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Getting into diy

post #1 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:01am
Thread Starter 
I am looking to get into diy (I already have a good iron and good solder) and probably want to do 3 projects (Beginner, intermediate, advanced) with the advanced project being either a buffalo 32 or a b22. Can anyone steer me in the right direction of what I should do for my first couple projects?

Thanks
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post #2 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:05am
Buffalo isn't a hard project as you're only putting together a couple of simple power supplies. It's the casework that may be hard, but then again, not much harder than any other DAC.

Beta22 IS a complex project on the other hand.

The most obvious is to start with the CMOY. If you actually read all the info and take the time to build one properly, from scratch, you'll learn what the parts are, what they do, how to read schematics, laying out components on a board, wiring a pot and casework. All wonderful stuff to know that will help you tremendously on your way.
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post #3 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:09am
Thread Starter 
edit: wow I can't believe I said that lol brainfart... so taking time how long would a cmoy take to assemble?
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post #4 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:15am
Depends on your experience. If you've never picked up a soldering iron, probably a few hours. If you're experienced, 30 minutes or so. So probably somewhere in-between.
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post #5 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:19am
I would skip the CMoy and go with a Pimeta 2 as the first build.
PIMETA v2 Headphone Amplifier
It's a better then average starter amp and can be built as either a little desktop amp or a battery sucking portable.
It's also a pretty good introduction to SMD.

For the intermediate build I would suggest a CKKIII.
The Cavalli-Kan Kumisa III Stereo Headphone Amplifier
Discrete with a built in power supply and is a nice sounding "trainer" for more advanced projects. There are not a whole lot of configuration options which helps.

Save considering an advanced project for when if or when you get through the first two projects.
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post #6 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:20am
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the advice I am somewhat familiar with the CKKIII but not very with the Pimeta. Would you consider the buffalo a advanced project or intermediate project though?
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post #7 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:27am
Buffalo : Intermediate at best, as it's already assembled and tested - you're just building a couple of power supplies and those aren't hard.

You can definitely skip the CMOY, but you'll be losing half of the reasons I stated for wanting to build it. It's not hard to look at a parts list and stuff a nicely labelled PCB. It's a lot better to know why parts are going there. If you skip learning how to read a schematic and jump straight into populating complex PCBs off a parts list, when (not really IF, it's a matter oft time) something goes wrong, you'll be lacking some basic skills in tracking it down.
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post #8 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:30am
Thread Starter 
Hmm going to be a tough decision then may be I will do more projects then in the order of cmoy>pimeta>buffalo>ckIII (may be)>b22 btw I have a pound of Kester solder should be enough for a while.
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post #9 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:51am
I would say start with a starving student. It is more toward the intermediate side of things, but parts are cheap if you mess it up. Tube amps are simple and, IMO, easier to understand even than a CMOY. Plus, you get a decent desktop amp out of it. It will also give you more practice with casing than a portable would.
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post #10 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:57am
That's a good progression. It really just depends on what you want. The cMoy is a good start regardless.

For intermediate, you could do a Pimeta or Mini3 for a portable amp, an SSMH for a desktop tube amp, a PPAv2 for a desktop solid state amp, or a BantamDAC for a small (even portable) DAC. There are more out there, of course, but those are the ones I'm more familiar with.

As for the Kester solder, I have a pound spool as well. I don't think I've even made a dent in it over a year.
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post #11 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:59am
Thread Starter 
What about rosin flux? I am assuming I would need some of that as well? Finally does anyone know where I can buy a good solder sucker?
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post #12 of 18
12/3/09 at 8:33am
Many solders are "rosin core" (they have rosin through the middle) and don't need extra flux. And you don't really need extra flux unless you're doing SMD work and really need to direct the solder more.

I find copper solder wick is better for removing small bits of solder when you're redoing joints. It's more precise and cleaner than a solder sucker.
A solder sucker is useful when removing large amounts of solder when desoldering many components from a board.

Not sure where you'd pick up some solder wick in the States, I get it from Jaycar here in Aus.
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post #13 of 18
12/3/09 at 12:14pm
I find a good solder sucker much more invaluable than wick, but would suggest having both on hand. I use one of the Edsyn pumps, which I got at Fry's, like this:

Solder Wik, Pro Wick, DeSolder Pumps, Solder Removers, Solder Suckers, TechSpray Desolder Wick,Chemtronics Solder wik, De-solder wick
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post #14 of 18
12/3/09 at 12:32pm
It sounds like you have at least some soldering experience.
I'd start with a portable amp/dac combo so a mini3 or pimetaV2 and a gamma1.

Next you could do something like the sohaII which will get you into selecting and buying things like a case, transformer, panel connectors ect (ie not everything is attached to the board and slapped in a pre-sized box).
Plus you can make it glow =)

After something like that progression you could look at things like the b22, ehha, ect.

Edit: The buffalo is not a hard build at all, especially if you bought everything including transformers off TPA. The only thing that you'll get caught on is case work.
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post #15 of 18
12/3/09 at 3:05pm
Thread Starter 
Ya I def am going to do a buffalo at some point as that will let me get into doing casework in a relatively simple build. After that I am not exactly sure but I def. need a good dac so that will get a bit of priority in the build lineup. Does anyone know when tpa will have their new design out and will be able to be bought again? Btw my solder is rosin core o I prob won't need it then
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