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    Building, troubleshooting and testing of these amplifiers should only be
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Help please: Bias and hum

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banpuku, the dielectric strength practically means nothing unless the total coil is fully encapsulated by solid insulation with a certain thickness - for a typical choke it is the creepage and clearance distance that is important, and what withstand voltage the manufacturer tests the product to.

Also important is to what VAC across the coil the manufacturer rates the part, and specifies the inductance at.
 
Update: the thermistors and diodes prior to the 83 rectifier have been installed. Amp has been playing for about 1 hour without any "pop" during the music. However, the "pop" still occurs when the B+ is powered on. Further thoughts? I read on Valvewizard that he recommends putting a 47k or 100k resistor across the hot & neutral of the B+ at the power switch. This supposedly prevents inrush current which causes the pop, according to Valvewizard. I would have thought the thermistors would have cured this, but it did not.

Euro21: I will have to ask Monolith Magnetics about the PS chokes.

With warm heaters your amp is ready to produce sound from any current passing suddenly through the output tubes. Get rid of the delay circuit. The thermistors pass current even when cold so they don't do what you think they will and they react within .1 sec. and pass full current very quickly.
 
20to20: I understand that it is current rush pop. What I don't understand is "why" this is happening and "how to solve".

Why????? Because your cathodes are hot before the B+ is applied! It's to be expected, not surprising at all. It's because you delay the B+. You are in effect hot switching your amp. Thermistors do not do what everyone thinks they do. They are over and done working in .1 sec. after power is applied to them and they also allow startup current through that creates a pulse in the OPT that goes to the speaker.
 
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If you use "standby" switch, the PSU pre charging, the output tube working with reduced B+ (and different -reduced- operating point), and rising time of B+ is about 0.8s to reduced maximum (if you use for example 3k3 resistor paralleled with standby switch), so inrush "pop" can be significantly moderated.

After shorting standby switch, practically shouldn't be pop.
 
I tried the snubber: no help. still pops.

So, here is what I have tried:

1. Resistor across 1 AC leg switch
2. snubber
3. thermistor across 1 AC leg and then another thermistor across the other AC leg swith
4. shorted 45B output tube grid to ground

Still, "pop" on start up.

Darn!
 
banpuku,

Use a 5AR4 rectifier, if the voltage and current ratings are OK for your amplifier.
It will have a little more drop than the type 83.

But . . . the 5AR4 has an intrinsic slow start, it is an indirectly heated cathode.
That way, you do not have to use a B+ [delay] switch. No more Pop! at the amp turn on.
 
Yes, 490V B+. These are 45B tubes.

I see the spec sheet says B+ (supply) to be 495v but plate voltage is another thing specified, and I believe I read this tube to have 420v max plate voltage, and that does not mean 420v a-k voltage. It also seems to suggest on the sheet you referenced for voltages that it specifies the 1.8K cathode resistance which you have but with 408v on the plate.
 
banpuku,

My Post #76 has an error. I got caught by the administrator 30 minute limit,
someone came to the door and distracted me.
The 5AR4 max voltage is too close to your B+ secondary voltage 500V versus 490V.

Your Pop! is the result of a warm 45 tube filament, and then B+ coming on suddenly when you switch the 83 B+ switch.

The 5Z3 is only rated for 450V transformer, not 490V transformer.
And the 5Z3 is almost instant on, because it is a directly heated filament (no cathode).

Find another tube rectifier, which meets the voltage rating of your transformer, and current draw of your amplifier.
They will have a little more voltage drop than the type 83.

Be sure to use a tube rectifier that is an automatic slow start, (indirectly heated cathode).
That way, you do not have to use a B+ [delay] switch.
No more Pop! at the amp turn on.

This problem can be solved with the right rectifier, you are not going to be able to solve it with the type 83 rectifier.
 
6A3sUMMER: Per your post, I have 2 things going on here:

1. Using my existing PS schematic (cLCLC), both the 5Z3 and 83 limits are too close to operating voltage. So, if the c (0.68uF) is eliminated, then the choke power supply would bump up the operating limits of the 5Z3 to 550V and the 83 to 550-595V. Also, the choke power supply would produce a B+ of 430V, well within the specs of the 5Z3 and 83.

2. HOWEVER, both the 5Z3 & 83 are directly heated and thus this would continue to have the pop issue. Assuming the removal of c1, then we could safely use the 5AR4 with the LCLC PS design. The 5AR4 would produce 420V output, assuming the 500-0-500 power transformer.

Sound right?
 
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