What is the 6072 vacuum tube?

The 6072 (6072A) is a triode vacuum tube designed for studio / mic applications. Studio-grade. Low noise..

What is a 6072 substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the 6072 include 12AY7. 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 6072?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 44, transconductance gm ≈ 1.75 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 25.0 kΩ, max plate voltage 330 V, max plate dissipation 1.65 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.35 A.

Is the 6072 still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 6072 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 6072 sound like?

Studio-grade. Low noise.. 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

←6072

← 6021 6080 →Compare → 12AY7

6072 6072A Triode Vacuum Tube

Dual triode6.3V / 0.35A9-pin NovalSPICE

SourceGE·RCAReviewed2026-05-29StatusDataModelCalcModel2 enginesPDF

Medium-gain triode for voltage amplification applications

Datasheet ↗SPICE

6072A — GE·RCA — triode vacuum tube — (1955)

25.0kΩ

1.8mA/V

1.5pF

1.4pF

0.50pF

GAIN44%

POWER4%

DRIVE75%

LINEARITY78%

SPECIFICATIONS

Heater6.3 V · 0.35 A

Max Plate Voltage330 V

Pa max1.65 W

Gain Factor44

gm1.75 mA/V

rp25.0 kΩ

Inter-electrode capacitances

Cgk1.5 pF

Cgp1.4 pF

Cpk0.5 pF

Pinout9-pin Noval

Era1955

RarityModerate

HEATER6.3V / 0.35A

MAX PLATE330V / 1.65W

BASEnoval

SECTIONS2 (dual)

Source datasheets

2 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 6072A

2 verified

TYPICAL OPERATING POINT

SPICE model(2 available)2 .subckt available ↓

Va180V

Ia4.74mA

Vg-1.59V

Pd0.85W

RL220kΩ

Av32.1dB

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The 6072 is the military/premium specification variant of the 12AY7, built to tighter tolerances with enhanced vibration resistance and controlled microphonics. It was specified for sensitive scientific instrumentation and recording equipment where low noise and consistent performance were critical. The tube shares the 12AY7's mu of ~44 but guarantees lower noise floor and better section matching. GE and Sylvania 6072A examples are particularly valued by phono stage designers who need the gain profile of a 12AY7 with instrument-grade noise performance.

APPLICATIONS

Phase splitter

Generic triode studio / mic stage

• Headphone amp

VS 12AY7

μ 0%Rp +0%Pd +10%Full comparison →

HISTORY

Introduced1955ManufacturerGE·RCA

Golden Age