Conversions and Calculations

Intro A collection of conversions and formulae with a slant towards calculations used in
electronic circuits

Conversions Metric to English and English to metric conversions

Other Conversions Other conversions and constants

Ohm's Law Simple variations

Class AB amplifier power considerations

Feedback & reactance Feedback networks and reactances of capacitors and inductors

Amplifier input filter

Air-cored coil (output)

Class D (BTL) output filter

Decibels An Excel version of diyaudiocorner's 'Useful Conversions (and Formulas)'

http://diyaudiocorner.tripod.com/formula.htm
(Any functional errors are mine)

Frequency versus wavelength of sound and light

Speakers An Excel version of diyaudiocorner's 'Useful Conversions (and Formulas)' speaker

enclosure calculations

Comments and additions welcomed

S. P. Kemble
http://htmlgear.lycos.com/feed/control.feed?a=render&i=1&u=paul-kemble
wards calculations used in

ns (and Formulas)'

ns (and Formulas)' speaker

Conversions

Metric to English data solution

linear millimetres to inches 0

centimetres to inches 0
metres to feet 0.70104 2.299972
meters to yards 0
kilometres to miles 1 0.6214
metres to fathoms 7.62 4.166616

area sq cm to sq inches 0
sq metres to sq ft 0
sq metres to sq yards 0
sq metres to acres 0
hectares to acres 0
sq kilometres to sq miles 0

volume cubic centimetres to cubic inches 0

cubic metres to cubic ft 1 35.314
millilitres to fluid ounces 0
litres to pints 0
litres to gallons 0
liters to cubic ft 28.32 0.999696

temperature centigrade to fahrenheit 25 77

weight grams to ounces 0

kilograms to pounds 1 2.2046
kilograms to stones 0
kilograms to hundredweights 0
tonnes to tons 0
English to Metric

inches to millimetres 0
inches to centimetres 0
feet to metres 2.3 0.70104
yards to meters 5.5 5.0292
miles to kilometres 0
fathoms to metres 7 12.80176

sq inches to sq cm 0
sq ft to sq metres 0
sq yards to sq metres 0
acres to sq metres 0
acres to hectares 0
sq miles to sq kilometres 0

cubic inches to cubic centimetres 0

cubic ft to cubic metres 0
fluid ounce to millilitres 0
pints to litres 0
gallons to litres 0
cubic ft to liters 1 28.32

fahrenheit to centigrade 32 0

ounces to grams 0
pounds to kilograms 0
stones to kilograms 0
hundredweights to kilograms 0
tons to tonnes 0
Other conversions and constants

Conversions Constants

mulitply by natural log (e) 2.71828

Angstroms to nanometer 10 ln(x)/log(x) 2.3026
Joules to electron volt 1.6021x10^-19 pi 3.14159265358979
Watts to horsepower 746 pi (basic) 4 x ATN
Coulombs to amp hours 3600 1 radian () 57.2957795130823
root 2 1.41421356237309
Other root 3 1.73205080756887

capacity 0dBm 1mW

British metric 0dBm (600R) 774.6mV
1 pint = 20 fluid oz = 34.68 cu in 0.568 lt 0dBm (50R) 223.6mV
1 quart = 2 pints 1.136 lts dBSPL ref 20Pa
1 gallon = 4 quarts 4.546 lts Charge on electron 1.6021 x 10^-19C
1 peck = 2 gallons 9.092 lts Abolute zero -273.16C
1 bushel = 4 pecks 36.4 lts Speed of light in vacuo 2.997925 x 10^8ms
1 quarter = 8 bushels 2.91 hlts Speed of sound (ms^1)
American dry air 0C 331.6
1 pint = 33.6 cu in 0.55 lt air 20C 343
1 quart = 2 pints 1.101 lts fresh water 20C 1481
1 peck = 8 quarts 8.81 lts sea water 13C 1500
1 bushel = 4 pecks 35.3 lts Density of air 20C 1.293kgm^-3
American liquid
1 pint = 16 fluid oz = 28.88 cu in 0.473 lt
1 quart = 2 pints 0.946 lt
1 gallon = 4 quarts 3.785 lts

linear
metres
1 perch = 5.5 yards 5.0292
1 chain = 22 yards 20.117
1 furlong = 10 chains = 220 yards 201.168
1 mile = 8 furlongs = 1,760 yards = 5,280 feet 1609.344
1 nautical mile = 2,025 yards = 6,075 feet 1851.66
1 Roman mile = 1,000 paces ~ 1,620 yards 1481.328

temperature (Reaumur: fr = 0R, bp = 80R)

C to Reaumur = 4/5C
F to Reaumur = (4/9)(F-32)
Reaumur to C= 4/5R
Reaumur to F= 9/4R+32

weight

troy; 1 pound = 12ounces or 5,760 grains

apothecary;
ounce = 8 drachms = 24 scruples = 480 grains
fluid ounce = 8 drachms = 480 minims
Avoirdupois
metric
1 grain 0.065 g
1 dram 1.772 g
1 ounce = 16 drams 28.35 g
1 pound = 16 oz = 7000 grains 0.4536kg
(0.45359237 exactly)
1 stone = 14 pounds 6.35 kg
1 quarter = 2 stones 12.7 kg
1 hundredweight = 4 quarters 50.8 kg
1 (long) ton = 20 hundredweight 1.016 tonnes
1 short ton = 2,000 pounds 0.907 tonne

No effort is made here to include all obscure or obsolete measures since some are peculiar to particular trades, eg; penny
(24 grains or 1/20 ounce troy), ells (45ins, cloth), barrels (30-40 gals), hogsheads (~ 50 imp gals), tuns (252 gallons), quint
lbs or kgs), reams (20 quires or 480 sheets), printer's reams (516 sheets), barns, sheds, talents, smidgins, etc, etc, or anc
measures which are disputed. Similarly, the niceties of the furlong/ferkin/fortnight system are not covered. The user can fi
many web-sites devoted to these, for which there is no room, or time, here, eg;

Glossary of Ancient and Traditional Weights and Measures - and Money

http://www.hemyrockcastle.co.uk/measure.htm

Glossary of Nautical Measures - Lengths

http://www.hemyrockcastle.co.uk/nautical.htm

List of unusual units of measurement

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unusual_units_of_measurement

List of humorous units of measurement

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_humorous_units_of_measurement
articular trades, eg; pennyweights
), tuns (252 gallons), quintals (100
smidgins, etc, etc, or ancient
t covered. The user can find
Ohms Law
V = I/R power W = VI data

I R V I R W
10 5 50 2.23 2 9.9458

V R~I I~R V R W
12 6 2 40 8 200

W R I
10 2 2.236068

W I R
10 2.5 1.6

V I Pfactor W
0

1 2 desired R given R
2 resistors paralleled 2200 2200 1100 10000 27000

2 capacitors in series 0.22 0.1 0.06875

Class AB amplifier power considerations

Output signal swing is found by

RL PO (rms) Vo pk Io pk Vo rms
8 100 40.00 5.00 28.28

To obtain the maximum supply voltage (no load), assuming a symmetrical bridge (whose losses are ignored here,
usually 1-1.45V per diode), add the dropout voltage (Vod, which can be 1.6-5V) to the peak output swing (Vo pk)
when supplied by a current peak of Io pk. Regulation will add to this and, under no-load conditions, the supply
line can rise by 10%, then account must be made for the tolerance (usually 3-5% for a toroid), eg:
Max supply V = (Vo pk + Vod)(1 + reg)(1 + line rise)(1 + tolerance)
Max
Vod reg % line rise % tol % supply V trx sec V
5 7 10 5 55.61 31.82 each
for stereo
Other considerations.

Maximum power dissipation can be determined by the formula below where Vcc is the total supply voltage.
Pdmax = Vcc^2 / 2 pi^2 RL 15.83 W

Bridge rectifier absolute minimum rating (80%derate) *V 139 I

Electrolytic smoother minimum rating (each rail, 80% derate) F / amp 2200 F total
*V oper
 solution

req'd R
15882.35

Typical transformer regulation ratings

Io rms
3.54 Toroid, type 1
VA 30 60 100 160 330 530
@ rating 30 20 60 50 100 75 160 120 330 250 530 400
osses are ignored here, Regulation % 16 11 13 10 10 8 10 6 7 5 6 4
k output swing (Vo pk)
onditions, the supply Toroid, types 2 & 3
id), eg: VA 15 30 50 60 80 100 120 160 225 300 500 625
Regulation % 19 15-18 13 13 12 10 8-11 8-10 7 6 3.5-5 4

trx VA E-I laminated type

225 min VA 3 6 12 20 50 100 200
450 min Regulation % 20-21 9-28 10-12 7-7.5 9-10 8-9 5

Miniature or low-profile types can have 60% higher regulation rates.

l supply voltage.

for stereo
6.25 12.50

7,778 15,556
70
Feedback & reactance
data solution
Amplifier feedback
i/p R fb R gain
opamp feedback networks non-inv 1000 270000 271
inv 15 1500 100

Reactance
capacitors f = 1/(2pfc) C in F R or f Z or f
10 15000 1.061033
L in H R or f Z or f
inductors f = 2plr 0

Amplifier input filter

R1 1000 6.597652 fL -3dB

R2 10000 117086.3 fH -3dB
C1 in F 2.2 0.909091 Vout/Vin
C2 in nF 1.5

Air-cored coil (output)

l (mm) 45
d (mm) 16
N 30
L (H) 4.37

Class D (BTL) output filter

Ideally, Q = >0.7 and <2

C1, C2 & C3 in F and L1 & L2 in H

R 4 1.11 C in F
C1 = C2 = 0.22 28 L in H
C3 1 0.796421 Q
L1 = L2 = 14 28548.26 f (Hz)
RxC
0.15
Decibels
P1 P2 dB
power dB = 10log (P1/P2) 0.00001 0.001 -20
eg: dBm relative to 1mW, -20dBm ~ 10W

X1 X2 dB
V, I, sound dB = 20log (X1/X2) 0.775 0.224 10.78107
eg; dBV relative to 1V, 76dBV ~ 6.31mV

Z1 Z2 dB
with 2 impedances dB = 20log (X1/X2) + 10log (Z2/Z1) 600 50 -0.010739

sound dBSPL usually referred to 20.4Pa, if 20Pa is ref then 1 Pascal ~ 93.8dBSPL

Frequency v wavelength of sound feet inches metres

freq 20000 0.0558 0.6696 0.017
Speed of sound (ms^1) 0.0279 0.3348 0.008
air 0C = 331.6
air 20C = 343 wavelength feet 20 55.8 freq
fresh water 20C = 1481 inches 1 13392
sea water 13C = 1500 metres 1 331.450

Frequency v wavelength of light

freq 1000000 299.7925 m
c = 2.997925 x 10^8ms wavelength 247 1213735 MHz
 data solution

wavelength
wave / 2
Speakers

Efficiency Bandwidth Product (EBP) data

solution
EBP = Fs / Qes
3.68
50 or less = best used in a sealed enclosure. Fs 33.5
50 - 90 = flexible enclosure options. 0.70104 Qes 0.45
90 or greater = best used in ported enclosure. EBP 74.44444

Optimum volume for sealed enclosure (cubic ft): conversion - cubic lts to cubic ft 1000

You may substitute any Qtc between 0.50 and 1.50 in place of 0.70 in both equations (both must have same
value) to experiment with enclosure size. Qtc of 0.70 is generally considered an optimum alignment, with very
good transient response, low cut-off frequency, and flattest response to the cut-off.

Note: You must always choose a Qtc higher than the driver's Qts!

Find alpha: X = (Qtc / Qts)^2 - 1 Qtc 0.7 Qts 0.49

X 1.040816
Then calculate enclosure volume: Vb = Vas / X Vas 16.26518
Vb 15.62733
System resonant frequency: Fcb = Qtc / Qts ( Fs) Fcb 47.85714

To find the theoretical cut-off frequency, use the following chart to find the F3 factor:

Qtc F3 Factor Qtc F3 Factor

0.5 1.55 1 0.79
0.6 1.21 1.1 0.76
0.7 1 1.2 0.74
0.8 0.9 1.3 0.72
0.9 0.83 1.4 0.71

Then: F3 = Fc x (F3 Factor) F3 33.5

Optimum volume for ported enclosure (cubic ft):

These formulas were engineered by D.B. Keele Jr. using the vented enclosure alignments developed by A.N. Thiele.

Enclosure volume: Vb = 15 Vas (Qts^2.87) Vb 31.49292

Theoretical cut-off frequency: F3 = 0.26 Fs (Qts^ -1.4) F3 23.64524

Tuning frequency: Fb = 0.42 Fs (Qts^ -0.9) Fb 26.7373

If an ideal box is to large for your application, choose an enclosure size in cu.ft. then

Find: F3 = (Vas / Vb)^1/2 (Fs) (an exponent to 1/2 is the same as taking the square root) F3 24.07508

New tuning frequency: Fb = (Vas / Vb)^0.32 (Fs) Fb 27.11562

Note: these formulas for the "ideal" enclosure provide a flat response curve, reasonably low F3, and fair
transient response. The smaller you make the enclosure, the larger the peak in the response curve, the higher
the F3, and the poorer the transient response. Enclosures much smaller than the "ideal" alignment will sound
muddled and boomy.

Optimum volume for single reflex bandpass (cubic ft ):

Determine Vr with above formula for a sealed enclosure. The 4th order bandpass design is optimum with a total
system Q of 0.70, using a Qtc and S of 0.70 for Vr (sealed portion) and Vf (ported portion).

Vf = [(2) (0.70) (Qts)]^2 Vas Vf 7.654329

Vf tuning frequency: Fb = (0.70) (Fs / Qts) Fb 47.85714

The system F3 for a properly designed bandpass will be lower than a similarly damped sealed enclosure.
Depending on the System Q and tuning, F3 can be up to approximately 1/3 octave lower (or more) if system Q
parameters are the same for both types of enclosures using identical drivers. Bandpass enclosures are best
designed with a good software program, as tuning and enclosure changes can produce endless alignment
variations viewable on your pc. Because these enclosures attenuate mid-range frequencies and higher at 12
dB/octave, they are good only for subwoofer duty.

Circular port diameters for drivers in vented and bandpass boxes:

Driver diameter (inches)

Port diameter (inches)
6-8 3
8 - 10 4
10 - 12 5
12 - 15 6

These are general guidelines, and you may use a smaller size port if desired, especially for ported enclosures.
Try and use the recommended values if possible, especially for bandpass. Recommended port values are for
the minimizing of port turbulence and possible noise.

Port length for vented and bandpass (inches):

R = port radius in inches (1/2 diameter) R 4

Vb (Vf in bandpass) = box volume in cubic inches (multiply cubic ft by 1728 to find cubic
Vbin ).28106.23

Fb = tuned resonant frequency of box in Hz. Fb 35

Lv = [1.463 (10^7) (R)^2 / (Fb^2) (Vb)] - (1.463) R Lv 0.946696

If you want to use more than one port, you can solve for the equivalent cross-sectional area of the multiple ports
that will equal a single, larger port. Two (or more) circular ports of diameter A and B (C, ect.) can be substituted
for a single port with the larger diameter X:
A 4
X = ( A^2 + B^2 )^1/2 (an exponent to 1/2 is the same as taking the square root) B 4
X 5.656854
You may input as many ports as you wish into the equation. Just take the radius of X and input this into the port
length equation. The final length will apply to all ports being used, i.e. if you want to use 2 ports that are 3" in
diameter, you will solve for a single equivalent port which would need to be 4.24" in diameter. Once you solve
for the length of the 4.24" port, just make both 3" ports the same length to tune the box to Fb.
 35.3

th must have same

alignment, with very

s developed by A.N. Thiele.

ow F3, and fair
nse curve, the higher
alignment will sound

is optimum with a total

).

ealed enclosure.
(or more) if system Q
enclosures are best
ndless alignment
es and higher at 12

or ported enclosures.
d port values are for

"^3

ea of the multiple ports

ct.) can be substituted
 input this into the port
2 ports that are 3" in
eter. Once you solve
o Fb.