curlyzim1

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@billharris6886 14 сағат бұрын

Thank you Mark for doing the video on this radio. I especially like seeing you tune it, the internal workings, and the differences between the tube types. Before watching your video, I pulled the schematic, figured out how it worked, and determined what components the front panel knobs were connected to. The only thing I could not figure out is, what do those thumb wheels below the variometers connect to? From pictures, they seem to be part of the variometer assembly. I had no idea this was a one tube receiver. Alfred Grebe was quite advanced in his designs for that time period. His antenna input circuit resonates antenna capacitance to improve receiver gain. The variometers are used in place of tuning capacitors, found in later receivers. In this circuit, they are actually resonating the tube grid and plate capacitance to accomplish the tuning. However, due to the relatively high grid-to-plate capacitance (Miller's Effect), the circuit is guaranteed to oscillate when both the grid and plate are tuned to the same frequency. That's why you must detune the plate to stop the circuit from oscillating. Regenerative receivers are always radiating the signal they are tuned to. Obviously, more signal is being radiated the closer you get to the oscillation point. This is why they act like they have a BFO (Beat Frequency Oscillator) when receiving CW and SSB. Operating this radio in the early 1920's must have been instantly addictive.

@curlyzim1 6 сағат бұрын

The early UV200 and the UV201 drained 1 amp on the Filament. That’s why early radios had many audio jacks so you could eliminate any tubes not needed. First jack detector with headphone use. 2nd jack detector and one stage of audio headphone or speaker if you have a strong signal. 3rd jack detector with two stages of audio driving a speaker even for weak signals. As you noted the CR-8 has a detector tube in the box. The earlier CR-3 the detector tube was in the amplifier box. The amplifier I’m using is a home-brew with period parts. The vernier knobs have a steel shaft with a rubber tire behind the main tuning knob. The grid variometer is the station selector tuning the plate variometer is for regeneration. The small knob to the right is the rheostat for the filament. The small knob to the right of the rheostat is a switch to change the wavelength (band). It adds or removes condensers from the circuit. As you noted the variocoupler is a taped coil with a rotor coil to tune the ANT. There are grounded metal plates behind the variometers and variocoupler to eliminate hand capacitance. Thanks again 🙏. 73’s my friend

@billharris6886 17 сағат бұрын

Thanks Mark for all the 1920's tube history; great info!

@curlyzim1 16 сағат бұрын

🙏 73’s KA1VMW Mark 👋

@billharris6886 19 сағат бұрын

Wow, A Radiola III with the original WD-11 tubes! I assume you are running a reduced filament voltage to minimize wear on those valuable tubes? I saw a Radiola III in an electronic surplus store that was in good condition a year ago, I was very tempted to buy it. I then remembered that I have a Grebe Synchrophase (1926 model) I need to work on. One of the holdups is, I need to design 7 isolated regulated power supplies to run it and, I haven't found that much free time. Thanks Mark for doing the video on this popular regenerative receiver from 1924 - 1925! 73, de AC8AQ.

@curlyzim1 18 сағат бұрын

@@billharris6886 Check out my videos on Battery Eliminator power supplies. The ABE-III is a good supply for your A, B & C voltages. Or you can make your own supply. For my Radiola III I prefer using a battery box so I don’t accidentally forget the filament voltage at 6 volts using my WD-11’s. The K-101A from antique electronic supply was the best value it was a kit that is now discontinued. Maybe you can find one used on eBay. My home-brew actually costs more buying all the parts at the electronics shop in town in the 80’s but has a 3 amp “A” supply whereas the K-101A has a 1.5 amp limit. 73’s Bill nice talking to you 👋

@curlyzim1 18 сағат бұрын

@@billharris6886 I posted another video operating a 1924 RCA Radiola radio receiver. In this video I do a demonstration of 3 sets of WD-11’s and a VT-24 tubes. This is an awesome receiver it covers the 160 meter ham band as you will see in the video. I also have some videos of my Grebe CR-8 and my R. Mitchell AD-2 on 160 meters.

@billharris6886 17 сағат бұрын

@@curlyzim1 Likewise, it's always good talking to a fellow radio geek. Thanks for the tip on the power supply kit. Since I have been designing power supplies since the 1970's, I planned to do my own. I already thought out a preliminary design for 5 supplies, then discovered there were 2 more voltages needed so, I need to re-think my plan. Where possible, I typically design around common, low cost components and was able to refine the 5 supplies such that it could be simplified it down to just 2 power transformers. The 2 additional supplies are 4.5 volt bias so, it won't take much current. From all the circuit design experience over the years, I can make a lot of cost saving compromises and still end up with a reliable circuit. Those early tubes essentially used a light bulb filament so, needed a lot of wattage to supply the required electron emission. Such a huge difference in filament power consumption when compared to the portable radio tubes of the 1940's and 1950's, which have a filament coating that substantially raises the electron emission. Interesting circuit that Radiola III has, I had never studied it before. It looks like they are using a rotatable shorted coil to remove inductance from the main tuning coil, that and taps on the tuning coil for different frequency ranges. Variable tuning capacitors were available at the time that could tuning the entire AM broadcast band (which had not been firmly established in the mid 1920's). Perhaps this was a money savings measure to enable this radio to be sold at a bargain price in its day.

@billharris6886 17 сағат бұрын

@@curlyzim1 Thanks for the notification about videos on the tube comparisons and the other receivers; sounds interesting!

@mikepasko7493 Күн бұрын

Great video…..

@billharris6886 Күн бұрын

Thanks for showing your collection of 1920's radios and speakers, which are extremely crude by today's standards but, highly a desired piece of technology in their day. I especially like the non-synchronized (2 or 3 tuning knob) tuned radios, where you had to keep a pad of paper by the radio to record the tuning knob settings for each radio station. The earliest radios would drive sensitive headphones only, because they had no amplification devices. When tube circuits (amplification devices) were later used, much more audio output power was available but, not enough to drive a modern speaker. I suspect the first horn speaker came about when someone placed a Victrola horn in front of a headphone, which is essentially what a horn speaker is. This opened up a whole new world, as more than one person at a time could listen to the radio. Horn speakers were refined over the years but, all had the same problem: Audio amplification is being accomplished acoustically, which causes a narrow frequency response. Horn speakers were barely adequate for voice but, poor for reproducing music. These early speakers were connected directly to the audio output circuit, between the plate of the tube and 90 volt battery (the power source used in the pre-1926 radios). There was no audio output transformer used at that time. Due to the DC bias on the voice coil, the magnet to diaphragm spacing took this bias caused offset into account, thus, the speaker had to be connected to radio in the correct polarity. Paper cone speakers were a vast improvement in sound quality over horn speakers but, needed more audio output power to drive them. Radio designers noticed this and redesigned the audio circuitry to increase output power starting in the latter 1920's. Paper cone speakers quickly obsoleted horn speakers. In the late 1930's, paper cone speakers were increasingly being refined, as well as the radio cabinet to further improve sound quality. The console radios used a 10 to 12 inch speaker and actuality can be considered "High Fidelity", even by today's standards.

@curlyzim1 Күн бұрын

@@billharris6886 Thanks for the nice comments🙏. Please check out my other antique radio videos in my playlist of Antique Radios.

@billharris6886 Күн бұрын

@@curlyzim1Will-do on checking out your other videos. Since I have been restoring antique radios since the mid 1970's, thought I would add some history to hopefully add to the interest of your viewers.

@billharris6886 Күн бұрын

@@curlyzim1 Wow, you have several antique radio videos - Nice! I also was bitten by the same "Radio Bug" as a young kid and ended up making a career of servicing and designing radios.

@Jumansa19 7 күн бұрын

Hopefully you don't get in music copyright issues ;-) should be a joke - hopefully..., because by the silliness of copyright, special with music there is nothing impossible...

@BrokebackBob 15 күн бұрын

I built a heathkit regenerative shortwave radio that I still have and it still works great, this was in the 1960s

@curlyzim1 15 күн бұрын

@@BrokebackBob Thanks for the nice comments 🙏. Regens are fun to operate. Please go to my Antique Radio playlist and check out my other rengen receiver videos. Nice to hear about your HealthKit. They sold a lot of awesome equipment on the market.

@BrokebackBob 15 күн бұрын

Absolutely terrific! Thanks for posting!

@jimmyday9536 18 күн бұрын

Excellent quality video.

@kennethjarvis4802 Ай бұрын

Would love to have 2 WD11s for my radiola 111 . Great little radios .

@curlyzim1 Ай бұрын

@@kennethjarvis4802 Thanks 🙏 for the nice comment. I’ve been collecting old radios and parts over the years. And have come across deals buying tubes buy the box lots. My fist WD-11 was in a box lot $5 for the box. There was some old Cossor valves and a couple 813’s among many other tubes. I also used to buy old rusted junk radios at flea markets for $20 or less getting a set of tubes and stripping it of any good components. Thanks for watching my videos. Please go to my Antique Radio playlist and check out my video “Vintage Radio Tubes of the 1920’s”. 73’s my friend KA1VMW

@OldCanadianguy953 Ай бұрын

Those tubes are valuable these days!!

@curlyzim1 Ай бұрын

@@OldCanadianguy953 Thanks for the nice comments 🙏. I bought them back in the 90’s at flea markets but the box lots. Or buying radios in very rough condition to part them out for the components and tubes. 73’s KA1VMW 👋

@qwertykeyboard5901 Ай бұрын

I love how these early radios look insane.

@curlyzim1 Ай бұрын

@@qwertykeyboard5901 Thanks 🙏 for the nice comments and watching. Please check out my other vintage radio videos under my vintage radio playlist. 73’s my friend 👋

@johnwiltson3164 2 ай бұрын

cool

@raimundomoura3384 2 ай бұрын

Interessante

@mybenny8 2 ай бұрын

This is so fascinating, thank you for uploading!

@johnstrohsnitter2094 2 ай бұрын

Great video. A small correction: The WD-11 was designed by Westinghouse, not Western Electric. The tube was generally a poor performer with a very high failure rate. A real POS that Western Electric would have never allowed to hit the market with the poor reliability that this tube suffered. Shortly after the WD11 was introduced, GE introduced the UV199 and UX199. These used 3.3V for the filaments. 3 "A" batteries were needed, as opposed to the 1 A battery needed for the WD11, but these tubes performed much better than the WD11. So much so, that RCA, who marked both the Westinghouse and GE receiver and tube lines, wrote a service document on replacing WD11s with UV199s using an adaptor made by a third party. The 864 (JAN VT-24) was introduced during WWII for rough duty service. The Author is very correct in stating that it makes an excellent replacement for the WD-11. Unfortunately, many vintage radio collectors are folks are between 60 and 90 years old and we are passing away. The younger generation needs to step up to preserve this hobby which, for us "boomers", started when we were kids. How many of us built 1 tube regenerative receivers using the technology of the Westinghouse Aeriola (one of the first radios sold to the public) for a Boy Scout Merit Badge? Fortunately, prices for these collectible radios and tubes are dropping as the estates of deceased collectors are sold on auction sites such as eBay. So join the hobby and enjoy a piece of century old technology that still works. Imagine the earth-shaking news events that were received by the person who first owned it and say a prayer for their souls.

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

@@johnstrohsnitter2094 Thanks 🙏 for the nice comment. Easy to confuse 🤣 Westinghouse & Western Electric. They were both power houses of the time. Westinghouse built most of the Broadcast Transmitters of the time. 73’s my friend KA1VMW

@jamesmiller4184 2 ай бұрын

Always wondered if very early broadcast STEREO SOUND might have been possible, using the same principle used with visual stereography, which stereosonic equivalent would have been essentially persistence of hearing: first one side heard then the other and so-on but switched very fast. If actually feasible aurally*, such well might have been effected 'back-in-the' day technically. *likely not.

@jamesmiller4184 2 ай бұрын

Q.R.S. Redtop Tubes were going to be used with the Q.R.S. DiscTeleVisioN, but regrettably it never got off the ground.

@chuck0mx 2 ай бұрын

Very useful... Thanks

@wdmm94 2 ай бұрын

Love your video. I learned that there was a transition from UV200 to the 01A's. However I think you mean "thoriated" with the chemical thorium. The side pin was needed to have the tube in the correct position in socket. Those 01A's also have bigger pins on the filament part of the tube. They could be installed correctly by either that side pin in a socket or in a base that matches the correct pin sizes.

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching 🙏. I’m glad you enjoyed the video. Please go to my antique radio playlist and check out my other videos. I’m so glad my videos are helpful to keep vintage electronics alive. It makes me happy every time I look at them or listen to them. I play them daily. 73’s my friend all the best to you and your family 😀

@davesublette7447 2 ай бұрын

I would liked to have watched you tune the radio, both with the variometer and finding a sensitive spot on the crystal. I have always wondered just how tricky it was to tune the old radios.

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

I’ve been able to get new replacement stator crystals. But the movable crystal is tired. It’s very tedious to find a sensitive spot but once you do I’ll leave it until it loses sensitivity. The station selector tuner is very easy to. Just keep moving until you hear a station. The conditions during the recordings were mid to late winter. Optimal conditions. Maybe I’ll do a recording in the future showing the tuning of the crystal. But I’ll need another person or a camera stand to do so, for the tuning of the crystals for a sensitive spot takes two hands. Thanks for watching 🙏

@julesl6910 2 ай бұрын

This is awesome, electronics knowledge and history is fascinating. These speakers are gorgeous! For those interested, these are high impedance speakers, and here's a bit more info into what that means. Impedance does not apply to DC voltage. Impedance is a concept used in AC (alternating current) circuits and is a measure of the opposition to the flow of AC current. It combines both resistance (which opposes the flow of current in both AC and DC circuits) and reactance (which opposes the flow of AC current specifically due to inductance and capacitance). A 1920's horn speaker typically requires a higher voltage to operate effectively. Impedance is essentially the opposition that a circuit presents to the flow of alternating current (AC), and a higher impedance means that less current will flow for a given voltage. To produce the same amount of power (which is a function of both current and voltage), a higher impedance speaker needs a higher voltage to compensate for the lower current. This relationship is described by Ohm's Law (V = I * R) and the power formula (P = V^2 / R), where V is voltage, I is current, R is impedance, and P is power. To produce the same power (1 watt) in an old RCA 1920s horn speaker with an assumed 4,000-ohm impedance, you would need approximately 63.25 volts, compared to the 2.83 volts needed for a modern 95 dB 8-ohm speaker.

@RichardNickels-ot6iq 2 ай бұрын

Cool Nice 🙂💯

@Enigma758 2 ай бұрын

How does this work? Can an entire transformer be replaced with a couple of resistors and caps?

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching. Yes you can remove the transformer and RC the whole the circuit with two resistors and a cap. But that’s overkill when you can use the good side of the transformer and use one resistor with a cap to coupling the primary to the secondary windings of the transformer. And keeping the original transformer and hiding the resistor and capacitor in the housing of the transformer the radio will still look original.

@иванепифан-к8ж 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for the visual presentation of the horn-loudspeaker models made in the USA. I am a humble radio lover. There are old radio tube magazines, but when I tried to imagine how to make SUCH a CURVED DIFFUSER for my regenerative receiver, I was puzzled))). Damn, - "forbidden technologies of the ancient Americans")))) 73.

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching. Good luck with your hobbies and projects. 73’s Mark

@иванепифан-к8ж 2 ай бұрын

@@curlyzim1 Thank you Sir!))

@jimmurphy5355 2 ай бұрын

Any idea why transformer coupling was used in the first place? Were early tubes so expensive, or low gain, or both that it made sense to use an expensive transformer between stages instead of much smaller, cheaper, lighter resistors and capacitors?

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching the video. There were RC coupled in the 20’s. But like you said the tubes of the time were less than 100mw of gain until the UX-112A. AF transformers stepped up the gain so only two 01A tubes were necessary. But for same gain two AF transformers. Keep In mind tubes were very expensive at that time. The 01A cost $5 in the 1920’s.

@jimmurphy5355 2 ай бұрын

How many (ball park) turns are there on this kind of transformer? Is rewinding that onerous?

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Sorry I don’t know how many windings but it looks quite cumbersome. The early AF transformers usually had a 3:1 ratio.

@mikemount4411 2 ай бұрын

Thank you for this video. Great information! I have rewound several transformers but it is not my cup of tea.

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Good luck my friend. I’m quite impressed I can’t imagine rewinding. I wouldn’t have the patience. Remember the values of the components are just a reference it’s not that critical. I’ve seen some values of 50K ohms in the plate primary circuit and 470K ohms in the grid secondary circuit. And ceramic disc caps from.005 to .01 uF. I’ve always used the values shown in the video. 100K, 2M ohms and.006uF. 73’s KA1VMW Mark

@Gary-t9v 3 ай бұрын

Interesting. Looks like they designed a lot of these speakers to work with a wide variety of radios/amps.

@cindys1819 3 ай бұрын

Turn on Alan Freed.....

@TriodeLuvr 3 ай бұрын

Thanks for this video! What impedance are the antique speakers you're using?

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

Between 1200 and 2K ohms

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

You can use an AF transformer to change the impedance to couple to a low impedance amp or speaker.

@TriodeLuvr 3 ай бұрын

@@curlyzim1 Thanks, I can probably cobble together a simple mono tube amp for this. These tube types are new to me. I'm just now looking up all the specs and seeing various cautions about their use (especially regarding the soft detector). Did Mitchell publish a schematic for this radio? I know it's simple to trace out, but I'd love to see the original publication. Darn, like I don't have enough tube projects already! 😃

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

@@TriodeLuvr it’s the typical 3 tube regenerative receiver. You can fine the basic schematics on line. Be sure to check all the connections. And do a continuity test. Check your AF transformers they often have open winding. If open you can either replace it if you can get a spare or RC the open side.

@TriodeLuvr 3 ай бұрын

@@curlyzim1 OK, looks like this will be my next project. Thanks & 73! (ex-WA3GKO)

@TriodeLuvr 3 ай бұрын

Do you still have this? I have one in excellent condition, but I've never tried to power it up. Haven't been able to find much technical info online. I assume it needs high-Z phones or an external amplifier. What power supply voltages are you using?

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

Yes I still have it and use it. It’s one of my favorite receivers. Yes you’re right about the speaker or headphones. It requires a high impedance reproducer. I’m using 6VDC for the filaments. +20VDC for the detector. The two AF amps call for +45 but I’m using +90 VDC. I had to buy it when I saw it on eBay because I already had the catalog listing it. 73’s my friend good luck KA1VMW

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

Please check out my SE-AR-DE video from 8 months ago. I did a demonstration on how to operate and use this receiver.

@dukenukem8381 3 ай бұрын

Dont drive high!

@Gary-t9v 3 ай бұрын

Very cool. Def an improvement in audio over the horn speaker. How much power is driving that speaker with the AF output push pull tube setup?

@larryward1082 3 ай бұрын

I'm an old analog guy I'll tell you one thing vacuum tubes are much more forgiving than solid state

@larryward1082 3 ай бұрын

1074 years old and I have a lot of these tubes and actually I had several of these working radios that had tubes like that in them and I had my roof of my house redone and some decking was taken off of the house it's quite large house a lot of these radio for stolen by the roofers and I had no idea this even happened until about six to eight months later I went up in the attic of the house to look around and I said oh where's all my radios I called the police department basically you can't do anything but I still have a lot of tubes but the radio these tubes went in are gone somebody's got them out there they were restored that's what I used to do anyway yeah I still think about it when I came across that I got to thinking about it even more

@wdmm94 2 ай бұрын

Nice people I guess. Steal from a customer.

@Gary-t9v 3 ай бұрын

I think its so cool that a simple regen rcvr can demod SSB by adjusting just before oscillation ( or just past osc?)

@bobmarker6812 2 ай бұрын

You just answered my question before I asked . Thanks!

@HD7100 3 ай бұрын

I hear CQ and then 2 but cannot catch the entire station call. I am very out of practice with CW. Nice Grebe radio. I wonder if that radio was designed for amateur users as well as general broadcast band listeners. Very nice radios. Did your Atwater Kent horn have the phenolic driver cap verses the pot metal driver? I have a Radiola RC (Westinhouse RA-DA) I should see if I can tune up to 160 on it. I believe that was a popular receiver for early 1920s amateur radio enthusiasts.

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

The Grebe CR-8 and CR-9 and everything before were communication receivers from 1921. The amateur radio band at that time was 200 meters and below. These radios just happened to be on the market for the birth of Public Broadcasting. The Grebe CR-8 covers from 150 through 1000 meters and may vary due to antenna loading and length. It was believed at the time that high frequencies were useless that’s how we got the HF frequency’s. In the early 20’s the broadcast band was 700 to 800 meters so many early broadcasts receivers don’t cover the whole broadcast band. On my model “H” AK horn speaker the driver was open pot metal disintegrated. So I replaced it with a new driver from a different manufacturer. My model “M” AK horn is original and works well. The model “M” didn’t use pot metal for the driver. My Music Master Horn had an open drive. I replaced the coils and magnets from an old junk headphones. Works well. Thanks again for watching. 73’s KA1VMW

@curlyzim1 2 ай бұрын

Yes it was designed for amateur and commercial use. And it was on the market for the birth of Broadcast Radio. There was no cap in the AK horn. 73’s and thanks 🙏 for keeping vintage electronics alive.

@RottenAnimal 3 ай бұрын

Great video.

@CARL557511 3 ай бұрын

Some of those old Grebe receivers were hard to beat!

@cliffjones7868 3 ай бұрын

Error in spelling will cause browsers to miss your web page. Change "Edison standard pho-ograph" to "Edison standard phonograph". My phonograph is an Edison Amberola model 30. It belonged to My Grandfather and a picture of him sitting at the table with a watch in hand to adjust the speed correctly. Then it was handed down to my Father. On many occasions when we had family and friends visit, He would proudly give demonstrations. One of the problems He had was the records would skip or repeat a track, and I figured out the problem when it became mine. When ad was working, I decided how it worked and almost got in trouble for tearing it apart. I had problems getting the Spring in place but fixed it just as Dad came Home from work. Whew! The problem was the collar holding the cylinder was too loose, so I moved it a little closer so it wasn't binding.😲

@curlyzim1 3 ай бұрын

Thanks 🙏 done

@иванепифан-к8ж 3 ай бұрын

A GREAT COLLECTION OF WORKING RADIO TUBES OF ANTIQUITY!! I WONDER WHY THEY ARE WRITTEN "FOR AMATEUR AND EXPERIMENTAL WORK"?

@johnstrohsnitter2094 2 ай бұрын

The "Licensed for Amateur and Experimental Work" statement was placed on the tube because most of the patents for radio in the USA were owned by RCA, which was formed in 1919, at the behest of the US Government who saw the nascent field of radio (wireless) as a national security interest. The development of both the diode and triode vacuum tubes and wireless communication itself involved many patent fights between such people as Edison, J.A Fleming, Lee de Forest, Guglielmo Marconi and even Niccoli Tesla, and corporations such as Marconi, GE, Westinghouse, AT&T, and even the United Fruit Company. Eventually, after many deals and lawsuits, most patents were collected by RCA who demanded royalties from anyone who manufactured radios or tubes. Since commercial radio didn't really take off till the early 1920s, when an individual purchased a tube, it was for amateur radio or experimental use only. If the tube was purchased by a company to be made a part of a radio transmitter or receiver, telephone system, or if public exhibition of a radio program was to be held in an auditorium or hall, etc., royalties had to be paid. Therefore, many early radios (prior to about 1926 or so) sold by such companies as FADA, Atwater Kent, Crosley, Freshman, Grebe, etc., were sold without tubes.

@иванепифан-к8ж 2 ай бұрын

@@johnstrohsnitter2094 Oh! I didn't know that! Very interesting. Every quantum of radio history is interesting to me. Thank you very much!