SWR and power reading's!

[Hillbilly360]

Hello,why is it that when your SWR is 1.5 your watt meter show's more wattage than at 1.1 SWR?I was doing around 300w at 1.5 SWR and now im doing 200w to 250w with a 1.1 SWR.I lost about 50 to 75w but it seems to be talking the same.

 

[the_sandman_454]

At a higher SWR you have more power reflecting back into the radio, which fools the meter. At least that seems to be the reason.

 

[Hillbilly360]

Hey that sounds logical,thanks bro!So less reflect more power on the freqency your on,right?

 

[Hamin' X]

Hey that sounds logical,thanks bro!So less reflect more power on the freqency your on,right?

No, the reflected power from the antenna is not adding to the forward meter reading, until it re-reflects from the output of the final PA. At that point, it goes back through the meter in the forward mode and adds to the reading, then on to the antenna to be radiated, or reflected again.

See my postings in this thread for more info:

Reflected Power Loss

Rich

 

[Hillbilly360]

Hey that sounds logical,thanks bro!So less reflect more power on the freqency your on,right?

No, the reflected power from the antenna is not adding to the forward meter reading, until it re-reflects from the output of the final PA. At that point, it goes back through the meter in the forward mode and adds to the reading, then on to the antenna to be radiated, or reflected again.

See my postings in this thread for more info:

Reflected Power Loss

Rich

Ummm!OK,So in reality the meter is just playing tricks and i'm still putting out the same power?Is it cleaner power at a lower SWR than say a 1.5 SWR?

 

[Hamin' X]

Ummm!OK,So in reality the meter is just playing tricks and i'm still putting out the same power?Is it cleaner power at a lower SWR than say a 1.5 SWR?

No, the power is not cleaner, or dirtier, because of SWR (General statement, but usually true). The meter is not playing tricks, but is reading all of the forward power that goes through it. If it starts out dirty, it will remain dirty. If it starts out clean and your amp is properly designed and tuned, then the SWR will not change the signal quality, just the quantity.

Rich

 

[Hillbilly360]

Ummm!OK,So in reality the meter is just playing tricks and i'm still putting out the same power?Is it cleaner power at a lower SWR than say a 1.5 SWR?

No, the power is not cleaner, or dirtier, because of SWR (General statement, but usually true). The meter is not playing tricks, but is reading all of the forward power that goes through it. If it starts out dirty, it will remain dirty. If it starts out clean and your amp is properly designed and tuned, then the SWR will not change the signal quality, just the quantity.

Rich[/quo

Would i be better off with a 1.5 or a 1.1? 1.5 more wattage,1.1 less wattage!On my Dosey anyway.

 

[Hamin' X]

You are always better off with a lower SWR. Will you be able to tell any difference on the other end, if your SWR is 1.5:1, instead of 1:1. No. Is it worth the trouble to bring it down from 1.5:1. On 11 meters, probably not. On 80 meters, it might give you a little more bandwidth, but that is what a tuner is for, so even there, I would not bother. It might give you a little headroom for changing antenna conditions, though. Ice storm, high winds, whatever.

Rich

 

[bighammer]

hillbilly, i would try to get it lower, your running an amp. lower swr will aid in amp longevity.

as for the meter its showing you both the fwd and reflected power as the gross total. 200 w fwd and 25 w reflected is 225. 200 w fwd and 5 w reflected shows 205. is the final output, less reflected = more output at the antenna, less heat and wear on the amp. work on that antena. grounding or different antenna, but thats for a different post.

does that clarify it for you alittle better?

 

[Hillbilly360]

hillbilly, i would try to get it lower, your running an amp. lower swr will aid in amp longevity.

as for the meter its showing you both the fwd and reflected power as the gross total. 200 w fwd and 25 w reflected is 225. 200 w fwd and 5 w reflected shows 205. is the final output, less reflected = more output at the antenna, less heat and wear on the amp. work on that antena. grounding or different antenna, but thats for a different post.

does that clarify it for you alittle better?

Yea,thats all i wanted to know.Thanks for not giving me another technical BS answer,and one i can understand! 8)

 

[bighammer]

my pleasure

 

[psycho]

Hello,why is it that when your SWR is 1.5 your watt meter show's more wattage than at 1.1 SWR?I was doing around 300w at 1.5 SWR and now im doing 200w to 250w with a 1.1 SWR.I lost about 50 to 75w but it seems to be talking the same.

The higher the SWR.......the wattage reading will be higher with the cheaper watt meters. On the better meters higher reflect won't be an issue.

 

[Unit 194]

Psycho : It's Jimi not Jimmy.....................

 

[psycho]

Psycho : It's Jimi not Jimmy.....................

I can't believe I did that. I have every Hendrix vinyl album and CD....legit and bootleg. I will fix that.
I guess listening the Jimmy buffet for the last 2 hours got me distracted.

 

[Hillbilly360]

Hello,why is it that when your SWR is 1.5 your watt meter show's more wattage than at 1.1 SWR?I was doing around 300w at 1.5 SWR and now im doing 200w to 250w with a 1.1 SWR.I lost about 50 to 75w but it seems to be talking the same.

The higher the SWR.......the wattage reading will be higher with the cheaper watt meters. On the better meters higher reflect won't be an issue.

Yea,it's just an ol cheap Doesy!