Three Valve Receivers
Three Valve Receivers
Three Valve Receivers
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THREE VALvE
RECEIVERS
Comprehensioe instructions for building 5 three oaloe sels
AN RF GRAMPLAYER A BATTERY.OPEMTED RECEIVER RECEIVER A PUSH.PULL A SUPERHEI'ERODYNE RECEIVER, AN ALL-WAVE RECEIVER
F irst Published 1952 Reprintetl 1953 1954 " 1955 " 1956 " 195? ,, 19b8 ,, 1960 ,, 1961 .. 196s ,,
W'C'2',-for Printed by V. Cooper & Partners Ltd. Flitcroft Street, W'6 b"ir"rar ipurtlisheri) l.td.. The Grampians, western Gate' London'
Page 5 l0 l'J l6 l9
AN RF GRAM PLAYER
Gramophonc record enthusiastswill find this three valve unit interesting for several reasons. Firstly, the normal record player has either to be built into the existing radio equipment or else situated close by it. This is not always convenient and often looks unsightly; further the player mayhaveto be speciallyset up for operating, and dismantled and packed away at the end of the session. This unit requires no direct connection with the radio receiver; it may be placed conveniently at the side of an armchair by the fue, from where it will operate a re@iver situated in any part of the room. It does not matter whether the main receiver has pick-up terminals or sockets provided, since the recordings are picked up by the receiver in the same way as a normal broadcast programme. A glance at the circuit drawn in Fig. I will show how the unit functions. Vl is simply a pre-amplifier for the miniature pick-up and is necessary on account of the very small output provided by such pick-ups. V2, which is a pentagridor heptode,combinesthe functions of modulator and oscillator. The frequencyof this R.F. signal is governed by Ll-2 and the output is fed via C8-9 to the radiator or aerial. From the foregoing it will be seenthat the unit is in reality a miniature low power transmitter. No transmitting licence is required because of its exceptionally low power, in fact its radiation propertiescan be calculated in feet. The aerial will consist of a few feet of flex, which may be laid under the rug or carpet. Its preciselength will dependon the physical distance between receiver and player and must be determined by experiment. Returning to the circuit, V3 is a conventionalrectifier used in a halfwave circuit, no chokes being used in the smoothing circuit since, with the small current drain resistancecapacity, smoothing is both practical and adequate. The unit is designed for AC operation; but, in order to reduce cost as far as is compatible with high performance, AC/DC technique has been adopted for the power supply. This means that one side of the mains will be connected to chassis and gram. motor. To avoid the possibilityof a shock the neon Nl is incorporated,and an earth connection is essentialfor it to function. An earth connection may be taken from the third pin of the mains plug. If the mains socket is not of the three-pin type an alternative earth must be provided, though all mains socketsshould be of the three-pin pattern, otherwise no metallic appliance can be connected with safety. When connected and switched on it will be found that with the mains connected one way round the neon will glow, whereas with the connections reversedthe bulb will remain dead. It is this latter condition which is correct; no attempt should be made to use the player with the neon glowing, since this indicates the chassis is live. Any form of construction can be used, but it is suggestedthat the layout shown in Fig. 2 will be found convenient and satisfactory. On completion the ',rriring should be thorougJrly checked. the valves
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plugged in and the unit srvitchedon. For preliminary tests the aeriar output of the player shourd be connectedoi placed "iosr to the aeriar socket of the receiverprolrer. After both thi player and the receiver have warmed up, the receivershould be tuned to a quiet part of the broadcast band between 500 and 600metres. with the gain of ihe receiver turned well up the oscillatortrimmer cil on the playerihould be adjusted -speaker. until the carrier is heard in the receiver's loud This cariier is easily identified since all mush and backgroundnoise *ill disappearirr thc receiverduc to the AVC action, in the same way as when a lozal station is tuned in rvhile no actual music or speechis bcing transmitted. 9.n* u suitable setting has been found Cl I may be sealedwith wax. The volume control vRr should be used in conjlnction with the mail.r receivervolume control so that a satisfactoryicrcl rvithout distortion may be obtained. .To cater for the less experiencedconstructor a practical point-to_point wiring diagram is provided (Fig. 3). COMPONENTS LIST FIG. I Cl C24 C3 a5 C6-7 C8 C9 C10-13 Cll C12 Rl R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 25 n.rfd l2v. Electrolytic R8 0.1 mfd oaper R9 0'05 mfu paper VRI 47 pfd mica TI 16 mfd 350v.Electrolytic T2 10 pfd mica 2000 pfd mica 0.01 nrfd paper Lt-2 450 pfd padder SI 200 pfd mica 3 IMO 3.9KO vl 100Ko v2 1 . 5K O V3 l0 KO P/U 5.6 KO 10 KA 3 watt NI
Pri.200-220-240 Sec.6.3v. 3 amp P.O.l Wearite D.P.D.T. toggleswitch International valve holders 6J5GT Brimar 6A8-GT B;:imar 6X5-GT Blimar Decca high fidelity pickup or sinrilar Neon lamp G.E.C. Type G
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A PUSH-PULL RECEIVER The receivershown in Figs. 6 and 7 is not intended for long_range receptiorr, but rather for local station listening and gramophone-recoic reproduction. Pcrhapsthe most unusual aspeit of this pariicular dcsign is that while only three valves are employed, the design provides fir push-pulloutput and the output stageis capableof deliviring over eight wir,tts of audio for a very modestinput. This is accomplishid by uslng double triode valvesthroughout. one harf of vl is used as a lealy grii detector while the other harf is working as a conventionarcliss A amplifier. V2 is another doubre triode but with somewhat different characteristics to those of vl. This valve has its two sectionsstrapped in paralleland is usedas a driver for v3. The driver stageis transformercoupledto V3 and when thia componentis purchasedii should be made clear that it is required to match a parallel-connected 6N7 to a 6N7 Class-B amplificr. Every care must be taken to ensurethat an output transfornrerof the corrcct ratio is chosen, otherwise severedistortion and numerousotirer troubresare likely to arise. The required pri*uiv impedanceis 80000 anode-to-anode;the ratio will, of iourr.,'A.p.ni on the speechcoil impedance. Should there be any doubt on tili;;;in; the speakermanufacturer should be consulted. Thi ratio is given by G ./.;^^ formula R :V whereR is the ratio and S the speech coil impedance. $ A popular speech coil impedance is l5o and for such a coil the required ratio is 23 : I since^ : ,/19 : \/-533: 23 approx. Constructionof the receiver is sinrplr': end the'wirinc can be followeO lrom frf; Z. t_l
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and L2 ars wound on a ;" dia. x 2" forrner, Ll consistsof 120 turns of 36 swg enantclled., tapp.:dat 75 turns from the start. The start of the winding is tl-regrid en,l rrrd the finish the earrh end. L2 is wound over the earth end of Ll rnaintaining the samewindingdirection40 turns of similar wire are nccessary. Tlte two windings may be separatedby a layer of insulationtape. The start of L2 is taken to C3/RFC and the cnd to Vl anodc. Fig. 6 aiso showsdetailsof the coil construction.On completion, should the regcnerationcontrol C3 prove inoperative, it is likely that the connectionsto L2 have beconrereversed. This will, ofcourse, provide degeneration rvhich for this applicationis undesirable. Changingover the connections to L2 providesthe remedy. COMPONENTS LIST FIG. 6
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300 pfd solid dielectrrc variible C2 500 pfd vuriable C4 100pfii n;rca c5 470 pfd nrica c6-7 0 01 mfd paper c8-9 8 mfd 350v. Electrolytic cl0-11-12 25 mfd l2v. Electrolytic c 1 3 - 1 4 32 nrfd 350v. Electrol1tic cl5-16 0 01 rnf d 1 0 0 0 vp . aper VRI 0'5 NtO potentionreter RI 2.2 N4!t R2-8 100Kf) R3 47 KO R4 82 r(() R5 22 KO R6-7 3 . 3K O
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lKO 9 KQ 15 watt DRM3 Brimar SeeText 15 henries120rnf DPST toggleswi( SPDT toggle switc'r H.F. choke SeeText Push-pulloutput transformer to match speech coil to 8000o anode-to-anodc load Pri. to suit mains Sec. 250v., 120mA,6'3v., 3A 6SN7GT 1 - . lJrLrnAI 6N7GT.G J International octal valve-holders
A SUPERHETERODYNERECEIVER
The receiver shown in Fig. E is a sr-rperheterodyne and differs from all the other receivers in thls book. Such receivers are necessarily more complex than TRF or stfaight designs: but the extra paticnce involved in their construction is rvell uorth r,,hile. The standard of selectivity and sensitivity cannot be approached by a straight receiver using a similar number of stages. Much has been written about the improved quality of the straight receivcr over the superhcterodyne, but with station separation fixed at 9 kc's on the nrediunr uu',,ebanil. neither the argument nor the inrproved qualitl' cxrsts
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Quite a number ofconstructors feel a trifle apprehensive about tackling superheterodyne construction because of alignment problems and becausE they do not understand the way in which the system operates. It is not possible to examine the working of thi superheterodyne completely in a manual of this description; but it will be sufficient if the c-onstructor grasps the main essentials. Referring to the circuit, Fig. 8, the signal is tuned by C5 and appears in the normal ,ray on gi of vl and is amplified. contained in the samevalve is an RF oicillator formed by L3-4 and tuned by C7. This oscillator provides a similar signalto the broadcast station but at a differentwave lengthand is mixed electronicallywith the incoming signal in vt. The result of this mixine processis that at the output of Vl the signal is presentnot only at iti original frequency,but also at the sum of the signil plus that of the local oscillator and at the difference between that of the local oscillator and the signal' For practical purposesit is this latter combination that is of interest. Now the condenser C5 which tunes the signal is gangedto the local oscillator tuning condenserc7 so that as oni is variedso is the other, and the difference in frequency betweenthe two remains constant. The difference betweenthe two in this caseis 465 kc's. . From this it will be seen that, no matter what the frequency of the incoming signal, the local oscillator will mix another signal i65 kc's away with it, and the signal will always appear at the output of Vl at 465 kc's. This difference between the two frequencies mixed in Vl is called the intermediateor IF frequency,and thi transformers Tl and T2 are designed to work at that frequency. y2 is the I.F. valve: it is a normal RF amplifier working, due to Tl and T2 at the IF frequencyof 46-5 kc's. The amplified IF signal is rectified by the diode section of V2. After rectificationthe signal is passedto v3 and amplifiedin the normal way. It has probably beennoticed that there are two diodesin V2. One is used for detection, as explained; the other rectifies the IF carrier and usesthe resultantvoltageto bias vl and v2 to compensate for fluctuating signal strength. This applicationis termed A.V.C. or automatic volume control. The receiver is designedfor AC/DC operation. construction is-simple. No particulartuning dial is specified sincethere are a number of excellent dials on the market. A nebn safety circuit has been incorporated comprising Nl.Rl6 (its action is fully explained on page 5). On completionthe receivershould be switchedon and allowed io *arn., up for five minutes, having made sure that the correct mains voltage tapping is being used. A weak signal should now be tuned in at the h.ighfrequencyend of the dial (between 200 and 250 metres). The signal should be identifiedand by adjustmentof Cg the pointer of the tuiing dial should be brought into line with this station position on the dial. Now adjust C6 for maximum volume. Following this, tune to the B.B.C. Third Programmeat the low frequencyend ofthe dial, or some other known.station,and adjust the position of the dial poinier by meansof the padder C9. It will now be necessary to return to the original setting and repeatthe whole processseveraltimes. when this has beencomoleted tune. in any weak signal and peak ail the IF transformer trimmeis for maximum output. No further adjustment should be necessary.
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l0 Ko 180fl 470 KO 1250O 15 watt 220 Q 3 watt PA2 Wearite PO2 Wearite DPST toggle switch SB2 Brimar 10 henries80 mA B8A valve-holders B9A valve-holder UBF80 f Mullard ) UL4I 465 Kc's lF transformer Output transformerto match speech coil to 3000 O load Neon lamp anrl holder G.E.C. Type ii
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AN ALL-WAVE RECEIVER
Short-wave enthusiasts will find the circuit of Fig. l0 particularly interesting. As every short-wave listener knows, the success o1 a receiver coveringthe short-wavebands dependsto a large extent on the smooth working of the regeneration.If this is erratic or .. ploppy', the receiver cannot be operated at maximum sensitivity and many stations will be quite inaudible. With this particular receiver a separate valve (V3) is used for regenerationworking quite independently of the signal detector (Vl) and this refinement, coupled with the use of high efficiencyall_glass valves,provides a combination of outstanding merit. The receivercovers from 400 kc's to 10 Mc's and is designed for AC operation, but for economy AC/DC technique is used. The valve heaters are supplied from a filament transformer (T2) and rectification of the HT supply is effectedby a seleniumrectifier which avoids costly valve replacements. A suggested laycut is shown in Fig. ll, which, together with Figs. l0 and 12, will enable the receiver to be constructed without difficultv. The only point requiring detailedexplanaticnis the constructionof thl c<ril".
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which are also shown in Fig. I l. It will be senthat Ll is wound by itsell on one former andL2-34 are wound separatelyon another, One of tho coils, L5, is not suitable for home consrruction because of its high inductance, and a wave-wound HF choke, wound in sections, should be used. These chokes are available from any good component supply house. The inductanceis not critical and it may have any value betweco 2'5 and 6Omillihenries. Enamel wire was used for the coils on the original, but there is no reason why silk, rayon or any other available covered wire should not bc used. It should be remembered that wires other than enamelled are more costly and require more winding space,thus necessitatinga longet coil former. When wiring up the coils in the receiver, note that the earth return ends of L2-34 are taken to a common earth point. The neon tube Nl is a safety device used to avoid the possibility of shock and is fully explained on page 5. COMPONENTS LIST FIG. IO Cl C2-3 U-9 C5 C6-12 C7 C8 Cl0.ll Cl3 Cl4 cl5-lc t9-20 cl7-18 Rl-4 R2-3 R5-7-10 R6 R8 R9 vRl trl 100 pfd variable 2 x 350 pfd gang 100 pfd mica 20 pfd mica or ceramic 300 pfd mica 500Opfd mica 0.25 mfd paper 8+8mfd35Ov. Electrolytic 0'5 mfd paper 25 rnfd 25v. Elcctrolytic I j0'01 mfd paper 16 + 16 mfd Electrolytic lM() 4't KO 470 KO 2.2 MO 150c) 22KO 0.25 MO potentiometer EF4O Mullard V2 V3 Elzll Mullard, Nl50 Marconi 6C4 Brimar, L77 Osram 15-20henries60 mA Output transformer. Ratio to match speech coil to 6000O Filament transformer Pri. 0-2N-220-240 Sec.6'3v.2 amp SeeText 2'5 mH RF choke All-wave RF choke 5-way single pole rotary wafer switch DPDT toggleswitch SB3 Brimar B7G valve-holder with screen B8A valve-holders Neon lamp G.E.C Type G
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"Raitiofolder" A, The Master Cotou tor ti"aio iiia t.i. Three Valyo Receiyeg ... Four ValYe Circdts FiY ValYe Circuits A Comprehensive Radio Yalye Guide, Book 2 "Radiofolder" F. The Begimex' Push-Pcll Amplifir ... Boys'Book of Crystal Sets and Simple Circuib .., Universal Gmm Motor Speed Indicator F.M. Tuner Constructiotr All Dry Battery Portable Consimction IIow to Make F.M. and T.V. Aerials, Emrls 1, 2 and 3 Radio Servicing for AmatetrB A Comprehensive Radio Yalvo Guide, Book 3 Handbook of AM/FM Circuits and Components High Fidelity Louilspeaker Enclosurcs Praciical Tape Recording Ilandbook Practical Transisior Receivels, Book I Practical Stereo Handbook Practical Radio Inside Out Trilsistor Superhet Receivers ... Portable Transistor Radio and Rndiogram .., Transistor Circuits Manual, No. I ... A Comprehensive Radio Yalve Guide, Book 4 Radio, Television, Industrial Tubes, Semiconductor ed Dioate (208 pags) _ -E_quivalents Ilardbook Realistic lligh Fidetity ... Coil l)esign and Constructim MilEal Radio, Television and Electronis Data Manusl ... High Fidelity Stereo Gramophone Transistor Circuits Milual, No. 2 High Fidelity Tape Recorder for the llome Constnctor Hartley on Hi-Fi, Book I, Radio Tucrs ... Public Address Systems Transistor Circuits Man[al, No. 3 Transistor Circuits Milual, No. 4 Hi-Fi Transistor F.M. Tuner for the Homc Constructor Iransistor Circuits for Radio Controlleil Modets ... Super Sensitive TEnsistorised Pocket Sct Construction ... International Radio Stations List Practical Transistor Andio Amplifierc... Transistor Subminiature Receivers llandbook Tnnsistorised Test Equipmena and Seryicing Ma![al Transistor Audio Amplifers Manual ... Modern Transistor Circuits fdr Beginnen ... Comp_rehensive Radio Yalve Gtide, Book 5 Transistor Circuits Manoal No. 5 British Semiconductor Survey .,. 22 Tesied Circuits Using Mim "At A Glance" Radio Valve Atloy Transiston ... & T.V. Tqbe Eqoivslentr... How to Receive Foreign T.Y. Progwmcf on' your Teleyision Sct [y simple Modificatioro Resistor Colour Code Disc Calculator Engineers' Refereoce Tables Internatioual Radio Tube Encyclopaedia-3rd Editiotr
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