What is the 6JQ6 vacuum tube?

The 6JQ6 is a tetrode vacuum tube designed for power applications. Compact sweep output..

What is a 6JQ6 substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the 6JQ6 include None. 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 6JQ6?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 6, transconductance gm ≈ 4.2 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 10.5 kΩ, max plate voltage 425 V, max plate dissipation 10 W, heater 6.3 V / 1.2 A.

Is the 6JQ6 still in production?

Production status varies by year and manufacturer. The current Amperatubes catalog classifies the 6JQ6 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 6JQ6 sound like?

Compact sweep output.. 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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6JQ6 Tetrode Vacuum Tube

Tetrode6.3V / 1.2A12-pin CompactronSPICE

Sourceelectrontubestore 6JQ6 beam tetrodeReviewed2026-05-29StatusDataModelCalcModelKoren pentodePDF

Beam power tetrode rated at 10W for high-power output stages

Datasheet ↗SPICE

6JQ6 — RCA — tetrode vacuum tube — (1962)

10.5kΩ

4.2mA/V

13.0pF

0.3pF

6.00pF

GAIN6%

POWER25%

DRIVE90%

LINEARITY95%

SPECIFICATIONS

Heater6.3 V · 1.2 A

Max Plate Voltage425 V

Pa max10 W

Gain Factor6

gm4.2 mA/V

rp10.5 kΩ

Inter-electrode capacitances

Cgk13 pF

Cgp0.32 pF

Cpk6 pF

Pinout12-pin Compactron

Era1962

RarityCommon

HEATER6.3V / 1.2A

MAX PLATE425V / 10W

BASEcompactron-12

Source datasheets

1 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for 6JQ6

1 verified

Triode-connectedRCA9-67 (sept 1967)

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

According to RCA (Radio Corporation of America, Electronic Components and Devices, Harrison, N.J.) (9-67 (sept 1967)): « Triode Connection »

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The 6JQ6 is a indirectly-heated beam tetrode from RCA, introduced around 1962. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 6 with 10.5kΩ plate resistance. Commonly used in power applications. Compact sweep output.

HISTORY

Introduced1962ManufacturerRCA

Late Production

6JQ6 Datasheet

Local mirror · PDF

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METRIX TESTER

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