DCAudioDIY.com

Check this out.
https://antiqueradio.org/philc08.htm

Also you might want to look at this for info:

Fortunately, the Philco Model 60 does have a power transformer.

https://philcoradio.com/library/index.p ... -model-60/

David M.

Unfortunately the chassis is long gone. Dad only had the case, and he put a Bose bluetooth speaker behind it.

I have looked but chassis (sic) are hard to come by. Would essentially need to buy an entire new radio and transfer everything over to it.

So with that all said - my options as I see them

I could buy a new tube amp and modify the case to utilize it. For example this one that PE sells. https://www.parts-express.com/Dayton-Au ... quantity=1

I could buy this and take the faceplate off, rear mount it and make the cutouts so the VU gauges showed. If I did that and figured out some older knobs to use instead of the ones it has, that could give me a period correct-esque appearance, and the older sound I would like. While it doesn't have an fm tuner- I could us tunedin on my phone and listen to any radio station technically.

Other option I thought of is a retro stereo. Would need a 12V power supply which would not be hard to do and all fit in the case easily. Again it is modifying the face but I am ok with that. Spirit of my Dad having the case is preserved. Thinking something like this https://www.retromanufacturing.com/coll ... 6990593180

Both options allow using the original case and give enough power to drive the sprites for sure. Honestly I think I could get away with the 20watt tube amp from PE for what I would be doing.

Appreciate everyone's assitance and input. Been a rough week with Dad passing and I am wanting to use this the way I know he wanted to, but did not have the skills for. Know there is a way to make it work without going crazy.

Very sorry to hear about your father's passing. I'm sure it's been a very difficult week for you and your family. Really sweet idea to build this radio project as a reminder of him.

If you would like vintage sound, the way to get that is to build the same type of amplifier that the radio would have had, and to get a speaker that would be similar. Any of the proposed amplifiers that have been mentioned so far would not get you there.

The amplifier needed is quite simple in design and inexpensive. And there are quite a few people in this forum that could offer assistance, and even give you most of the parts, myself included. The amplifier would be a single-ended design, using a one to two lb. output transformer. The amplifier would have a pentode or beam-type tube such as a 6V6 or 6K6 for output and would produce about two watts. The input stage could be any triode, such as 1/2 of a 12AX7 or 6AV6. Here is the critical thing. The amplifier should not have feedback. This causes the output impedance to be high, and the amplifier will thus have a peak in its response at the resonance of the speaker. This will give the vintage "honk" that a radio of this type has. You would be able to tame the strength of the honk by either placing a resistor in parallel with the speaker or adding a touch of feedback into the amp. You would need a simple power supply that would give you about 300 dc volts at 50 mA, plus a 6-volt winding on the power transformer capable of 1 amp. Rectification for the 300 V dc could be either ss or tube, but if tube additional current would be needed for that tube's heater.

On to the speaker. Choose a paper-cone speaker, probably a 6-inch round. Check the size for the cabinet. The original speaker would have had a stiff suspension and its free-air resonance would likely be quite high, perhaps around 100 Hz. I like bass, and certainly modern recorded music has more bass than recordings of the period of the radio. So I would take some liberty here and select a speaker with a free-air resonance of around 50 Hz. This will be a deviation from the true vintage sound, but in a good way and make it more pleasing to listen to.

Good luck. I think your dad would have been pleased.

Is anyone game for a group project? We only need 3-4 folks to make this a reality. Anyone could be a parts donor, but too many cooks in the kitchen would be bad juju IMHO.
As David pointed out, most of us have the parts to build a 'period correct' amp sitting around collecting dust.
Getting a chassis that's a good physical fit is probably the toughest part, but not a huge problem. Worst case, just use perfboard and some standoff. I did say "worst"......
It IS a simple amp, for sure. Let's not overcomplicate it.

I appreciate you providing this information. Knowing nothing about tubes or tube amplifiers, I didn't realize the differences between different styles. Appreciate your recommendations. A little over a year and a half ago we moved to NC, and I have not dabbled in anything audio in quite some time. Got on a roll as far as building well known speaker designs and definitely miss that, but never went down the rabbit hole of amplifiers. It seemed a very expensive rabbit hole honestly, so I think I avoided it. Would very much like to learn more as to how they work and what is going on in these boxes. Know it is your forte, so again I appreciate the time you are taking.

I would love to make something, but my skills are limited to soldering and following instructions. In full disclosure, we also don't live in the area anymore. My work moved me to NC in 2023 and I do not get up there much, though I would be happy to come up for this. I would very much want to learn how it all works and be involved in putting it together. Assuming you are up for a large bearded apprentice. I don't want anyone to feel any kind of obligation here. I am happy to source things if I know exactly what to look for and where to get it, then go step by step here getting pointers from the group ?

Again, cannot thank everyone enough

I appreciate this. It has definitely put me through the ringer. Despite this being the inevitable outcome, the timing was in no way expected which has given the whole thing additional humps on the emotional roller coaster. He was the greatest man I have ever known, and I just think he would be tickled to death knowing I turned this shell of a radio into something we actually used every day. Growing up poor we had to be very resourceful, and this is very much in line with that sentiment.