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Author Topic: All those seemingly new analog components...
joe
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Posts: 224
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Post All those seemingly new analog components...
on: November 20, 2012, 20:29
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How come there are suddenly tones of good-sounding germanium transistors and bucket-brigade delay chips available? I'm sort of assuming that someone is building them in China or Eastern Europe. Anyone know?
Digital-
Larry

Posts: 192
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: November 21, 2012, 12:38
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My guess is that they are a smaller semiconductor company focusing on niche markets and they probably bought or are licensing Panasonic's BBD chip designs.
smgear

Posts: 170
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: November 21, 2012, 14:35
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My guess is that they are a smaller semiconductor company focusing on niche markets and they probably bought or are licensing Panasonic's BBD chip designs.

or stole......

bear

Posts: 153
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: November 21, 2012, 18:57
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What I want to know is if there are any legit current-production germanium diodes to source. It's a nightmare when a lot of parts houses stock silicon devices as "germanium" when they don't perform the same for clipping purposes.
joe
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Posts: 224
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: November 28, 2012, 11:32
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Actually, I asked Blake at Mammoth about the source of all their germanium transistors, and he wasn't sure. (Mammoth is, if I understand correctly, part of the larger 4Site company.) But they HAVE to be new production. And the good news is, they're amazingly consistent and they sound great.

jeremy

Posts: 48
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: December 1, 2012, 12:55
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maybe the answer is on the Mammoth page you linked to elsewhere...

Built to Mullard specification by U.S. Military transistor manufacturer

if the military need stuff, it gets made; just like a lot of tubes still being in production because the military needing them.
joe
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: December 1, 2012, 15:48
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Yeah, but what does the military need tubes for? Except maybe for the guitar amps in military dance bands?
Thecoslar

Posts: 45
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: December 2, 2012, 06:16
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You'd be surprised. Old military grade radio transmitters and radar units ran on tubes for years. Some of that stuff is still getting phased out of use now. Which is sort of terrifying, in it's own special way.

Digital-
Larry

Posts: 192
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: December 2, 2012, 07:35
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Tubes are supposedly resistant to EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse, not the Experience Music Project) which occurs during a nuclear explosion, whereas semiconductors get fried. Can't say I've tested it meself but that's the story.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_pulse
bear

Posts: 153
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Post Re: All those seemingly new analog components...
on: December 2, 2012, 09:23
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The EMP thing is a coincidental post hoc explanation. When most of those systems went on line tubes were the prevalent technology or the cheaper/dependable tech. There wasn't a conscious awareness of EMP resistance when the systems were spec'ed or commissioned, and installed soystems just soldiered on as working installed systems so why replace them?
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