and functional appearance.
What if someone took GaN Systems’ gallium nitride (GaN) power transistor technology, which
Stuart Yaniger evaluated for audioXpress in the April 2022 issue, and designed an actual audio
amplifier for the best possible high-fidelity results? That’s precisely what Leo Ayzenshtat, the
founder of Orchard Audio, did with his Starkrimson Stereo Ultra audio amplifiers.
In my previous article on GaN Systems’ gallium a pure power amplifier. Of course, the reference
nitride (GaN) power transistor technology, I hinted design is absolutely good enough to be transparent
that the already very good performance of its to human hearing and likely incapable of audible
reference design could be made even better as improvement, but engineers will always take a
good thing a step further. Using the same output
devices, but doing the control and feedback
differently, it would seem possible to make things
measurably more perfect, and without incurring
ridiculous costs.
Last year, I wrote about Orchard Audio’s earlier
Class-D power amplifier, the BOSC, later renamed
Starkrimson (see Resources). The performance
was excellent, and the monoblocks ran cool and
silent. The company’s principal, Leo Ayzenshtat,
has now updated the circuit, increasing both power
and measured performance, using GaN Systems’
High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMTs) as output
devices. Orchard was one of the early adopters of
GaN technology, and as new and improved devices
Photo 2: The input and output connections are high quality and well laid out. from GaN Systems became available, Orchard again

became one of the first to take advantage of the
advances in this fast-moving technology.
The Ultra is available either as amplifier modules
for use in active speakers or DIY projects, or as a
packaged stereo amplifier. The review sample used
a prototype box, but other than appearance, it was
identical to production units now shipping. It’s pretty
plain: The front panel has the Orchard logo and an
illuminated push-button power switch (Photo 1).
The rear panel has an IEC power connector, either
unbalanced (RCA) and balanced (XLR) inputs, and
heavy-duty binding posts for speakers (Photo 2).
Note that this photo is from an earlier version; the
packaged amp is supplied with either RCA or XLR
inputs, rather than having both. The binding posts
appear to be the same ones I’ve seen used on other
high-quality equipment (e.g., the M10 and the M33
from NAD), which are sturdy and very easy to use Photo 3: The amplification
with a variety of connection options. The Starkrimson Ultra In Use modules are compact
As with the earlier BOSC amps, the amplifier Before running bench tests, I put the Ultra in and easy to integrate into
modules are neatly laid out, well-constructed, my bi-amped system for a few weeks, alternating it custom amps or active
loudspeakers.
and surprisingly compact for the rated power between the midrange/treble section and the bass
(Photo 3). During use, the amplifier always ran cool section of the speakers, driven respectively by the
and was absolutely unobtrusive. If there were any preamp or subwoofer outputs of the NAD M10 I use
electromechanical noises, they were fully attenuated for my main system. Not unexpectedly, it seemed
by the box. to sound no different than the NCore and the Purifi
From a design perspective, Orchard departed amps I normally use, which is a high compliment—
significantly from GaN Systems’ reference design. clean, quiet, unstrained, tonally neutral, exactly what
Orchard used its own controller, similar to the one a power amp should be. In fact, when used for the
used in the BOSC/Starkrimson, coupled with a Silicon upper section, I could play my system noticeably
Labs Si8244 driver chip. In any switching amplifier louder before onset of noticeable distortion because
topology with bi-polar supplies, the bottom field- of its higher power capability than the M10’s NCore
effect transistor (FET) sits on the negative power amplifiers. It was also dead quiet: when no music
rail, in this case, -40V. Since the modulator and all was playing, with my ear right up to my speakers,
other circuitry are referenced to ground, the PWM I could hear… nothing.
signal needs to be level shifted down to -40V. This
requires some care. The Si8244 chip is isolated from
Dual Feedback
input to output and effectively takes care of this
level shifting function as well as being a gate driver.
The GaN Systems’ EZ Drive circuit (see Resources)
is used to provide the proper drive voltages to the Out+
GaN Systems output devices. Orchard’s circuit is
fully differential, and in contrast to the GaN Systems
GaN Half Bridge
reference design, there are feedback loops taken
Input Stage Modulator
from both sides of the output inductor (Figure 1).
GaN Half Bridge
This could reduce both distortion from the inductor
(see Resources) and reduce the load dependence of
the frequency response. Orchard also believes that Out-
higher switching frequencies are advantageous to

performance and exploit the higher speed capabilities
of the GaN output devices, so they take advantage Dual Feedback
of the lower gate charge and higher mobility of GaN
output transistors compared to conventional silicon
MOSFETs. The GaN Systems devices were chosen for the Figure 1: The Starkrimson Ultra continues Orchard’s use of fully differential topology, and
Ultra for ease of assembly and a reliable supply chain. uses feedback taken from both sides of the output RC network.

ax Audio Electronics
I can’t comment much on how the amp acts remained cool and collected (literally). My speakers
in overload since, although most music I listen to have a sensitivity of about 87 dBSPL/2.83V, so if
is acoustic, even playing my favorite heavy metal yours are that sensitive or better, the amp will not
music, I couldn’t coax the amp into clipping. run out of gas. I’m lucky that none of my neighbors
Despite some, um, vigorous volume levels, the Ultra complained to the police.
After testing and living with several excellent
examples, I should stop being amazed at how
delightfully nonobtrusive modern Class-D amps
are, but having grown up in the tube era, and then
spending years with large solid-state Class-A and
Class-AB amps, it’s still a delight.
Test Results
Once the basic functioning was confirmed (at
great personal sacrifice to me—having to spend
hours enjoying my favorite albums), I moved the
amp to the lab bench. As usual, the test gear
used here included an Audio Precision APx-525,
several homemade dummy loads comprising non-
inductive power resistors bolted to heatsinks, NHT
two-way mini-monitors, and an HP 3466A precision
multimeter.
The bench testing showed what Orchard’s
optimization of GaN technology could accomplish.
Figure 2: The noise spectrum in the audio band with no signal shows a very quiet output.
First, the basics, starting with noise. Consistent with
my in-use observations, the Ultra measures very
low noise. Figure 2 shows the noise spectrum in the
audio band, with the AES17 filter in place. There’s
some small spikes at harmonics of 60Hz, a bit worse
in one channel, but the very worst one was a 120Hz
spur in one at -97dBV in the worse channel. To put
that in perspective, if I had very efficient horns at
100 dBSPL/2.83V, the noise from that channel would
be right at the absolute limits of human hearing in
a perfectly quiet test chamber, and 20dB to 30dB
below the noise of a very quiet room.
Opening up the frequency range and removing
the AES17 filter, we can see from Figure 3 that
the noise level is higher in the ultrasonic range,
though of no audible consequence. There are some
spikes reaching the tenths of millivolts, but these
are frequencies at which tweeters are not likely
responding, and even if they do, it’s at levels that
Figure 3: The wideband noise spectrum shows some minor ultrasonic noise and the
bats would strain to hear. The dominating part is the
relatively high switching frequency. switching frequencies, which indeed are double the
frequency of the GaN Systems’ reference design and
are just below and above 750kHz. Their no-signal
About the Author level is roughly 300mV, but this is at AM broadcast
Stuart Yaniger has been designing and building audio frequencies and will not bother any loudspeaker,
equipment for nearly half a century, and currently runs assuming they can even get past the inductance
a technology consulting agency in western New York. His of typical speaker cables, not to mention the
professional research interests have spanned theoretical
inductance and stray capacitance of loudspeaker
physics, electronics, chemistry, spectroscopy, aerospace, biology,
and sensory science. One day he will figure out what he would voice coils.
like to be when he grows up. The most important aspect of amplification is
frequency response. Class-D amplifiers have a bit

of a hill to climb there because of the interaction of
the obligatory output LC network with the (usually
reactive) load, and it’s not uncommon to see
significant frequency response errors. The Ultra’s
feedback scheme should, in theory, reduce this
effect since part of the feedback is taken from the
load side of the output network. Figure 4 compares
the Ultra’s frequency response into an 8R resistive
load versus an actual loudspeaker. For the 8R load,
the response has a rise of under 0.1dB at 20kHz
(note the highly expanded scale in this graph).
Substituting a loudspeaker load, the deviation
increases to slightly under 0.2dB, the audibility of
which is highly dubious. This was also lower than the Figure 4: The frequency responses of the Ultra into a resistive load and a loudspeaker
same deviation of the GaN Systems demo amplifier, show a very minor rise in the top octave. Note the highly expanded scale.
likely due to the extra feedback loop.
Inextricably intertwined with frequency response
is source impedance, which can cause response
deviations when interacting with loudspeaker
loads, which are far from constant with frequency
and far from pure resistance. Because of some
incompatibilities with the newest versions of the
Audio Precision software, I was unable to use their
excellent source impedance utility, so I did a few
spot measurements using the change in output
voltage with the change in load to determine the
Thevenin equivalent impedance. At 5kHz, the source
impedance was 24mΩ, an excellent value; for those
more accustomed to the damping factor spec,
this is equivalent to over 300. Generally, source
impedance rises with frequency as the open-loop
gain decreases, reducing feedback. The Ultra is no
exception, with the 20kHz source impedance being
about 100mΩ (damping factor of about 80).
Of course, given the nature of Class-D output Figure 5: The Ultra’s undistorted power easily exceeds the specification. See text for
filtering, these values are a bit naïve since they do discussion of the channel differences.
not take into account the reactive nature of the
impedance. This is one of the reasons we see a minor
rise in response rather than a fall. Nonetheless, the
amplifier will not be the limitation here since for most
speaker cables of normal length, their impedance will
swamp the amplifier’s source impedance.
Next, I examined the distortion and the power
performance. Figure 5 shows the 1kHz THD+N
versus power for an 8R load. The dominant
component is noise up to about 30W, with the
actual distortion being well below 0.001%. Note
that one channel has significantly worse distortion
performance than the other. This was a bit puzzling
since this exact measurement had been done on
this amp using the same models of test gear that I
use, and the excess distortion in that channel had
not appeared. To be clear, the excess distortion was
still far below any plausible audible threshold, but Figure 6: The harmonic distortion spectrum shows that all the high-order products are
it was still a bit odd. In the past, Leo Ayzenshtat’s extremely low level.

ax Audio Electronics
measurements and mine have tracked almost When I returned the unit to Leo for analysis, he
perfectly, which deepened the mystery. One more confirmed my observation and immediately dug in
clue emerged when I repeated the measurement to determine the cause. As I had mentioned in my
several times over the course of several days and review of the original Starkrimson nee BOSC, Leo’s
observed that the worse channel’s performance day job is PCB design for mission-critical aerospace,
varied from measurement to measurement; Figure 5 so he was perfectly positioned to direct the failure
shows the largest variation that I saw. (in a relative sense) analysis. It turned out that,
as he and I speculated, a microscopic defect had
appeared in one of the solder joints due to the
vicissitudes of shipping. This is the only review unit
and it had been sent back and forth numerous
times, so it experienced mechanical stresses far
beyond normal. Nonetheless, he used this as an
opportunity for improvement, and has modified
the PCB processing and inspection to eliminate the
possibility of this happening even under repeated
abuse by shipping companies. And again, I need
to qualify that this is a defect that would only have
been evident on careful testing with top equipment—
not something that would be noticeable in normal
use (and indeed, it was no issue in my use of the
Ultra in my audio system).
In any case, the distortion at the rated power
Figure 7: The dependence of distortion on frequency is quite low, even with a loudspeaker of 250W was under 0.003%, and there was no sign
load. of clipping until nearly 300W. Switching to a 4R
load, similar results were obtained with a clipping
point of over 500W with both channels driven. This
caused my lab circuit breaker to trip, which ended
the measurement quickly!
The harmonic distortion spectrum at 10W into
8R is shown in Figure 6. The very low noise floor
exposes the long string of harmonics. But note that
their level is exceptionally low—the worst is the fifth
at less than -110dB below the fundamental. This
is very close to challenging the capabilities of the
AP analyzer and is extremely unlikely to have any
audible consequence.
The dependence of THD+N on frequency is
shown in Figure 7. This was acquired using a Farina
log-chirp sweep. At 2.83V with an 8R load, it is
remarkably flat, indicating a very effective feedback
scheme—as with source impedance, one usually sees
Figure 8: Intermodulation distortion with a 10kHz and 11kHz tone shows excellent linearity. a significant rise at higher frequencies due to the
reduction in feedback from falling open-loop gain.
That is not evident here, and it is likely that the
Resources “N” part is what is dominating. The other trace in
Orchard Audio Starkrimson Ultra,” https://orchardaudio.com/stereo-ultra
Figure 7 is the same measurement, but substituting
Si824x Gate Driver Datasheet, Skyworks, the loudspeaker load. This does not seem to ruffle
www.skyworksinc.com/-/media/SkyWorks/SL/documents/public/data-sheets/Si824x.pdf the Ultra at all, and again, it is likely that the noise
is a large factor, given that the speaker has many
S. Yaniger, “GaN Technology in Audio Power Amplification,” audioXpress, April 2022. physical inductances and capacitances in it, perfect
S. Yaniger, “A Tale of Two Class-D Amplifiers Orchard Audio BOSC and Purifi Audio Eigentakt
to act as an antenna for noise pickup.
EVAL1,” audioXpress, July 2020, https://audioxpress.com/article/fresh-from-the-bench-a- I checked the 10kHz/11kHz intermodulation
tale-of-two-class-d-amplifiers-orchard-audio-bosc-and-purifi-audio-eigentakt-eval1 distortion (IMD) at 10W into a resistive load (I was
not going to torture my speakers and ears with

this), with the results shown in Figure 8. The main
IMD product at 1kHz is at -115dB, with sidebands at
-125dB, which is ridiculously good and once again
pushing the limits of the AP analyzer.
What about more complex signals? I used a 30-tone
composite signal, which not only contains multiple
sine wave components, but has a much higher crest
factor (13dB) than the sine-based Farina sweep (3dB).
With a loudspeaker load, the spectrum of Figure 9
resulted at the equivalent of 1W average power. The
noise and distortion products (the hash between the
tones) was at its worst 90dB below the level of any of
the individual tones, and more than 100dB below the
2.83V sine wave equivalent reference level. Figure 9: Multitone analysis
All in all, the bench performance is flawless, with higher power. Both in use and on the bench, with a loudspeaker load
correlating with the listening impressions. the Ultra was an exemplar of modern audio power shows very little grunge.
amplifier technology, and could easily be an end-
Conclusions game for upgraders.
In my article on the excellent GaN Systems demo The availability as modules can enable hobbyists
amp, I speculated on what the performance using and small manufacturers to customize packaging,
its technology would be for an amp designed for top build custom multichannel units (or monoblocks),
performance rather than as a multifunctional utility. and integrate amplification into active speakers.
This answered my question—the performance was Lots of superbly distortion-free power in a tiny, cool,
outstanding. As good as the original Starkrimson and customizable package or prepackaged in an
was, the Ultra shows similar high performance, but unobtrusive stereo amp. How can you go wrong? ax

Birds of a Feather
Western Electric’s
GLASS AUDIO
New Production 300B

By
Michael Boele
This is the highly anticipated long-term review of a

pair of 2021 new production 300B directly heated
power triodes made in Western Electric’s production
facility at Rossville, GA. Michael Boele received a
pair to test at the end of March 2021, and has been
extensively using them since they arrived.
Photo 1: A view of the Western Electric 300B 2021 Rossville

production tubes as they arrived to me in the box.
I shall neither talk much about the history of the amplification since my early youth in the 1970s, beginning
company Western Electric (WE) in general nor about with amplifiers built from the leftovers of tubed radio
the lore surrounding the electron tube-type 300B, be it receivers, TV sets, and other electronics from scrap yards
the “original” or the various copies/clones/reissues, as or surplus sales. Then, I graduated to more ambitious
these topics have been the subject of many articles. For projects with higher quality components and less random
readers interested in learning more about the background circuits. Over time, I have designed, built, and measured
of Western Electric and 300B tubes, I recommend the many amplifiers and topologies, vacuum tube, hybrid, and
excellent articles by Peter van Willenswaard “In Search of solid state, both small signal and power, from microphone
the Perfect 300B Tube” [1], and by the late J. C. Verdier, amplifiers to kilowatt (kW)-power modulation amplifiers
“Kinky Triodes – 300Bs Investigated” [2]—both are for AM transmitters. Most of the time, I have used solidly
available on the web. engineered circuits with negative feedback (NFB) and other
I shall focus solely on the 2021 production Western measures to keep amplifier behavior stable and tolerant
Electric 300Bs and their behavior and quality—comparing to component tolerances and aging, and to ascertain
them a bit to older “Western Electric originals” and to good measured parameters. Eventually, I have learned
some third-party 300B clones. With that said, my review that while measurements give an idea on the technical
shall begin with my journey into the 300B and single- performance of amplifiers and their behavior in specific
ended triode (SET) amplification world. situations, the best measured amplifier is not always the
one that sounds most pleasant and engaging—through
My Experiences with Tubes that I came across the return to “simple” single-ended
I have been using elec tron tubes for audio amplification driven first by Japanese audio enthusiasts,

Photo 2: Here are the
a) b) Western Electric 300B 2021
Rossville production tubes
unboxed (a) and in an
amplifier (b).
GLASS AUDIO
spilling over to the US and Europe. In the 1990s, I had European Triode Festival, I presented measurement
the chance to listen to a number of systems using results of various 300B clones and originals in this
such amplifiers, and while the sound of many of these amplifier and allowed comparative playback of
systems did not agree with my taste, others did, and music. At the festival, the Westrex WE 300B reissues
to a degree that I found worthwhile to investigate. from 1999 were rated highest by the audience. The
In 1999 I came across Jean Hiraga’s book Initiation listening results interestingly did correlate well with
aux amplis à tubes [3], and, following that, started Peter van Willenswaard’s 1999 findings—second
to build single-ended amplifiers with the 300B tube. rated were Czech “boutique” 300B clones, which
Initially I copied circuits from the magazines and I actually favor myself. At that time, and after the
the Internet, using “cheap and cheerful” Russian factory move from Kansas City, MO, to Huntsville,
and Chinese 300Bs, quickly finding that I did not AL, the supply of Westrex Western Electric 300B
like these amplifiers as much as some that I had clones had all but dried up—forcing people to look
heard elsewhere, or my “conventionally engineered” for alternatives.
push-pull and OTL amplifiers. But then, after positive Since 1999, high-grade clones from China and
listening experiences with some other enthusiasts’ other places have entered the market, some of them
systems, I decided to dig deeper, and try and allegedly close to the original Western Electric or
measure other driver topologies and “better” 300Bs. 1990s Westrex Western Electric production, but
Over time, I built up quite a collection of 300B despite the high price, in general they do not meet
tubes (Chinese, Russian, Czech, and Slovak clones the lifetime expectation of the WE originals (rated
of “improved” versions, as well as several pairs of for 40,000 hours at my favored operating point).
Westrex Western Electric reissues produced in the Users who wanted to stay with WE original products
Kansas City factory in the late 1990s, and two “old were forced to take the risk and purchase new-old
stock” WEs traded for some West German broadcast stock (NOS) at very high and ever-increasing prices,
amplifiers), and tested them extensively. The tests which were not backed by factory warranties any
confirmed the findings found in J. C. Verdier’s more; or they could use stock they still had, as
article—many samples in the market are of rather long as it lasted—like me, sparingly using my old
inferior quality and have a much shorter service life stock samples acquired in 2001.
than those rated for the WE “Originals.” So, when I learned that a new production facility
By 20 0 8 I had developed a “reference” had been set up in Rossville, and production had
amplifier topology, which delivered the sound and restarted using the old construction diagrams, 1962
measurement results I had been looking for, naming recipes for the cathode chemistry, and new/updated
it the “MB300+,” as it could as well accommodate machinery and test equipment, I thought this to
a range of other directly heated triodes. I found be good news, but was a bit skeptical about the
that, when demonstrated at amateur audio events, chances for success—setting up a proper production
the amplifier did perform quite well in comparison of vacuum tubes is difficult. Refer back to the J. C.
to other amateur and some commercial products Verdier article and the problems outlined in there
available for direct comparison. In 2009, during the for more detailed information.

The WE 300B Tubes actual WE 300B tubes inside, with matching foam
In March 2021, audioXpress asked me if I would inserts to properly protect them, and ancillary
like to review a pair of tubes from the Rossville documentation including individual test charts for
GLASS AUDIO
production and rate them in comparison to the old each tube. This packaging is pretty much the same as
ones. Understandably, I was quite enthusiastic about the one used for the 1990s Westrex Western Electric
that request, and said yes right away. production tubes.
For me, it was immediately clear that I needed to The tubes are shown boxed in Photo 1 and
critically assess if the new production samples met unboxed in Photo 2. The wooden box may be a bit
the expectations one would have for such products, over the top, but it is still a nice touch, and the overall
which, with the WE name, and backed by a five-year packing is very well done—I have seen comparable
warranty, still command a rather high price. quality only in the packaging of certain Japanese
So I set up a test plan—get them, burn them in and Czech “boutique” 300Bs, but none reach the
in same way the 1999 production samples had to Western Electric level of sophistication.
be burned in (see Peter van Willenswaard’s article The 2021 Rossville tubes as such looked very well
on the need for burn-in and the justification for it), made—visually the quality is at par with my 1999
testing and measuring them during the process—and samples, or Czech “boutique” 300Bs. The tubes have
keep running them for as many hours as possible individual serial numbers engraved in the socket,
afterward to glean at the long-term stability of the and the production week is indicated as well—the
characteristic parameters. samples I received are marked 2113 (2021—Calendar
After getting the tubes out of Dutch Customs in Week 13). Carefully inspecting the inner structure, it
early April 2021, I carefully unpacked them. They is noticeable that the tubes are assembled by hand—
came well packed, a bit like Matryoshka dolls, with there are subtle differences in the glass stem and
several layers of cardboard and bubble foil covering some other parts between the tubes. Compared to
a small cardboard box that contained a wooded box my 1999 samples, the plate coating differs, and the
that in turn contained two cardboard boxes with the actual triode structure is placed about 2mm higher
a) b)
Photo 3: Individual test charts come delivered with the WE 300B tubes. Shown here are 2021 Rossville (a) and 1999 Kansas City (b) production charts.

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tube test charts. After 30 minutes warm-up, the basic

parameters as indicated in the test charts, including
the filament current at 5V, were reached within the
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test rigs tolerances. It is of note that the curves

indicated both 2021 samples being at the bottom end
of the allowable tolerance field of the datasheet. For
evaluating the perveance, a pulsed emission current
test cycle was done at 200V (grid negative at -100V,
pulsed to 0V at 100 Hz and 10% duty cycle)—the
pulsed current of the tubes reached 310mA (1st) and
320mA (2nd)—median in the datasheet is 340mA.
After that, the new tubes were given a hard
stability test—running them for about 100 hours at
36W plate dissipation (operating point 360V/100mA
with grid servo regulator), which they passed without
problems. Then, static parameters were measured
Photo 4: For 300B distortion again—notably, dynamic mu remained unchanged
characterization, I used a in the ST bulbs. The structure itself is very similar, within the tolerances of the test rig, but the perveance
homemade power amplifier including the springs tensioning the filaments, and had slightly gone up, requiring slightly higher negative
with a stepped attenuator at is aligned perfectly straight. grid voltages to keep the plate current at 60mA—gm
input (2dB steps to -40dBr), The individual test charts delivered with the had increased by a few percent, and the grid current
low distortion hybrid driver WE 300B tubes (Photo 3) show tubes within had gone down noticeably. This presumably is because
stage, stabilized operating
datasheet specification (median values in datasheet of the getters had caught more gas ions in the bulb,
point output stage for
300B [4]—by experience, one sigma deviation of activated through the dissipated heat.
300B, low distortion James
Audio output transformers
primary parameters is better than ±1/6th). As visible I then made a first set of distortion measurements
reflecting a 3.5kΩ resistive in Photo 3, my 1999 reference pair (measured and after warming up the tubes in the measurement
load into the 300B under delivered in 2001) had a slightly lower Rp in the amplifier for 30 minutes. The distortion measurement
test. factory test operating point (due to higher gm). WE system is described in the sidebar at the end of the
factory matching for both old and new production article and shown in Photo 4. Overall, the tubes
was done to mu and Rp. It is of note that the test rig reached the datasheet specification for the operating
used in factory in 2021 has a better resolution than point of the test amplifier (WE 300A datasheet,
the one used in the factory in 2001. Furthermore, page 5—recommended operating conditions—
the curves point to a subtle difference in the grid at 350V/60mA/7W, 1dB below clipping: h2 below
structure of the 2021 production 300B compared minus 30dBr, h3 below minus 44dBr referred to the
to my 1999 samples—the current cut-off at very fundamental), but with relatively high levels of high-
high plate voltages is less sharp than in the 1999 order harmonics—tailing off fast, but with significant
samples. This is, however, not a problem in real levels up to h9—see Figure 1, column 2, position 1.
use—I have seen similar behavior with my old stock The tubes were then inserted into the amplifier
(1970s) WE 300B, without detriment in sound or used for the listening tests and used for about
measured distortion performance. 400 hours. Thereafter the basic parameters were
A quick plausibility check for the curves was done measured again in the test rig. By that time, the
by calculating the perveance of the tubes at low perveance had gone up further, again requiring
grid and plate voltages, and then extrapolating the alignment of the grid bias voltages—total change
plate current at some higher values, using the Child- required now about 5% to keep the plate current at
Langmuir space charge equation and the appropriate 60mA. The mutual conductance gm had increased by
dynamic mu figures from the datasheets [4], [5]. The about 5%, dynamic mu remained unchanged, and the
calculated values were close to the values indicated ionic grid current had gone down on both tubes below
in the curves, thus confirming the validity of the 70 nA. In the pulsed emission test, the pulsed current
curves. With this, I considered the visual inspection now reached at least 340mA on both tubes, thus
passed successfully. bringing their perveance to a good average value—
the cathodes being activated to full performance in
Testing the about 500 hours total operating time.
The visual inspections were followed by a check Distor tion measurements were repeated,
of the basic parameters on my electron tube test rig and showed a notable reduction in higher-order
(described in the annex) in the test point given in the harmonics, all components above h5 disappearing

GLASS AUDIO
WE 300B 2113 Rossville New Production WE 300B 2113 Rossville New Production CN 300B (Standard) 2006 Production VA
(2000 hours) Fundamental 2kHz (±100 hours) 333Hz Fundamental (<1500 hours) 333Hz Fundamental
1W into 8Ω 1dB under clipping 1dB under clipping
WE 300B 2113 Rossville New Production CN HQ 300B 2016 Production PSV

100mW into 8Ω (2000 hours) 333Hz Fundamental (>1000 hours) 333Hz Fundamental
1dB under clipping 1dB under clipping
WE 300B 1152 Kansas City 1999 Production CN HQ 300B (End of Life)

10mW into 8Ω (>2500 hours) 333Hz Fundamental (±2500 hours) 2kHz Fundamental
1dB under clipping 1dB under clipping
AVVT AV300B-SL C37 AVVT/VAIC Prague Driver Stage output 50Veff into load
2000 Production (>5000 hours) 333Hz Fundamental 100kΩ || 100pf (harmonics below -80dBr)
1mW into 8Ω
1dB under clipping Stage clips at 60 Veff
Figure 1: Harmonic distortion measuremens for the tubes that were tested under varying conditions.

in the noise floor, closing in to the distribution shown These measurement results are very good so I
in Figure 1, column 2, position 2. concluded that the tubes still have a long service life
After that, the tubes were reinserted into the main ahead. The advertised long-life expectation seems
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amplifier and used for listening for about another 2000 more realistic after these measurements.
hours before being measured again in December 2021, For comparison, I had some less promising
bringing the total operating hours to about 2500. experience with low-price Chinese and Russian
The basic parameters—mutual conductance, 300B clones, with many not even reaching 2000
dynamic mu, operating point, perveance, within hours before end of useful service life (emission
the tolerances of the test rig—remained essentially dropped, mutual conductance down more than 30%
unchanged to the measurements at 500 hours. The compared to new tube), and with others, “boutique”
filament current remained unchanged at 5V filament 300Bs included, rather alarming total failures
voltage. The residual grid current had further gone due to filament breakage, failure of the filament
down to about 65nA, pointing to a very good vacuum tensioning springs or thermal runaway due to cathode
and little contamination of the glass surfaces with material deposited on the glass surfaces, forming
evaporated cathode material. low resistance connections between anode and grid,
WE 300B 2113 Rossville New Production WE 300B 9952 Kansas City 1999 Production CN HQ 300B 2016 Production (>1000 hours)
(2000 hours) 250+8020 Hz (>2500 hours) 250+8020 Hz 250+8020 Hz
1dB below clipping 1dB below clipping 1dB below clipping
Figure 2: Intermodulation distortion measurements (IMD 250+8020Hz) for the tubes that I tested under varying conditions.

pulling the tubes into “latch up”-like conditions. note is the spectrum shown in Figure 1, column 3,
At this point, concluding that burn-in had been position 3—the tube has reached end of life (it clips
successfully finished, more distortion measurements significantly earlier than the other samples, input
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were performed. The results are shown in Figure 1, signal was reduced accordingly). More higher-order
column 1, showing harmonic spectra at 1W, 100mW, harmonics are visible, as the dynamic mu is no longer
10mW and 1mW. It is noticeable that even at 1W, near constant.
higher-order harmonics tail off fast, and will most However, the fast harmonic distortion tail-off
likely be masked by the distortion of speaker and ears can only be achieved if the output transformer
of the listener, if a sufficiently sensitive loudspeaker used has inherently low distortion, the connected
is used. I recommend a minimum of 95db (1m, 1W), load or speaker has a flat impedance characteristic
and the distortion tails off quickly at reduced power. (I recommend speaker impedance correction/
For comparison, distortion spectra of various linearization networks in the crossovers, even for
300Bs 1dB below clipping point are given in broadband speakers), and if the driver stage does
Figure 1, column 2, position 1–4 and column 3, not deliver high level of harmonics in itself, masking
position 1–3. the actual behavior of the output valve.
The spectral distribution varies significantly In Figure 1, column 3, position 4, the behavior
between different 300B “incarnations”—the fast of the driver of the test amplifier is shown. It
tail-off of higher-order harmonics is achieved in a actually produces hardly any relevant harmonics,
properly burned-in Western Electric 300B. Note the with all harmonics being at least 80dB below the
similarity between the 2021 Rossville production and fundamental, thus not adding significant high-order
the 1999 Kansas City production examples, and the harmonics to the output signal spectrum.
comparable tail-off in the Czech “boutique” 300B. For The quick tail-off of higher-order harmonics is
comparison, the sample Chinese 300Bs showed quite important for the correct processing of (complex)
a different distribution of the higher-order harmonics. music signals, as music signals contain many
The differences in sound are not insignificant. Of frequencies at once, leading to intermodulation
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distortion (IMD), read: the mixing of signals by Note: 84dB SPL at -9 dBFs (i. e., leaving 9dB
the nonlinearities of the amplifier. Intermodulation headroom as per EBU specification) is fairly
of higher-order harmonics bears no harmonic demanding on the amplifier—with my listening
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relationship to the actual tones in the music, distance of 3.5m from the speakers and the speaker’s
thus making them disturbing to the listener. For sensitivity of 95dB(1m) at 1W, the amplifier reaches
demonstrating the good behavior of the reviewed the onset of clipping at 0dBFS, which is technically
2021 Rossville production WE 300Bs, even a bit better optimal, but emphasizes that with a standard 300B
than the measured 1999 Kansas City WE 300Bs, amplifier, high sensitivity speakers are required.
please refer to the IMD spectra in Figure 2, column Real listening is on most occasions taking place at
1 and column 2. For comparison, the IMD spectrum significant lower SPL values.
of a high-quality Chinese 300B is presented in Figure Of note is the history and layout of the 300B
2, column 3. The tail-off of sideband spectra is much amplifier for the listening tests.
faster than the tail-off shown by the high quality In 2017, I built a single-ended 300B amplifier to
Chinese 300B—promising a ”cleaner” behavior with be used first for a system at the European Triode
complex music. Festival and then to become part of my “living room”
setup. To build it, I used high-grade components
Listening Tests I had collected over the years, including Tamura
For the listening tests, I have used my “living room” F-7002 Permalloy core output transformers, Lundahl
system, described below in the annex. I regularly small signal transformers, Unitran and Stoet power
listen either with the EL34PP or the 300B single-ended transformer and chokes, Welwyn, Beyschlag, Bourns,
amps driving the Tannoy monitors, alternatively with Dale, and Allen-Bradley resistors, Westermann,
the 6S33S-V Circlotron OTLs driving the Sonus Faber Roederstein, Siemens, Jensen, Black Gate, and NCC
Guarneri monitors, depending on music type and capacitors, and other selected (new) old stock active
playback levels. The EL34PP and the 6S33S-V OTL and mechanical components. The circuit implements
amps were used for “sanity tests” connected to my all the experiences I had gained over two decades of
preamp individually via Eckmiller MR90-St-D faders for building DHT amplifiers in various topologies, and,
adjusting the SPL at the listening position. Adjustment to use an old adage, was designed to be “as simple
was done with one-third octave noise 800Hz to 1250Hz as possible, as complex as necessary.”
from the Denon Audio Technical CD (Denon 38C39- As it is a further development of my measurement
7147) and a Brüel & Kjær (B&K) integrating SPL meter amplifier, streamlining the circuit, I named it
at 84dB SPL, to better than 0.5dB, and repeated “MB300+ Generation 2.” The amplifier uses a low
for each 300B pair used in the setup, as there are distortion pentode driver stage built around the C3o
noticeable individual gain differences between various (German Post Office line driver pentode) with local
300B types—not so much between WE 1999 Kansas NFB, Lundahl input transformers to isolate the inputs
City and WE 2021 Rossville production samples— and prevent ground loops, a hard LC/shunt regulated
between those, no realignment was required. power supply for B+, heavy decoupling for other
Photo 5: This is my
MB300+G2 Amplifier, which
I used for the listening tests.

supply voltages and regulated DC power supplies for
the 300B filaments. All stages are run in Class A1.
The driver is optimized to low distortion up to the
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clipping point of the 300B power stage (onset of grid
current), keeping THD and IMD of the driver stage
very low up to that point—at 50 Veff driver output
into 100 kΩ||100pF, all harmonics are below -80dB
relative to the fundamental, h3 being the dominant
one, higher-order harmonics quickly tailing off. Driver
stage IMD is very low as well. As the 300B power
stage is not meant to be driven into the grid current
regime (Class A2), coupling from the driver to the
300B is capacitive, defining the clipping point by the
onset of grid current of the 300B. Due to the high
level of filtering and low overall gain, the noise floor
is very low. The amplifier is shown in Photo 5.
Photo 6: Here is the system
As a consequence of the low driver stage level of harmonics and intermodulation from typical
that I used for review at
distortion and IMD, its sonic signature is inherently drivers. In that aspect, behavior is comparable to
home.
different from many common 300B amplifiers. It is the amplifier used for the measurements.
cleaner, less colored, less warm, and less euphonic Because of that, during listening, “the signature,”
than most 300B amplifiers with cascaded triode/ read IMD distortion and grid current behavior of
SRPP/Loftin-White drivers, but also less forgiving the 300B used in the power stage, becomes rather
to “sub-standard“ 300B tubes, as the sound is easily discernible. I normally operate it with Czech
dominated by the behavior and distortion spectra “boutique” 300B clones, and put in my old stock
of the 300B power stage rather than by the high WE 300B on occasion, for listening pleasure.

Photo 7: This is the system

that I used at the French
audio event (November
2021) in order to obtain
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more subjective opinions

regarding the WE 300B
tubes.
A suitably long burn-in time for the 2021 music on the system shown in Photo 6, from
Rossville WE 300Bs (and other 300Bs that use the complex classical recordings to modern lounge
dual carbonate cathode chemistry as described in jazz, natural voice, acoustic and electronically
Peter van Willenswaard’s article) is necessary, not amplified/enhanced instruments, and electronic
only for improving measurement results, but as music, with good recordings but as well some
well for achieving the best possible sound quality. with errors audible in good reproduction systems.
Critical listening let me experience this (requiring I think that using such “imperfect” music samples,
A/B swapping of warmed-up tubes, which is not and confirming the discernibility of said errors
recommended for normal use, as there is always a is an important benchmark for reviewing sound
risk of broken filaments and of burns to the person reproduction performance of reproduction systems
changing the tubes). and components therein, including electron tubes. I
For the first few hundred hours, the WEs sounded note that no reproduction system I ever listened to
a bit lackluster, forward and less resolved than my did fully accurately reproduce live sound of acoustic
reference samples that had been used for a long time. instruments. The best systems produce a plausible
Over time they slowly opened up, reaching a good representation or, as I like to call it, an acceptable sonic
level of performance, which they have held ever since. illusion, and this is what I am looking for in listening.
The 2021 samples have at last reached a behavior
very close to my reference samples (1999 Kansas Overall Impressions
City and old stock 1970s Kansas City WE 300B). The overall impression in my system was that
They do not sound exactly equal, but share overall with the 2021 Rossville WE 300B, the music was
behavior very closely—they are family though, birds represented correctly, producing a suitable illusion
of a feather. The differences are subtle, and caused and immersive experience—much in line with what
by normal production tolerances—see the IMD was achieved with old production WE 300B and the
measurement in Figure 2 and the curves in Photo Czech “boutique” 300Bs that I regularly use. The WEs
3)—for most uses, I deem them not significant. showed a more forward, engaging representation of
For the review I listened to various types of the music’s mid-range, while the Czech 300Bs seemed
more wide-band, showing more emphasis and details
About the Author in the frequency extremes (Note: the dynamic internal
Michael Boele is a German-born Telecommunications and resistance of the Czech tubes was lower than those
Electronics Engineer (Dipl.-Ing. TH (Nachrichtentechnik), of the WEs, thus changing the interaction with output
MSEE) who has been working on ground and ground-to-space transformer and loudspeaker, which is bound to
communications and navigation. He acquired his MSc degree in
change the sound).
the 1980s, and worked on measurement and control systems
for high voltage electrical power distribution systems and on Both the WEs of old and new production and
RF/communications measurement systems. In his professional the Czech “boutique” 300Bs presented the music as
life, he moved away from electronic hardware design, and— recorded, not adding information, and not glossing
to keep his dexterity in this field—he took up collecting tubes and designing audio over recording or musician’s errors. Compared to some
amplifiers and test equipment. Over the last 25 years, he has designed many small
other, “lesser” 300Bs clones, the representation of
signal and power amplifiers, push-pull and single ended, tube-based, and hybrid, and
is considered by some as a living database on electron tubes and their uses. He built the music was more transparent, allowing to listen
his first 300B SET amplifier after reading Jean Hiraga’s Initiation aux amplis à tubes in “through” complex passages in the music, without
1999, first intrigued, not expecting much, but being positively surprised. He has been becoming overly analytical. Entry-level 300Bs clones
building more of them over the years, using measurements and listening experience sounded sometimes more euphonic with small, not too
for their optimization, acquiring many “incarnations” of Western Electric 300B tubes
complex settings, but quickly became muddy in complex
and clones, some Western Electric old stock originals, some Western Electric re-issues
and many third-party 300B clones striving to meet original specification as well as parts (most likely owing to the higher level of IMD).
“improved” types. Thus prejudiced positively by my own listening,
I put the tubes to another “hard” listening test by

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carrying them, together with amplifiers, speakers, tubes through their paces, hard, and did not find the
preamp, sources, cables, assorted recordings on experience wanting.
CD and CD-ROM and a bunch of different high- The new production WE 300B samples reviewed are
GLASS AUDIO
grade 300B clones and “improved” types to an good, even very good. After burn-in, they have been
audio festival with international participation held very close to my 1999 WE 300B “reference” samples
in France in November 2021 (as my review covers a still produced in the Kansas City factory, enough
new commercial product, the organizers asked not so to be called birds of a feather. There are subtle
to mention the name of said event). The goal was to differences driven by the deviations in characteristic
have a larger audience of experienced and critical curves, read mutual conductance, gain factor, and
listeners partake, to corroborate or contradict my internal resistance. It is noted that these deviations
impressions. I brought along my two remaining 300B are well within the expected production tolerances as
Amplifiers—the MB300+ and the MB300+-Generation per old production datasheet specifications.
2. The system as used and presented at the festival From the beginning, measurement of characteristic
is shown in Photo 7. parameters (operating points, gm, mu, leakage
The resulting comments were in line with what I currents, perveance, and perveance drop when
had found myself. The new production WE 300B were filament voltage is reduced) were in line with the
in general perceived as WE “family members” and the individual acceptance test charts delivered with the
majority positively commented upon them—from “if valves. In line with lore and expectations, they took
you had not disclosed them as new production, I would more than 300 hours of burn-in to stabilize sonically.
have considered them as good old stock samples” In measurement, perveance and gm increased to
to “subtly different, but clearly from the family”and datasheet average values over that time, and the grid
one outlier “the difference to the 1999 samples is leakage current went down by almost 50%, pointing
not subtle, but much less than to third-party clones.” to the already good vacuum improving—THD and IMD
The common denominator was that the tonality and characteristics improved a bit as a consequence—in
the voicing of the system with the new production my opinion that accounts for the improvement of the
WE 300B was very rich and engaging, but precise at sound over this burn-in period.
the same time—producing a worthy sonic illusion. After that, the review samples have kept up very
The system held up over various levels of well during the more than 2500 hours they have
loudness, while some other 300B clones did not sound been used for thus far, with no visible ageing after
“right” at some levels, either being unengaging at burn-in. The perveance and mutual conductance have
low levels, with the loudness threshold required to remained unchanged, within the tolerances of my
be passed to create an acceptable level of illusion, or measurement setup, and the isolation resistances
falling apart and sounding unpleasant at higher level. and vacuum have held up as well—so it is fair to
In general, the “WE 300-B sound” for both 2021 and expect the tubes to last very long, making the five
1999 WE production samples was favored, followed years manufacturer’s warranty a realistic provision.
by the sound of the Czech “boutique” 300Bs. As for the “sound” provided in my setup, the tubes
clearly belong to the Western Electric family. Again,
Conclusion there are subtle differences to the WE old stock and
I enjoyed reviewing the Western Electric 2021 to the 1999 WE Kansas City production samples,
Rossville production WE 300B tubes, both the but they are at level that manifests themselves only
measurement and the listening parts. I pushed the by direct comparison (A/B swap of burned in and
warmed up tubes).
If the production line and process remain stable,
References
and average new production tubes have similar
[1] P. van Willenswaard, “In Search of the Perfect 300B Tube,” Stereophile, November properties to the ones reviewed, potential buyers
1999, www.stereophile.com/features/229/index.html
will receive a quality product that lives up to its
[2] J.C. Verdier, “Kinky Triodes—300Bs investigated—Article on 300B tube production name, backed by a meaningful long-term warranty.
quality and typical problems found with actual production tubes,” Sound Practises, Thus, the risk taken seems low when compared to
Issue 16, www.jcverdier.com/ADSL/kin300EN.html the purchase of NOS WE 300B tubes on the market or
the purchase of high-priced third-party “high-grade”
[3] J. Hiraga, Initiation aux amplis à tubes, (ISBN 978-2100041169)
clones. I also noted that the 2021 WE 300Bs—in my
[4] Western Electric, WE 300B Datasheet, https://frank.pocnet.net/sheets/084/3/300B.pdf system as described in this article—did sound good
with all the music samples from a wide range of
. [5] Western Electric, WE 300A Datasheet, https://frank.pocnet.net/sheets/136/3/300A.pdf genres, and over a wide range of volumes on mid-
high efficiency loudspeakers. ax
.
.
Equipment Setup Used for Review and Measurement
The “Home System” shown in Photo 5 and Photo 6 includes: 10 AWG Silver/PTFE home-configured speaker cables on Guarneri
Hommage
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Analog Sources: • Connectors: Amphenol, Hirschmann, Neutrik, WBT, Furutech
• EMT938 direct drive broadcast turntable with EMT-929 pickup • Level Meters: RTW 1113 analog (balanced), NTP277-401 digital/
arm, Denon DL-103R and modified EMT RIAA preamp (Pikatron AES3, Bruel&Kjaer 2235 SPL meter with capsule 4165, filter 1625,
step-up transformers and Lundahl LC-equalization), calibrator 4230
• Denon DP-62L direct drive turntable with Denon DL-103 or • Ground loop isolators/distribution units: Lundahl, Pikatron, Samson
DL-301, Lundahl step-up transformers and Creek OBH-15 RIAA • Mains Supply: Samson mains conditioner/surge protection unit,
preamp (modified circuit), Suhner mains filters, Brennenstuhl, Knuerr power distribution
• Telefunken EBU3156 Broadcast relay receiver with R&S MPX strips, Eupen and Sommer cables
Stereo Decoder module, quartz-tuned to NPO Radio 4 (NL)
Test Equipment:
Digital Media Sources: • For 300B distortion characterization, I used a homemade power
• DAC: Benchmark DAC1 fed from TC Electronic Digital Connect X32 amplifier with a stepped attenuator at input (2dB steps to
via AES-3 -40dBr), low distortion hybrid driver stage, stabilized operating
• CD: Mark Levinson No. 39S (analog output into preamp, AES-3 point output stage for 300B, low distortion James Audio output
output into DAC1) transformers reflecting a 3.5 kΩ resistive load into the 300B
• High-resolution digital file playback: Apple Mac Mini Core i7 under test and 8Ω dummy load made from Vishay induction-free
(2x1TB SSD), connected via Firewire hub into Apogee Duet feeding power resistors. This amplifier is the “MB300+” mentioned in the
preamplifier, inputs on preamp tape out. introduction.
• Wireless streams: Wi-Fi and Bluetooth receiver feeding DAC1 • Distortion measurements were done with a “homebrewn” setup using
through TDIF. Rational Acoustic SMAART V7 software on OSX, and USB/Firewire-
• SACD: HHB UDP-89, analog output feed into preamp, SPDIF output connected measurement ADC/DAC setup (24-bit, >19 bits usable dynamic
into DAC1 range, generator output +24dBU at 0dBFS, better than 80dB harmonic
suppression), assorted Anritsu and Eckmiller attenuators, for calibration
Preamplifier: Rohde&Schwarz SUN2 and UPA, Wandel&Goltermann TFSK-40, TFEK-41,
• Mark Levinson No. 380S with Danner HpHCF-4k/85 ear passive Fluke 8920A, Siemens and HP stepped attenuators were used. Accuracy is
curve correction equalizer for low volume listening, looped better than 1dB down to -90dBr.
through preamp tape loop • For 300B static characteristic measurements, a homemade test setup
• Eckmiller MR90-St-D-600/200-K symmetrical passive faders (200Ω was used. I built it using Heinzinger, Delta Elektronika, Statron, HP, and
output impedance) as passive volume control for level trimming Meanwell (filament) power supplies, Fluke, Keithley and APPA (TRMS)
multimeters, Dale precision measurement resistors, Johnson UX4 socket,
Power Amplifiers: homemade sine and pulse generators and Owon digital oscilloscopes (8
• MB300+G2: Home-made 300B SE Amplifier with C3o low bit and 14 bit). Calibration was done with Tettex (CH) calibration resistors/
distortion driver with local NFG, Lundahl small signal and Tamura capacitors and a Fluke calibrator was used. Accuracy is better than 0.5%
Permalloy output transformers, no overall NFB—used for the new for DC static parameters and better than 2% for AC parameters.
production WE300B listening tests (see Figure 7).
• For comparison, Graaf GM-20 OTL (6S33S-V PPP/circlotron output The System used at the French Audio Event (November 2021)
stages, augmented with speaker protection crowbar circuits) and shown in Photo 7 includes:
Hovland Sapphire (EL34 hybrid PP, modified gain stages, power • CD and Broadcast Wave file player: Fostex CR-500—balanced
stage, power supplies) were used. output 5.5 Veff @ 0dBFS
• SACD: TEAC CD-1000 modified with balanced Nuvistor output stage
Loudspeakers: • Preamplifier: Krell KSL-2 with phono board and modified output
• Tannoy DMT-12 ii (impedance-corrected), sensitivity 95db (1W/1m) stage
• “Sanity Check” speakers: Sonus Faber Guarneri Hommage • Power amplifiers as described in measurement and auditioning
(impedance-corrected), driven by BAT VK-55 PPP or Graaf GM-20 systems
OTL, augmented with Neumann KH-810A subwoofer combined • Loudspeaker: Tannoy DMT-12 ii (impedance-linearized)
with DSP Anti-Mode bass management system • Cabling: Speaker cable vdH The Clearwater with Hirschmann
plugs, Interconnects balanced Belden/Cordial with Neutrik (XLR),
Cabling, Connectors, Meters, Power Supply: Interconnects unbalanced Suhner PTFE dielectric dual shield coax/
• Power cords, small signal, measurement—balanced and Furutech (RCA connectors) connectors
unbalanced—Amphenol, Belden, Cordial, Eupen, Sommer, Suhner • Power distribution/mains filter/OVP: Knuerr power strips, Eupen
• Passive loudspeaker cables: vdHul The Clearwater on DMT-12ii, and Sommer cables

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ax You Can DIY!
Meet the Pentriode

GLASS AUDIO
By This article delves into the concept of connecting commonly

Alan Kimmel available pentode tubes as triodes, creating a circuit that
excels in linearity. The author proposes different possible
approaches, including for a mu stage.
Shortly after my first tube audio article, “The Mu Stage,” was cathode of cathode follower (CF) V2—see Figure 2. In Pentriode
published in 1993 in Glass Audio magazine, I developed a simple mode, V1 essentially operates as a triode, but its screen grid current
circuit that I called the Pentriode. I even wrote a tentative article no longer burdens the plate of V1. Instead, CF V2 provides all
about the Pentriode in 1995, and I considered submitting it around current to V1’s screen grid. Pentriode mode brings nice advantages.
that time but somehow never got around to it. I finally decided Pentriode mode is not strictly triode mode nor is it pentode
now was the time for me to share a blast from my past as I show mode. It is also not “ultra-linear” (aka partial-triode) operation.
you the Pentriode, this time with additional information. I had to come up with an entirely new name for this circuit, and the
name Pentriode seemed appropriate. Pentriode mode is definitely
The Circuitry most like a triode mode, with the same (or closely the same) mu and
Probably everyone who reads anything about tube audio circuitry gain as the pentode would have in conventional triode connection.
knows that a pentode can function as a triode when its screen In fact, designing a Pentriode stage is as simple as designing a
grid (Grid 2) is connected to the plate—see V1 shown in Figure 1. standard triode stage, the only extra part being the addition of a
When triode connected, many pentodes can be outstanding very simple cathode follower.
linear triodes. Cathode follower V2 can be any active device, including a triode
The Pentriode is formed by making one simple change to CF or a pentode CF (my favorite follower for audio—see Figure 3).
Figure 1: Connect V1’s screen grid, not to V1’s plate, but to the There are also several other options: You could make a hybrid
Pentriode by using a field-effect transistor (FET) source follower in
place of V2, or a bipolar junction transistor (BJT) emitter follower, or
a Darlington emitter follower, or an insulated gate bipolar transistor
(IGBT) emitter follower, or a Sziklai pair follower, or an IC voltage
follower, or a current follower, and I’m sure several other follower
types. V2 could also be a follower consisting of a vacuum-state
device, solid-state device, gas-state device, or any state device.
By the way, it is my standard practice to use grid stopper
resistors for every control grid and every screen grid. Suppressor
grids don’t need a stopper resistor. In audio applications, I normally
use a value of 220Ω for grid stopper resistors.
Pentriode’s Benefits
It is important to note that some pentodes really excel in Pentriode
mode, more so than other pentodes. Some pentodes give even less
distortion in Pentriode mode than when the pentode is connected
in standard triode connection. It would be nice if we could tabulate
a list of the pentodes that excel at Pentriode operation.
Figure 1: This is a triode-strapped pentode connected to a cathode It is also possible to make a Pentriode mu stage, which is probably
follower buffer. my favorite type of mu stage. It has all the advantages of mu

GLASS AUDIO
Figure 2: This schematic shows the Basic Pentriode (circa 1995). Figure 3: Here is an improved version of the Pentriode.
stage operation including wide bandwidth (BW), low measurements show that Pentriode operation can
distortion, low output impedance, plus the advantages be superior to either pentode or triode operation. If
of Pentriode operation. A practical example is shown triode gain is all the gain you need in your application,
in Figure 4. With regard to Figure 4: 1) The purpose of which is often the case in audio, I believe that the
the 27kΩ resistor is to drop a few DC volts so that V1’s Pentriode may well be the ultimate triode for the
screen grid voltage is the same as V1’s plate voltage, reproduction of music! ax
to closely emulate triode operating conditions for
V1. 2) When a 6AC7 tube is used for audio, its heater
is best powered by DC. 3) The heater of V1 is pins 2
and 7; the heater of V2 is pins 2 and 7.
Here are a few notes for every schematic in
this article: 1) The heater supply of V1 should be
grounded, but the heater supply of V2 should be
floating. 2) The DC voltage at the cathode of V2 should
be in the neighborhood of half B+. 3) For clarity of
the schematic diagrams, the suppressor grid (G3) of
every pentode is shown not connected to anything,
but do connect G3 to the pentode’s cathode.
Practical Application
I have a friend who is a triode fan, and I modified
his stereo single-ended triode (SET) amplifier by
converting its voltage gain stage into a mu stage,
and he was thrilled with the increased realism and
musicality that brought to his amplifier. But I took
it a step further and also installed a switch that lets
him switch between triode mu stage and Pentriode
mu stage operation, but I did not tell him the switch
positions—I only told him that the switch gives him
two different amplifiers. (Note that such a switch must Figure 4: The schematic shown here is a Pentriode mu stage example.
be switched only when the circuit is OFF and COLD,
to avoid sending a large THUMP into the speakers.)
I asked my triode fan friend to audition his modified About the Author
SET amplifier and tell me which switch position sounds Alan Kimmel has been interested in electronics ever since
best to him. He reported that he prefers the switch he was introduced to home-brew stereo systems early in
life. He enjoys inventing vacuum tube and solid-state audio
position that happens to be the Pentriode mode!
circuits, as well as non-audio inventions. He has an A.S.
degree in Electronics, and an A.A. degree, but is largely self-
Overall Assessment taught. He can be reached at: airdlab@mail.com
In conclusion, listening test s as well as

ax You Can DIY!
Adding Bluetooth to
a Tube Amp
GLASS AUDIO
Some might find it heresy, but these days we

can buy tube amps with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or
LAN connectivity installed. In this article, Merlin
Blencowe details how to derive +5V from an
existing heater circuit without upsetting things
and allowing us to connect existing modules
with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and more.
By Photo 1: The author used a no-frills, PCB-type module, which has no

Merlin Blencowe buttons—as soon as power is applied it turns on and waits for pairing.
These days, adding wireless audio to a gadget is

quite easy. There are many inexpensive Bluetooth
(;
<*=
receiver modules available on the Internet, and

recently I have been adding them to my old
5
0, +,
amplifiers. To do so, I disconnect one of the old
- 1
8+ 617
auxiliary inputs and route it instead to the output of
5 9
5 ,
the Bluetooth module, so the input selector switch
$ . 3
on the front of the amp now has Bluetooth as one
.
! !
5 : /
- -
of its options. I used a no-frills, PCB-type module,
-
which has no buttons—as soon as power is applied

it turns on and waits for pairing (Photo 1).
Figure 1: Schematic for the Bluetooth power supply. Be sure to observe polarity.
Powering the Amp
However, this does raise the problem of where
to obtain power from, as a Bluetooth module
typically requires 5V DC at around 20mA to 40mA.
This is simple enough in a transistor amplifier since
relatively low-voltage DC is already available; only
a 5V regulator needs to be added. But what about a
tube amp? Trying to take an extra 40mA from the
B+ supply is out of the question since the power
wastage would be extraordinary, not to mention
heat dissipation inside the chassis.
Fortunately, a simple solution is possible if the
amplifier has an ordinary 6.3V AC heater supply,
though it is not quite as simple as adding a bridge
rectifier. A bridge rectifier alone would upset the
existing heater referencing—typically a grounded
center tap or humdinger, though sometimes one
heater leg is grounded. Instead, the rectifier must
Photo 2: Here, the power supply PCB is piggy-backed onto the Bluetooth module. be capacitor-coupled from the AC supply, thereby

leaving the original heater grounding arrangement might work, but to be on the safe side I used a
completely unadulterated. Another advantage of low-dropout regulator, in case of sag under load or
this capacitor-isolated supply is that it suppresses varying wall voltage. The LP2950-5 happens to be
GLASS AUDIO
the annoying buzz that can otherwise arise when the cheapest device available to me, and its 100mA
powering a Bluetooth module from a source with a limit is more than sufficient, though any other 5V
shared ground. regulator should suffice.
Figure 1 shows the circuit I used (capacitors can
be 25V-rated or better). This should produce about Creating a Small PCB
8V DC after rectification, which is then regulated I created a small PCB for all the power supply
down to clean 5V. An ordinary voltage regulator components (Photo 2), which piggy-backs onto
Accommodating Different Valve Heaters

Valves with unpopular heater voltages are often much less And:
expensive than their 6.3V equivalents, while being otherwise Vx = 0.365 × (17.3 + 11) = 10.3V
pin compatible. A simple method for allowing two valves with
different heater voltages to be used interchangeably is to use a But the close standards of 10V and 10Ω work well enough.
carefully chosen heater supply voltage, plus an equally carefully The power dissipated by R x can be found from I 2 R, where I
chosen dropping resistor on each valve socket. With the right is the largest heater current. In this case it would amount to
combination, two different heater types will receive the correct 0.3652×10 = 1.3W. A 4W resistor would be a good idea, as
voltage (assuming one requires more voltage but less current shown in Figure 1.
than the other). In a similar vein, some electrically equivalent valves have
To find the right combination, call the heater voltage of different pin configurations. For example, the ECC83/12AX7 can
the first valve type V1, and its nominal heater resistance R 1. be wired up with its heaters in series for a 12.6V supply, while
Likewise for the other valve type call its heater voltage V2 and pin-9 (heater center tap) is unused. The 6N2P/6H2Π is a Russian
heater resistance R 2 (the nominal heater resistance is simply equivalent, but its heaters are connected in parallel and require
the rated heater voltage divided by the heater current, given on 6.3V, while pin-9 is an internal shield. The two types are therefore
the datasheet). The unknown dropping resistor R x must then be: not directly interchangeable, which is a shame.
Figure 2 shows a circuit I have used to overcome this
R1R 2 ( V1 -V2 ) incompatibility. When an ECC83 is plugged in, as depicted, the
Rx =
R1V2 -R 2 V1 base of the Q1 is connected to the heater common point, and it
will act as an emitter follower. The default 5V regulator voltage
And the heater supply voltage must be: will be jacked up by the heater voltage of the “lower” heater,
plus Vbe, plus the drop across D1, which altogether works out
Vx =I1 ( R1 +R x ) at about 12.6V. Conversely, if a 6N2P is plugged in, pin-9 will
be connected to nothing but the internal shield. The base of Q1
where I1 is the heater current of the first valve type. will be pulled down by R 1 so the regulator voltage will only be
raised by Vbe plus the diode drop, making 6.3V. C 2 is necessary
For example, the ECC88/6DJ8 needs 6.3V at 365mA, so its to stabilize the regulator for capacitive loads (e.g., C 1), and it
heater resistance is 6.3/0.365 = 17.3Ω. The PCC88/7DJ8 needs bypasses the valve screen too. D1 and Q1 can be any general
7V at 300mA, so its heater resistance is 7/0.3 = 23.3Ω. Applying purpose devices as they only pass the few milliamps flowing
these figures to the previous formula: out of the adjust pin. The regulator will need a small heatsink.
17.3×23.3× (6.3-7 )
Rx = =11Ω Figure 2: This
17.3×7-23.3×6.3
:; 789 is a circuit the
<; author has used
6
Figure 1: A 4W resistor would be
./0!"
to overcome the

a good fit for this project.
!- problem when

?00
@">
1 ?0 some electrically

00 " ;
equivalent
= " =
6 valves have
!+ ,
!
!- different pin
!>
configurations.

ax You Can DIY!
the Bluetooth modules I used, being careful not to are surprisingly good at receiving from inside a metal
obstruct the antenna with any metallized parts. chassis with only ventilation slots, at least over the
Depending on how “leaky” your chassis is, you distance of a room, which is all I really needed. Of
GLASS AUDIO
might need to make a hole or gap in it near the course, a wooden chassis, or one with a completely
antenna, though the AC20BPC7764 modules I chose open bottom, should have no reception problems
at all.
Conclusion
About the Author Since adding Bluetooth to this amplifier I find I
Merlin Blencowe is an analog engineer working for AMS Neve, Ltd. in the UK where actually use it much more, usually to stream from my
he specializes in pro recording equipment and studio consoles. He also researches
phone or laptop. The quality may not be exemplary,
tube technology for guitar and hi-fi use, and has published numerous articles and
books on the subject. but it’s plenty good enough for YouTube videos and
TV shows. ax
Editor’s Notes Regarding the Retrofit

The idea of retrofitting an old classic tube amplifier design module with USB interface is probably a bit more expensive
in order to introduce streaming audio sources, including and might complicate the design considerably.
wireless audio, has many implications, the most important Most online retailers carry a few of those modules but
of which should be—Can you simply do it with an external they don’t necessarily restock them as frequently as those
module that can be hidden somewhere, without necessarily specifications are being updated. So, beware of older Bluetooth
doing modifications to a product that is probably left alone 4.2 modules in the market that don’t even support any higher
as is? quality streaming audio codecs other than the basic SBC.
Assuming the answer to that question is: “I don’t care, Also, with regard to Bluetooth, take care with regard
I’ve done so many modifications already” or “This is my DIY to a robust radio implementation (Class 1) and where to
audio amplifier, and I’ll do whatever I want with it,” —then eventually place an external antenna. Consider how even
fine, go ahead with this. reputed manufacturers, such as McIntosh Laboratories, are
The following question is—What wireless/streaming module updating their designs almost every two years in order to
should I buy? And our advice to that question is try to future- offer the most up-to-date options. For an excellent reference
proof your investment as much as possible. of what adding an audio streaming module entails, look no
Meaning, buy the most recent module you can find, further than McIntosh’s MB20 Class 1 Bluetooth 5 Transceiver
supporting the latest Bluetooth specifications possible (nothing ($500), which supports AAC and aptX HD codecs.
below Bluetooth 5), and look for support of the latest services For another related perspective, which considers having
over Wi-Fi, including AirPlay 2. a tube line-level preamplifier stage to match the relatively
Most modules in the market not only offer Bluetooth but low output voltage amplitudes of a turntable and Bluetooth
also Ethernet LAN and Wi-Fi, with direct support for high- receiver without constantly needing to readjust volumes, we
quality streaming services, including Spotify Connect and recommend reading Bill Reeves’ project article, “Repurposing
Tidal Connect, which are direct receivers, totally independent an Old Preamp for Line-Level Duty.”
from external sources (smartphones or tablets can still be I have frequently recommended that manufacturers should
used just for remote control). avoid directly integrating technologies that are evolving
Most of these modules require between 5V to 20V DC fast and that might quickly become obsolete, which doesn’t
and you might also look at additional challenges from the make sense in expensive and well-designed audio electronics
different connectors, considering you will probably need to equipment, from integrated media services that are not
keep those accessible. hardware upgradeable, to high-end amplifiers that are best
When using Wi-Fi or an Ethernet connection directly from served by using a connection to external sources, such as
the home router, modules should also allow for higher quality preamplifiers with integrated DAC stage and streaming.
audio codecs than those supported on Bluetooth, including NAD Electronics or Bang & Olufsen are examples of brands
uncompressed streaming and high resolution audio support. that have repeatedly echoed those same concerns and are
Another option is to look for newer modules that also offering replaceable modules in all their latest systems, in
work as a USB interface—and preferably the updated USB order to compensate for that. I offer the same recommendation
specification over Type-C, since it would also offer support to our DIY readers, even if some of you would probably enjoy
for Ethernet or HDMI with a simple cable adapter. Although a the idea of continuously upgrading your systems.

MATCHING THE CHARACTERISTICS
OF HUMAN SPEECH AND HEARING
Realistic, Accurate and

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expectations for audio quality continue to increase. Impeccable quality,
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ax Sound Control
Effect of Air Conditions on

Sound Propagation
Our acoustics expert details why atmospheric conditions might
affect sound propagation, how this impacts acoustical parameters,
and what can be done to adjust for the changes.
By
Richard Honeycutt
In a recent discussion with a few colleagues,

Effect of temperature on speed of sound (c)
a question was raised about the possible need to
360
readjust sound system controls and/or DSP settings
355 to compensate for differences in atmospheric
350
conditions (e.g., temperature, relative humidity,
and barometric pressure). The discussion then
Speed of 345
sound, c, m/s
broadened to include other acoustical parameters,
m/s 340 such as STI and reverberation time (RT), even
though there is no way to compensate for these
335
changes using sound system adjustments.
330
–1 21 45
Temperature, degrees C Factors Affecting the Speed of Sound

in Air
It is well known that c, the speed of sound
Figure 1: This illustration shows the effects of common range of outdoor temperatures
in air, depends upon temperature. The speed of
upon the speed of sound.
sound at 0°C and one atmosphere of pressure
(1.013 × 105 Pa) is given by:
440
0% RH
10% RH 1.402 P0
c0 = = 331.6ms
20% RH ρ0
420 30% RH
RH
40% RH
50% RH where P0 = atmospheric pressure
400 60% RH and ρ 0 = the densit y of air at 0°C and one
c 70% RH atmosphere of pressure.
[m/s] 80% RH
The temperature dependence of c upon
380 90% RH
100% RH temperature is given by:
360 TK
c = c0
273
340
where TK= temperature in kelvins.
Figure 1 shows the speed of sound in dry air at
0 20 40 60 80 100
three common outdoor temperatures, along with
T [ºC]
a trend line.
Figure 2: Relative humidity has a small effect upon c at room temperature, but the
Since humid air has proportionately more water
effect increases with temperature. (Source: O. Cramer, “The variation of the specific molecules than dry air, it makes sense that the
heat ratio and the speed of sound in air with temperature, pressure, humidity, and CO2 speed of sound is affected by humidity. As you can
concentration,” Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 1993.) see from Figure 2, the effect of humidity depends

High speed
of wind
upon temperature. This is because as temperature Sound

increases, the proportion of water molecules to waves
nitrogen, oxygen, and other “dry-air” molecules
increases, for a given relative humidity. Thus in Sound waves
non-air-conditioned spaces, the speed of sound refracted
is considerably higher on a hot summer day than towards
during the winter. ground
When barometric pressure is higher, so is the Low speed
density of air. As shown in the first equation, c 0 of wind
is proportional to the square root of pressure.
However, barometric pressure at sea level Grounds
usually varies only between 28.5” and 30.7” of
mercury, which corresponds to a range of about
0.074 atmospheres. Based upon the square- Figure 3: Variation in wind speed with height can cause diffraction. (Source: Physics
root dependence, this would change the value Stack Exchange “Newtonian mechanics - Can wind bring sounds sooner towards me?”)
of c by less than 13m/s. In fact, if the ideal gas
approximation is used for air, c does not depend
at all upon barometric pressure. Cool air
The speed of sound in air depends not only upon
wind speed, but also upon the relative direction
of the wind and of the sound propagation. When
the wind is in the direction of sound propagation,
the sound travels faster. Conversely, an opposing Warm air
wind direction decreases the sound speed.
Figure 3 illustrates this effect, which is mainly of Warm air
concern in outdoor venues.
When a sound wavefront crosses a boundary
between two regions having different values of c,
the direction of wave propagation will be affected.
Cool air
This effect is called refraction.
Imagine a row of soldiers marching from east
to west and encountering a muddy field whose
Figure 4: Change in temperature with height can cause refraction. (Source: Syllabus
boundary stretches from northeast to southwest. revision - Physics, www.piedpyper.com)
The soldiers at the southern end of the row will
be slowed down by the mud, and if the soldiers
remain in a straight line, the line’s motion will be 101
deflected southward. Figure 4 illustrates refraction
caused by temperature rising with height (positive
temperature gradient) or temperature falling with
height (negative temperature gradient). 102
Sound Absorption
For several reasons, some sound is absorbed
Attenuation
when a sound wave passes through air. This (dB/m) 103
effect increases with frequency, as illustrated
in Figure 5. In practical use, the effect of this
absorption is quantified as either dB/m (or a b Figure 5: Sound absorbed
dB/ft) in analysis of outdoor sound propagation, 104 by air causes attenuation,
which is dependent upon
or a sound absorption coefficient in analyzing
c both distance and humidity.
indoor venues.
(Source: H. Kutruff, “Room
In the lat ter c ase, the ef fec tive sound Acoustics,” Elsevier Applied
absorption coefficient of the air depends upon 101 102 103 104 Science. Elsevier Science
the cubic volume of the venue. The effects of Frequency (Hz) Publishers, Essex, 3rd
temperature and humidity upon sound attenuation edition, 1991)

ax Sound Control
Figure 6: The effect of

a) b) 5
humidity alone upon air
attenuation is significant. 3
(Source: C. Harris, 4 10%
“Absorption of Sound in
2
Air versus Humidity and 4 kHz 3 20%
Temperature,” Journal of Attenuation Attenuation
the Acoustical Society of (dB ⁄100m) (dB ⁄100m) 40%
1 2
America) 2 kHz
1
10 20 30 10 20 30 40 50
Relative humidity (%) Temperature (ºC)
by air are illustrated in Figure 6. Figure 6a shows humidity) make only small changes in the frequencies
the effect of humidity for frequencies of 2kHz and of the room modes (a few percent). To investigate the
4kHz; Figure 6b shows the effects of temperature effects in larger venues, I created an EASE model of
at 3kHz. Sound absorption by air is usually ignored a 120′ (W) × 70′ (L) ×24′ (H) auditorium and analyzed
where the sound travels only for small distances, the RT, the STI, and the direct sound coverage from
but in auditoria, coliseums, and stadia, its effect a speaker system at both normal temperature and
can be significant, in terms of both sound level and humidity (68°C, 60%) and under hot-summer-day
frequency balance at the seats. conditions without air conditioning (38°C, 90%).
Practical Effects
In small listening rooms, the ef fects of
atmospheric conditions (e.g., temperature and
Figure 7: Higher
temperature and humidity
(lower) increase RT
compared to normal Figure 8: Higher temperature and humidity (lower)
conditions (upper). decrease STI.

About the Author
Dr. Richard Honeycutt fell in love with acoustics after his father brought
home a copy of Leo Beranek’s landmark text on the subject when Richard
was in the ninth grade. Richard is a member of the North Carolina
chapter of the Acoustical Society of America. Richard has his own business
involving musical instruments and sound systems. He has been an active
Fig u r e 7 s h ow s t hat RT in c r e a s e s a s
acoustics consultant since he received his PhD in electroacoustics from the
temperature and humidity go up. Also, note from Union Institute in 2004. Richard’s work includes architectural acoustics,
the RT maps (left-hand illustrations), the variation sound system design, and community noise analysis.
of RT from seat to seat increases with increased
temperature and humidity. (The dark rectangle As mentioned in the April 2022 Sound Control article, “Frequency Response
in the upper center is an area of absorption of a Listening Room,” a major factor in the frequency response changes in
comparable to the stage and stage house.) auditoria is the additional absorption—mainly at high frequencies—due to the
Figure 8 shows that speech intelligibility audience members wearing heavier clothing in winter. Even if they remove their
as indicated by STI decreases as temperature coats during an event, many of the coats will be placed on seat backs, thus
increases. Since STI depends greatly upon RT, remaining in the venue and adding to absorption.
this is to be expected. This same factor decreases RT and increases STI in winter, making for even
Not only do higher temperature and humidity greater seasonal changes in acoustical conditions than the ambient atmospheric
decrease the sound level at the seats, due to air effects alone. With most venues’ temperature and humidity controlled year-
attenuation, but as you can see in Figure 9, the round by HVAC systems, the effects of atmospheric conditions upon acoustics
change in c affects the coverage map by modifying are greatly ameliorated.
the directivity of the speakers. As mentioned earlier, small venues (e.g., studios, production rooms, conference
and video teleconference rooms) are unlikely to suffer significant effects from
General Comments atmospheric conditions. But sound engineers for outdoor events have to take
OK, so what’s the bottom line? The effects of these effects into account for every performance.
air attenuation upon SPL and frequency response In addition to their adjusting levels and equalization, they must be aware of
can be compensated by adjustment of sound the surrounding terrain, since refraction can easily cause annoyance for adjacent
system equalization, but the effects upon RT and property owners. Sometimes careful choice of speaker height and aiming can
STI cannot. avert neighbors’ annoyance, but atmospheric effects must always be taken into
account for outdoor events! ax
Figure 9: Higher temperature and humidity (lower)

decrease direct sound level.

ax Audio Electronics—Tubes
An Introduction to Testing
Vacuum Tubes (Part 2)
Choosing the Right Tube Tester
By
Mark Driedger
Part 1 of this article covered how tubes fail and wear out, and their key characteristics. In this
continuation, the article discusses how tubes are tested, the different types of tube testers, and
selecting a new commercially available tube tester.
So, how do you test a tube? Well, you can download all 428 with the grid as shown in Figure 2. Bias voltage will shift due to
pages of “Test Methods for Electron Tubes” (MIL-STD-1311D) and the grid current flowing through the grid resistor, in turn causing
read it when you have problems getting to sleep. Or … you can a plate current change.
use a tube tester. Tube tests generally fall into short and leakage Emissions test: An emissions test measures the cathode’s ability
tests, emissions tests, transconductance tests, curve tracing, and to sustain a given amount of current and essentially tests the tube
specialized matching tests. A given tube tester will often combine as a diode. An AC voltage in the range of 25V to 50V is applied
several tests. to the cathode and returned to the plate and grids, as shown in
Shorts/Leakage: Shorts should be tested before doing other Figure 3. The load resistor, RL, limits current through the tube and
tests to avoid equipment damage. An AC voltage of around 100V the meter shunt resistor, RS, adjusts the meter sensitivity. Both are
is applied through a neon bulb to one element and returned to adjusted for the specific tube being tested according to the tester’s
either the adjacent elements or all other elements shorted together. documentation or roll chart. The meter is calibrated with a pass/
The test is repeated for each element, usually by cycling through fail scale. A drop of 50% is usually taken as the end-of-service.
a series of switches. Emissions tests have numerous limitations. Since the first
Shorts are tested with the tube cold and leakage is tested grid is closest to the cathode, most of the cathode current flows
with the tube heated. Sensitivity varies widely between testers. A through it. Grid structures, especially on high gain tubes, are
typical short/leakage test circuit is shown in Figure 1, connected fragile and may overheat and distort or become gassy from too
to check between cathode and grid 1. much current. Emissions testers have a push-to-test switch, and
Another way to test for grid leakage is to bias the tube and a rule of thumb is to limit measurement to 3 seconds to avoid
measure plate current. Then insert a high value resistor in series grid damage. There is little science in the 3-second limit given
the vast differences in tube types and testers. You might want
. /
to think twice about subjecting your far too expensive new-old
+
stock (NOS) super-matched, cryogenically-treated 12AX7 to an
emissions test on an unknown tester.

From the Radiotron Designer’s Handbook, 4th Edition (page 94),

'
/ #
“… the emissions test is a damaging test and should be performed
as seldom as possible and then always very carefully.” Testers
*
)
( vary widely in the amount of current they use for an emissions
+ test. Alan Douglas’ Tube Testers and Classic Electronic Test Gear,
(page 4) measured a 6:1 range across a sample of testers.
Figure 1: This is an example of a typical short and leakage test circuit Emissions tests are better at telling you a tube will not work,
(Heathkit IT-17). than confirming it will since they tell you nothing about the

EDUCATION /
JUNE 4-10
EXHIBITS /
JUNE 8-10
LAS VEGAS
CONVENTION
CENTER
LAS VEGAS,
NEVADA
Infocommshow.org
grids’ ability to do their job. Some testers let you Transconductance tests: As you might recall
disconnect one grid at a time. If the meter value from Part 1 of this article, transconductance is
changes, then that element has some (but not the ability of the grid to influence plate current
necessarily the correct) impact on current flow. and is an important measure of its performance
However, this lengthens the test and increases the as an amplifier. There are two accurate ways to
chances of damage. measure gm, and then there is the way that most
Voltages are not regulated in AC emissions tube testers do it.
testers, so measured emission current will vary The first accurate method is to set up the tube at
with the line voltage and with filament load on the a specific DC operating condition, and then do what
(usually shared) transformer. Most testers have the formula for gm says—inject small grid voltage
a line calibration feature that adjusts for these changes and measure the resulting plate current
factors. Finally, there is no “emissions” spec on changes at a given fixed plate voltage. Figure 4
a tube datasheet. Each company specified pass/ shows how this is done in practice.
fail thresholds based on their experience and the The current source sets a constant DC plate
specific circuit they employed. current. It is bypassed to ground for AC. The B+
source establishes a constant plate voltage. The
Figure 2: Here is an
AC plate current change is sensed through a small
alternative method to
measure leakage. plate resistor R s, typically 10Ω to 100Ω. The AC
%/
grid voltage, vg , is in the audio range (1kHz to
/(
2 (
1/
10kHz, typically) and is small (50mV to a few
%0 ,
hundred millivolts) to avoid saturating the tube. The
./
- resulting plate current change is also small. A tube
%* with a gm of 50mS and a 100mV of grid AC voltage
results in 5mA of AC plate current or 50mV across
a 10Ω sense resistor. This is within the capability
of modern digital multimeters (DMMs), although
Figure 3: A Basic emissions accuracy and sensitivity are improved if the sense
test circuit is shown here. - voltage is filtered and amplified, typically after being
transformer isolated. The operating point can be
varied to measure gm over a range of conditions.
)* )(
A similar approach is used to measure µ but not
discussed here.
'.' A variant on this is to manually adjust the grid
voltage up/down by small increments; record the
grid voltage, plate voltage, and plate current; and
Figure 4: This schematic then compute the parameters, much like we did in

/
shows how to measure gm.
/)
Figure 3 of the first part of this article. This voltage
0 /
difference approach is tedious but works.
+
The second accurate method is to use a curve
+, tracer and derive gm from the curves at any desired

&)
operating point.
/$ Both of these methods require high voltage,
')
$ 2
' $ 1& ) variable DC supplies and a sensitive, accurate AC
voltmeter. In the heyday of tubes, these were bulky
and expensive. So, most “transconductance” tube
testers used an easily derived 60Hz AC voltage to
sweep across a wide range of operating points and
About the Author averaged the resulting pulsed DC plate current.
Tubes and tube testers were big business, so this
Mark Driedger has been experimenting with tube audio since
1980. He completed an MSc in electrical engineering at the limitation was patented, turned into a marketing
University of Waterloo, Canada, and has worked in the telecom benefit, called dynamic transconductance testers,
industry for more than 30 years in technical and executive and touted as the best way to test a tube. Figure 5
roles. His other passions include woodworking, the guitar, and shows the basic principle.
spending time with his wife, children, and grandchildren.
If the tube under test were biased with a fixed
DC voltage, then the average reading current meter

Figure 5: The basic principle
of a dynamic mutual
transconductance meter
would read zero, since the current through windings )
1 and 2 is equal and opposite during each half cycle.

,#'
Instead, the grid is driven with a full wave rectified
pulsed “DC bias” from winding 4 added to an AC
“signal” from winding 3. The meter responds to )
average AC plate current, and so measures something

like transconductance but swept sinusoidally over
a range of grid, screen grid and plate voltages.
Dynamic transconductance is a useful relative
measure of tube aging and performance. It does
not correspond to a true g m reading at a given
DC operating point, which you will understand by
looking at how much gm varies with plate current
in Figure 2 of the first part of this article. The grid
voltage is often quite large and can drive the tube into
saturation and cutoff, further confusing the situation.
Curve tracers: Curve tracers sweep the voltage -
at two tube elements and measure the resulting
voltage or current at another element. The result
is plotted as a series of curves, matching the
presentation of plate curves in tube manuals. The (Photo 1). It is large and heavy at 75 pounds. The
values of gm, µ, and rp are readily computed from screenshot button is a Polaroid camera, and data
measured curves at any DC conditions. No separate points are hard to read accurately.
transconductance meter is needed. Today much smaller, lighter, and more accurate
The Tektronix 570 was the classical gold standard curve tracers are possible thanks to modern
Consultation • Analysis • Sales

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Photo 1: This is an example Curve tracers can be used for matching and the
of a Tektronix 570 Curve
modern ones have proprietary matching algorithms,
Tracer. (Source: Tektronix
for example comparing the RMS error between the
Operator’s Manual)
plate curves being matched.
Microphonics and Noise: Many tube testers AC
couple the plate to a headphone jack. The user can
listen for noise and test for microphonic effects by
introducing some form of shock or vibration. These
are not very scientific but will weed out grossly
microphonic tubes.
Selecting a Tube Tester

By now you will appreciate that tube testing is
not simple! Picking a tube tester is complicated by
the relatively few modern options available and the
high prices that vintage models command.
A properly working vintage tester is a good choice
for shorts, leakage, and emissions tests. However,
realize that a “fail” on such a tester is not grounds for
throwing out a tube that is still working in its circuit.
A circuit may be able to tolerate higher leakage,
or not need as much emission capability. Perform
switching power supplies, fast and accurate analog- emissions tests as seldom and carefully as possible.
to-digital converters (ADCs) and digital to analog Personally, I don’t put much faith in dynamic
converters (DACs), and low-cost microcontrollers/ transconductance measurements and favor one of
displays. One of three methods are used to generate the methods to measure the true transconductance.
the variable plate and screen supply: programmable Unfortunately, that leaves relatively few options for
DC, half-wave rectified AC, or pulsed DC. commercially produced testers. From my research,
In pulsed DC units, power is applied just long your options are the Amplitrex AT1000 (see Richard
enough to take the readings (typically less than Honeycutt’s “Amplitrex AT1000 Tube Tester”
1 msec). Charge pumps can provide the very low article in audioXpress), Maxipre (for small signal
power needed and the electronics fit in the palm of dual triodes only), Duovac (which uses the tedious
your hand. Pulse testers do not operate the tube at manual voltage difference method), and Daedalus,
full power so bulb temperature and the demand on a promising design by the Greek firm Tsakiridis
cathode emission are less. A weak tube may be able Devices. Other “modern” commercial testers (e.g.,
to deliver the short burst of current for the tester, the Orange Valve Tester, Sofia, and Vacutrace) have
but not enough for full power, continuous operation. been discontinued.
Matching: Tubes can be matched for DC The used market for vintage testers is active
performance, but it is easy to add a balance with many specialty resellers and lots of options on
adjustment to push-pull circuits to compensate eBay, if you can restore them safely. Prices are high
for tube variation. Many power amplifiers have and you should research them carefully. The vast
built-in bias test points or meters (see my earlier majority of these are dynamic transconductance
article, “An Accurate Bias Meter for Push-Pull Tube or emissions testers. Alan Douglas provides a good
Output Stages” in audioXpress for an example) and survey of vintage testers in his book, Tube Testers
a means to adjust balance. External bias checkers and Classic Electronic Test Gear.
temporarily insert a current meter in the cathode The tube tester DIY community is quite active
for the same purpose. and has good options from which to choose.
Matching AC operating points is generally Personally, I have built and use Steve Bench’s RAT
done by measuring gm, preferably at the intended tester. It uses the AC signal method to measure gm
operating point. Some testers allow a large batch and µ. Ale Moglia provides a variation on the same
of tubes to be tested, and then sort them into the principle that has a more sensitive and accurate
most closely matched pairs or quads. Specialized plate current measurement circuit. And, the µTracer
matchers for small signal triodes sometimes use the is a popular DIY-pulsed DC curve tracer. It is very
tube under test in a Class A amplifier and measure compact, has a large community of users, and is
gain, noise and other parameters. available in kit form (see Resources).

Resources
DIY shorts, leakage and emissions testers are less S. Bench, “RAT Tube Tester Project,”
https://diyaudioprojects.com/mirror/members.aol.com/sbench101/#TubeTest
common. Shorts and emissions testers are simple
in theory but need complex circuits to switch tube A. Douglas, Tube Testers and Classic Electronic Test Gear, Sonoran Publishing, 2000.
elements in and out. Emissions testers are not useful M. Driedger, “An Accurate Bias Meter for Push-Pull Tube Output Stages,” audioXpress,
without a good set of tube data that is specific to the July 2012.
test circuit. If you want to go this route, then Gary “Hickok Dynamic Mutual Conductance Tube Testers,” https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/
Steinbaugh’s book, Make Your Own Tube Tester and d8d319a5/files/uploaded/Hickok%20DMC%20Tube%20Testers.pdf
Electron Tube Equipment, provides DIY designs and
R. Honeycutt, “Amplitrex AT1000 Tube Tester,” audioXpress, March 2016.
John Shelley describes an improved leakage tester
in his Glass Audio article “A Better Tube Tester.” “MIL-STD-1311D Military Standard: Test Methods for Electron Tubes,” US Department
of Defense, 2011.
In Conclusion A. Moglia, “The µTracer,” µTracer 3+, www.dos4ever.com/uTracer3/uTracer3_pag0.html.
I hope you have a better appreciation for why A. Moglia, “Transconductance Valves,” Bartola Valves,
and how to test tubes. This is a complex subject and www.bartola.co.uk/valves/2013/05/26/transconductance-tester.
there is no silver bullet. The vintage market consists
J. Shelly, “A Better Tube Tester,” Glass Audio, May 1997.
of equipment optimized around the technology of
its day. While useful for sorting good from bad, in G. Steinbaugh, Make Your Own Tube Tester and Electron Tube Equipment,
Braughler Books, 2013.
general they do not make accurate measurements.
The new products and DIY projects show considerable R. Tomer, Getting the Most out of Vacuum Tubes, reprinted by KCK Media Corp, 2020,
innovation, but the market is not large enough to https://cc-webshop.com
sustain many options. The saving grace is that the best Tsakiridis Devices, www.tsakiridis-devices.com/test_evaluation_daedalos.html.
judge of a tube is your circuit and its performance.
As Robert Tomer says, it is best is to avoid testing
tubes as much as possible. However, that still will not Author’s Note: The chapter on tube testing in Radiotron Designer’s Handbook, 4th
dissuade the test equipment junkies such as myself Edition (RDH4) is a good companion to Robert Tomer’s book. It is available on Pete
from obsessing about how to do it well. ax Millet’s site at: www.tubebooks.org/ Books/intro_RDH4.pdf

ax You Can DIY!
Building a
Guitar-Controlled
Synthesizer
Frequency to Volts
and Back
By
Ethan Winer Ethan used this 1969 Fender Telecaster for the development of his guitar synthesizer. In
this 2015 photo he is playing Tchaikovsky’s “Rococo Variations for Cello and Orchestra”
with the Danbury Symphony.
This is the second article in a fascinating DIY journey of a guitar-controlled, all-analog synthesizer
project that will include multiple stages and modules. Following a Sample & Hold circuit designed
to retrieve previous voltages that no longer exist, this article details voltage control and how the
playing is converted to voltages and back to frequency.
In a previous article, I described my fascination is the core concept. The common term for these
with analog synthesizers and showed the “Time conversion circuits is Frequency to Voltage (F2V)
Machine” sample & hold circuit I designed for my and Voltage to Frequency (V2F).
current synth project that uses an electric guitar Dedicated F2V IC chips are available, though
instead of a keyboard to play the musical notes. it’s pretty simple to do this manually. As with my
In the article I explained that a core concept previous Sample & Hold article, the circuits shown
with all analog synths is voltage control, whereby here were developed using the LTspice virtual circuit
the various qualities of sound (e.g., a filter’s cut- simulator. This free program from IC maker Analog
off frequency or the rate and depth of vibrato) can Devices offers a fully stocked parts bin with a virtual
be controlled automatically by voltages as well as oscilloscope and other test gear. You just draw the
manually with potentiometers. This lets you program schematic, then click Run to watch it work. Once
changes to the volume and other sound qualities the circuit performs as expected, you can design a
that happen every time a note is played, without PCB, buy the parts, and build it for real.
having to turn the knobs.
The most important voltage-controlled element Frequency to Voltage
in an analog synthesizer is its oscillator—the circuit Figure 1 shows a 555 timer chip that outputs a
that actually creates the musical notes. But a guitar 2mS pulse every time the input signal goes in the
synthesizer also needs to assess the incoming negative direction. I used a squared up sine wave
frequency. When a note is played on a guitar, as the source because it’s easier to specify the
the frequency of the note must be assessed and frequency than for square waves using LTspice’s
converted to a corresponding voltage. That voltage Pulse generator. The output pulses from the timer
then directs a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) charge capacitor C4 through resistor R5. At high
to play the same note, but with the quality of a frequencies, the 555’s fixed-width pulses arrive more
synthesizer rather than a guitar. (Typical oscillator often than at lower frequencies, so the average
waveforms include square, pulse, and sawtooth.) output voltage is higher.
It’s also possible to transpose notes so music played Figure 2 shows the oscilloscope display when the
in the key of E sounds in a different key. But this source is 100Hz, and Figure 3 shows the same for

Figure 1: A basic Frequency
Convert sine wave
to square wave to Voltage (F2V) converter
R2 V+ V+
uses a timer IC to generate
R3 R4 pulses having a fixed
1Meg
GND Vcc V+ Power Supply duration, which are then
V+ 100k 100k
C1 TIMER_1 V+ averaged by a resistor and
15
U1 TRIG DIS capacitor.
330p V4
V-
R1 OUT THRS
V3 NE555 15
1k
V+ RST CV C3 V2
AC AC 1
C2 0.018µ
2 mS Pulse
10n
V-
SINE(0 15 100 0 0 0 100) R5
.tran 0 0.3 0 startup
47k
Output
C4 100 Hz = 3V Out
1µ 200 Hz = 6V Out
200Hz. The brown traces are the 555 timer’s output

pulse stream and the yellow traces are the averaged
output voltage. At both frequencies it takes time for
the capacitor to reach its final averaged voltage,
--- D:\WinWord\Magazine\audioXpress Guitar Synth F2V.asc ---
and the output also contains ripple instead of being
steady DC. The ripple can be reduced by making the
capacitor larger, but that increases the averaging
time! The balance between time to average and
the ripple in the output is a basic problem with all
frequency to voltage converters.
Period to Voltage
A bet ter way to conver t frequency to a
corresponding voltage is to measure the time
span between pulses, or the period of the incoming
frequency. By measuring period instead of frequency
the result can be known in the very first cycle.
This is the approach I used for the circuits shown
in Figure 4. So rather than calling them F2V and Figure 2: At 100Hz, the timer’s pulses are about one-fifth the duration of each cycle, so
V2F, we’ll use P2V and V2P. In the glory days of the output voltage is one-fifth the 15V power supply, or 3V.
DOS, in the 1980s and early 1990s, I owned a
software company and was the chief programmer.
So I know the value of comments that explain how
computer code works, and likewise I added many
comments to the circuits shown here to expand on
the descriptions that follow. In order to fit them,
some of the comments are in a font too small to
easily read. Under Project Files is a link to the full
schematic as a PDF, which can be enlarged so you
can read everything clearly. The LTspice file, also
available in the Supplementary Material section of
the audioXpress website, has all the comments as
well.
As with the F2V in Figure 1, a sine wave source
is sent through a high gain op-amp to create square
waves suitable for triggering a 555 timer. But unlike
F2V circuits that output a rising voltage at higher
frequencies, a P2V’s output voltage becomes smaller
because the period between cycles is shorter. This Figure 3: At 200Hz, the timer’s pulses arrive twice as often, so now the output at 6V is
is easily countered in the V2P’s design, but the twice what it was for 100Hz.

text.
complex, though some
for converting period to
portions are for support
as explained in the main

voltage and back is fairly
Figure 4: The entire circuit
rather than core operations
56 |May 2022 | audioxpress.com

Period to Voltage Converter 248.7k = 10 V Out at 80 Hz In
Trim so A-440 In = 891.5 mV at Corrected Out
Use 243k plus 10k trimpot
12 uA Constant R13
Delay dumping the ramping cap
until after the sample period has Current Source 250k
V-
totally finished. R12 V+
V+ V+ V+ V+ V+ V+ R10
R9
Use 5x TI LMC555 U3 The 1 ohm resistor is
R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 R8 246.7k 500k
100k 100k 22k 100k needed to view the
GND Vcc V+ GND Vcc V+ GND Vcc V+ V+ <- 6V here = 12uA V-
91k 22k 22k cap's charging current
R11 R14
C1 TIMER_1 C4 TIMER_2 TIMER_3 independent of its
U2
TRIG DIS TRIG DIS TRIG DIS 250k discharge.
500k
330p 330p C7 V- R15
80 uS 10 uS 10 uS
OUT THRS OUT THRS 220p OUT THRS R16
1 FET Op-Amp
NE555 NE555 NE555
A1 V+
V+ RST CV C3 V+ RST CV C6 V+ RST CV C9 220
R17 R18
810p 100p 390p U4
80 uS Sample Period 2.5 uS delay 2.5 uS to dump cap
C2 10n C5 10n C8 10n 100k
Q1 10 C10 Ramp Cap V-
<- From Noise Gate, holds cap 2N3904
<- low in Sustain mode to avoid 15n
Film
<- pitch jump when note resumes.
<- Grounded here to disable. P2V Output Voltage ->
Enable sampling when high ->
<- In the full circuit the P2V's output feeds the S&H Time Machine, which then feeds the Portamento and filter. But we'll use a basic Sample & Hold here for clarity.
V2P Non-linearity Corrector

Simulated Input Halve Vin to allow doubling the frequency
Simulate squared-up Sample & Hold Log Converter for VC Filter
via Tuning and LFO. Do not increase the
signal from input filters.
2.2k resistors. They must be that small to Power
Vdd V+
R2 V+ avoid interaction with the 1.47 M. BC847BS-TP
CD4066B R23 R27 Supply
10 R19 U6 2N3904 dual NPN 2N3904
In Out Hold Cap V+
1Meg 11 4 FET Op-Amp Q2 Q3 V+
1.5Meg R24 1.5Meg 15
V+ Ctrl 2 7 Vss 10 C11 C13
U5 R20 C12 V+
0.01µ 2k 20p V1
U1 Film 300p
2.2k V+ U9
CD4066B Analog 0.1% V+ R25
V- 15
R1 Switch is enabled R22 U8 V-
U7 V2
V3 for the one-shot's V- 100k
1k V- R26 Use OPA-1602 op-amps x2
pulse duration = the 1.47Meg V-
R21
sample period. 0.1% 1k V-
1.47M biases V2P 2.2k
AC AC 1 to be more linear at 0.1%
SINE(0 15 440 0 0 0 440) high frequencies.
.tran 0 1 0 startup Corrected output -> Log out to VCF, 1.8 to 8.4 V
to V2P converter ->
10 Volts In from P2V should = 80 Hz Out.
Voltage to Period Converter
Trim so 891.5 mV In (440 Hz) = A-440 Out.
6 uA Constant
Vibrato / FM R30 D22 Replace 500k R38 with 487k + 20k trimpot. R43 Current Source Use LM393B instead
into V2P, of LT1011, then 0.1 uF
grounded 130k V+
75k 1N4148 C15 is not needed.
to disable. V- R42 V+ FET Op-Amp
R31 V+ R53 R54
R39 10k V+ V+ V+
R38 U12 V+ LT1011
500k 100k
75k 500k C16 R55 R56 R57
R28 V+ 100k V- U13 15k
R37 V+ U14 GND Vcc V+ GND Vcc V+
R40 R41 0.1n 9.1k 22k
U10 C15 TIMER_4 TIMER_5
5Meg U11
330k Sawtooth -> R49 TRIG DIS TRIG DIS
R29 V- 500k 130k
V- R44 Output -> 0.1µ
75k 1 uS 2.5 uS
75k OUT THRS OUT THRS
R47 1 C14 V+ NE555 NE555
Manual Tuning
R45 Manual 15n V+ RST CV C18 V+ RST CV C21
Q4 10 Film R50 U15
R36 75k Pulse Width 100p 100p
2N3904 4 uS delay to 2.5 uS to dump cap
220 4.7k Duty
cw
cw V+ C20 10n
avoid oscillation C17 10n
R32 R33 R34 R35 R48 R52 180k Q5 R51 Cycle
R46 75k
V+ V- 100k 100k 2N3904 C19
0-15V into
15k 500k 500k 15k
R52 = 50-5%
100p
The two 500k resistors are really a 1Meg Voltage Controlled Pulse Width <-- V2P1 Square / Pulse Out
linear taper pot. A center detent would input, grounded here to disable.
be great. The extra 75k resistor R36
desensitizes the 1 Meg Pitch knob for finer control in the center of its range.
Note that its value interacts with the 1Meg pot's end limit resistors. VOLTAGE TO PERIOD ACCURACY
With these component values, uncorrected, the V2P outputs Hz from V In:
V In: 10 5 2.5 1.25 0.625 0.3125 0.15625
Hz Out: 40 80 160 320 640 1280 2560
Actual: 40.026 79.964 159.3904 316.474 623.745 1212.18 2294.262
Error %: -0.064 -0.045 -0.381 -1.102 -2.54 - 5.298 -10.36
Scale / Normalize Sawtooth Output Level
<-- From V2P Sawtooth Source From P2V Filtered CV ->
BC847BS-TP
R58 1N4148 R60
2N3904 dual NPN 2N3904 All inputs need a 10k audio taper
D15
Create Octaves Audio Output Mixer
22k Q6 Q7 C23 1Meg volume control feeding these resistors.
C22 V+ Replace D-Flop A2 with
R59 50p V2P Square C26 R67 390k
V+ 300p R61 SN74LVC1G80 in SOT-23 R66
U17 0.1µ R73 51k
V2P Freq*2 C27 R68 390k
U16 2k
V- 560k PRE 47k 0.1µ V+
V2P Freq/2 C28 R69 390k
V- BC847BS-TP D Q 0.1µ
R62 Q8 A2 A3 U20
dual NPN 2N3904 R65 10k V2P Scaled Saw C29 R70 390k
V+ 2N3904 CLK Q C25
0.1µ V-
240k Q9 V+ CLR 3.3n LFO as audio R71 390k
C24 D21 R64 Pulse Width
20p 1N4148 U19 Direct Guitar C30 R72 82k
V+ 2k 47n
R63 V-
U18 <- V2P Scaled This cap thins the guitar sound.
150k Use OPA-1604 op-amps x4 <- Sawtooth Out
V-
Audio Output +/- 5V

From LFO, grounded here to disable ->
From Direct Guitar, grounded here to disable ->

ax You Can DIY!
synthesizer’s voltage controlled filter (not shown) a brief delay to allow the “ramping” capacitor C10
requires a voltage that rises at higher frequencies. to stabilize at its final value, then another 2.5µS to
So a logarithmic converter is used to generate the discharge the cap back to zero volts to begin the next
reciprocal 1/V needed by the filter. Another log cycle. This capacitor is charged by a constant current
converter serves as a divider to counter the falling source (CCS) rather than a resistor because charging
voltage of the V2P’s sawtooth wave’s output. Two times with a resistor aren’t perfectly linear. With a
other auxiliary circuits multiply and divide the V2P’s CCS the capacitor reaches exactly half the voltage
square wave frequency to generate simultaneous when the incoming frequency rises one octave, as
higher and lower octaves. shown in Figure 5.
Note OR gate A1 that allows holding the ramp
Circuit Details capacitor at zero volts in Sustain mode. Most
The basic concept for reading the period of synthesizers let you use a foot switch to emulate
a waveform’s frequency is to start charging a the Sustain pedal on a piano. In Sustain mode the
capacitor when an input cycle begins, then “sample” current note continues to play even after the guitar’s
the voltage across that capacitor when the next cycle output stops, with the Sample & Hold continuing the
starts. At low frequencies the capacitor’s voltage current note’s voltage. This circuit has been altered
rises more than at high frequencies simply because to function on its own, separate from the rest of
it was allowed to charge up for a longer time period. the entire synthesizer, so the second OR input is
The sampled voltage also needs to be remembered, grounded to disable it.
or “held,” at a steady level until the next cycle ends. Also note that NPN transistor Q1 is reversed from
Hence the name Sample & Hold. its usual orientation where the emitter would be
For clarity, this circuit uses a simple Sample & grounded with the collector connected to discharge
Hold rather than the more complex version shown the ramp capacitor. When a transistor is used
in my previous article (audioXpress, April 2022) backwards like this its gain is only 1, but it brings
from the full guitar synthesizer. Working our way the emitter much closer to ground than the usual
from left to right, then top to bottom, I’ll explain configuration, which in turn increases the linearity
each circuit section of Figure 4 in turn. of the P2V conversion. However, these operations
Five separate 555 timer ICs are used in monostable are never perfectly linear, so a teensy offset voltage
mode to generate positive voltage pulses of varying is applied at op-amp U7.
duration. This popular timer IC is triggered to begin a The Sample & Hold circuit is based on an analog
cycle each time its input drops below one-third of the switch that opens and closes under voltage control,
power supply voltage. As each incoming wave cycle followed by a capacitor that holds the voltage
goes from positive to negative, the first timer’s output applied when the switch was briefly closed. It’s
goes high for 80 microseconds (µS) to establish the important to use a high-quality film capacitor here
sample period for the CD4066B analog switch directly because ceramic capacitors have memory effects
below. This timer also triggers a series of events: first that make them nonlinear. Ceramic caps can also
“leak” some of their charge. For the same reason,
an FET op-amp is used to buffer the cap’s voltage
because the higher bias current of a typical bipolar
op-amp would drain the capacitor over time making
the note go sharp or flat in pitch.
The Sample & Hold’s output also feeds the
logarithmic converter mentioned earlier that’s
needed for the voltage-controlled filter elsewhere
in the synthesizer. This circuit is adapted from Texas
Instruments (TI) Application Note AN-30, which you
can download from the link in Resources. For this
LTspice emulation, common 2N3904 transistors are
used to generate the logarithmic result. But the
real circuit will use dual NPN transistors, where
both are on a common substrate. This ensures
Figure 5: The “ramping” capacitor is charged by a constant current source (CCS) for the better linearity in the conversion because ambient
duration of one cycle of the incoming frequency. When the incoming cycle ends, the cap is temperature changes will affect both transistors
reset to zero volts. Therefore, at lower frequencies the capacitor reaches a higher voltage equally. Obviously, temperature is not a factor in
because it was charged for a longer period. a circuit emulation!
58 |May 2022 | audioxpress.com

The main portion of the V2P converter is near the middle of the
third schematic row, and it’s more or less a reciprocal to the P2V
circuit. Like the P2V, it also charges a ramping capacitor (C14) with a
CCS, which is reset when the cap reaches the incoming P2V control
voltage via comparator U14. The comparator then triggers a pair of
555 timer chips that reset the cap to zero volts using another reversed
transistor, Q4. A second comparator, U15, generates a square wave
output, and its reference voltage can be changed either manually or
via voltage control to vary the duty cycle to become a pulse wave.
Earlier I mentioned that synthesizers let you transpose notes to
play in a different key, and most also let you vary the pitch for vibrato
and FM effects. So only 6 microamps (µA) of current is applied to
allow shifting the pitch up or down a full octave via external voltage
control. If the same 12µA was used, the cap would try to exceed the
15V power supply limit at very low frequencies.
Since the voltage at the ramping capacitor is a sawtooth, we can
use that for one of the V2P oscillator’s outputs. But the voltage varies
directly with frequency, making higher notes softer and softer. As with
ramp capacitor C5 in the P2V converter, C14 in the V2P circuit is also
charged by a CCS. And as with C5, the highest voltage reached before
its reset halves with each doubling of frequency. So to normalize the
sawtooth wave’s output level to remain constant versus frequency,
another logarithmic converter divides the sawtooth’s falling voltage by
the P2V’s output voltage that is also falling. For example, 10 divided
by 5 is the same as 6 divided by 3.
LTspice does not have a potentiometer component, so in the V2P
converter are notes to replace resistors with pots or trimpots, for
example to set the pulse width manually or to fine tune the pitch. Pulse
width changes the duty cycle of the square wave output, which makes
the tone thin and reedy sounding as the pulses get more narrow. This
circuit shows ways to control the width both manually and via voltage
control. The manual potentiometer is not connected, but could be through
another 180k resistor. In case it’s not obvious, this synthesizer is still
in development, though most of the modules are complete and fully
functional.
The last two sections are the frequency doubling and halving, using
basic logic circuits rather than separate V2P converters. Dividing a
frequency by 2 is simple using a D (“Data”) flip-flop. Each rising edge
at the Clock input to A2 toggles the Q and Q-bar outputs once. So it
takes two cycles at the Clock input to complete one cycle at the outputs.
To double the frequency we instead use an Exclusive OR gate. In this
case, each rising and each falling edge of the incoming square wave
generates a new pulse at the output. Note that this output has a fixed pulse
width, so the duty cycle changes with frequency becoming thinner sounding
About the Author

Ethan Winer has been an audio engineer and
professional musician for more than 45 years. His
Cello Rondo music video has received nearly 2 million
views on YouTube and other websites, and his book
The Audio Expert published by Focal Press, now in its
second edition, is available at amazon.com and Ethan’s
own website ethanwiner.com. Ethan is also a principal
at RealTraps, a US manufacturer of high-quality acoustic treatment.

The “Must Have” reference for
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for notes at a lower pitch. This is not necessarily a guidance. Julia’s Pragmatic Designs company website
bad thing for a synthesizer as it retains more body contains a huge amount of fun and interesting content,
at higher notes keeping them from becoming too thin including all of the musical instrument products and
and buzzy sounding. accessories she’s designed over the years.
The audio output mixer is simple enough to be
self-explanatory. I connected only one of the output Project Files
waveforms, and for now used fixed resistors to set To download additional material and files, including the LTspice circuit for the simple
the volume levels. In the final design each signal Frequency to Voltage converter and the LTspice circuit for the complete Period to
source will have its own 10kΩ audio taper volume Voltage to Period converter, visit:
control, as noted in the schematic comments. http://audioxpress.com/page/audioXpress-Supplementary-Material.html
The 0.1µF capacitors are needed because the V2P
oscillator outputs go up from 0 volts, but audio Resources
LTspice,
signals must be centered around 0 volts going both
www.analog.com/en/design-center/design-tools-and-calculators/ltspice-simulator.html
positive and negative. ax
LTspice online support forum, https://groups.io/g/LTspice
Author’s Note: In my previous articles I mentioned
my friend Leo Taylor, who in the 1970s taught me Texas Instruments Application Note AN-30, Log Converters,
www.ti.com/lit/pdf/snoa641
much of what I know about audio circuits. I also need
to acknowledge my current mentors, Bill Eppler and Julia Truchsess, Pragmatic Designs, https://pragmaticdesigns.com
Julia Truchsess. Both are black belt-level electronics
geniuses, and exceedingly nice people. The core Period E. Winer, “Building a Guitar-Controlled Synthesizer: The Sample & Hold Time
to Voltage and Voltage to Period converters are Bill’s Machine,” audioXpress, April 2022
design, and Julia helped with many of my recent
E. Winer, “Building a Null Tester Device,” audioXpress, June 2019,
projects published in audioXpress. I could not have https://audioxpress.com/article/you-can-diy-building-a-null-tester-device
designed the Null Tester (June, 2019) without her expert
The AT1000
Simple, accurate,
quality tube testing since 2004
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amplitrex@gmail.com 203-502-7600

ax Hollow-State Electronics
Graphical Analysis of
Class-A Amplifiers
Developing a Love
of Designing
Hollow-State Electronics
Learn how to design an audio amplifier and achieve the best performance out of
existing tube-based circuit designs using the graphical analysis method.
By
Richard Honeycutt
Many hollow-state electronics enthusiasts when he was in high school. Then after college
started out as hobbyists by building equipment graduation, a few years in avionics repair, and a
either from kits or from articles in publications such few more years in pager-tower maintenance, he
as Glass Audio or audioXpress. The combination of returned to his former love and opened a boutique
experience and curiosity has often led to a desire guitar amplifier shop. Another student preferred
to modify existing circuit designs. to design/build amps from old Hammond organ
During my years teaching electronics to college or tube PA amp chassis, tweaking them to achieve
students, I noticed that my best students were the desired sound.
those who had embraced electronics—often hollow- At some point, many tube enthusiasts want
state electronics— through these avenues. One such to learn how to design an amplifier from scratch.
student began modifying commercial guitar amps In the days before computerized circuit analysis
Average plate characteristics Average transfer characteristics

Each section Each section
35 35
EC = 0 Volts –2
–4
E f = rated value E f = rated value
30 –6
30
EC = 250 Volts
–8
25 25
Plate
–10 dissipation 200
2.75 watts
20 –12 20
Plate
–14 150 current in
Plate
current in 15 milliamperes
–16 15
milliamperes
–18 100
10 –20 10
–22
5 –24 5
–26
–28
–30
0
100 200 300 400 500 –20 –15 –10 –5 0
Plate voltage in volts Grid voltage in volts
Figure 1: The plate characteristic of a 12 AU7 shows the effects of plate Figure 2: The transfer characteristic (sometimes called the “input
voltage and control-grid current upon plate current. (Ef is filament characteristic”) is another way in which the effects of plate voltage and
voltage.) control-grid voltage on plate current.

Figure 3: The average
Average characteristics
Each section characteristics graph shows
22 20,000 4,000 the variation of plate current
upon μ, plate resistance,
250 µ
200
Eb = 300 Volts
and transconductance.
18 100 Gm
150
15,000 3,000
250 Eb = 300 Volts
200
50
14 100 150
Plate E f = rated value
Amplification Transconditance
resistance
factor 10,000 2,000 (Gm) in
(Rp)
(µ) 50 microhms (m)
in ohms () 50
10
100 150 200 250 Eb = 300 Volts
Rp
5,000 1,000
6
2 0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Plate current in milliamperes
software (e.g., LTSpice), the most straightforward to a value low enough to properly drive the load
way to design a hollow-state amp was the graphical resistance. In other cases, an output transformer
method. is needed.
Using information obtained from the datasheets The remaining three design decisions are
listed in tube manuals, the designer could be strongly influenced by tube characteristics and
reasonably sure that when (s)he breadboarded biasing. We will examine ways of using graphical
the circuit, its performance would closely match analysis to optimize the bias of an RC-coupled or
the target gain, maximum output signal level, transformer-output tube stage.
and distortion behavior, while the tubes operated
within their safe voltage and power limits. The RC-Coupled Stages
design decisions involved: choice of tube(s) to be T he b a sis of graphic al analysis is the
used; desired input resistance or impedance; load characteristics graphs provided in the tube
resistance to be driven; B+ supply voltage; voltage datasheet. These comprise three types of graphs:
gain; and distortion behavior. the plate characteristic (plate current plotted
The choice of tubes is discussed in the Hollow-
State articles published in audioXpress in April, May, Figure 4: This circuit
and June 2013. One simple method of choosing represents a single-stage

tube types is to use the same types as a similar RC-coupled triode amplifier.
piece of equipment that you respect. ( Ebb denotes the B+ voltage.
The desired input resistance or impedance .(% .
Esig and EO are the input
and output signal voltages,
*% * *(
depends upon the signal source: dynamic or *
respectively. )
c apacitor microphones, phono c ar tridges,
guitar pickups, or other electronic devices. The .
input resistance for your design should typically

be about 10 times the output resistance of the
source. (An exception is moving-magnet phono About the Author
cartridges, which are usually designed for optimum Dr. Richard Honeycutt bought a Popular Electronics magazine
performance when driving a 47kΩ load.) In some from the rack at a bus station in 1960. It contained an article on
cases, input transformers are necessary to provide building a transistorized audio amplifier, which captured his interest.
the desired input impedance. He followed up by subscribing to several electronics magazines. To
The input resistance of a common-cathode stage avoid the cost of parts, he built up a “junk box” by disassembling
trade-in TVs from his uncle’s furniture store. His dad bought him
is usually determined by the value of RG, the grid- the Van Valkenburg, Neville, and Nooger Basic Electronics book set,
leak resistor. To void decreasing gain and increasing so he learned about tube circuits as well as transistors. He started
distortion, the plate resistor of a given stage should repairing electronic devices about 1965, earning his First-Class Commercial FCC license
be 5 to 10 times smaller than the load resistance. in 1969. He has worked part-time in broadcast radio engineering and audio electronics
Sometimes a cathode-follower output stage is repair since 1968, in addition to full-time work in acoustical and audio system design,
plus a 20-year stint teaching electronics at the college level.
needed in order to convert the output resistance

Average plate characteristics

Average plate characteristics
Each section
35 Each section
EC = 0 Volts –2 35
–4 EC = 0 Volts –2
–4
E f = rated value
30 –6 E f = rated value
30 –6
–8
–8
25
Plate 25
–10 Plate
dissipation –10 dissipation
2.75 watts 2.75 watts
20 –12 20 –12
Plate –14 –14
Plate
current in 15 –16 current in 15
milliamperes –16
milliamperes
–18 –18
10 –20 10 –20
–22 –22
5 –24 –24
–26 5 –26
–28 –28
–30 –30
0 0
100 200 300 400 500 100 200 300 400 500
Plate voltage in volts Plate voltage in volts
Figure 5: The DC load line is shown in red, and the Q-point is the black Figure 6: The AC load line shown in purple is steeper than the DC load line
dot. for an RC-coupled stage.
versus plate voltage, with control grid bias as a

parameter); the input or transfer characteristic
(plate current plotted versus control grid voltage
with plate voltage as a parameter); and average
characteristics (gain, plate resistance, and/or
transconductance plotted versus plate current with
Figure 7: The DC load line has only 2.35% THD, and an amplitude of 105V. plate voltage as a parameter). Figures 1-3 show
these graphs for a 12AU7 dual triode. Figure 4
shows the circuit of the RC-coupled stage.
We begin our analysis by constructing a DC load
line. This line defines all the possible combinations
of plate current and plate voltage for a tube having
a given value of B+ voltage and plate resistor.
Figure 5 illustrates one possible DC load line. The
Figure 8: The AC load line has more distortion (4% THD) and an amplitude of 105V.
horizontal intercept represents the highest possible
instantaneous plate voltage: 180V. The vertical
intercept shows the highest possible instantaneous
plate current: the B+ voltage divided by the value of
the plate resistor (180V/510kΩ= 3.59mA). Note that
the entire load line falls below the 2.75W maximum
plate dissipation curve, as it should in order to
avoid tube damage.
The quiescent (no-signal) plate voltage and
Figure 9: With B+ increased to 300V, maximum amplitude remains about 105V, but THD
current will be determined by the control-grid bias,
decreases to 2.4%.
which in turn is set by the choice of the cathode
Figure 10: This single-
-)
resistor value.
ended Class A 2A3 stage is 1"
An approximate value for the Q-point (or
transformer-coupled to the , quiescent point) can be set at the midpoint of the
speaker. 3
&.
3
&+4 -
+
DC load line, as shown in Figure 5. Since the Q-point
&*
-.
falls on the -4V grid voltage curve, the cathode
resistor value must be 4V/3.59mA=1114Ω. We would
/.
8 /
8 5033
(012 &!
9
-

9
probably use a 1.2kΩ resistor.
In operation, an audio amplifier’s behavior is
)
*
defined by the AC load line, which includes the

effects of the input resistance of whatever load the

amp stage is driving: in this case, the value of the Let’s look at the simulated waveforms that
grid resistor R S of the following stage. If we make LTSpice gives us for three cases:
this 510kΩ like the plate resistor of the present
stage, the AC load line will extend from a vertical • No load connected (RS=∞) (Figure 7)
intercept of RS||RP (the plate resistor paralleled with • As shown by AC load line (R S=R P) (Figure 8)
R S) through the Q-point, and on to the horizontal • As shown by AC load line (R S=R P), with the B+
axis. (See the purple line in Figure 6.) increased to 300V (Figure 9).
Since the AC load line is steeper, the Q-point
is no longer centered, and we can expect more Stages with Transformer-Coupled
asymmetrical (even-order) harmonic distortion. Outputs
Thus we see that the load resistance that an amp The construction and appearance of load lines
stage drives affects the distortion performance. are different for triode stages with transformer-
Increasing the B+ voltage would decrease this coupled outputs. Figure 10 shows an LTSpice model
effect, as would designing the amp so that the input of a single-ended Class A 2A3 triode stage with a
resistance of the following stage or equipment is transformer-coupled output.
significantly higher than the value of R P. The DC load line extends from the horizontal
intercept at the B+ voltage to the vertical intercept
at the maximum possible plate current:
(iPmax=VB+/R XP).
In this case, R XP, the resistance in series with
the plate, is the transformer’s primary winding
resistance of 232Ω (R7 in the model). The DC
load line is shown in red in Figure 11. Its vertical
intercept would be 1.08 amperes (A), which is above
the top of the graph.
The Q point is set for a quiescent plate current
of 60mA, per the recommended Class-A operating
conditions on the Tung Sol datasheet (Figure 12).
The AC load line shown in blue is drawn from a
vertical intercept equal to (VB+/R refl), through the
Q point, to the horizontal axis.
Audiophiles have often said that tube amps
could drive lower-impedance speaker loads than
those for which they were designed, while solid-
Figure 11: The DC (red) and AC (blue) load lines for an output- transformer-coupled stage state amps were prone to output transistor shorts
are very different from those for an RC-coupled stage. from overheating. Although this is true from a
hardware-protection standpoint, it does not follow
that connecting paralleled speakers to a tube amp
has no undesirable consequences.
If the 2A3 amp we have been discussing
were connected to two paralleled 8Ω speakers,
the resulting 4Ω load would be reflected to the
primary of the output transformer as half the load
resistance that the single 8Ω speaker would present.
Figure 12: The output-transformer-coupled 2A3 Class-A triode stage produces a clean This would dramatically change the AC load line,
output wave (THD under 5%) when operated at the Q-point suggested in the data sheet.
resulting in a clipped output wave, as shown in
Figure 13.
The clipping on positive peaks represents
almost 15% THD. The increase in distortion due
to connecting paralleled speakers would not be
nearly as large if the power amp used negative
feedback; in fact, overloading a Williamson power
amp by a factor of 2 or even more may not create
Figure 13: Changing to a 4Ω load changes the AC load line and causes clipping. an audible difference in the sound. ax

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Audioxpress May 2022

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INNOVATIONS IN AUDIO • AUDIO ELECTRONICS • THE BEST IN DIY AUDIO

Fresh From the Bench

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Meet the Pentriode

You Can DIY!

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Legal Notice: The Team

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Amplitrex Audio Products, LLC 61 Marchand Electronics, Inc. 25

Beyma Professional Loudspeaker 47 Menlo Scientific, Ltd. 65

Cine Gear Expo 33 Parts Express International, Inc. 68

COMSOL, Inc. 9 Purifi Audio 53

GaN Systems 29 Redco Audio 61

Hammond Manufacturing, Ltd. 3 SB Audience 21

Hottinger Bruel & Kjaer, Inc. 43 Solen Electronique, Inc. 59

Hypex Electronics BV 36–37 Triad Magnetics 67

InfoComm International 2022 49 Warkwyn 51

KAB Electro-Acoustics 53 Western Electric 2, 31

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Market Update—Phono 2022 Report Departments

40 Adding Bluetooth to a Tube Amp

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 7

The Enduring Appeal of Vinyl

8 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

while “phono” is understood by consumers as the pre-amplification

10 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 11

12 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

”IF YOU CAN HEAR IT,

The Hi-Fi Turntables

14 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

Resources Crosley, www.crosleyradio.com

Sources Pro-Ject Audio Systems, www.project-audio.com

Andover Audio, www.andoveraudio.com Sumiko Audio, www.sumikophonocartridges.com

Armour Home Electronics, www.armourhome.co.uk The House of Marley, www.thehouseofmarley.com

Bang & Olufsen, www.bang-olufsen.com Thorens, www.thorens.com

Cambridge Audio, www.cambridgeaudio.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 15

16 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

higher switching frequencies are advantageous to

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 17

18 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 19

20 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 21

New Production 300B

This is the highly anticipated long-term review of a

Photo 1: A view of the Western Electric 300B 2021 Rossville

22 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 23

24 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

LN112 Phono Preampliﬁer 10Watt EL84 Push-Pull

XM26 Tube Electronic Crossover

tube test charts. After 30 minutes warm-up, the basic

test rigs tolerances. It is of note that the curves

26 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

WE 300B 2113 Rossville New Production CN HQ 300B 2016 Production PSV

WE 300B 1152 Kansas City 1999 Production CN HQ 300B (End of Life)

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 27

10dB below clipping 10dB below clipping 10dB below clipping

20dB below clipping 20dB below clipping 20dB below clipping

28 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

Learn more at gansystems.com/audio

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 29

30 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 31

Photo 7: This is the system

more subjective opinions

32 | May 2022 | audioxpress.com

GO AHEAD - EXPERIENCE IT ALL

audioxpress.com | May 2022 | 35

� On-board, high-end, buffer stage

1 and 2 is equal and opposite during each half cycle.