Post #814481 by tikitubeamps on Wed, Dec 18, 2024 3:28 PM

@thebambooham ah, another engineer! You raise an excellent point. Heat dissipation was a central concern from the start of this project. The amps all have ventilation holes built into the bottom, top, and sometimes the back. The "TIKI" holes, for example, are ventilation. Further, each hole has a slight chamfer on the outside to create a Venturi effect, drawing cool air in more rapidly. The yellowish tiki amp (Isaac) is built as a chimney, that is, it's a hollow cylinder with open top and bottom to allow hot air to convection upwards. I say "open top and bottom" but there are grilles to keep fingers out of the circuitry.

The transformers do generate some heat though, as do the tubes themselves. The wood gets warm to the touch but not hot. All the internal components are rated to 185 degrees F. I've run the amps for upwards of 8 hours straight with no issues...there's been no change in sound quality nor drift in component values. They've actually performed better than I expected.