Ah, the smell of vacuum tube electronics. Finally after a good 6 months of puttering around on the bench, my Scott 800B is back inside it's cabinet where it belongs. FM works pretty well, AM really rips, and the audio stage with the modified tone controls is just stellar. I'm also really happy to have my workspace returned. An 800B is just a massive piece of gear to have hogging up the works.


What does cause that smell anyway? Every tube set I've owned has it, and they all smell very much the same no matter what the cabinet material is, or where the radio spent it's life.

I like that smell too! I always thought it was just the odor of the dust on the inside of the cabinet and on the chassis coming out with the heat of the tubes.

It is simply the smell created when dust and other contaminants in the air settle on components such as tubes and resistors over long periods of time and when these components warm up, the smell is released.

Got to watch it, however. When I read the title to your thread, I instinctively thought that you blew a selenium rectalfire! Now those do put out an odor, but it is not as nice as what you are talking about.
Curt

That's a really nice example of the golden age of tube audio. Why were the tone controls modified?

I don't know what doe's it but it smells real good.

Is it possible that many wax insulated components are releasing sweet honey smells? Just an idea.

"You smell that son? Only one thing smells like that."

"I love the smell of transformer varnish in the morning. It smells like... victory!"

When I was a sales engineer, I used to call on factories that made chargers and power supplies. The smell of a freshly dipped power transformer was always special.

Rich

I'm thinking that for some of us there is a certain mystique to the smell of old tube-based electronics.

I know that for me, it brings back memories of my youth, when I first fell into the "hobby" of dragging home an old radio, or building my Heathkit shortwave set and listening to it by the hour, late into the night. Or sitting in front of the old Zenith console that the neighbors were on the verge of throwing out. So I perceive the smell as somewhat of a time machine, returning me to the 60's.

In stock form, the 800B has fairly weak bass response, especially given that it has a 15" Jensen speaker and a pair of 6L6 output tubes. The modification I did was designed by ARF member Braithwaite. Basically it removes the stock passive bass limiter type control and replaces it with the RCA tone control circuit from the back of the receiving tube manual. It really does make a nice improvement. In stock form, it was OK, but it didn't sound as good as my Philco 39-116. Now, it sounds very good.

http://www.antiqueradios.com/forums/vie ... 7&start=20 for more info and the schematic

I've known that friendly old radio smell long as I can remember. Even cold, I could sniff em out.

Seems like the smell dissipates with a cleaning and a recap.

Wax caps, old flux and solder, a slight musty wood smell, with a touch of deteriorating rubber smell, cooked on hot glass and bakelite.

Eau de Radio (Spelling. French in question.)

I love the smell of old solder-
it gets me high.
Wait, that might be the strong pain medication I take.
Anyway-
the only thing I don't like is that metallic and musty smell of something overheating, like old power transformers.
Wait, that might be my dog...

t.

" I love the smell of rosin in the morning"

Yes, the "old radio smell".... old insulation, wax capacitors, and dust.

Old portable radios and phonographs also often have a unique smell of their own, probably due to the materials used in making the cabinets. Late 1940s and 1950s gear also seems to have its own smell also, probably caused by the plastic wire insulation in use at the time.

At the TV shop I worked at, The owner's daughter would come in and do the bookwork about once a week. One day she came in while I was soldering something. She took a deep breath and said "I just love the smell of solder!!"

That rather surprised me, but then again, she grew up around the shop and I guess it brings back good memories

The dust on hot vacuum tubes is certainly a wonderful smell too. That certain radio I have with a slew of 45's has this smell in abundance!

Congrats on finishing up the 800B, though I've never worked on one, they are interesting radios! I do have a Scott Metropolitan chassis around here somewhere I should restore someday.

-Steve

Old home movie projectors can give off similar smells between the hot projector bulb and the sparking variable-speed motor and its hot oil, and opening the cans of color film.
Don

When I refurbished one of my first Teletype machines, they give off that nice hot oil smell! It's unique all on it's own.

When I turned on my Presto recording mixer for the first time in like a bazillion years, all those tubes and the electronics gave off that smell!

Wow, that's great! I'm going to go turn it on right now!!

Andy

I also have an old Bogen tube public-address amp with two 12" speakers in the halves of a cedar-wood? case that snaps together for travel. It has room for the amp and a turntable and accessories. It has a great cedar smell when you open up the case, even before you plug it in.
Don

i thought maybe he let the magic smoke out lol, done that a few times on the newer electronics. never ends well.

Funny how certain smells affect people differently. I, for one, can not stand the smell of cedar. When I was a kid, my older sister had a red cedar hope chest and when ever she opened it up, it would drive me out of the house. The smell was pleasant to me, but it shut off my sinuses and I soon was gasping for breath.

When I was working at the saw mill, we ran a special run of cedar for a customer and the same thing. Instead of feeding a Stetson-Ross planer, I had to resort to picking stickers and stacking them in piles, as it was in the basement of the mill and the smell did not reach down there.

I figured I would outgrow the allergy to cedar, but it still affects me, but not as bad as when I was younger. But I love the smell of old tube electronics when they are first brought up to temperature. That is unless a mouse had been in the set and peed.
Curt

i love the smell of the older record players, and old portable radios covered in leatherette. when they heat up from the tubes, there is nothing like that smell, the leatherette has its own distinct smell.