What is the ECL80-P vacuum tube?

The ECL80-P (ECL80 (Pentode)) is a pentode vacuum tube designed for power applications. Pentode section..

What is a ECL80-P substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the ECL80-P include 6AB8. 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 ECL80-P?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 14, transconductance gm ≈ 3.3 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 150.0 kΩ, max plate voltage 400 V, max plate dissipation 3.5 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.3 A.

Is the ECL80-P still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the ECL80-P 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 ECL80-P sound like?

Pentode section.. 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.

By Jean-Michel Falligan Devergne · Reviewed May 29, 2026

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ECL80-P ECL80 (Pentode) Pentode Vacuum Tube

Pentode6.3V / 0.3A9-pin NovalSPICE

SourcePhilipsReviewed2026-05-29StatusDataModelCalcModelKoren pentodePDF

Small-signal pentode for low-noise voltage amplification

Datasheet ↗SPICE

ECL80 (Pentode) — Philips — pentode vacuum tube — (1953)

150.0kΩ

3.3mA/V

4.5pF

0.2pF

4.90pF

GAIN14%

POWER9%

DRIVE0%

LINEARITY93%

SPECIFICATIONS

Heater6.3 V · 0.3 A

Max Plate Voltage400 V

Pa max3.5 W

Gain Factor14

gm3.3 mA/V

rp150.0 kΩ

Inter-electrode capacitances

Cgk4.5 pF

Cgp0.2 pF

Cpk4.9 pF

Pinout9-pin Noval

Era1953

RarityCommon

HEATER6.3V / 0.3A

MAX PLATE400V / 3.5W

BASEnoval

Source datasheets

4 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for ECL80 (Pentode)

4 verified

Triode-connectedPhilips1951-1952 (12.12.1952; sheets datés 1951/1952; courbes 2.2.1951 / 4-1-51)

Specs when the screen grid (g2) is tied to the anode — the tube acts as a triode.

According to Philips (Electronic Tube Handbook) — trilingue en/fr/de (1951-1952 (12.12.1952; sheets datés 1951/1952; courbes 2.2.1951 / 4-1-51)): « en triode »

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The ECL80-P is a indirectly-heated pentode from Philips, introduced around 1953. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 14 with 150.0kΩ plate resistance. Commonly used in power applications. Pentode section.

APPLICATIONS

Voltage amplifier

Generic pentode power stage

VS 12SJ7

μ -26%Rp -85%Pd +40%Full comparison →

HISTORY

Introduced1953ManufacturerPhilips

Golden Age

ECL80-P Datasheet

Local mirror · PDF

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METRIX TESTER

Test this tube on a Metrix

SIMILAR PENTODES

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