When To Use Which Amplitude Unit(s) ?

Compressor Example
Consider the following example for which we will discuss the frequencies
encountered: a direct driven screw compressor with an input speed of 3580 rpm.
The motor directly drives a bull gear with 48 teeth which drives a pinion gear with
36 teeth. The rotor being driven by the pinion gear has 4 lobes while the driven
rotor has 6 lobes. To determine what frequencies the potential problems may
create, we need to specifically lay out the frequencies that will be generated on this
machine and consider what problems can develop from the machine components.
The machine schematic is shown here:

Let’s calculate exactly what frequencies need to

be monitored on the compressor end only:
Frequency Name Calculation Frequency
4-Lobe Rotor 3580 x
4773 rpm
Speed 48T/36T
4-Lobe Pass
4773 x 4 19092 cpm
Frequency
6-Lobe Rotor
4773 x 4T/6T 3182 rpm
Speed
6-Lobe Pass
3182 x 6 19092 cpm
Frequency
Bull Gear Mesh 3580 rpm x 171,840
Freq: 48T cpm Compressor Schematic
Motor Speed = 3580 rpm
171840
Pinion GMF 4773 x 36T
cpm
343,680
2x GMF 2 x GMF
cpm
515,520
3x GMF
cpm

So we need to monitor the compressor bearings over a range of frequencies

spanning 3182 cpm (1x 6-lobe rotor) to 515,520 cpm (3x gear mesh frequency).
Although it can technically be done with a single reading, using only one amplitude
unit would be a problem since velocity is no good at 515,520 cpm and acceleration
is no good at 3182 cpm.
But why would using only one amplitude unit be a problem ? The answer goes back
to the relationship between the units and their sensitivity to different failure modes.