What is the 6AK6 vacuum tube?

The 6AK6 is a pentode vacuum tube designed for preamp / power applications. Audio pentode / power..

What are the key specifications of the 6AK6?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 10, transconductance gm ≈ 2.3 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 200.0 kΩ, max plate voltage 300 V, max plate dissipation 2.75 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.15 A.

Is the 6AK6 still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 6AK6 as Common availability. NOS (new-old-stock) examples from RCA, Mullard, Tung-Sol, GE, Sylvania and Telefunken trade among collectors; modern production where it exists comes mostly from JJ Electronic, Electro-Harmonix, Tung-Sol (New Sensor), Genalex, and a handful of small-batch makers.

What does the 6AK6 sound like?

Audio pentode / power.. Sonic character also depends heavily on the circuit operating point, the surrounding tubes in the stage, and the output transformer when present — use the interactive loadline calculator on this page to explore the trade-offs.

6AK6 Pentode Vacuum Tube

Small-signal pentode for low-noise voltage amplification

PentodeHeater 6.3 V · 0.15 A7-pin MiniatureRCA 1946

Plate dissipation: 2.75W
Max plate voltage: 300V
Amplification factor: 10
Transconductance: 2.3mA/V
Plate resistance: 200kΩ

6AK6

Characteristics

Datasheet values, once each. Every value cites its sheet.

HeaterIndirectly heated

Specifications of 6AK6 — Heater
Heater voltageVh	6.3 V
Heater currentIh	0.15 A

Limiting valuesDatasheet maximum ratings — not to be exceeded

Specifications of 6AK6 — Limiting values
Plate voltageVa max	300 V
Screen voltageVg2 max	250 V
Plate dissipationPa max	2.75 W
Screen dissipationPg2 max	0.75 W
Cathode currentIk max	21 mA
Heater–cathode voltageVhk max	100 V

Mechanical

Specifications of 6AK6 — Mechanical
Base	7-pin Miniature
Rarity	Common
Pinout

Small signalDatasheet parameters at the reference operating point — not limits

Specifications of 6AK6 — Small signal
Transconductance	2.3 mA/V
Plate resistance	200 kΩ
Amplification factor	10

Capacitances

Specifications of 6AK6 — Capacitances
Input	3.6 pF
Grid–plate	0.12 pF
Output	4.2 pF

Charactereditorial reading, not a measurement

Specifications of 6AK6 — Character
Gain	10%
Power	7%
Drive	0%
Linearity	95%

datasheet cited · model or editorial reading · catalogue value, no citation attached yet · nothing invented

Using this tube

Applications

Voltage amplifier

Generic pentode preamp / power stage

Replace or compare

Sources

By Jean-Michel Falligan DevergneReviewed May 29, 2026Source : audit-us_a (CLEAN — matches canonical datasheet)Active model : Koren pentode

Manufacturer datasheets

3 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 6AK63 verified

6AK6 DatasheetLocal mirror · PDF

SPICE models

Revision and verification status

Source: audit-us_a (CLEAN — matches canonical datasheet)
Reviewed: 2026-05-29
Status: DataModelCalc
Model: Koren pentode

Context

The 6AK6 is a indirectly-heated pentode from RCA, introduced around 1946. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 10 with 200.0kΩ plate resistance. Commonly used in preamp / power applications. Audio pentode / power.

History

Introduced: 1946
Manufacturer: RCA
Era: Golden Age

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