Quality Components

[cpsmusic]

Hi Folks,

I'm planning on building a couple of SSL 9K mic preamps. I've built a few guitar pedals and various other bits and pieces however I'd like to up the ante with this project and use high quality components so that it's reliable and lasts. It doesn't seem like anyone is offering these mic pres as kits at the moment so I'll have to order the components myself. What I'm not sure about is which brands of various components people recommend. As I'm only building a couple of these pres I don't mind paying a bit extra.

What do people recommend?

Cheers,

Chris

 

[JohnRoberts]

Welcome to where the rubber meets the road of circuit design.

Selecting components requires some understanding of what the parts are doing in the circuits.

I do not want to scare you that this is very difficult, but the work involved in design is not just getting the best parts you can find, but so good they don't make any difference from spending more.

Some  is as simple a checking the spec sheet for voltages and current ratings, other selections are less obvious (like capacitor dielectric).

You should get a lot of help here asking specific questions about specific components (more appropriate in the Drawing Board section).  Google is your friend too.

JR

 

[PRR]

Funny thing is: most parts from reputable vendors ARE good, will probably out-live you. (Jacks and pots an exception.)

No disrespect to you, but my observation of my own work and that of others, is that MOST post-build failures are bad solder joints or bad mechanics (shake-n-break).

 

[JohnRoberts]

Funny thing is: most parts from reputable vendors ARE good, will probably out-live you. (Jacks and pots an exception.)

No disrespect to you, but my observation of my own work and that of others, is that MOST post-build failures are bad solder joints or bad mechanics (shake-n-break).

Working in fairly large scale manufacturing I encountered my share of substandard parts from purchasing agents literally trying to save a fraction of a penny. I expect DIY hobbyists to overwhelmingly use more expensive parts than needed 99.9% of the time. 

I would spend a little time on understanding the correct type of capacitor for different circuit applications. Not as much time on which brand of cap is best.

JR

 

[cpsmusic]

I would spend a little time on understanding the correct type of capacitor for different circuit applications.

JR

Fair enough! Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I can find out more about this?

 

[ruffrecords]

I would spend a little time on understanding the correct type of capacitor for different circuit applications.

JR

Fair enough! Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I can find out more about this?

You could a lot worse than buying Doug Self's excellent book Small Signal Audio Design.

Cheers

Ian

 

[G-Sun]

Hi Folks,

I'm planning on building a couple of SSL 9K mic preamps. I've built a few guitar pedals and various other bits and pieces however I'd like to up the ante with this project and use high quality components so that it's reliable and lasts. It doesn't seem like anyone is offering these mic pres as kits at the moment so I'll have to order the components myself. What I'm not sure about is which brands of various components people recommend. As I'm only building a couple of these pres I don't mind paying a bit extra.

What do people recommend?

Cheers,

Chris

This was my first real DIY-project myself,
and I didn't have much clue about what to get either.

I put down my list here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1m1jNXCboA8Tdixu3e11LmLTdjGkYykNJA3UcSU36Tw4/edit#gid=0
And sound-wise, I'm super-happy with what I got. It's my goto-preamp.

Now, 1 out of 2 channels is not working at the moment,
but, as the other says above here,
it's likely other things than component-choice that's the cause.

 

[cpsmusic]

Hi Folks,

I'm planning on building a couple of SSL 9K mic preamps. I've built a few guitar pedals and various other bits and pieces however I'd like to up the ante with this project and use high quality components so that it's reliable and lasts. It doesn't seem like anyone is offering these mic pres as kits at the moment so I'll have to order the components myself. What I'm not sure about is which brands of various components people recommend. As I'm only building a couple of these pres I don't mind paying a bit extra.

What do people recommend?

Cheers,

Chris

This was my first real DIY-project myself,
and I didn't have much clue about what to get either.

I put down my list here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1m1jNXCboA8Tdixu3e11LmLTdjGkYykNJA3UcSU36Tw4/edit#gid=0
And sound-wise, I'm super-happy with what I got. It's my goto-preamp.

Now, 1 out of 2 channels is not working at the moment,
but, as the other says above here,
it's likely other things than component-choice that's the cause.

Thanks for that!

 

[jensenmann]

Fair enough! Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I can find out more about this?

Have a look at manufacturer´s homepages. Some of them have excellent application guides or white papers, e.g. Cornell Dubilier, Wima, etc