[NeilR]

I think this would make a very fine benchmark stock Mint for the spreadsheet:

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showp...41&postcount=1

 

[Voodoochile]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Francis_Vaughan 7. Utterly silly build. I simply went nuts and my wallet still hurts.

Like melting down some Krugerrands and casting your own front panel?

[size=xx-small]Kidding, but then again, you never know what will turn up.[/size]

 

[n_maher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Voodoochile Like melting down some Krugerrands and casting your own front panel?

Oh my, is that a veiled Lethal Weapon 2 reference???

 

[n_maher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilR Nate, Are you talking about "Sanaka's Pimeta Parts List"?

Yup, that's the craziest parts list I've come across.

Quote:

Has anyone actually built an $80 Pimeta?

Not counting PS the PIMETA in my sig cost around $80 w/ the 8620/10 combo, then I went and added 627s and nearly doubled that

.

N

 

[NeilR]

Nate- $80?

RK27: $16
Neutrik Jack: $1
Tangent's Cerafine and Wimas? $13
Buffers: $18.30
Opamps: $21
Browndogs: $8
3.5mm Jack: $2
Board: $7.50
TLE2426: $1.30
19 Resistors: $3.04
5 DIP8 Sockets: $1.75
Q1/Q2 pair: $1.50
Knob: $1 (????)
Cigar Box Case: ***CHEATER!!!!***

Total: $95.39. And a few more parts to go, maybe. We're like the proverbial women lieing about their ages

Plus, I think that Cigar Box should be accounted for. It's worth at least $3 at a flea market or yard sale

Now you're pushing $100.

You're confused.... the $80 figure is the number you gave your wife

I figured a way to do it for $62, and I didn't cheat with a cigar box. I used a Serpac 65 and OPA2134/OPA134. I tried to use the "primary recommendation" of OPA2132 and OPA132 but, apparently OPA132 is no longer available from the usual sources in DIP8. Another part spec bites the dust. Well, it is available, but only special order from Digikey, so add in $5+ for freight and it's counter-productive.

 

[dgardner]

Here is what I would recommend using for Gilmore budgets. Download the spreadsheets and tweak it to your own personal needs.

Gilmore Amps & Power Supply - Construction Price Points & Budgets (pdf)

Gilmore Amps & Power Supply - Construction Price Points & Budgets (excel)

 

[n_maher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilR Nate- $80? RK27: $16 / $10, bought here on Head-Fi Neutrik Jack: $1 I thought we were talking board components only... Tangent's Cerafine and Wimas? $13 Panny FMs + WIMAs still = $13 Buffers: $18.30 Opamps: $21 premounted total = $26, check out browndogs site for details 3.5mm Jack: $2 again, i thought this didn't count Board: $7.50 TLE2426: $1.30 19 Resistors: $3.04 5 DIP8 Sockets: $1.75 Q1/Q2 pair: $1.50 Knob: $1 (????) Cigar Box Case: ***CHEATER!!!!*** Bah, I smoked them so I might as well use the box! Total: $95.39. My total is now at $83ish, and like I said I tend to try and forget how much I spend on these things... One important thing to note is that ordering in bulk gets you discounts, when I first ordered my PIMETA parts I qualified for Tangent's 10% discount - he used to offer a lot more in the way of parts, I hadn't noticed until now that he's trimmed his offerings quite a bit...

Quote:

You're confused.... the $80 figure is the number you gave your wife

If my wife had any idea how much I spend on DIY stuff she'd kill me. She prolly thinks my PPA cost $10...

 

[kdaq]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Francis_Vaughan Can I suggest a totally different approach? Everyone who has built any of the listed amps should be encouraged to submit an entry to a poll that builds a set of statistics for the price of the amp. The builder needs to provide the year it was built - so that some basic price normalisation can be done, and should also rate their build on a scale that goes something like this. 1. A real cheapskate build. Scrounged parts, second-hand, nasty case, etc etc. 2. A pretty cheap build. Generic quality parts, but all new. 3. An average build. Used better parts where needed, but I was watching the cost. 4. A good build. I used good parts, and spent maybe a little more than I might have. 5. A premium build. I used premium components, worked really hard on a nice case, knob, connectors. It is a build I am proud of. I was happy to spend the extra money for the result. 6. Seriously premium build. I went for the best I could reasonably source everywhere. The money was not a concern. 7. Utterly silly build. I simply went nuts and my wallet still hurts. *. The designer's BOM and recommended parts. I didn't vary much from this, and if I did it was only to source a compatible rather than superior item. The poll then lists the normalised average cost in each category. The poll also invites the builder to place catagory * on the 1-7 scale. In other words, to rate the designers BOM selection.

Nice Francis, I think this is a great idea as well. You'll get very concrete numbers, the only subjective part is where people categorize their amp, and that's bounded well-enough to still be perfectly comparable.

Might be best to try and make that kind of info anonymous, though, can't let the missesses get wind of the extent of damage we've done to our poor, defenseless wallets!

 

[NeilR]

Nate,

Somewhere along this path I started counting case cost.... scratch those items. However, you are perilously close to scrounging on some parts and that is also illegal and cheating for BOM purposes

I also think it is cheating to go to a different supplier to save a buck or two without adding in freight, which is usually $5 minimum. There needs to be an ordinance about that....

 

[Teerawit]

NeilR, if you use the RK27 pot of course the cost is going to go up. How about a Panasonic EVJ instead?

 

[NeilR]

Thanks Teerawit, I am talking hypothetically here, playing with numbers to see what a "Minimal Pimeta" would cost just for laughs.

My real Pimeta is a budget busting $156.25 wonder, and climbing by the minute. It just went up because I ordered a set of Brown Dogged 86x0's, incited by Nate's post above. That is on top of my 3 OPA627's that I already have. I know, I screwed up and should have ordered 2x637 and 1x 627 but I need a brand new project to bury that cost.

Now, for accounting purposes, the 86x0's will NOT be charged against my Pimeta BOM unless they stay in the case for more than a few days, in which case the OPA627's come off the BOM. Duplicated Opamps are charged to the R&D account, which far exceeds any of the relatively puny actual BOM's. There is no spreadsheet for the R&D account; that is an "off the books expense".

The "Ooops I just blew up an HA-5003 while setting my Millet bias" account is also off the books.

The 86x0's are not just for entertainment value; they are part of the long range planning segment of the R&D account, in preparation for the upcoming M3, which, of course, will come in exactly on budget (unlike the Pimeta project) due to all the pre-preparation and planning

I think the above is a tiny example of why I call my actual BOM work-outs a "theoretical price"

 

[Dave_M]

I wasn't expecting this thread to be met with quite so much controversy

Still, I do not wish that i had never thought of this

Some very good comments from some of you. I had not intended for it to be so complicated. I thought simply saying "prices do not include PS or case" was enough to avoid confusion and upset. It cant get any clearer than that can it? Or so i thought..

Thats a great idea, Francis Vaughan. If you're going to do it, make sure you lay down explicit ground rules first. Otherwise... who knows what chaos will unfold

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeilR Thanks Teerawit, I am talking hypothetically here, playing with numbers to see what a "Minimal Pimeta" would cost just for laughs.

Precisely, but in your "minimal Pimeta" you put in an RK27, which I don't think would be as minimal as an EVJ. So your "minimal Pimeta" could reflect the $80 quote if you put the EVJ on that list instead.

 

[NeilR]

Dave, when I quipped that you might wish you never thought of this, I was not referring to the controversy; I was referring to the inevitable Mission Creep and resulting complexity.... the controversy is just more salt in the wound!

I think the links to "official sites" or whatever, plus the sample BOMs, will be useful (and certainly time-saving) for everybody. Certainly as the number of projects increases over time.

 

[NeilR]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teerawit Precisely, but in your "minimal Pimeta" you put in an RK27, which I don't think would be as minimal as an EVJ. So your "minimal Pimeta" could reflect the $80 quote if you put the EVJ on that list instead.

That wasn't my Pimeta BOM, I was analysing Nate's to see how he kept it to $80. He did it by leaving off the casing costs and smoking a huge box of stoggies!