UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Powered By Google Custom Search Vintage Radio and TV Service Data

Go Back   UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum > Other Discussions > Homebrew Equipment

Notices

Homebrew Equipment A place to show, design and discuss the weird and wonderful electronic creations from the hands of individual members.

Closed Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 7th Feb 2023, 9:10 am   #1
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

I have started a new thread to post the design and assembly notes about the Wobbulator pcbs I offered on the forum.

The reason for starting a new thread is that
1 the information on the wobbulator is spread over several threads and I wanted to collect them together
2 If I post the information in the "offered" section where I offered the boards this would eventually get deleted.

My interest in the Haigh Wobbulator started for me with this thread:
https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...53#post1296453

This discussed marrying a Haigh wobbulator to an old scope.
David (G4EBT) suggested using an external timebase and suggested a circuit designed by Armstrong.
I analysed this design in this post:
https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...6&postcount=15
The Armstrong design uses 4 diodes as a voltage reference, one will be compensated by the base - emmitter junction of Q1 but that leaves the temperature coefficient of 3 diodes in series, 6mV/degC.
The current mirror is more stable with temperature change provided the two transistors are closely coupled thermally.

The original article by Haigh was published in Electronics Today International Vol 27 Iss 13 Dec 1998 available for download at the Worldradiohistory website here:
https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Ele...1998-No-13.pdf
However, as David has pointed out the original article contains an error.
“Just be aware too, that there's an error in the wiring of the coils to the bandswitch. Correct on the circuit diagram, but on Fig 3 - the PCB wiring diagram - the wires from SW1A to L3 & L4, need changing over”

I describe my first build of my version on home etched pcb and veroboard for the sweep generator here
https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=172685

This also has the case I used and a front panel drawing in post 2

The coils and Varicap diode for this project have become unobtanium so substitutes had to be found. For the three highest ranges direct substitutes can be obtained from Spectrum Comms
For the Green coil I used a 10mm black IF transformer from an old transistor radio and disabled the internal capacitor by breaking it with a sharp point.
Spectrum now supply the coils as a set on their eBay shop:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285096082...8AAOSwY7tjswk4

For the varicap I used a KV1236 which are still available at reasonable cost.

I discovered a possible problem with the original Haigh design around the sweep width control. This is a simple potentiometer that sets the amplitude of the sweep waveform.
In the original design the ACW end of the pot is connected to 0V. Since the CW end is connected to a 6V p-p waveform with a mid sweep voltage of 3V it means that the mid point of the sweep will change as the sweep width is varied.
I decided it would be an advantage to keep the centre frequency fixed as the sweep width is varied. The op-amp used in the sweep generator is a quad device so I used a spare section to derive a 3V offset voltage to which I connected the ACW end of the sweep width pot (instead of 0V). Now when the sweep width pot is varied the mid sweep voltage remains unchanged.

I attach the design and assembly notes, schematic and assembly drawing.

Peter
Attached Files
File Type: docx Assembly Notes.docx (693.0 KB, 83 views)
File Type: pdf Kicad Wobbulator and Timebase Schematic 2.pdf (128.2 KB, 149 views)
File Type: pdf Assembly.pdf (66.9 KB, 100 views)
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 7th Feb 2023, 9:12 am   #2
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Here is the assembly notes in pdf format

Peter
Attached Files
File Type: pdf Assembly Notes.pdf (239.9 KB, 123 views)
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 7th Feb 2023, 1:02 pm   #3
DMcMahon
Dekatron
 
DMcMahon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Worthing, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 6,587
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Excellent Peter, will help greatly when I start on mine.

Biggest problem for me is finding any spare time.

David
DMcMahon is offline  
Old 9th Feb 2023, 4:17 pm   #4
Bazz4CQJ
Dekatron
 
Bazz4CQJ's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 4,924
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

My 10-turn pot for use as R4 (as per the mod suggested on the Eddystone site) turned up today from China after just 9 days. It’s labelled Bourns, Mexico, and has an extremely nice feel to it; dead smooth. I want to use my H&M mainly for filter work on 455kHz, so it could be nice to have (£4.60 delivered) from eBay.

B
__________________
Saturn V had 6 million pounds of fuel. It would take thirty thousand strong men to lift it an inch.
Bazz4CQJ is offline  
Old 9th Feb 2023, 7:55 pm   #5
keland_uk
Tetrode
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Posts: 84
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Here is link to Eddystone site:
https://eddystoneusergroup.org.uk/Re...Wobbulator.pdf

has some information namely (i'm sure there are others)
- replaced R4 (22k) tuning pot with 20k high-quality 10-turn pot
- replaced R3 (1k) fine-tuning pot with a high-quality 220ohm pot
- replaced R2 (4.7k) with a 3.3k resistor
- replaced R5 (33k) with 15k resistor

Last edited by keland_uk; 9th Feb 2023 at 8:05 pm. Reason: Link was wrong
keland_uk is offline  
Old 9th Feb 2023, 8:04 pm   #6
keland_uk
Tetrode
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Posts: 84
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

One query I have is that the original and the "RADIO BYGONES No. 82, April/May 2003" state that all capaciators are ceramic unless stated. On the PCB picture in assembly instructions C3 & C4 are ceramic, the others aren't. Should ceramic ones only be where the higher frequencies are generated? (also seems strange to have polyester on the outputs, but then again what do I know)
Capacitors
C1, C6, C9 100nF (3 off)
C2, C3, C8 10nF (3 off)
C4 1nF
C5 1uF tantalum
C7 220pF
C10 3p3
C11, C12 10nF 400V DC working polyester (2 off)
All ceramic types, 25V working or greater unless otherwise stated


I suppose deep down I'm saying a BOM for this new board would be helpful....
(I've started one if it helps)
keland_uk is offline  
Old 9th Feb 2023, 8:45 pm   #7
Bazz4CQJ
Dekatron
 
Bazz4CQJ's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 4,924
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Has anyone got a picture of a front panel of the H&M unit?

The old Haigh I have from a silent key sale stuck to Haigh's idea of mounting the PCB parallel and behind the front panel on stand-offs. I think there's a potential limitation with that in so far as once all the wires to the pots and sockets are in place, access to the rear of the PCB is restricted.

If the PCB were at 90° to the front panel, access to both sides of the PCB is available, but I guess we may then be talking about a bigger overall unit.

B
__________________
Saturn V had 6 million pounds of fuel. It would take thirty thousand strong men to lift it an inch.
Bazz4CQJ is offline  
Old 10th Feb 2023, 2:40 pm   #8
Bazz4CQJ
Dekatron
 
Bazz4CQJ's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 4,924
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by keland_uk View Post
I suppose deep down I'm saying a BOM for this new board would be helpful....(I've started one if it helps)
That would be good to see a BOM when you finish it.

My board arrived this morning. Now it's not huge, and it doesn't look densely populated, but my one good eye sent a message to my brain along the lines of "and er, who's building that then !?!" .

I think I will use BNC's on all the connectors. Especially for work on filters, ensuring that no stray RF leaks out may be worthwhile.

B
__________________
Saturn V had 6 million pounds of fuel. It would take thirty thousand strong men to lift it an inch.
Bazz4CQJ is offline  
Old 10th Feb 2023, 4:57 pm   #9
Cathovisor
Banned
 
Join Date: Dec 2022
Location: Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Posts: 418
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Board arrived this morning Now comes the component gathering.
Cathovisor is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 1:38 pm   #10
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bazz4CQJ View Post
Has anyone got a picture of a front panel of the H&M unit?


B
This was posted on one of the linked threads but I have attached below.
Peter
Attached Files
File Type: pdf Wobullator front panel.pdf (183.7 KB, 65 views)
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 1:40 pm   #11
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

And this is what it looks like when finished.

Peter
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_20201030_184817.jpg
Views:	125
Size:	95.2 KB
ID:	273077  
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 1:48 pm   #12
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Colin, HG MICKE, has noticed that R11, 1M gate to ground of Q2, is missing on my schematic.

Sorry about that, correct Schematic attached below.

Peter
Attached Files
File Type: pdf Wobbulator Schematic V1 Final.pdf (130.1 KB, 110 views)
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 2:33 pm   #13
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Electronpusher0 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bazz4CQJ View Post
Has anyone got a picture of a front panel of the H&M unit?


B
This was posted on one of the linked threads but I have attached below.
Peter
The front panel was drawn using Frontdesigner.
If anyone would like a copy of the .flt file please PM me with your e-mail address.

Peter
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 2:38 pm   #14
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by keland_uk View Post
One query I have is that the original and the "RADIO BYGONES No. 82, April/May 2003" state that all capaciators are ceramic unless stated. On the PCB picture in assembly instructions C3 & C4 are ceramic, the others aren't. Should ceramic ones only be where the higher frequencies are generated? (also seems strange to have polyester on the outputs, but then again what do I know)
Capacitors
C1, C6, C9 100nF (3 off)
C2, C3, C8 10nF (3 off)
C4 1nF
C5 1uF tantalum
C7 220pF
C10 3p3
C11, C12 10nF 400V DC working polyester (2 off)
All ceramic types, 25V working or greater unless otherwise stated


I suppose deep down I'm saying a BOM for this new board would be helpful....
(I've started one if it helps)
I am not qualified to answer whether ceramic would be better for the higher frequencies but I do know that the unit I constructed and photographed worked.
Obviously feel free to use ceramic as per the original Haigh design if you wish.

Peter
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 2:41 pm   #15
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bazz4CQJ View Post
The old Haigh I have from a silent key sale stuck to Haigh's idea of mounting the PCB parallel and behind the front panel on stand-offs. I think there's a potential limitation with that in so far as once all the wires to the pots and sockets are in place, access to the rear of the PCB is restricted.

If the PCB were at 90° to the front panel, access to both sides of the PCB is available, but I guess we may then be talking about a bigger overall unit.

B
The unit I constructed had the pcb at 90 deg to the front panel as you suggest.

Peter
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 2:44 pm   #16
Bazz4CQJ
Dekatron
 
Bazz4CQJ's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 4,924
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Thanks for the update and the picture of your very fine looking unit. I'm glad you placed the PCB at 90' as that will confirm my thoughts about doing that.

I suspect that if there was a world league table of wobbulator ownership then the UK would be doing quite well .

B
__________________
Saturn V had 6 million pounds of fuel. It would take thirty thousand strong men to lift it an inch.
Bazz4CQJ is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 2:48 pm   #17
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Quote:
Originally Posted by keland_uk View Post
Here is link to Eddystone site:
https://eddystoneusergroup.org.uk/Re...Wobbulator.pdf

has some information namely (i'm sure there are others)
- replaced R4 (22k) tuning pot with 20k high-quality 10-turn pot
- replaced R3 (1k) fine-tuning pot with a high-quality 220ohm pot
- replaced R2 (4.7k) with a 3.3k resistor
- replaced R5 (33k) with 15k resistor
That's the beauty of homebrew, you can experiment. A 10 turn pot sounds an excellent improvement, I cannot comment on the other mods except to note that my pcb uses the same component references as the original Haigh. The sweep generator references all start at 20.

Peter
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 3:50 pm   #18
Andrewausfa
Octode
 
Andrewausfa's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: St Ives, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Posts: 1,180
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

I'm just about to start wiring mine up this afternoon. I bought one of the first batch of PCBs in 2021 and finally have some time to assemble the unit. I've used a Pritt stick to lightly attach the front panel graphic so I could use it as a drilling template. This will be removed for a laminated version once assembly is completed.

Andrew
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	20230211_144125.jpg
Views:	99
Size:	71.3 KB
ID:	273088  
__________________
Invisible airwaves crackle with life. Or they should do.
BVWS Member
Andrewausfa is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 6:31 pm   #19
Bazz4CQJ
Dekatron
 
Bazz4CQJ's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 4,924
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Yes, having bought the 10-turn pot for the main tuning, I'm now very aware that the fine tuning pot will really need to be a good quality to complement it. That is leading me to check out my junk box for some nice old vintage pot; I suspect that much of the modern stuff may not be adequate. I found one old pot which feels silky smooth, but somebody cut the spindle pretty short, so it will need a knob that can cope with that .

B
__________________
Saturn V had 6 million pounds of fuel. It would take thirty thousand strong men to lift it an inch.
Bazz4CQJ is offline  
Old 11th Feb 2023, 7:11 pm   #20
Electronpusher0
Nonode
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Bognor Regis, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 2,288
Default Re: Haigh (Matthews) Wobbulator

Kelland_uk, Chris has spotted another error on the schematic.
There are two R30s, one is on the board, a 1k preset pot, the other is a panel mounted pot of 47K, sweep amplitude, they are different.

Peter
Electronpusher0 is offline  
Closed Thread

Thread Tools



All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:00 am.


All information and advice on this forum is subject to the WARNING AND DISCLAIMER located at https://www.vintage-radio.net/rules.html.
Failure to heed this warning may result in death or serious injury to yourself and/or others.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2002 - 2023, Paul Stenning.