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Post by johneppstein on Dec 29, 2018 23:44:53 GMT -6
I use Deoxit Gold every day on tubes and I'll echo what has been said about using small quantities. You don't want a lot of residue left behind as it can cause problems, especially if it collects debris. I use pipe cleaners and just lightly brush across the metal, allowing it to dry before letting it touch anything. I'd never just spray it in equipment. Pipe cleaners can get in most nooks and crannies. Also, there is a version for long-lasting protection (forget what it's called), AVOID it. It leaves a tacky coating that you don't want in audio equipment. It should be pointed out that tubes are HIGH VOLTAGE devices, where the typical operating voltage can "punch through" residue problems. It can be a lot more critical for circuits using opamp chips running at 12-15 V.
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Post by bowie on Dec 31, 2018 16:31:57 GMT -6
I use Deoxit Gold every day on tubes and I'll echo what has been said about using small quantities. You don't want a lot of residue left behind as it can cause problems, especially if it collects debris. I use pipe cleaners and just lightly brush across the metal, allowing it to dry before letting it touch anything. I'd never just spray it in equipment. Pipe cleaners can get in most nooks and crannies. Also, there is a version for long-lasting protection (forget what it's called), AVOID it. It leaves a tacky coating that you don't want in audio equipment. It should be pointed out that tubes are HIGH VOLTAGE devices, where the typical operating voltage can "punch through" residue problems. It can be a lot more critical for circuits using opamp chips running at 12-15 V. Correct, though the reason I use it on tubes is that I, as a matter of practice, remove the oxidation and factory coating off the pins and expose clean metal underneath for better conductivity and lower instances of noise. It's a lot of work but I've done experiments and it's proven to be well worth the effort for me, especially when it comes to avoiding issues on the customer end. If I leave the pins bare they just oxidize within a few months so I lightly brush them with the Deoxit Gold, which helps to keep them from oxidizing for a number of years. I've tried applying it to tube pins with oxidation and factory coatings on them and it didn't help at all. On tubes, that stuff needs to be mechanically removed. I should note that I'm speaking about miniature tubes with solid metal pins, larger octal socket tubes and such rarely need to be cleaned to such a degree, just wiped off.
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Post by johneppstein on Dec 31, 2018 18:11:02 GMT -6
It should be pointed out that tubes are HIGH VOLTAGE devices, where the typical operating voltage can "punch through" residue problems. It can be a lot more critical for circuits using opamp chips running at 12-15 V. Correct, though the reason I use it on tubes is that I, as a matter of practice, remove the oxidation and factory coating off the pins and expose clean metal underneath for better conductivity and lower instances of noise. It's a lot of work but I've done experiments and it's proven to be well worth the effort for me, especially when it comes to avoiding issues on the customer end. If I leave the pins bare they just oxidize within a few months so I lightly brush them with the Deoxit Gold, which helps to keep them from oxidizing for a number of years. I've tried applying it to tube pins with oxidation and factory coatings on them and it didn't help at all. On tubes, that stuff needs to be mechanically removed. I should note that I'm speaking about miniature tubes with solid metal pins, larger octal socket tubes and such rarely need to be cleaned to such a degree, just wiped off. Interesting, thanks for the tip!
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