Name:    Tom Plutshack
Email:   singercircle@netscape.net  
Subject: I beg to differ, Steve
Thread:  74
Time:    Fri, 20 Jul 2001 19:23:59 GMT

While you are truly The Man and have earned the thanks of the grateful Music-Man-Nation, I must disagree with something I think you're saying above...
My HD-130 head DOES have an audio-preamp tube stage. A 12AX7A tube of course has two triodes built into it. The phase splitter is only 1/2 of the 12AX7A tube...this is what's called a "split-load" phase inverter, as distinct from the so-called "long-tailed pair" phase splitter which would use both sides of this tube...
The other half of the 12AX7A is an audio amplifier and it's used with the Master Volume control.
Perhaps someone more technically astute can provide further analysis, but this is my understanding of it.