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Some Technical Questions About Electricity, Amps and Speakers

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  • Some Technical Questions About Electricity, Amps and Speakers

    I’m trying to understand some electrical concepts related to working of guitar amps and magnets and I have some questions. I've been reading related concepts for a while from different sources. Most probably short answers will suffice for me.


    1) Title : Signals

    I read that “Impedance depends on Frequency Of Signals” What does that mean? Do Signals have Impedance in themselves?



    2) Title : Tubes

    It’s said Cathode is charged with “-“ and Anode is charged with “+”. When filament is heated electrons flow from cathode to anode. When this movement is done cathode should be charged with “+” and anode should be charged is “–“ Isn’t it?

    It’s said then electrons in the anode go “-“ terminal and after that “+” terminal of the battery. When the anode is charged with “-“ how those electrons go “-“ terminal of the battery? (Because “-“ push “-“)


    3) Title : Signals

    Are Current and Signals the same thing? How does current include information about signals in it?


    4) Title : Amps

    When the amp is off does an electric guitar still send signals to the amp when played?


    5) Title : Electricity

    How are Electrical devices activated when we pushed the “on” button?


    6) Title : Speakers

    Are diaphragm, speaker cone and the driver the same thing?


    7) Title : Electric And Magnetic Field

    “Therefore, they are inter-related in a field called the electromagnetic field. In this field, the electric field and the magnetic field move at right angles to each other However, they are not dependant on each other. They may also exist independently. Without the electric field, the magnetic field exists in permanent magnets and electric fields exist in the form of static electricity, in absence of the magnetic field.

    Wherever there is electricity, there also electric and magnetic fields, invisible lines of force created by the electric charges. Electric fields result from the strength of the charge while magnetic fields result from the motion of the charge, or the current.”

    These two paragraph contradict each other? Don’t they?


    8) Title : Usage Of Capacitors


    Power Supply Smoothing : This is the easiest and very widely used application of a capacitor. If you stick a big beefy electrolytic capacitor (the bigger the better), it will fill in all the gaps created by rectifying an AC form, to create a relatively smooth DC. It works by repeatedly charging during the peaks, and discharging during the gaps. However, the more load you put on it, the quicker it wil drain the capacitor and the more ripple you’ll get”

    8.1) Why there are gaps and peaks whilst rectification?


    Timing : If you supply power to a capacitor through a resistor, it will take time to charge. If you connect a resistive load to a capacitor, it will take time to discharge. The key thing to understand here about timing circuits is that capacitors appear as though they are shor circuit while they are charging, but as soon as they are charged, they appear to be open circuit.”

    8.2) How do capacitors do the Timing job?


    Filtering : If you pass DC through a capacitor, it will charge and then block any further current from flowing. However, if you pass AC through a capacitor, it will flow. How much current flows depends on the frequency of the AC, and the value of the capacitor.
    A filter capacitor is an electronic component that removes voltage or signal spikes in electronic circuits. Capacitors are used as filter devices due to their ability to absorb and effectively store electrical charges at predetermined values.”


    8.3) When capacitors are charged don’t they transmit the current?

  • #2
    Given the range and type of questions you have asked I recommend that you start by reading from the free material available at Technical books online . Good books to start with there are:
    1) The electronic basics section of the Radio Amateur's Handbook
    2) The Basic Audio series of three volumes, Norman Crowhurst, 1959

    I believe that everything you asked about will be covered there plus much more that will give you the background to understand the theory.
    The other books on the Millet site will take you wherever you need to go.

    You can also search for the past discussions on this forum regarding book recommendations.

    Cheers and welcome to the forum,
    Tom

    Comment


    • #3
      What'll really blow his skirt up is how A/C and D/C can travel down the same wire at the same time.
      --Jim


      He's like a new set of strings... he just needs to be stretched a bit.

      Comment


      • #4
        Sorry but this kind of questions is impossible to answer.

        The OP clearly has no clue at all, has browsed some Electronics pages at random, and posts here whatever phrase that he finds interesting.

        Propblem is, not grasping even the most basic concepts, answers will be meaningless to him, so a waste of time for everybody.
        Every answer will only lead to 3-4 new questions, and so on.
        So I applaud Tom's suggestion about reading the basics first.
        Best action possible in this kind of problems.
        Trying to answer any particular question will lead to frustration.
        Juan Manuel Fahey

        Comment


        • #5
          Sounds to me as if the OP wants answers to a test he is taking.

          Comment


          • #6
            Thank you very much Tom.

            I've read these 2 books also i've read a lot of stuff on internet. I've some basics. There may be some gaps while learning.

            The Guitar Amplifier Player's Guide: An instruction and reference manual for musicians: Dave Zimmerman, Cecilia Bizzoco, Nancy Sepe: 9781452803784: Amazon.com: Books

            Guitar Tone: Pursuing the Ultimate Guitar Sound: Mitch Gallagher: 9781435456150: Amazon.com: Books

            Fahey your manner is frustrating too.
            Last edited by zanshin777; 08-27-2014, 06:31 PM. Reason: Fahey

            Comment


            • #7
              Just a thought, but that is an awfull lot of ground to cover with all of those questions.

              Electronics covers everything from atomic theory to Maxwell's Equations.

              Can you pick one question & see how it goes?

              Comment


              • #8
                Ok. 4th question.

                I'm not going to be an guitar tech. I don't expect to know everything i'm just trying to understand the basics.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by zanshin777 View Post
                  Ok. 4th question.
                  Yes

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    You really need to get a text book on basic electricity and electronic circuits. You pretty much asked what is electricity and what is electronics. You are going to need more than one text book to cover this.

                    Particular on the subject of electromagnetics where magnetic and electric fields only exist independently in pure static condition. ANY varying magnetic or electric field ALWAYS exist together, one cannot be independently exist without the other. The introduction by itself is a one year class in upper division of undergrad. And you really need to take the post grad class to even have a chance to understand it. I spent 4 years studying this and I still don't dare to claim I am an expert.

                    This is one easy book to read.http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used I studied the old version of this book 36 years ago to start my career. This gives you basic idea of transistors and opamps. All the circuit applies to tubes, you just need to learn the particular of tubes. This is one of the easiest book and so many schools use this, that's why you can get used one for a few dollars. This will answer a lot of your questions.

                    BTW, if you are just interested in building an amp, it is really not that important to dig too deep. This is not the hard part of designing an amp. You need to learn the trick of the trade....the mojo........And I am not kidding, I can talk theory until the cows come home, it really does not help a whole lot to get you good sound!!! You need to learn basic electricity. Then some tubes and transistor circuit. Forget electromagnetics, it's not going to help you much.
                    Last edited by Alan0354; 08-27-2014, 09:08 PM.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Agree with Dave^^^

                      Your guitar has no idea whether the amp is on or not, it continues to put out what it always does. Very much the same as you can continue to sing even after they turn off your microphone.

                      Here, #1.
                      I read that “Impedance depends on Frequency Of Signals” What does that mean? Do Signals have Impedance in themselves?
                      Like so many things, it only means something in the context wherein it was said. No, a signal does not have impedance of its own. Signal is just a term for information we are using. Usually through an amp it is music. I put weak music into an amp and strong music comes out. Hopefully the music coming out sounds a lot like what went in. If not, we call that distortion. But other things can be signals. Something turns a channel switching relay off and on, and whatever controls that would be sending it a signal to be on or off.

                      In a reactive circuit (discuss that some other time) like a speaker, impedance is a variable thing. A speaker may have 8 ohms of impedance at 1000Hz, and 20 ohms at some other frequency (note). So in that case, the frequency you send through the amp will affect how the speaker reacts, and so thye amp will "see" different impedances. Another example is a tone control. Turn the treble control up and down, and it will change its impedance to high notes, but not to low notes.
                      Education is what you're left with after you have forgotten what you have learned.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Oersted was floored by the fact that a current carrying wire induced a (right hand rule) magnetic field in the wire.

                        History states that he was lecturing about current in a wire & for whatever reason he placed a compass near the current carrying wire.
                        When the compass needle moved it is said that he actually took a step back.
                        Removing the current flow in the wire resulted in the compass needle returning to magnetic north.
                        Reversing the current flow, flipped the compass needle the other way.

                        It must have been a hoot back then figuring everything out.

                        We truly are resting on the shoulders of giants.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Trolling?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by zanshin777 View Post

                            I'm not going to be an guitar tech. I don't expect to know everything i'm just trying to understand the basics.
                            But you ARE going to be an amp tech.

                            "How To Service Your Own Tube Amp" by Tom Mitchell. He takes you from basic atomic theory to 100W Marshalls with mods in easy to follow steps. Get it, read it, re read it, when you think you've got it, come back. Heck you might not need any of us if you follow this simple suggestion. It will save us ALL hours and hours of typing and frustration. Amazon has it. It will be the best $30 item you ever bought. People ask me "when are you going to write a book?" No need, Tom did it for me. Good luck!
                            This isn't the future I signed up for.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Even though your goal is to learn to be a guitar amp tech I would not recommend starting with the books you have listed. Concentrate on learning the basics of electronics. It's like learning to walk before you sign up to run a marathon. The books such as the ones I recommended in post #2 will be a better path to the basic knowledge that you will need.
                              Cheers,
                              Tom

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