300b lovers

Which rectifier is better: full wave or bridge?

Full wave is preferred if you are planning a bipolar (+ and -) power supply. If only a single pole, a bridge does have the advantage of the power transformer not needing a center tap. That advantage is because a center tap is never truly centered, so the output from the transformer applied to a full wave is slightly different with each half of the AC waveform. This means the diodes are making slightly different current spikes as they commutate (turn on and off). 

That might not make much of a difference, since the best way to snub the circuit (to kill the swept resonance that occurs when the diodes shut off) is to snub the rectifier with a resistor and capacitor in series across the input to the diodes. In case its not clear, the source of 'diode noise' is really the power transformer inductance, interacting with the capacitance in the junctions of the diodes. For this reason, if you use a semiconductor rectifier setup, you really want to keep the leads from the power transformer as short as possible.

If you do that right, you can make the nasty silicon rectifiers perfectly silent; obviating any need for a tube rectifier (who's main advantage is low 'rectifier noise'). I put that last bit in quotes since the transformer is what is causing the noise, reacting to the rectifier.

In the old days it was common practice to put a 0.01uf cap in parallel with semiconductor rectifiers. This does nothing and might actually make the problem worse. Any diode junction, if you plan to snub the rectifier itself, must use a resistor in series with a small capacitance to properly snub the rectifier. But usually you can have great success with just a resistor and small capacitance at the input to the rectifiers instead, since snubbing the transformer is putting out the match rather than the forest fire.

Hi @lynn_olson ​​​​@atmasphere ,

Thank you a lot for detailed answers!

I have another question:

In balanced push-pull self bias output tubes is not a big issue because the cathode resistor and capacitor are out of the main signal path. But what to do in my case with a 300B SET. 

Now I use self bias with 50uF AN Kaisei NP bypassed by 4750uF Nichicon and two Ohmite Gold 10W resistors in parallel.

So the question is what is the best solution for SET? Fixed bias? Is fixed-bias reliable and safe? What is important to know for building a negative power supply for fixed bias?

To complete the current loop around the 300B (or any other power tube), there has to be a low-impedance path from the cathode to the ground side of the filter cap of the B+ supply.

This can be (A) fixed-bias operation with the cathode at ground, or using something like a 10-ohm current-sense resistor. This requires an adjustable low-noise -80 volt supply, and a meter across the current-sense resistor. Adjust the minus supply until you have 70 to 80 mA flowing through the 300B. The plate voltage also has to be reduced by 80 volts or so, since you’re not dropping 80 volts across a cathode resistor.

A potential source of instability for the fixed-bias circuit is having a regulated minus supply while the main B+ supply is unregulated. Small variations in AC power voltage can result in large changes in bias point. The solution is either have a tracking feature for the minus supply, or regulate the main B+ supply, which is not cheap. In other words, when both ends of the tube are controlled by plus and minus supplies, they should track each other, or be fully regulated.

The (B), self-bias option is dropping 80 volts across a 20-watt cathode resistor, and bypassing it with 200 uF of film capacitor. B+ will be around 425 to 480 volts at the top of the output transformer primary. Sonics will be strongly affected by the quality of the film capacitor since it is in the main current loop of the 300B. Adjustment of current flow is not necessary since the cathode resistor provides a degree of negative feedback for the DC current flow through the tube.

I continued tuning my amplifier for the Hashimoto A-107 interstage transformer (IT).

I changed the load resistor from 57K to 39K Ohm. The difference in square wave overshoot is very small, but frequency response peak is just +0.5dB instead of +1.3dB.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/tdDuNM15cziP4o5g9

But the most important - the rough upper mid coloration was gone with 39K.

I also increased 6sn7 idle current from 7.5mA and 9mA. When it was RC coupling before the idle current was 6.2mA.

In general, sound became more refined and organic with much better low level details. Now in addition to advantages that IT gives versus RC that I talked about before (like faster transients, better more detailed rhythm reproduction and bass control). I got more low level details, much more realistic drums kick/punch reproduction, piano is more real, as well as timbales, better instrument separation (less congestion on complex music), and more real musicians presentation in my room. 

Next step moving from an old amplifier box + power supply external maquette to two box solution (stereo amplifier + power supply).

https://youtu.be/Hro6eYBvb68