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Originally Posted by Nicolas2305 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I already went thru all tangeant video and text tutorials before starting my first CMoy, I read Bantam instructions and I just haven't tought of magnification but it was obvious.
I think I just need to gather my courage and make sure I'm not on an overdose of sugar, cafeine or something of the kind to help to have steady hands...
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I like to solder while drinking something strong
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomb /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Good thought. I try to do the same thing - make sure you have everything organized, distractions minimized, and wait until you feel comfortable, rested, and calm. It seems to help me a lot on soldering that PCM chip.
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I'm not kidding about the above statement
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomb /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Agree 100% - X10, even. Excellent point as usual, error401!
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Get the little bottle of flux, a dispenser bottle (it has the skinny metal tube sticking out of the top), and the giant size bottle of alcohol to clean it all up. While I probably use a lot of flux compared to other DIYers here, I still don't really use a lot. As a result though, I also use a HUGE amount of alcohol. I'm spoiled from working in electronics manufacturing for many years, so I got a dispenser bottle for that as well (I bought this one
35704 ) You might also want a brush like this one
577-2020
Yes I know buying tools costs more then the projects, but you can use them forever. Can you get by without them? Probably, but I built my skillset using them, so I need them
EDIT:
I forgot to ask my questions
I came to this thread because I built a Bantam last night, but it isn't performing well.
First off, I made it a cable DAC. I ordered the board, case, cable, and Panasonic FM cap from the website. I didn't use RCAs though, I wired on a mini phono since that's what my amps have as inputs. All parts not from Bazaar came from Mouser.
I got it all soldered up fine. The only difficulty were the 4 test pins on the IC. Those pads aren't as well tinned or something, because I couldn't get a good joint there. After I looked at the schematic and realized those 4 pins (2 pairs on each side at the end away from the polarity mark) weren't used, I moved on. Everything went OK. As I alluded to above, I used to work in SMT assembly for many years. I mostly ran the pick & place machines, but I did plenty of hand soldering and rework. So I was comfortable with the components.
When I hooked it up, Windows XP installed it fine. Fired up Foobar and I got it to make sound feeding a cmoy with some cheap earbuds. Once I knew it was functional, I started listening. Immediately I could tell the right channel was louder. It sounds like the balance control is shifted to the right. I'll go over all the solder joints again, but it was late last night, so I didn't do that right then. I didn't use 2 wires for the ground to the output. It looked like both of the attachment points we connected, so I didn't think it would matter. Could this have anything to do with the imbalance? I still think it has to do with a solder connection somewhere. I suspect it's the phone plug. Is was a style I had never used before. I thought I had good connections, but maybe not. I'll try reflowing the joints there first then reflow everything inside the DAC.
When I hooked it up to my Millet Hybrid Starving Student, it had a horrible hum. I'm pretty confident I can fix the balance problem, but the hum has me concerned. Any ideas what it might be?