You will find the following discussion of dB useful http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-volt.htm
dB references are not just for RF it is/was used extensively in audio work as well where it was often related to 600ohm load vs the 50ohm RF load
As for DMM I have a Tektronix DM501A and a DM502A both have dB scales. I have a 20+ year old Radio-Schlock DMM which also has a Db scale. Then there are all the analog HP 4xx series all of which have dB scales regardless of frequency coverage AC volt meters, RF power meters etc. Also the Boonton 92 series all incorporate dBm scales ...and the list goes on
Have fun and welcome back to the world of practical electronics experimenting.
Dave NR1DX ArtekManuals.com On 1/27/2016 12:41 PM, [email protected] wrote:
Bill, Thanks. Your reply was very informative. I understand the reason for using decibels for the applications you mention. However, I did not consider the output level of a non-RF signal to be in that category. You are right, I have never seen a DMM reading in decimals. I know that digital scopes can do so (and understand how they work), but again I have never seen or used one. Given the zero point (finally figured that one out, I was missing the assumed impedance factor which was varying) I can convert levels - not quite in my head, since I can't do logs in my head - but close and can get a pretty good guestimate that way.
-- Dave [email protected] www.ArtekManuals.com --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _______________________________________________ time-nuts mailing list -- [email protected] To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts and follow the instructions there.
