Tube coolers?


Are there good sleeve-type tube cooler things if I have my tubes on a shelf with not too much top clearance above the tubes? Thanks in advance. (I am just talking about preamp-type tubes, like 6NS7s or 12AU7s.)
rgs92
I haven't heard of anything like that, and I'm not sure what they would do exactly anyway.

Because vacuum tubes work in a vacuum, essentially all of the cooling of the actual tube innards has to be by radiation - you can cool the glass, but I don't think glass failure is much of a worry.

My guess is your real concern is keeping the overall unit cool enough, so I would would think about putting a small quite box fan behind the unit to ensure you've got some air circulating. If the chassis is cool enough, you should be good.

I would look at NewEgg for a case fan. They are 12VDC - you've probably got an old 12VDC wall wart or laptop PS sitting around that's more than ample to power it. The only trick is how to make it inconspicuous. You don't need to move much air at all, just enough to compensate for the cramped quarters. The primary concern is to get a really quiet fan.
Even with tube coolers the heat needs to go up. The fan idea has merit, there are some really quiet ones.
Laptop fans will do the trick, especially with a wall wart power suppl. These usb powered fans, often available for $5 would be the first stop. Most are pretty quite and you can add a few to get the air flow you need in all areas of the amp. I've done this and it works well.