DIYstompboxes.com

DIY Stompboxes => Building your own stompbox => Topic started by: tube man in a kilt on February 18, 2004, 10:09:21 PM

Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 18, 2004, 10:09:21 PM
hey, first post, oh yea, im cool. anyway.  im building the real mctube and i ordered a parts express tube socket and i have no idea how to get it to fit and stay. if anyone could help me i would be very gratefull. thanks
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: gtrmac on February 18, 2004, 10:15:31 PM
There are several types of toob sockets and they each have different requirements so it would be hard to guess the answer to this question.

How about a part number so we can see the actual socket?
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: Hal on February 18, 2004, 10:18:50 PM
wait, whats your problem, getting the socket on the surface, on the board, or the tube to stay in the socket ?
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 18, 2004, 10:50:15 PM
my prob is getting the tube to stay in the socket. idk the part # and im too lazy to get up, but go to partsexpress.com, search tube sockets, and clicke on the one w/ the shielding case and ceramic 9 pin socket.
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: Hal on February 19, 2004, 12:16:21 AM
duct tape ;)

hahaha um...wrap the pins with something to make htem a bit wider, like copper foil?  I dunno...weird problem LoL.  Are you sure you bought a socket for the right kind of tubes?
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: Peter Snowberg on February 19, 2004, 01:08:33 AM
That doesn't sound good at all. The tube should fit VERY snugly in the socket, if it doesn't you could easily end up with a fried tube. Try to see exactly why the pins are not getting snugly locked in there. If the socket has deformed contacts, send that bugger back!

Best of luck to you and welcome to the forums! :D

Take care,
-Peter
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: puretube on February 19, 2004, 02:21:56 AM
wiggle the correctly orientated tube a little, till you got the feeling that all 9 pins found a hole, and then: push! (the first time is the hardest).
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 19, 2004, 09:19:48 AM
ok guys, thanks.
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 19, 2004, 09:25:43 AM
ok, so i got the tube in the socket nicely, but i cant get the darn thing to fit in the sleeve, its an odd configuration. i think i'll just call them.  1 other ques: could i just solder the socket points onto a PCB, or do i need some type of proprietary socket? thanks.
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: Mike Burgundy on February 19, 2004, 05:12:58 PM
sockets come in print-mount and hard-wire versions. I prefer never to mount a socket directly onto a PCB - in fact I haven't used PCB material at all for tube stuff, but it works ok, or so I hear ;)
The tube, and therefor the socket gets *very* hot, and PCB's don't feel happy about this.
The usual hard-wired sockets are mounted into a suitable hole in the chassis, and bolted or riveted into place through openings in the socket specially designed for this purpose. Electrical connections are then wired from the socket to the rest of the circuit.
If you have a socket 055-500, that looks like chassis-mount. You use the ring that's under the shield in the picture to clamp the socket tightly into the designated 7/8"hole.
The shield should (pretty snugly) fit exactly over a 12AX7.Align openings to bumps on the base ring, push and twist and it's on.
hih
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 19, 2004, 05:51:15 PM
no, you see, it wont fit in. its wierd.  i put the tube in the socket, and there is no way for me to fit the detachable part of the sleeve onto the tube. the morons at parts express said it wasnt meant to hold the tube inside, and i think he is an idiot.
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: Ansil on February 19, 2004, 05:53:13 PM
car audio shops ahve a great little device it is an inline dual crimpable wire clip to join two wires that have come apart or where a slpice was made.   take a tube down there and find out which ones fit the pins..  you crimp the end that accepts the wires from the circuit and you slide it on the pins.  this makes a great way to try different tubes out that don't have the same pinout..   i have a nice pentode that has a similar wiring to the 12ax7 but not quite  instead of wiring it up for that i jsut apply the correct wires to the correct pins..  a little bit lowfi yeas but it works
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 19, 2004, 05:58:33 PM
acctually, if u could take some photos to show me how to make this work i would be very happy.  i can really piece together the directions, and the little i have understood hasnt worked. so if anyone had some step by step photos....
Title: tube sockets are annoying... noob needs help
Post by: tube man in a kilt on February 19, 2004, 06:01:01 PM
my last post was in referance to mike burgandy, so mike if you could do the picture thing..