What is the 6N7 vacuum tube?

The 6N7 is a triode vacuum tube designed for driver applications. Dual triode. Warm..

What is a 6N7 substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the 6N7 include 6N7G, 6N7GT. 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 6N7?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 35, transconductance gm ≈ 3.1 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 11.3 kΩ, max plate voltage 300 V, max plate dissipation 5.5 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.8 A.

Is the 6N7 still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 6N7 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 6N7 sound like?

Dual triode. Warm.. 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.

6N7 Triode Vacuum Tube

Also known as 6N7G · 6N7GT

Medium-gain triode for voltage amplification applications

Dual triodeHeater 6.3 V · 0.8 AOctal2 sectionsRCA·Sylvania 1938

Plate dissipation: 5.5W
Max plate voltage: 300V
Transconductance: 3.1mA/V

6N7

Characteristics

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

HeaterIndirectly heated

Specifications of 6N7 — Heater
Heater voltageVh	6.3 V
Heater currentIh	0.8 A

Limiting valuesDatasheet maximum ratings — not to be exceeded

Specifications of 6N7 — Limiting values
Plate voltageVa max	300 V
Plate dissipationPa max	5.5 W

Mechanical

Specifications of 6N7 — Mechanical
Base	Octal
Rarity	Common
Pinout

Small signalDatasheet parameters at the reference operating point — not limits

Specifications of 6N7 — Small signal
Transconductance	3.1 mA/V
Plate resistance	11.3 kΩ
Amplification factor	35

Capacitances

Specifications of 6N7 — Capacitances
Grid–cathode	1.5 pF
Grid–plate	1.5 pF
Plate–cathode	2 pF

Charactereditorial reading, not a measurement

Specifications of 6N7 — Character
Gain	35%
Power	14%
Drive	89%
Linearity	83%

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

Using this tube

Applications

Push-pull output
Phase splitter

Generic triode driver stage

Replace or compare

Sources

By Jean-Michel Falligan DevergneReviewed May 29, 2026Source : RCA RC-15 6N7 datasheet · Norman Koren SPICE modelActive model : Norman Koren

Manufacturer datasheets

6 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 6N76 verified

6N7 DatasheetLocal mirror · PDF

SPICE models

Revision and verification status

Source: RCA RC-15 6N7 datasheet · Norman Koren SPICE model
Reviewed: 2026-05-29
Status: DataModelCalc
Model: Norman Koren

Context

The 6N7 is a dual indirectly-heated triode from RCA·Sylvania, introduced around 1938. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 35 with 11.3kΩ plate resistance. Commonly used in driver applications. Dual triode. Warm.

History

Introduced: 1938
Manufacturer: RCA·Sylvania
Era: Pre-War

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