Expo conv. heater (tomg et al.)

[jorgen.bergfors at idg.se]

>1. Do you really need a separate power source for the heater part?
That's a real pain in the rear. You mentioned regulators and I've seen
separate supplies mentioned on the web... so that's why I want to know.

No, you don't need that, why would you? I have the Doepfer PMS quad VCO with one heater per VCO. It runs off the normal +15V supply.

>2. Barry Klein suggested putting the 3046 under a styrofoam cover to
isolate the chip from heat loss or gain - sort of a chip calorimeter.
Has anyone done this?

Not me.

>3. How do you know where to set the temperature trim on the thermostat?
I mean, how do you know where to set the temperature and how do you
measure a silicon chip's temperature accurately anyway? Not having the
temp too high or low was discussed, so this is important.

The PMS doesn't have adjustable temperature, so I didn't have to be bothered.