OT(?) germanium transistors

[Jim Patchell]

    Even in Germanium transistors, you have different constructions.  Many of the earlier devices were point contact.  The 2n107 was probably the most "famous" among those at least to the experimenters.  They had pretty low breakdown voltage.  I used to run my projects from a pair of flashlight batteries.

    Then you have the junction transistors.

    The biggest difference between germanium and silicon is the band gap voltage.  Vbe for a germanium transistor was something around .2 to .3 volts, while silicon is .6.

    -Jim

edanderson wrote:

> I hope this in some way relevant (seems possible).  I am wondering what gives germanium transistors their different sound.  Is it just that the more modern silicon designs have better linearity or is there something else?  All other things being equal, how would two transistors compare if one was silicon based and the other germanium?
>
> I know that germanium 2n270 and 2n261x transistors showed up in several effects boxes- so are there many older synth designs that used germanium transistors?
>
> Thanks for contributing to what one of the most informative lists I've subscribed to thus far.
>
> Ed Anderson