Tube failure -- what would happen in worst case?


How do you determine when a tube is to be replaced?
Can a tube ever glow bright red and blow up?
If it does, would it damage the amp itself as well as other components including the speakers?
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Showing 1 response by notserp300

I was playing a gig last night with my Vox AD50VT amp which has one 12AX7 preamp tube. Suddenly I lost all sound. Is that a normal failure mode for a tube? Is that uncommon? I bought this amp new almost 7 years ago and love the sound of it. I have a recording of the song when it failed and it seems like you can hear the tone breaking up and getting scratchy right before all sound was lost. Any ideas appreciated.

Bill