Paperw8: a 3dB reduction in voltage corresponds to a 6dB reduction in power.I haven't taken the time to read through most of this thread, but I'll just say with respect to the quoted comments that neither is correct.
Bombaywalla: wrong! a 3dB reduction in POWER corresponds to a 6dB reduction in VOLTAGE.
A 3db reduction in power corresponds to a 3db reduction in voltage, for a given impedance. A 6db reduction in power corresponds to a 6db reduction in voltage, for a given impedance.
To see that, consider that a 3db reduction in voltage corresponds to the voltage being reduced by a factor of 0.707. Since, as I think we all agree, P = Esquared/R, that 3db reduction in voltage results in power being reduced by a factor of 0.707 x 0.707 = 0.5, which is also 3db.
Regards,
-- Al