21 Mar
2006
21 Mar
'06
12:01 p.m.
On Tuesday 21 March 2006 06:59, Chris Bannister wrote:
On Sun, Mar 19, 2006 at 11:35:22AM -0500, Gene Heskett
wrote:
I wasn't knocking it. :-)
Not if the safety stuff is working. Opening a cabinet door to gain
access to any of that puts dead short crowbars across the high voltage
stuff at the same time it opens the main plate control relay/breaker.
It makes an impressive amount of noise and light when that happens,
even more impressive if the breaker doesn't open on command as that
leaves a nice short ciruit across a 7 kv to 22 kv supply capable of 10
or more amps continuous duty. When the breaker doesn't open, say by-by
to a 4000 pound plate transformer and get ready to go stomp out the
grass fires that the fuses on the substation pole will start when they
try to open up under short circuit conditions but the holder has so
much metal evaporated onto it that it keeps the circuit alive. That
lights up the evening rather nicely.
Those aren't "belts", they are third degree burns with a very high
probability of being lethal, been there, done that, got the shingles
from it even. But I'm still here.
Thanks for
the insight. When I worked for Telecom, I commisioned
some broadcast circuits from the local radio station and there
were a few old broadcast magazines from the 60's and they were
interesting reading, esp the techniques that were used with what
little was available at the time.
Don't knock it too loudly, the tv transmitter I help maintain yet,
an old water cooled GE TT42-TF3a combo was
originally made about then.
And it still makes 'good pictures' yet today. But thats part of the
You can get some nasty "belts" off those tubes. :-) Some (most?) of the records from the 60's sound a
lot better than some
you can get today, which seems surprising considering the technology
available. Maybe less is better than more :-)
Maybe there was so much to look out for, like 'birds nests', 'earth
loops' etc., that one had to be particulary diligent?
Or maybe the components of today are manufactured with 'cheaper'
materials?
I think thats the major problem today. The fact that digital guarantees
a certain level of accuracy is often overridden by the accuracy of the
digital. It certainly seems to have engendered a generation of circuit
designers that have no concept of good design practice in the analog
sections of their products. Thats why the good stuff costs more money,
lots more in some cases.
--
Cheers, Gene
People having trouble with vz bouncing email to me should add the word
'online' between the 'verizon', and the dot which bypasses vz's
stupid bounce rules. I do use spamassassin too. :-)
Yahoo.com and AOL/TW attorneys please note, additions to the above
message by Gene Heskett are:
Copyright 2006 by Maurice Eugene Heskett, all rights reserved.