What is the 83V vacuum tube?

The 83V is a rectifier vacuum tube designed for rectifier applications. Vacuum version of 83. Mercury-free safety..

What is a 83V substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the 83V include 5V4G. 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.

Is the 83V still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 83V as Moderate 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 83V sound like?

Vacuum version of 83. Mercury-free safety.. 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.

83V Rectifier Vacuum Tube

Also known as 5V4G

Full-wave rectifier for vacuum tube power supply designs

RectifierHeater 5 V · 2 AUX-4Sylvania·RCA 1938

Max DC output current: 175mA
Peak inverse voltage: 1400V
Max RMS input per anode: 500V
Peak anode current: 525mA

83V

Characteristics

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

HeaterDirectly heated

Specifications of 83V — Heater
Heater voltageVh	5 V
Heater currentIh	2 A

Rectifier limitsDatasheet maximum ratings — not to be exceeded

Specifications of 83V — Rectifier limits
Max RMS input voltage per anode	500 V
Io max (DC output current)	175 mA
Peak inverse voltage (PIV)	1400 V
Peak anode current	525 mA
Tube voltage drop at Io	23 V at 175 mA
Min series resistance per anode	65 Ω

Mechanical

Specifications of 83V — Mechanical
Base	UX-4
Rarity	Moderate
Pinout

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

Power supply rectification

Generic rectifier rectifier stage

Headphone amp

Replace or compare

Sources

By Jean-Michel Falligan DevergneReviewed May 29, 2026Source : cap audit 2026-05-09

Manufacturer datasheets

4 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 83V4 verified

83V DatasheetLocal mirror · PDF

SPICE models

Revision and verification status

Source: cap audit 2026-05-09
Reviewed: 2026-05-29
Status: DataModelCalc
Model: under review

Context

The 83V is a directly-heated rectifier from Sylvania·RCA, introduced around 1938. Commonly used in rectifier applications. Vacuum version of 83. Mercury-free safety.

History

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

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