[MHOE]

Quote:

 
I think a lack of power is likely to affect the DAC first and very audibly.

 
The DAC is powered via USB, isn't it?

 

[adydula]

Yes it is....powered from the USB voltage in the PC attached to.
 
Alex
 

 

[HamilcarBarca]

Quote:

Quote:

 
I think a lack of power is likely to affect the DAC first and very audibly.

 
The DAC is powered via USB, isn't it?

 
Oops. Lack of power may affect the DAC first. But as everyone has noted, the A/C transformer isn't supplying its power.

 

[adydula]

I have actually cut up a usb cable and inserted a ammeter and the current draw both statically and during playback was approx 50 milliamps....not even close to the USB 2.0 spec......
 
If you PC is built to the USB 2.0 spec power should not be an issue.
 
Unless you have 99 other things plugged into the other USB ports drawing over 500ma.
 
Alex

 

[TunneLVisioN42]

I currently have an assembled O2 from JDS labs, I was going to order the ODAC and slip it into the O2 case and just run a 3.5mm from the output to the input of the O2, but then I noticed it does not come with a output 3.5mm on the assembled ODAC board.

I'm kinda stumped on what to do now, my only previous soldering experience was replacing a cable on my ATH-M50's that a rabit had chewed through, It was a learning experience but I eventually got it, It was quite frustrating having no previous experience and only learning from a tutorial.

So now I do not know what I should do, I would like to have them both in the same case for the sake of convenience and saving clutter, but I am not sure if I know I would be able to reliably count on my soldering skills again, I don't know how difficult connecting the ODAC internally would be (It LOOKS simple enough but I thought that about my headphones aswell), or how hard soldering a 3.5mm jack to the ODAC would be.

so with a cheap little radio shack pencil style soldering iron would either of these idea's be good? also does the ODAC just slide into the O2 case and fit snugly?

Thanks!

 

[purrin]

Get a better soldering iron with rudimentary temp control and practice. And practice more on random stuff you have lying around. I do good enough with one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WLC100-40-Watt-Soldering-Station/dp/B000AS28UC, although there are much nicer ones available.
 
You can do OK with a Rat-Shack soldering iron, but I don't recommend it. They were either too cold or too hot (melting stuff). I've learned a lot since those days.

 

[TunneLVisioN42]

My friend has a weller that his father uses and would probably let me borrow it, my main issue with the ATH-M50 was it was hard to get in to the spot I needed to, so that is mostly what frustrated me, but soldering on a 3.5mm for the ODAC would not be that hard right? you have an open working area etc. I have also soldered airsoft guns and such maybe ill just go for it 

 I really dont want to buy it stand alone.  

 

[MrMateoHead]

Quote:

My friend has a weller that his father uses and would probably let me borrow it, my main issue with the ATH-M50 was it was hard to get in to the spot I needed to, so that is mostly what frustrated me, but soldering on a 3.5mm for the ODAC would not be that hard right? you have an open working area etc. I have also soldered airsoft guns and such maybe ill just go for it 

 I really dont want to buy it stand alone.  

Personally, I would send the card back and just buy one assembled. DIY is cool and all, but the hassle isn't always worth the savings.
 
Otherwise, the process is fairly straightforward, and the DAC should fit right in with some plastic spacers and stuff you can order. But you do give up battery power.

 

[fenderf4i]

Get a better soldering iron with rudimentary temp control and practice. And practice more on random stuff you have lying around. I do good enough with one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WLC100-40-Watt-Soldering-Station/dp/B000AS28UC

, although there are much nicer ones available.

You can do OK with a Rat-Shack soldering iron, but I don't recommend it. They were either too cold or too hot (melting stuff). I've learned a lot since those days.

I built 4 O2's and an ODAC with the WLC100 iron. It works very well for the price.

 

[TunneLVisioN42]

Quote:

Personally, I would send the card back and just buy one assembled. DIY is cool and all, but the hassle isn't always worth the savings.
 
Otherwise, the process is fairly straightforward, and the DAC should fit right in with some plastic spacers and stuff you can order. But you do give up battery power.

I have not ordered the ODAC yet, but it's what I want so one way or another I am gonna get this figured out =P I agree that sometimes DIY is not always worth it unless you enjoy what you are doing and have the skills to be absolutely sure you can get it done, if this is the case I LOVE DIY the feeling of creating and pouring effort into something to show fruit is a good one, but quite often I get overambitious and it ends up biting me in the ass and making me frustrated, I have asked JDSlabs if it is possible to send me a ODAC with a 3.5mm already soldered but if this is not an option ill just order the ODAC and 3.5mm jack and try my hand at it. (They confirmed in an email they will do this for me)

Not worried about the battery space I do not use batteries in my O2 It is only used as a desktop amp (where are you ODA?!) so that is not a problem.
Thanks for your replies!

Edit: One more question, I ended up buying just the assembled board of the O2 as I thought i was going to make my own wood enclosure, well that never happened so I just ended up buying the aluminum box enclosure and stuffed it in there, just to make sure the O2 does not use a physical ground correct? I was looking at the "Retrofitting an ODAC to an O2" guide that explains how to directly connect the boards, one of the first directions is "Remove front panel and O2 board from enclosure. Avoid damaging ground wire" so I am curious.

 

[adydula]

When u install the O2 amp in the aluminum case there is a ground wire which is soldered from the board to one of the screws holding the front cover plate.
 
Take a look at the O2 details section of the blog.
 
Sorry we arent allowed to link to the site.
 
B2-080 Enclosure Ground – To reduce hum and noise it’s important to ground the enclosure to Pin 1 of the input Jack J2. That’s the center pin closest to the front panel. You can either use a short piece of lead wire from one of the small resistors (you want the thinnest wire possible) and make a loop where the screw hole is for the lower right corner of the front panel. Or, if you prefer, use fine gauge wire (like AWG30 wire wrap wire) from J2’s ground pin to the lower screw hole on the back panel behind the batteries. Run the wire under the board keeping it to the far right of the enclosure (under the batteries). Don’t forget about the wire if you try to slide the board out later. If you have some contact preservative or similar to help keep the aluminum from oxidizing you can apply a tiny bit to the connection but the front panel should keep it in solid contact. Click the picture for a larger version.
 
A.

 

[TunneLVisioN42]

Well that answers all my pesky questions thanks a ton guys!

 

[Agavehound]

Got a problem now. I hooked up my 02/ODAC to my work pc per usual, but there is no power. Everything is hooked up properly and switched on, but the power light is not illuminated.  I suspect it's the power supply but not sure. Is there a quick and easy way to see if the PS is bad? If it is bad, where can I find a replacement that won't go out after a freaking week?
 

 

[proton007]

Quote:

Got a problem now. I hooked up my 02/ODAC to my work pc per usual, but there is no power. Everything is hooked up properly and switched on, but the power light is not illuminated.  I suspect it's the power supply but not sure. Is there a quick and easy way to see if the PS is bad? If it is bad, where can I find a replacement that won't go out after a freaking week?
 

 
Easiest and quickest way would be to measure using a multimeter.
 
Also, is the O2 slightly warm to the touch? If yes, that would mean the power regulators are working, which means the problem is somewhere else.

 

[HamilcarBarca]

Quote:

Got a problem now. I hooked up my 02/ODAC to my work pc per usual, but there is no power. Everything is hooked up properly and switched on, but the power light is not illuminated.  I suspect it's the power supply but not sure. Is there a quick and easy way to see if the PS is bad? If it is bad, where can I find a replacement that won't go out after a freaking week?

 
You've checked to see the amp works (and it's not just the LED)? Sorry for the obvious!