Hi CharlieLaub,
Here's an unpopular opinion. The standard bridge rectifier or single diode is very highly engineered and sold in astronomical numbers. That makes them less expensive then they would otherwise be. I have not seen any fail in designs that were properly engineered. I have seen lots of failures in equipment that had reduced cooling or extremely high hot switching currents (read: stupid high value filter capacitors).
From the sounds of what you are designing, a 500W class A-B amplifier, your voltages will be above most Schottky rectifiers range. Fast recovery diodes will help to generate ringing on your supplies while you may get some of that with normal rectifiers, but this is easily controlled.
Avoid the temptation to use extremely high amounts of filter capacitance as this will cause very short conduction angles and high IR losses in everything. Using a rectifier and filter combination for each channel will help keep the required filter capacitance down to reasonable sizes. That will depend on the lowest average impedance you expect to drive. Again, be reasonable here.
Believe it or not, a little series resistance won't really hurt anything and will help reduce the hot switching current. This is good. It will reduce continuous sine wave power levels but will not actually do much to peak levels - like when you are playing music.
-Chris
Hornby Electronic Product Page
I'm beginning to rethink my tube purist ideology and go the diode route. As much as I love having that extra tube in there, the voltage drop, PT strain and decreased bass response just don't seem worth it. Not to mention saving more than a few bucks on parts.joshdfrazier wrote:I was going to experiment with the 4 diode bridge setup, I don't know what a snubber is.He was talking about the type of diode to use for your bridge.
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Timely topic for me as I just finished making the rectifier board for my new Small Special. I plan on using the .01/V ceramic caps as snubbers, parallel to the diodes, but have read that adding 470K resistors , also parallel, will give better performance.The company is the world’s best Does a bridge rectifier reduce voltage? supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.
Despite being ubiquitous, V rated diodes in FW / bi-phase tube amp B+ power supplies are often marginal, or used in excess of their voltage rating, especially in conjunction with a standby that removes the load from the B+ winding.