Questions before order a buffalo II DAC set NOW FINISHED

This will be my first DAC build, I have done some small built, but nothing like this before

I just want to confirm somethings before I start ordering parts

for a normal.... non-exotic build, I need

Buffalo II + Placid $289

also need 9V transformer


IVY III + Placid BP $139

need 15V transformer.


and a volumite + knob

from what I read the IvyIII stage has enough power to drive a headphone effectively, and I am certainly considering going that route, but at the same time

does not want to lose the output capability. so the question is,

Can I directly connect the output of the ivy stage to both headphone jack and output jack without adding additional switches, diodes, etc, right?

also, is the S1A S2A just from on the placid simply the output from the transformers?

Also, I was planning to order parts from http://www.partsconnexion.com/

but then I realized one weird thing.... they do not carry 1/4" headphone jacket for some unknown.... ( I thought they carried them when I was browsing through their site half a year ago)

where else can I make a one step shopping that carries high quality parts?

(yes, I know the faq does have listed sites, but it seems to be a little bit updated)


reading the forums, I notice that several people have problem with S/PDIF input picking up noise, so I am thinking about adding another toslink module,

how should the toslink module be powered, if needed at all.

and last... I am planning to build this in a clear, acrylic case, since I am familiar and the material.

but I have seem some people grounded their transformers and boards to the case, is there any caution I should take with the all plastic board? thank you

first, thank you for the reply

just to make it clear, so I don't get any "mysterious blue smoke" when i plug in the power when I finish my build

for the 15 volt transformer going to the BP placid

Black  ----------------- AC1_B

Red  --------------------AC1_A

Orange -----------------AC2_B

Yellow ------------------AC2_A

Blue ---------------------N

Grey---------------------Vio

Brown--------------------L

For the 9 Volt transformer going to the Placid

Black/Orange ------------- AC1

Red/Yellow ------------------AC2

Blue/Vio----------------N

Grey/Brown-----------L

also, where should I connect the ground earth to?

any special connector I should be using with SPDIF? or just a simple RCA would do the trick?

any safety precaution I should take?

what is a good brand/source for the headphone jack?

and last, what gauge wire do you recommend to use on the power line, and what gauge wire to use with the board?

again, thank you for the reply,

I will make sure that my powers are connected correctly when I start working on the project. XD

anyway, I was thinking about working on an acrylic case, since I do not have tools to work on the metal

driller through acrylic and sanding them down will be much easier for me comparing to use metal case.

Guess i will do some forum search to see what I should look out for when working with non-metal case

again, thank you for the info

hey, it's me again, After parts arrived, I have some questions regarding to the wiring

on the Carda Female RCA plug, unlike many other RCA female plug I have seem, there is no Negative tab

so, for the single ended signal, do i just simply solder the GND from the board directly to the outerior of the plug it self?

Also, I have bought this http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00067JSMS/ref=oss_product

for my headphone jack, from what I know, I also just wire the single ended balanced output to the headphone jack right?

if that is right, there are three pins, which pin is responding to GND, right, and left channel @_@

(been on internet searching for two hours now, hopefully someone can shine some light on my problem

alright, thank you for the information, I really needed the "(GR = ground, TIP = left, RI = right)" instruction XD

also, I have check my package again, the RCA plug I received has every part except that ring tab, i guess that's probably because I got the long version...

think I"ll just strong a long portion of the wire, then just solder the ground wire to the exterior of the RCA jack then, since it seems like that;s where the tab is connected to anyway

<.<

ok, thanks everyone's support, the DAC is now finish, it sounds fantastic, and this is how the final project looks like

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q154/DlayerZX/IMG_0013.jpg

http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q154/DlayerZX/IMG_0012.jpg

kinda made the case too big XD

but meh, i guess i can just add some more component in there later on <.<