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Re: [Amps] 'Good engineering'

To: Jim Thomson <Jim.thom@telus.net>
Subject: Re: [Amps] 'Good engineering'
From: Roger <sub1@rogerhalstead.com>
Date: Fri, 26 Mar 2010 13:17:09 -0400
List-post: <amps@contesting.com">mailto:amps@contesting.com>

Jim Thomson wrote:
> Date: Thu, 25 Mar 2010 07:30:45 -0700
> From: James Colville <jimw7ry@gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Amps] 'Good engineering'
>
>
> I'm sure glad I have a delete key. And a spam box.
>
> Oh... And by the way Jim (VE7RF).... The legal, moral, fair, and gentlemanly
> allowable power output here in the US is 1500 watts.
>   
I'd agree with the legal aspect here in the US, BUT... when it comes to 
the pileups, which is more fair, moral?, and gentlemanly?  One quick 
call with a strong clean signal followed by a 15 to 20 second exchange, 
or stations trying to get the most out of lesser signals by turning up 
the audio gain, compression, and running all the drive they have 
available and calling repeatedly. Then when they finally do connect with 
the DX, giving him their and their station's life history. Then there 
are hundreds of 100 watt stations calling 4 or 5 times and often far 
more than that.
So which is more far and gentlemanly, one quick call, or call, after 
call, after call... OTOH it's at least 75% skill/timing.

Now I did mention the one station on 6-meters from the South West US 
that is not only *loud* but broad as well. I don't know what he's 
running and from his attitude I'm sure he thinks it's clean, but when 
stations a mile or two from me running the legal limit are normal band 
width, I don't think it's my receiver.

With my voice characteristics my signal does benefit from moderate 
compression and actually sounds better than without BUT most of the time 
I operate from my shop (toy house) which is quiet at times. OTOH when 
the humidifier is running which is most of the time in cold weather and 
the circulating fans, plus ceiling fans the compressor makes it sound 
like I'm running one of those super amps with cooling running just short 
of hurricane force. Then when the heater fires up it really gets loud. 
The heater is one of those used in aircraft hangars. It's a 30' long 
IR/tube heater. Then in the warmer weather it's the air conditioner.  So 
I have to remember to change the audio settings appropriate to conditions.

Me? I'm far more concerned with the band width and sound of the stations 
than the power. My own station at present is just a barefoot 756 Pro 
with some reasonably good antennas.

73

Roger (K8RI)
> 73
> Jim W7RY
>
> ##  That's funny.  The fellow at AES tells me the big slugs
> for the BIRD/CD  line sections were literally flying off the 
> shelves that week  I ordered 5 x of em.  [ mine were small to big]
> There was a big contest coming up apparently. 
>
> ##  legal limit here is  2250 w pep on ssb.... measured across a Z
> matched load.    The load is the ANT.   Allow  for just .5db line loss
> [11%].. and now I gotta  generate 2.5 kw... just to get  2250 w 
> at the top of the tower !   Now if feedline loss is 1 db [21%],
> now I have to generate 2848 w pep... to get 2250 w pep to top 
> of tower. 
>
> ##  Kinda  tough  for me to generate 2.5 kw.. much less 2848w
> from a 8877, without putting the IMD into garbage land. 
> 2 x 8877's  is just not cost effective..even Chinese 8877's.  
>
> ## legal limit on AM  is  800 W  cxr.    That's 3.2 kw pep.. with  100%
> pos modulation.. and 4 kw pep.. with  125% pos modulation....
> and 4.8 kw pep.. with  150%  modulation.  
>
> ##  To get 4.8 kw pep  to the  top of the tower  with just 1 db of 
> feedline loss [21%]  requires the amp to put out 4800/.79=6075 w pep. 
>
> ## typ tank eff on the high bands is 50-60%, on a linear amp. That
> requires a lot of anode diss.  Now if you want to dabble with quasi
> class A modes.. and superb imd... u need even more anode diss. 
>
> ##  What tube do you suggest I use ??   BTW... CTR surplus is selling
> YC-156's  for  $125.00 .. but  you better  hurry, he doesn't have many left.
> www.ctrsurplus.com   [419] 683-3535.   Arnold Howell, of Howell tube sales,
> has abt  26 x YC-156's left. [ youngstown, ohio]    CTR is also in Ohio. 
>
> ##  what's moral, ethical, or gentlemanly  to run 1.5 kw into  6 x yagi's on
> a  big tower.. with an ERP of  8-15 kw  ???   And then scream into the mic
> for 48 hrs straight, making thousands of useless qso's ?? 
>
> ##  meanwhile, 2 kw into an inverted vee on a noisy 160/75m  band, 
> during summer months... is  a... 'no-no' !  
>
> Jim  VE7RF   
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