The ultimate DIY? A Stax SRM-T2!

[n3rdling]

Is a DIY version of the X1t inevitably next?

[kevin gilmore]

updated parts spreadsheet including resistors for the power supply and

the .1uf/50 volt caps i was missing as i stuffed the board...

(what a mess... the spreadsheet that is, the board is gorgeous)

having imagineering do the circuit boards was definitely a good idea even

though they cost a bit more. Solders just great.

http://gilmore.chem.northwestern.edu/t2parts3.xls

stax X1t ------------- NOPE!

but i am getting closer to wireless hdmi based SACD...

Edited December 4, 2009 by kevin gilmore

[spritzer]

Is a DIY version of the X1t inevitably next?

Hell no!! I'm going to track down and buy the unit rumored to be here in Iceland though.

having imagineering do the circuit boards was definitely a good idea even

though they cost a bit more. Solders just great.

Having them made in China wasn't going to be much cheaper and the quality can be pretty shitty. Fine for prototyping though.

[justin]

Having them made in China wasn't going to be much cheaper and the quality can be pretty shitty. Fine for prototyping though.

You think those boards weren't made in China?

[n_maher]

You think those boards weren't made in China?

Chances are roughly 1:3.

Take advantage of what our customers already know -- that Imagineering, Inc. has the experience and capability to fabricate printed circuit boards at our offshore facilities in Korea, Taiwan and mainland China. Collectively, our facilities are UL94V-0, ISO-9002, QS-9000, and IS0-14000 certified. By outsourcing your PCB fabrication needs to our manufacturing partners in Asia we will save you money, regardless of the volume of your production

[kevin gilmore]

Its the quality i care about, i really don't care where they are made.

A long time ago i had some boards made by a board house definitely in the

usa, because i was at their factory in lake in the hills illinois. The stuff was crap.

[justin]

I've also only received low to average quality boards from the USA. I don't think the capability to make boards like the ones KG ordered exists here anymore. Maybe only for Top Secret Military Work. And it will cost $$$$

[n_maher]

I think there are good and bad places to have PCBs made and the "where" part of the equation doesn't have much to do with it. Imagineering has a proven track record of producing quality boards, that's good enough for me.

[spritzer]

I'm sure they were made in the far east but the ones I was referring to are the companies that offer ultra cheap boards.

[kevin gilmore]

after 6 hours of board stuffing

http://gilmore.chem.northwestern.edu/t2ampboard1.jpg

only errors so far, on one side of the amp 2 of the resistors are

labeled as 100k when they are in fact 10k.

Obviously everything fits perfect.

Custom stainless steel hex head screws the exact length should be

in tomorrow, then i can mount the stuff on the heatsinks.

trimpots go on the top of the board for easy adjustment.

missing resistors are backorder

A reasonable person should be able to stuff the board in 12 hours...

Not so bad

Edited December 11, 2009 by kevin gilmore

[nattonrice]

Well that's definitely gonna glow a lovely shade of red =)

My tube sockets arrived, the quality on them cannot be conveyed by pictures~

[justin]

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

[Les_Garten]

Well that's definitely gonna glow a lovely shade of red =)

My tube sockets arrived, the quality on them cannot be conveyed by pictures~

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

Youz Guys got the boards already?

[n_maher]

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

That yields twice the chance of success, right?

[Dusty Chalk]

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

Like a cocky, impatient child.

Obviously everything fits perfect.

Also, I like what he implies here:

after 6 hours of board stuffing

...

A reasonable person should be able to stuff the board in 12 hours...

[Kerry]

Wow. Just beautiful.

Looks like a long weekend ahead

[kevin gilmore]

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

But there are 2 power supply connectors, and the whole thing is wired completely

as dual mono. So i built the thing completely so i did not have to go thru

the pile of resistors twice. I can and likely will power up only half of it the first

time.

Besides which the power supply will be tested completely first.

[spritzer]

i love it, stuffed both channels before testing, like an impatient child

Is there any other way?

[Pars]

Is there any other way?

Of course you can already start firing it up before you get all the parts in... where's the fun in soldering circuits that aren't on?

[kevin gilmore]

So with the proper tools that i made myself, stuffing the heatsinked transistors

was a snap. Picture with the tools on the left. Since the tools are dirt cheap

(they take me less than a minute to make) i will probably supply them in the kit.

Better than spending over $300 on the real tool.

tool widths... .1618, .3271,.4780,.5780

I'm going to stick with the following numbers

superman (as in justin) assembly time 6 hours

me (as in me) assembly time 9 hours

normal human (everyone else) 12 hours

http://gilmore.chem.northwestern.edu/t2ampboard2.jpg

[luvdunhill]

I'm going to stick with the following numbers

superman (as in justin) assembly time 6 hours

me (as in me) assembly time 9 hours

normal human (everyone else) 12 hours

in the case of Justin, are those the same hours that are used to assemble a BHSE?

I don't quite get how the tools are used, but I'm all for custom tools!

[nattonrice]

I think they are for bending the transistor leads to the correct length for the side pieces that he made.

[guzziguy]

I think that they are used for poking the TPUs who are actually stuffing the boards.

[spritzer]

So the real solution here is to send all the boards to Justin and have him do the assembly? Sounds like a plan...

Edited December 12, 2009 by spritzer

[randerson3024]

Well played, sir.