1941 RCA Victrola with 6F6G tubes--Good for guitar amp?

[reddy2300]

I'll start this by saying I know little to nothing about tube amps other than they sound awesome and they can kill you if you do the wrong things when working on them.

I have acquired a 1941 Victrola radio record player and would like to use the iron and chassis to build a cool little tube amp. (I'm about 80% sure that I'd pay someone who WON'T kill themselves in the process to do the work.)

I was thinking of doing a 6V6 with a 12ax7 preamp. (I do like overdrive.) My guess is that none of the caps are any good.

Opinions?

 

[Teleterr]

Does it work now ? Whats the preamp tube(s).

 

[reddy2300]

"Hasn't been plugged-in in over 30 years."

 

[archetype]

"Hasn't been plugged-in in over 30 years."

While you're pondering what to do with it, don't plug it in. At all. Capacitors degrade and, if internally shorted, can destroy your power transformer and other parts in a second.

 

[reddy2300]

I guess that's another thing I knew to not do. Lol..

 

[clintj]

I'd like to see a couple of pics and know what tubes it has currently too. Converting old things can be fun, but you'll get the best results if you stay sort of in the ballpark for the original power amp configuration as far as impedance and such.

Edit: the 6F6G looks to be a close cousin of the 6V6GT as far as voltage, power, and design spec primary impedance, and has a higher filament current draw. You just might have a good candidate there.

 

[Teleterr]

Once the amps been refurbished I think you ve got a nice littel amp. Pentode or triode preamp ? All you would need do is use the needle input if its a ceramic catridge.

 

[Old Tele man]

6F6G is a glass envelope true pentode power tube (Class-A about 3-4 watts; PP maybe 18-20 watts):

http://www.r-type.org/pdfs/6f6-1.pdf

 

[aerhed]

I've actually run guitar through a few 6f6's and 6k6 as well. The 6F6 has a kinda thin early breakup, but as said it's easy to use a tube higher on the tree. What is the speaker impedance and type and what does the output transformer look like?

 

[Ira7]

I doubt a Victrola is going to be loud enough to be suited as a guitar amp. Plus, from 1941?

If you're into The Andrew Sisters, maybe.

My family had a 1956 model while growing up, bought the year I was born.