Old uniden Grant PC409ac board

[nomadradio]

Wouldn't the regulator do the same in ssb?

No, the AM modulator transistor is switched out of the circuit by the mode selector in sideband modes. That's why the peaks are always a tiny bit larger on sideband than on AM in Uniden SSB CB's of that era. The added voltage drop of that transistor reduces the peak voltage feeding the driver and final in AM mode. The full B+ voltage is what the selector feeds the final and driver in sideband.

This is not a familiar symptom. Would prompt me to ask what it looks like on a 'scope.

I had a 148 decades ago that had a RF-feedback gremlin in the final stage. Would only distort when sideband peaks exceeded 3 Watts. If I turned the mike gain low enough it sounded pretty sweet. But as soon as the voice peaks passed that threshold, it would garble. Not a frequency-pull garble, but a mushy distortion.

Never did find the root of that one. In that case, the 'scope wasn't a lot of help. But it would settle the question of whether the modulator is feeding the 'crackle' into the power stages, or if the RF circuits are the root of it. Just having a peek at the waveform on the bias-test jumper pins might answer that question.

73

 

[MKwrench]

Bump
Last I posted to this thread was nearly a year ago and now here I am again. I ordered a cap kit from Klondike Mike's and got it installed today so I can start using this radio.

I'll rewind just a little bit. So before I did any work to this radio, I noticed kind of a crackle or crunchy audio primarily on the audio peaks BUT only in AM. I thought no big deal, weak caps so I'll recap it. Now it's recapped, aligned and SSB sounds great and right on frequency but AM I'm still getting that nasty crackle at the voice peaks. I tried adjusting the carrier and rechecked bias but no resolve. Again ssb is great and received great reports on the air, AM it's obvious because I can even see the external meter needle flicker with the audio peaks.

I've checked the mic amp section and find nothing. Should I focus in the area of the regulator? Wouldn't the regulator do the same in ssb?

I'm stumped.

I had 2 that did this. On one I noticed that dropping the bias on the driver helped a little, but made sideband crunchy. It was TR41, changing the AM regulator fixed it. On the other it ended up being the driver itself I used an HG branded 2166, use the scope and your ears to set the bias on ssb, sometimes going by the numbers by the book doesnt work out.

 

[Eldorado828]

Ok so I started triple checking all of my work last but didn't quite finish. I'm not very familiar with these older boards and some of the silksceening isn't there.

The AM regulator is a 2sd1137 and the voltage regulator has no markings that I can see. I found replacement 2sd1137 but unsure if they are legitimate.

Are there any suitable subs for either?

Just to be clear, the issue is only in Am mode, ssb sounds fantastic.

 

[SuperLid]

Ok so I started triple checking all of my work last but didn't quite finish. I'm not very familiar with these older boards and some of the silksceening isn't there.

The AM regulator is a 2sd1137 and the voltage regulator has no markings that I can see. I found replacement 2sd1137 but unsure if they are legitimate.

Are there any suitable subs for either?

Just to be clear, the issue is only in Am mode, ssb sounds fantastic.

I use TIP41

 

[MKwrench]

Ok so I started triple checking all of my work last but didn't quite finish. I'm not very familiar with these older boards and some of the silksceening isn't there.

The AM regulator is a 2sd1137 and the voltage regulator has no markings that I can see. I found replacement 2sd1137 but unsure if they are legitimate.

Are there any suitable subs for either?

Just to be clear, the issue is only in Am mode, ssb sounds fantastic.

The 1137 should be fine, The AM regulator can be upgraded to handle more amperage, the same way a 148GTL would be. I don't remember the "popular TIP" part numbers offhand but I think one or two of mine have a "D44H11" In the a.m. regulator spot. It's just a 10 amp transistor, to allow a little extra headroom while sitting bias.
The main switching voltage regulator should be okay, I remember seeing some TSBs about an added zener to regulate it output. See what you can find about that. I've also heard that the 2SC945 in front of the AM regulator can crap out and cause crunchiness, It gets bypassed in a popular NPC mod.

 

[Eldorado828]

I appreciate your help fellas, I'll post as I go along when time allows.

 

[Eldorado828]

Well I was back to the grant this evening and found the fault, it was c18! I somehow installed a 10uf instead of a 47uf and after checking it over for what felt like the 15th time I found it. Replaced it and voila the crackling or crunch is gone. I feel like an idiot but I found it and now it's working great!

Another thumbs up to this thread for all the great info in here shared by you Elmers!

@loosecannon
I went ahead and replaced d1,d2,d21,d22 with the schottky diodes but I can not locate Q14 In this pcb to install the 2sc2999. In the pc-409 they are labeled "TR" and I couldn't locate it before calling it a night.

 

[MKwrench]

C18 helps keep the 8v line for the limiter and part of the mic line steady, sometimes the original value cant handle the switching of the transistors in that area, causing clicking or squealing noise. Ive read somewhere that bumping it up to a 330uf to 1000uf fixes all kinds of mic issues. I had a huge bag of skinny (8mm) 680uf caps that I saved for C18 in these.
I'm glad you found it!
These 4 button Grants are super cool and deserve to be preserved to be admired.

 

[loosecannon]

828,

I, like many others quite a few years ago got caught up in the hooplah about the 2999 transistor and the schottky mods.

After all kinds of testing and tweaking, none of it scientific, i, like many others realized the juice just aint worth the squeezin on that mod.

I really thought i noticed a difference in my receive on my 2000 with the mod, but after quitting it i realized it just didn't make a noticeable difference.

Im sure others may have experienced a change, but i havent done that mod in quite a few years now, like i can't even remember when i stopped because it was so long ago lol.

just to answer the question, TR14 is the first RF amp transistor and is located right near L4 and L5.

I will second the idea of increasing the value of C18. i use a 470uF there and it really does help keep power mics from squealing.

LC