I’ve imported one of my designs from LTSpice and have been updating the footprints of common components, however, when it comes to the 12AX7 dual triode tube footprints, each half of the tube has a separate footprint, instead of one footprint for both triode sections. Also, there’s no filament pins. I’m using the Valve:Valve_ECC-83-2 footprint.
I’m probably doing this all wrong to get this split footprint issue. I’ll be duplicating the channel and there are shared 12AX7 sections for the left and right channel inputs.
Anyone who does vacuum tube designs with PCBs, can you share some pointers on merging the U1-A and U1-B sections and modeling the filament pins?
This design uses 3 dual triodes, however, each triode section is a full footprint when placed in the PCB editor.
I hereby certify that I am not simply asking someone else to design a footprint for me.
This is an auto-generated message that is in place on the “footprints” section of the KiCad.info forum. If I remove it and ask for a footprint to be designed anyway, I understand that I will be subject to forum members telling me to go design my own footprint or referring me to a 3rd party footprint site.
The ECC-83 Symbol in Kicad consists of three parts. In this case they are U2A, U2B & U2C. Note the different pin numbers in each part.
It does not matter which part you open to select Properties, the result is always U2.
After opening the Properties in the Schematic Editor, you then assign a Footprint to that U2 symbol.
You then end up with 3 parts for the symbol to place on the Schematic and 1 footprint to place on the PCB.
The reason for this is you have imported a Spice symbol and not a Schematic Library symbol.
Use the symbol from the Schematic Library and this should cure your problem.
Spice symbols are for Simulation. Schematic Library symbols are for drawing Schematics.
Valves use exactly the same method for placing on a Schematic as ICs. Refer to your post in the “LM339, no Pins thread”.
What I ended up doing is finding the ECC83 part in KiCad’s own library and replacing the :“symbols” from the imported schematic. Like the LM339, KiCad’s “units” have a units C–filament.
The only issue is that the footprint of KiCad’s ECC83 isn’t round. So I will need to change that. It’s listed as a European socket, but in my near 7 decades working with valves, never saw a tube socket with pins arranged in a non-circular pattern.
Remember that what matters is not how the tube’s pins are arranged but how the socket’s pins are. Best if you have the datasheet for the socket or the real thing in front of you to measure. If you have a circular array of tube socket pins, it’s fairly easy to make the footprint.
Every socket I have in stock is arranged in a circular pattern. There is a circular footprint available, so I’ll likely use that and replace the default.
You already posted a screenshot from a PCB with the pins of your lightbulb in a circle, and with oval holes. So you can simply reuse that one if it fits your sockets.
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Yes, that was when I had to assign a footprint to a LTspice symbol that I imported with the schematic. But I later found those symbols didn’t work, so I found a part in KiCad’s library but the footprint will have to be changed to the round one I originally posted.
