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Sylvania/Philips 5AR4













I bought five of these tubes back in the early to mid 1990s. I distinctly remembering one of them arcing the first time I put it into service back then. Two may have arced, since I only have three left. I packed them away, and after numerous moves, they stayed packed away. Meanwhile I've used Russian 5AR4 in the same amp, and never had an issue.

I got them out last night, and after taking a good look at them, they don't look like any 5AR4 I've ever seen before. I did an extensive search here, as well as an Internet images search, and couldn't find anything with the same internals, or even the brown base. There's no markings on the glass, no date codes or other markings on the base, other than what's shown.

I might not be as concerned, but given the memory of the self-destruction the last time I tried one, I'm curious if these are counterfeits.

Thanks.


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Topic - Sylvania/Philips 5AR4 - 1973shovel 12:14:45 08/26/21 (19)

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