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[Amps] IMD (Some important useful corrections)

To: <amps@contesting.com>
Subject: [Amps] IMD (Some important useful corrections)
From: "Tom Rauch" <w8ji@contesting.com>
Reply-to: Tom Rauch <w8ji@contesting.com>
Date: Sat, 29 Sep 2007 10:24:46 -0400
List-post: <mailto:amps@contesting.com>
> The tube is being tested in AB1, ZERO grid current, 
> therefore Eimac is not
> overdriving it.

Wrong.
It is certainly possible to overdrive a tube without grid 
current or excessive grid current. Odd-order products are 
caused by flaws or imperfections in the transfer 
characteristics, and having zero grid current does not 
prevent that.

>They are simply showing the degradation when the tube is 
>run
> at its TYPICAL rating of 2KV. I have no idea how they 
> computed the PEP; the
> spec sheet is dated 1961 and the procedure may have been 
> different. If you
> read back to my prior post I stated 2KV @ 245ma which is 
> only 490W INPUT.
> Let us both agree that the PEP is a typo.

Not true.
Having two tones raises the PEP by a factor of four over a 
single tone.  The way it REALLY works is:

One tone by itself:
average, peak envelope, and per tone is the SAME.

Two equal level tones:
1.) Each  tone is 1/2 the average and 1/4 the peak envelope

2.) Average is the sum of power of the two tones. This is 
the heating power and the power that would show on an 
average reading meter.

3.) Peak envelope power is four times the power of each 
tone, or twice the average power. This is the power that 
shows on a Peak Envelope Power meter.

Now that we see how it works, if we look at the 490 watts 
and assume the meters were average or true RMS reading 
meters we would have:

490 watts AVERAGE input power
980 watts PEAK Envelope Power input.
The single tone contribution to input power would be 245 
watts

> When run at only 1500V the IMD is acceptable. Im again 
> making the assumption
> that the screen is VR tube regulated in Eimacs1961 test.

Eimac only gives one particular set of test conditions for 
one test fixture and in general one particular setting that 
someone selected. There are an infinite number of variables 
involved, and we can't conclude based on the data published 
that the "IM gets worse as HV is raised".

A statement like that is taking the data sheets far beyond 
what they really say. Even Eimac, if we take the time to 
read, warns users to test in the actual application and the 
data sheets only represent a few randomly selected operating 
points in one particular hardware configuration.

What we find in an actual circuit can be much worse than 
Eimac shows, or it can be significatly better. It doesn't 
even have to follow the trends. As a matter of fact if the 
screen is regulated and adjusted to optimum values and if 
output power remains the same, and increase in HV almost 
always improves IM performance.


> OTOH, I know of no commercial ham amp that runs any 4CX250 
> at 1500V and many
> hams push them above 2KV which just makes matters worse.

Not true. That statement is most likely based on either 
misunderstanding data sheets or not reading Eimac's cautions 
that the actual circuit needs tested.

73 Tom 


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