Hello!
I'm a Student, and i want to simulate a Zen Amplifier with a Shareware or Freeware. Can you propose me one which can do this? It's very important for me!
I made a Zen amplifier but it's don't work ... maybe ma PCB don't correspond with schematics... I don't know
( Sorry for my english, I'm french and I don't have electronics vocabulary enough )
I'm a Student, and i want to simulate a Zen Amplifier with a Shareware or Freeware. Can you propose me one which can do this? It's very important for me!
I made a Zen amplifier but it's don't work ... maybe ma PCB don't correspond with schematics... I don't know
( Sorry for my english, I'm french and I don't have electronics vocabulary enough
)
Try switcherCAD from Linear Technology. It is a fully functional Spice based time domain simulator. It won't help you checking your PCB but it will show some of the the circuit's possible performance and the likely results of some types of changes.
That said, you really need to learn a bit about using Spice (and the models of semiconductor components) in order to know when it is telling you something close to reality and when it isn't (which is about 1/2 the time). I suggest Tuinenga's book as a good starting place.
In order to model your circuit you will need spice models of the semiconductors used. switcherCAD comes with a library of many Linear Technology parts, and some others, but has a limited power MOSFET library. You may need to hunt down models of the devices used in your amp and import them into the swCAD library. The best source for such models is usually the manufacturer's web site. They sometimes explain limitations of the models supplied and the operating conditions under which you can expect the model to give reasonable results. If not, you're on your own.
Don't expect models to give very good results at high temperatures unless they specifically say the model has been tweeked for high temp operation. YOU must anticipate the die temperature at which the devices will operate in YOUR amp (in this case you can measure the case temp and use the thermal resistance to calculate an approximate die temp) and plug the appropriate simulation temperature into the simulation. Spice will not automatically calculate a die temperature based on the operating conditions and adjust the model. If you enter 20C it will assume the die temp is 20C even if you are burning 200W and your heatsink temperature is 50C.
You can DL switcherCAD here for free:
http://www.linear.com/designtools/softwareRegistration.jsp
Check your local university library for books on spice...
I_F
That said, you really need to learn a bit about using Spice (and the models of semiconductor components) in order to know when it is telling you something close to reality and when it isn't (which is about 1/2 the time). I suggest Tuinenga's book as a good starting place.
In order to model your circuit you will need spice models of the semiconductors used. switcherCAD comes with a library of many Linear Technology parts, and some others, but has a limited power MOSFET library. You may need to hunt down models of the devices used in your amp and import them into the swCAD library. The best source for such models is usually the manufacturer's web site. They sometimes explain limitations of the models supplied and the operating conditions under which you can expect the model to give reasonable results. If not, you're on your own.
Don't expect models to give very good results at high temperatures unless they specifically say the model has been tweeked for high temp operation. YOU must anticipate the die temperature at which the devices will operate in YOUR amp (in this case you can measure the case temp and use the thermal resistance to calculate an approximate die temp) and plug the appropriate simulation temperature into the simulation. Spice will not automatically calculate a die temperature based on the operating conditions and adjust the model. If you enter 20C it will assume the die temp is 20C even if you are burning 200W and your heatsink temperature is 50C.
You can DL switcherCAD here for free:
http://www.linear.com/designtools/softwareRegistration.jsp
Check your local university library for books on spice...
I_F
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