[Boatanchors] "Tube Number" ethics & another "Trial run"

[Phil]

Just a quick (maybe tongue in cheek) question on tube counts.

First, who remembers back in the early days of transistor radios when 
manufacturers would "bloat" their transistor count on the front of the 
radio by putting 'extra' transistors in diode positions, and sometimes 
even transistors that did absolutely nothing at all?

OK, now to the present.  As most of you can see, I keep an "equipment 
tally" in my signature line, mainly because on a couple DX lists I've 
been frequently asked (often in private emails) what equipment I use, 
and it's become a practice of some of us longtime members to put a "brag 
sheet" at the bottom (particularly on the NDB beacon list).

The regen set that I built has 5 tubes, 6AK5, 12AU7, 12AT7, 6AK5 & 0B2.  
BUT two of the tubes are dual triodes, and if all separate tubes were 
used would be 7 tubes + rectifier.  ONLY ONE of those tubes (1/2 12AU7) 
doesn't actually add to the performance of the set but is in there as a 
convenience feature, to provide a output for a frequency counter during 
calibration.

QUESTION:  Would it be misleading of me to call this a "7 Tube + 
rectifier" set in general correspondence about it, signature block etc?  
It's not like I'm trying to market a radio and some buyer got one and 
said "HEY, I've been short-changed two tubes"!

Last night I again listened to it to see what beacons could be heard.  I 
heard another 6 beacons last night, all Canadians, ALL after midnight, 
making the total about 32.  The T-storm noise has been horrendous 
(typical summertime) and my ears are pretty well beat to death by the 
time the band opens up (listened until 1:00AM last night).  Once we get 
into the winter season I expect that it'll be "wall-to-wall" beacons and 
difficult to sort them out.

I think that I'm going to have to build a "noise clipper" in the set 
with a pair of germanium diodes.  I was trying to stay away from ALL 
Sand-state devices and use ONLY technology available in the '30s.  I 
KNEW I should have punched a tube socket hole for a 6AL5 dual diode!

-- 
73 de Phil,  KO6BB
http://www.qsl.net/ko6bb/  (Web Page)

PRESENT RADIOS:
Grundigs:    S-350 (~2006), G6 (2011) & S450DLX (2014).
HOMEBREW:    7 Tube+Rect Regenerative RX for LF (built 2015)
Icom:        R-75 With Cascaded 250 & 125Hz CW Filters. (~2005)
Icom:        IC-7200 Transceiver (~2015).
Radio Shack: DX-380 digital portable (~1990).
Zenith:      Royal-7000 Transoceanic Portable (~1968).

ACCESSORIES: HOMEBREW LF-MF Pre-Amp, MFJ-993B HF Auto-Tuner.
              HOMEBREW 8 Hz Audio Filter.

ANTENNAS:  88 foot Long Ladder-line fed dipole at 35 feet AGL.
            HOMEBREW Active Mini-Whip at 36 Feet AGL for LF/MW.
            HOMEBREW 37 foot "Low Noise Vertical" at 11 feet AGL for LF/MW/SW.

Merced, Central California, 37, 18, 37N   120, 30, 6W CM97rh