Yeah, I started with tubes. But just after I was very aware of what I was doing regarding hih voltage caps, discharging, etc.
How to mesure voltages?
How to discharge?
You measure voltages with a voltmeter, a VOM (volt-ohm-milliammeter) or a DMM (digital multimeter). They all work essentially the same way: there are two probes, typically red and black. You connect the black one to the circuit's ground, and you conntect the red one to the voltage you want to measure. The meter tells you what the voltage is. You usually need to use a selector switch to tell the meter what you're trying to measure (voltage, current, resistance, etc.) and, on non-digital meters, what the range is.
You discharge capacitors by connecting a resistor across the capacitor. Ideally there will be something there to discharge the cap on turn-off already, but sometimes you'll need to add it.
Try a book called "The Art of Electronics" for some beginner pointers. And yes, on second or third thought, I think you may want to begin with a reasonably simple solid-state project before moving on to tubed gear.
Peace,
Paul
August 31, 2004, 09:00:51 PM
