Effective Use of the Capacitance Multiplier for Voltage Regulators

This post discusses a topic I’ve shared quite a long time ago on a few other forums, I’ve decided to post it here on the blog just in case it will become unavailable on these forums at some point, as it is a fairly old post. I don’t have the original schematics anymore, so bare with the lower res images I’m copying over from my original post.

Many voltage regulators use the capacitance multiplier as a method of increasing the effective capacitance seen by a load. Some use it as a complete voltage “regulator” (although its more of a filter in that case than it is a regulator), while others use it as a low-pass-filter (LPF) for the error amplifier at the core of the regulator. The basic idea is to use a BJT transistor as a follower to amplify the capacitor current by ~hfe (small signal current gain) of the transistor, making the capacitor appear as if it was ~hfe larger in value. This simple structure is shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1. Simplified Regulator Schematic

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DIY Programmable Power-Supply for Vacuum Tubes – Part 1

Preface: up until now, all posts I’ve shared were completed in a single post. This was due to the fact I’ve waited until I was done with it and only then posted. This allowed me to assemble/verify (when needed), and was much more comprehensive for readers. However, lately I’m finding it more difficult to find the time to cross items off my “diy to-do” list. Quite a few items get stuck for long periods of time in the design stage, due to lack of time to move it forward and complete the board layout/assembly/testing. Therefore, I’ve decided to gradually post a few of these on the blog as parts of a project. This post will be the first of a few such projects that will be split into several parts. Hopefully, even sharing partial information such as schematics will prove useful to some readers. </end preface>

One of the items that was on my “wish-list” for quite some time is a programmable power-supply (PS) that will be fit for work with vacuum tubes. The main reason I need it is because I’m missing a high-voltage PS that can reach as high as 400V or over. Therefore, this was the main objective of the design I will present in this post. However, seeing as most transformers that are intended for these uses include a low voltage secondary winding for the heaters, it makes sense to have another channel that can supply the heater rail too.

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DIY Discrete and Simple Voltage Regulator

Some time ago I was playing around quite a bit with vintage audio amplifiers/receivers, and in many of them I was improving the power supply portion for the low current differential amplifier stages. This was always a simple and cheap task, that proved well worth the time when it came to sound. In a desire to “do this differently”, I didn’t want to use an IC for this, but rather wanted to go with a discrete yet simple design. The circuit I came up with was very well suited for such applications, and I therefore decided it would be a good idea to make an independent regulator PCB out of it for general use in audio stuff I build. At the time I also had limited experience with PCB design, so this seemed like a great project to start with. There’s no better way to learn than simply giving it a try.

Fig. 1. Toli’s Minimal Voltage Regulator Schematic

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