Nothing to do with displays, but, hey, our editor is a geek that loves guitars so we’re bringing news of a new vacuum tube that looks like a chip that is now freely available in the market after appearing in some channels in Japan a while ago. The chip is designed to be used by people that love the sound of valves or tubes, but want something more robust and with lower power requirements. The Korg Nutube 6P1 has been developed with VFD maker Noritake Itron Corp and has an anode grid filament structure and operates in exactly the same way as a triode vacuum tube. In fact, it also offers twin triodes in a single package as a modern alternative to the classic 12AX7 twin-triode vacuum tube used in many amplifier applications.
A key feature of the device is its size, as it is less than 30% of the volume of a conventional vacuum tube. This also means a substantial power saving, with the device requiring less than 2% of the electrical power of a conventional tube, as well as enabling efficient and simple battery operation. The device’s small size and low thermal output also allows it to be easily mounted directly on a high-density circuit board without using a socket. It can operate from 5V to 80V and has a life of 30,000 hours of continuous operation.
