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DIY Stompboxes => Building your own stompbox => Topic started by: Steben on October 23, 2020, 01:47:23 PM

Title: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: Steben on October 23, 2020, 01:47:23 PM
Ok, so my thoughts dwelled into class C amplifier stages. The classic cathodyne is used again.
As you can see the voltages at the emitters are nicely cut at the center voltage of the input, being zero.
(https://i.postimg.cc/qzNMr205/BJT-doubler.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/qzNMr205)

Now one would think.... wow if we sum those voltages, we have a somewhat full wave rectifier, right?
Well... no...

(https://i.postimg.cc/sM92Hs3j/BJT-doubler-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/sM92Hs3j)

What the?


Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: rutgerv on October 23, 2020, 02:06:12 PM
Without knowing anything about cathodynes, I would guess perhaps the phase shift of the capacitors is in practice slightly different between positive and negative half.
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: anotherjim on October 23, 2020, 02:37:26 PM
What's the output directly at the mixer amp output like? If you have an assymetric wave and it's filtered, it gets bent due to altered harmonic amplitudes?
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: amptramp on October 23, 2020, 03:00:02 PM
You have nowhere for the base current to flow in the first image, not even to ground (which would be a good choice).  You pull a positive pulse that charges up the base capacitor and then what?  The base charge has to wait for leakage to remove it and it stays positive until then.  It would be similar to blocking or gulp distortion in an amplifier.
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: Steben on October 23, 2020, 03:33:16 PM
Quote from: amptramp on October 23, 2020, 03:00:02 PM
You have nowhere for the base current to flow in the first image, not even to ground (which would be a good choice).  You pull a positive pulse that charges up the base capacitor and then what?  The base charge has to wait for leakage to remove it and it stays positive until then.  It would be similar to blocking or gulp distortion in an amplifier.

If I add resistors to ground at the bases of the C transistors, output at emitters becomes a fundamental sine wave of 0,5mV. Probably because the coupling cap charges just a little as in a clamp.
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: Steben on October 23, 2020, 03:54:26 PM
Lol, with a discrete BJT mixer stage, it works  ;D


(https://i.postimg.cc/7f0VXHZt/BJT-doubler-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/7f0VXHZt)
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: iainpunk on October 23, 2020, 05:29:12 PM
was the voltage at the non inverting side of the opamp actually clean?? or was it contaminated? how about a big capacitor to ground from there?
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: Steben on October 25, 2020, 07:04:46 AM
Quote from: iainpunk on October 23, 2020, 05:29:12 PM
was the voltage at the non inverting side of the opamp actually clean?? or was it contaminated? how about a big capacitor to ground from there?

I'll get into that, since I use a BJT stage it works great (in sim).


(https://i.postimg.cc/D8RSTNkH/BJT-doubler.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/D8RSTNkH)

Output with pre drive: https://sndup.net/9d5w/bjt+double+nil.wav
Output with low drive: https://sndup.net/9tr3/bjt+double+nil+2.wav   (sounds gated, no?)
Title: Re: BJT doubler, I am going mad ... am I??? hihi haha
Post by: iainpunk on October 25, 2020, 10:58:39 AM
that sounds great! fairly clean!

i think that 2nd one sounds slightly gated indeed