http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/pjay99/guruscordell.htm

"If you like uncolored sound, go solid state. If you like the coloration
that tubes add to the sound, then go with tubes, recognizing that the
coloration will often be a strong function of what speakers are used. Tubes
clip more gracefully than most solid state amps, but again, if you are
serious about high-end audio, your amp should never ever be clipping,
whether it is tube or solid state. Because tube amplifiers tend to be
capable of less power, they will be clipping more often into a given
loudspeaker."

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/pjay99/guruscordell.htm

"If you like uncolored sound, go solid state. If you like the coloration
that tubes add to the sound, then go with tubes, recognizing that the
coloration will often be a strong function of what speakers are used.
Tubes
clip more gracefully than most solid state amps, but again, if you are
serious about high-end audio, your amp should never ever be clipping,
whether it is tube or solid state. Because tube amplifiers tend to be
capable of less power, they will be clipping more often into a given
loudspeaker."



when i want color i add a light organ.

if i want graceful clipping i use toenail cutters.

by streaching a point i could point to radar and broadcast transmitters and
argue the last statement.

its kinda like a wine review: fruity yet dry with full body

"TimPerry" wrote in message


by streaching a point i could point to radar and
broadcast transmitters and argue the last statement.

A large number of modern radar and broadcast transmitters are now completely
SS.

For example the fire control radar for the Hawk air defense missile system,
an earlier version of which I maintained back in the days of tubes, is now
completely SS and has more than 5 times the effective range as the old tubed
(Klystron) version.

I understand that completely SS high-powered AM and SW transmitters are also
old news.

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"TimPerry" wrote in message


by streaching a point i could point to radar and
broadcast transmitters and argue the last statement.

A large number of modern radar and broadcast transmitters are now
completely
SS.

For example the fire control radar for the Hawk air defense missile
system,
an earlier version of which I maintained back in the days of tubes, is now
completely SS and has more than 5 times the effective range as the old
tubed
(Klystron) version.

I understand that completely SS high-powered AM and SW transmitters are
also
old news.


high power SS transmitters are made by combining many low power modules.

i have one AM that runs over 10 kW of audio with 2 push pull tubes.

One of the weirdest and most elaborate uses of tubes I ever saw was in a
steel mill. I spent a summer in the hot strip at Empire Detroit Steel in
Mansfield, Ohio. When an ingot of steel is rolled out into a sheet it moves
along conveyer rolls. The thinner it gets, the faster it has to move,
because it is elongating. Believe it or not... They use sine wave generators
and tube amplifiers to create variable frequency AC to drive AC synchronous
motors for super accurate speed control of the various roll sets. There was
a room full of motor control equipment and much of it was racks and racks of
tube amps, based on the old 6L6-GC; the same tubes used in the power section
of my 100 watt Fender Twin guitar amp.

James. )



"TimPerry" wrote in message
...

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"TimPerry" wrote in message


by streaching a point i could point to radar and
broadcast transmitters and argue the last statement.

A large number of modern radar and broadcast transmitters are now
completely
SS.

For example the fire control radar for the Hawk air defense missile
system,
an earlier version of which I maintained back in the days of tubes, is
now
completely SS and has more than 5 times the effective range as the old
tubed
(Klystron) version.

I understand that completely SS high-powered AM and SW transmitters are
also
old news.


high power SS transmitters are made by combining many low power modules.

i have one AM that runs over 10 kW of audio with 2 push pull tubes.

Solid state transmitters are becoming more common. They have good
efficiency but employ lots of splitters and combiners to utilize a lot
of plug-in modules, each of 100 to 1000 watts typically. Lightning
strikes which were expensive before can be catastrophic now, but since
most broadcast facilities are owned by Clear Channel now, they can
afford to amortize the occasional $50-100K wipeout with the total
increased efficiency of the SS transmitters. Also, the engineering
staffs having been outsourced or dramatically cut back, and usually
consisting of IT rather than old line broadcast people, the modular
design enables totally unskilled people to practice pluck-and-chuck
maintenance.

Spectral purity is of course, as is usually the case, better with the
tubes.

"Bret Ludwig" wrote in message
oups.com...
Solid state transmitters are becoming more common. They have good
efficiency but employ lots of splitters and combiners to utilize a lot
of plug-in modules, each of 100 to 1000 watts typically. Lightning
strikes which were expensive before can be catastrophic now, but since
most broadcast facilities are owned by Clear Channel now,

approx 10% is not 'most'


they can afford to amortize the occasional $50-100K wipeout

repairs are not capitol expenses nor are they amortized. repairs must come
out of operating budget.

with the total
increased efficiency of the SS transmitters.

some solid FM transmitters are only 50% efficient as calculated by power
used to power out.

often the huge cost differance prevents the purxchace of SS units. at
current prices you could buy tubes for something like 100 years before
getting a return on investment (for high power units).

example: 35kw FM tube type $65,000 USD solid state up to nearly
$200,000 for the top brand

Also, the engineering
staffs having been outsourced or dramatically cut back, and usually
consisting of IT rather than old line broadcast people, the modular
design enables totally unskilled people to practice pluck-and-chuck
maintenance.

totally unskilled people can barely tie their shoelaces. few facilities,
believe it or not, keep ANY spare power modules on hand. if you are lucky
there is an old spare transmitter as a backup.


Spectral purity is of course, as is usually the case, better with the
tubes.


"Spectral purity" will be the result of a combination of factors including
but not limited to design, age, tuning, instillation, environment, and
quality of replacement parts such as tubes or transistors. you could
accurately say most NEW equipment is "purer" then older equipment... but
someone will ask: what do you mean by "pure?" some of the stuff built in
1946 has a hard time meeting present day requirements in regards to 3rd
harmonic emissions.

"TimPerry" wrote in message

"Arny Krueger" wrote in message
...
"TimPerry" wrote in
message

by streaching a point i could point to radar and
broadcast transmitters and argue the last statement.

A large number of modern radar and broadcast
transmitters are now completely SS.

For example the fire control radar for the Hawk air
defense missile system, an earlier version of which I
maintained back in the days of tubes, is now completely
SS and has more than 5 times the effective range as the
old tubed (Klystron) version.

I understand that completely SS high-powered AM and SW
transmitters are also old news.


high power SS transmitters are made by combining many low
power modules.

The radars are vaguely similar. However, they work it to a huge advantage,
as in "phased array".

i have one AM that runs over 10 kW of audio with 2 push
pull tubes.

That's humungeously old news.

BTW, no exciter or modulator? ;-)

of plug-in modules, each of 100 to 1000 watts typically. Lightning
strikes which were expensive before can be catastrophic now, but since
most broadcast facilities are owned by Clear Channel now, they can
afford to amortize the occasional $50-100K wipeout with the total
increased efficiency of the SS transmitters. Also, the engineering
staffs having been outsourced or dramatically cut back, and usually
consisting of IT rather than old line broadcast people, the modular
design enables totally unskilled people to practice pluck-and-chuck
maintenance.

Actually, lightning is not a problem with shunt-fed AM towers and grounded
FM towers where the antenna, such as the ERI Rototiller, are internally
shunt-fed.


Spectral purity is of course, as is usually the case, better with the
tubes.

Only because they used narrowband tuned tank circuits, whereas a majority of
SS RF linear amps are broadband amps.


--
Best Regards,

Mark A. Weiss, P.E.
www.mwcomms.com
-

BTW, no exciter or modulator? ;-)




the M in AM stands for modulation

Mark & Mary Ann Weiss wrote:



Spectral purity is of course, as is usually the case, better with the
tubes.

Only because they used narrowband tuned tank circuits, whereas a majority of
SS RF linear amps are broadband amps.

This is true. The old ham transmitters with pi-section output
"transformers" (they are not transfomers of course, they do a similar
load matching function with LC circuits which are effective at one
frequency) were pretty clean. Modern ham transceivers put out all kinds
of crap especially after "servicing" and the FCC doesn't care.

We have had little problem along this line with actual hams but a lot
with CBers using modified ham equipment. Some of these people are
genetic drift straight out of "Deliverance".