After four or five months of figuring this thing out, I finally got it working, well, one channel that is. Yes, I know it’s ugly as hell but I was only trying to prove that it could be done. Now this is where you ask why? So here is my reasoning, besides having fun and learning a lot, my main goal was to save money. The cheapest set of 8 API mic pre's on the market today would be either the CAPI VP312 or the SCA A12. One requires a 500 series chassis and the other requires a chassis similar looking to this unit. A set of 8 from either manufacturer with transformers, opamps, chassis and powers supply would run you around $2400. This unit costs roughly $1200 if you reuse the existing PCB’s like I did and requires pretty much the same amount of work to put together.
Now I’m not going to lie, removing all the parts off of one of the existing PCB’s is a pain in the ass and took about an hour. Plus wiring up a 312 circuit using existing traces can be confusing as hell. That is why my next goal is to design new PCB’s for this unit. I already have most of the design complete for the channel PCB but I have never had a PCB manufactured before and would greatly appreciate it if there were others interested in building this unit to split the cost of manufacture with. Now I’m going to carry through with this either way but once I send it off to the plant, that is it. I’m not looking to get into the preamp business. So let me know soon. Here is my cost break down:
AMS-8000- $30-50 (I paid $30)(does not need to be working)
Power supply:
Power transformer- $30
Parts-$20(Estimated high but should actually cost less)
Per Channel:
Input transformer, Output transformer & DOA-$115(purchased from CAPI)
Parts-$20(Estimated high but should actually cost less)
Total: $1160-$1180(Does not include cost of new PCB’s which are unknown at this point)
Now I’m not going to lie, removing all the parts off of one of the existing PCB’s is a pain in the ass and took about an hour. Plus wiring up a 312 circuit using existing traces can be confusing as hell. That is why my next goal is to design new PCB’s for this unit. I already have most of the design complete for the channel PCB but I have never had a PCB manufactured before and would greatly appreciate it if there were others interested in building this unit to split the cost of manufacture with. Now I’m going to carry through with this either way but once I send it off to the plant, that is it. I’m not looking to get into the preamp business. So let me know soon. Here is my cost break down:
AMS-8000- $30-50 (I paid $30)(does not need to be working)
Power supply:
Power transformer- $30
Parts-$20(Estimated high but should actually cost less)
Per Channel:
Input transformer, Output transformer & DOA-$115(purchased from CAPI)
Parts-$20(Estimated high but should actually cost less)
Total: $1160-$1180(Does not include cost of new PCB’s which are unknown at this point)