[Amps] Gonset 903a amplifier update

Larry n1miw at cox.net
Mon May 5 19:43:56 EDT 2008


     Well everyone, I want to say thank you to all of the help I received
here for getting this amp working again. I needed to replace several
components in the P/S, as well as the tube socket. I would've never guessed
that would've caused my oscillation problems, but with the new socket, she
seems to be quite stable! Of course, there is a "HOWEVER" that goes along
with this email... I had a new cap fail in the HV power supply (internal
arcing, followed by a funny smell). when I checked the caps, they were all
VERY hot! The unit uses 5 100uF 450 volt caps. I was wondering what would
cause this heating? This is the exact part the schematic uses, and my plate
current wouldn't exceed 250ma while testing. I believe this is almost at the
maximum current for the tube, but should they overheat enough to arc?
Transmission times were kept to roughly 30 seconds at a time with roughly 1
minute in between, give or take. I was thinking about increasing the value,
but not sure what is safe to use. If I was to keep the same value, could I
add 1 more cap to the P/S to "lighten the load" on the capacitor bank? I'm
up for any suggestions anyone may have. Thanks again, and especially to the
one I thanked personally for their time.    ...Larry




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