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pilot light
Posted: Mon 03/10/08 10:55 pm
by twl
if i were to use a fender style 6.3v instead of 120v on richies 36 then i just have to hook it up to the heater wires instead of mains like on any stlye fender ? and i was wondering if that will change the voltage on the amp
Posted: Tue 03/11/08 1:32 am
by Colin_D
Kenny how does one ensure that their PT can handle the current of a 6.3v lamp along with the heaters? I have an 18 watter with Heyboer iron. It has a 6.3v lamp. The PT feels a little warmer than normal though. I think its OK, though. I can still touch it no problem.
Posted: Tue 03/11/08 8:47 am
by tarzanalog
The pilot light in my Ceriatone 36W bit the dust recently and I just found another 6V lamp (it was a 6v lamp to begin with) and threw it in... they are such small lights that I can't imagine the additional current draw on the 6.3V tap to be significant. It shouldn't be a problem... just take care running the wires away from the audio portion of the circuit... it's an AC power source after all...
Posted: Tue 03/11/08 9:47 am
by what_wires
Colin_D wrote:Kenny how does one ensure that their PT can handle the current of a 6.3v lamp along with the heaters? I have an 18 watter with Heyboer iron. It has a 6.3v lamp. The PT feels a little warmer than normal though. I think its OK, though. I can still touch it no problem.
I doubt that you can feel a difference in operating temperature of an 18W or 36W PT running with or without a 6.3V pilot light. If your transformer is running so close to the max that a pilot light will overload it you have a real problem on your hands.
Posted: Tue 03/11/08 2:08 pm
by ACDCG400
Thats no biggie. A few extra mA is nothing for that PT if it isnt running hot.
Posted: Tue 03/11/08 5:02 pm
by pjb
It's not the club it's the swing right?
It's not the voltage it's the amperage that counts. 6.3v designation is primarily a limitation for the lamp/bulb so that someone doesn't put more into it thus blowing it, or so that they know what is required to light it.
It draws a fraction of the current that an El84 draws, to the point where just changing powertube brands could make more of a difference... than having or not having the bulb in there. The standard 6.3 pilot as in some Fenders (Which I use in my 18 watt builds on the standard GDS transformer) It will pull about .15 of an ampere.
In my Vibroverbs I used to pull tubes to disable one channel and increase gain in the other channel. I could also switch to SS rectifiers and remove the 5AR4 completely. Doing both (essentially reducing current by about 1.5 amperes) never registered on the PT in terms of heat.
One of the many things Copper Caps are supposed to do for you... snake oil I tell you... but I digress...
-Paul