I have the mfj-870 Grandmaster meter, and the big brother mfj-868 true peak reading meter.
On dual final rigs, I normally see around 28w to 35w max output on my 870, but on my 868 I see around 50w.
Reason being, although the 870 claims to be PEP, it is actually peak. The 870 corresponds basically with my oscilloscope and spectrum analyzer on wattage. The 868 on the other hand, is basically just like a bird 43. It's a True Peak Reading meter with a peak sensing circuit, unlike the 870 which has just a basic peak switching circuit. This meter corresponds with most bird 43, daiwa 901, etc...true peak reading meters (basically true PEP).
I confirmed this by multiplying the 870 wattage shown by the peak to PEP factor of 1.414.
35 peak watts (mfj-870) × 1.414 = 49.49 PEP watts, exactly what my 868 meter shows for 35 peak watts.
As for peak watts, I trust my oscilloscope and spectrum numbers. As for PEP watts, I'll convert using 1.414 and then verify with the 868.
And yes, 49.49 PEP watts is stretching it, I would drop it back to 45 and leave it be.
45 pep watts would be around 32 peak watts.
I had a heck of a time trying to explain this to my locals. They thought their little Dosey, micronta, blackcat, etc...watt meters should show the advertised PEP watts like their techs watt meters do, some even claimed their radio always showed around 50w on their PDC. I explained it to them, that those excess watts past 35w is ghost watts because they jacked every ounce of wattage out of the radio to achieve that fake excess wattage they were seeing, AAAANNNNNNNDDDDDD, that's why their radios stayed in the shop more than on the air.
I've taught my locals the right way of things, they've been led to believe the wrong things for years by the old tech that passed away a few years ago. It took time, but they slowly came around and researched for themselves instead of just going by what I tell them. Like I always tell them, don't argue with me over it, research it/experiment with it yourself to prove me wrong. So far, they've learned a lot and they actually proved me right. They actually come to me for questions now. I just want people to learn, I don't want to be right, I just want operators to expand their knowledge by asking questions and researching for themselves, they learn so much more that way, even though I get a little harsh on them.
