What is the 6DE7 vacuum tube?

The 6DE7 is a triode vacuum tube designed for driver + power applications. Dissimilar dual. Medium mu driver + power..

What is a 6DE7 substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the 6DE7 include 10DE7, 13DE7. These share the same pinout and operating envelope, so they can usually be swapped without circuit changes — though batch-to-batch variations between manufacturers (NOS vs current production) may shift the sonic character noticeably.

What are the key specifications of the 6DE7?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 17, transconductance gm ≈ 5 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 3.4 kΩ, max plate voltage 330 V, max plate dissipation 7 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.9 A.

Is the 6DE7 still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 6DE7 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 6DE7 sound like?

Dissimilar dual. Medium mu driver + 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.

6DE7 Triode Vacuum Tube

Also known as 10DE7 · 13DE7

Medium-gain triode for driver and line stage applications

Dual triodeHeater 6.3 V · 0.9 A9-pin Noval2 sectionsSylvania·RCA 1958

Plate dissipation: 7W
Max plate voltage: 330V
Transconductance: 5mA/V

6DE7

Characteristics

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

HeaterIndirectly heated

Specifications of 6DE7 — Heater
Heater voltageVh	6.3 V
Heater currentIh	0.9 A

Limiting valuesDatasheet maximum ratings — not to be exceeded

Specifications of 6DE7 — Limiting values
Plate voltageVa max	330 V
Plate dissipationPa max	7 W

Mechanical

Specifications of 6DE7 — Mechanical
Base	9-pin Noval
Rarity	Common
Pinout

Small signalDatasheet parameters at the reference operating point — not limits

Specifications of 6DE7 — Small signal
Transconductance	5 mA/V
Plate resistance	3.4 kΩ
Amplification factor	17

Capacitances

Specifications of 6DE7 — Capacitances
Grid–cathode	3 pF
Grid–plate	2 pF
Plate–cathode	1.8 pF

Charactereditorial reading, not a measurement

Specifications of 6DE7 — Character
Gain	17%
Power	18%
Drive	97%
Linearity	92%

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

Using this tube

Interactive loadline calculator not available for this tube yet — it needs calibrated Koren or Ayumi parameters.

Applications

Push-pull output
Phase splitter

Generic triode driver + power stage

Hi-Fi stereo

Replace or compare

Sources

By Jean-Michel Falligan DevergneReviewed May 29, 2026

Manufacturer datasheets

4 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 6DE74 verified

6DE7 DatasheetLocal mirror · PDF

SPICE models

Revision and verification status

Source: Sylvania·RCA
Reviewed: 2026-05-29
Status: DataModelCalc
Model: under review

Context

The 6DE7 is a dual indirectly-heated triode from Sylvania·RCA, introduced around 1958. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 17 with 3400Ω plate resistance. Commonly used in driver + power applications. Dissimilar dual. Medium mu driver + power.

History

Introduced: 1958
Manufacturer: Sylvania·RCA
Era: Golden Age

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