Tube questions

[JACKSONFREAK]

Ok so i've been going through my dads old stuff and cleaning the basement. I found a butt load of old tubes. NOS Westinghouse, RCA, Sylvania, Zenith, GE some still in original boxes. They look like other tubes im familiar with like KT66, KT88, 12ax7,EL34, 6V6 etc.. altho as much as ive tried i cant find any info in the net or in "The tube amp Book" by groove tubes. So im hoping some if the tube gurus here can help id some if these bad boys and see if i can swap some of the tubes in my amp to make it sound better. The list is fairly long. But here it is. any and all help is greatly appreciated
Thanks in advance
1V2 - from what ive found its a recto tube.
6JU8 ?
6LQ6/6JE6C ?
6DW4B ?
6BK4B ?
6GW8/EC86
12GN7
6HA5
6GHBA
6W7
6EJ7/EF184
6KD8
JV2
6EW6
6GY6/6GX6
6GHBA
6HS8 or could be 6H58. i cna tread my own hand wrighting some times. lol
If any body can help i appreciate it.
BTW i do know i need to bias the amp if i replace the output tubes.
IM looking to swap out pre tubes mostly. trying to get rid of some of the grittiness to the tone on the gain channel withoug sacrificing the tone and clearity on the clean channel.
Thanks
Gil

[Newc]

The 12GN7 should be related to the 12AX7 and 12AY7. Couldn't say exactly how or even if it is. Just a guess based on the 12xx7

I *think* the EC86 is a power amp tube model that's been used within the last 10 years. Maybe still?
Or am I thinking ECC86 (extra C).

Most of those should be radio/TV tubes that performed various specific functions. While those units had built-in preamps and power amps, the voltages would be considerably different than a tube instrument amp.

See if you can find a tube tester on Ebay. Preferably one with a manual to tell you how to set it properly for each tube.

[DonP]

Tubes were used a lot in radios (also HAM radios) and TV's. I doubt sticking TV tubes in your amp will make it sound better, and if it's not the same wiring and same tube type, you will positively KILL YOUR AMP or TUBES.

Sorry, but it looks like a bunch of junk to me. Unlike sound amplification (and mayby HAM radio trasnmitters?), everything else made with tubes pretty much sucked. Who wants to use a tube TV? How about a tube radio tuner instead on Sirius or an iPod?

Do some google searching on the tubes you have, but it's doubtfull you'll find much of a market for them. I took a chance on your 6GY6/6GX6 and here is what I found. I'm not sure what I'd use it for, but if it wasn't designed for sound amplification, why bother trying to fit a square peg in a round hole? BTW it sells for $3 on ebay.

http://scottbecker.net/tube/sheets/135/6/6GY6.pdf

When I clean out stashes of tubes, I go for the sound amplification tubes. I memorize the most popular models and go for those.

[Cygnus X1]

I also scrounge for old tubes.
Sometimes there's gold, many times there's "plinkers"
What we commonly call TV tubes.

On the reverse...here's some to look for:
6CA4
5U4GB
5V4
5Y3
6SN7
6SC7
6V6GT or GTA
6L6GB or GC
12AT7
12AU7
12AV7
12AY7
12BH7
of course, 12AX7. and 7025's

Anything with a "JAN" in those lines is great.
Or "W" suffixes denotes military grade tubes.
Along with the EL34's, EL84s, 6550's, KT66, KT88's.

[JACKSONFREAK]

We did have a Heathkit TV when i was growing up. Im sure some of these tubes were around as spares for that. However tubes are tubes. Albeit some are specific voltages series, parallel etc... I'm not gonna just toss tubes in my favorite amp and hope for the best. Thats why im asking around to see if wnything is compatible or not. If not no biggie. Maybe ill dump them on ebay. I did find somethign that looked like me dad had made with tube sockets in it. And wires and things. No manual of course cus it was home made and he knew how it worked. But it looked like a tube tester with meters and sockets in it etc.. I found an old variac too. Not sure what im gonna do with that yet. But its cool none the less and it does work. I tested it with a lamp.
Thanks for the help so far. Im hoping at least 1 or 2 should be compatible as pretubes.
Gil

[Carbuff]

Yeah, I went through this a few years ago when my mom moved. Dad was a Ham and had tons of old tubes. I sold them all on ebay as a lot. Im sure the buyer was tickled to have them.

[Cygnus X1]

Here is a good resource if you want to look them up:

http://www.r-type.org/exhib/aaa1048.htm