What is the ECL80-T vacuum tube?

The ECL80-T (ECL80 (Triode)) is a triode vacuum tube designed for preamp applications. Triode section..

What is a ECL80-T substitute or equivalent?

Direct equivalents to the ECL80-T 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-T?

Amplification factor μ ≈ 18, transconductance gm ≈ 1.4 mA/V, plate resistance rp ≈ 12.5 kΩ, max plate voltage 200 V, max plate dissipation 1 W, heater 6.3 V / 0.3 A.

Is the ECL80-T still in production?

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

Triode 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-T ECL80 (Triode) Triode Vacuum Tube

Triode6.3V / 0.3A9-pin NovalSPICE

Sourceaudit-eu_a (CLEAN — matches canonical datasheet)Reviewed2026-05-29StatusDataModelCalcModelNorman KorenPDF

Medium-gain triode for voltage amplification applications

Datasheet ↗SPICE

ECL80 (Triode) — Philips — triode vacuum tube — (1953)

12.5kΩ

1.4mA/V

2.1pF

0.9pF

0.80pF

GAIN18%

POWER3%

DRIVE88%

LINEARITY91%

SPECIFICATIONS

Heater6.3 V · 0.3 A

Max Plate Voltage200 V

Pa max1 W

Gain Factor18

gm1.4 mA/V

rp12.5 kΩ

Inter-electrode capacitances

Cgk2.1 pF

Cgp0.9 pF

Cpk0.8 pF

Pinout9-pin Noval

Era1953

RarityCommon

HEATER6.3V / 0.3A

MAX PLATE200V / 1W

BASEnoval

Source datasheets

4 manufacturer datasheets cross-checked for ECL80 (Triode)

4 verified

Triode-connectedPhilips — édition datée 12.12.

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

20 V

According to Philips — édition datée 12.12.1952 (codes 939 4132/4153/4133/4134/3337). Frank Electronic Tube Handbook compilation.: « en triode »

TYPICAL OPERATING POINT

Va105V

Ia2.09mA

Vg-4V

Pd0.22W

RL25kΩ

Av21.6dB

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The ECL80-T is a indirectly-heated triode from Philips, introduced around 1953. It provides a gain factor (μ) of 18 with 12.5kΩ plate resistance. Commonly used in preamp applications. Triode section.

APPLICATIONS

Voltage amplifierLine stage

Generic triode preamp stage

• Hi-Fi stereo• Headphone amp

HISTORY

Introduced1953ManufacturerPhilips

Golden Age

ECL80-T Datasheet

Local mirror · PDF

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METRIX TESTER

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