SB4000 Support Thread

[ruckus328]

I have everything working properly but still cannot figure out why the internal sidechain switch is not working properly. When I press the button it actually turns off the SSL-mode. The light on the button turns on when depressed and it's wired properly.

Yes, this is correct.  Default is SSL mode as it should be.

 

[SimonB]

Oh ok I was thinking with the "internal sidechain" light on (button depressed) that the SSL Turbo mode is ON. So the SSL Turbo mode is OFF when the button is pressed.

 

[dtrax]

Oh ok I was thinking with the "internal sidechain" light on (button depressed) that the SSL Turbo mode is ON. So the SSL Turbo mode is OFF when the button is pressed.

Nomenclature can be confusing at times; initially I'd wired mine backwards as well, and wondered why most people preferred the stereo side-chain. But, in fact, I was in Mono SC mode the whole time. Rookie move. Stereo/SSL/Oxford/whatever does sound and react far better for most material I've ran through the 4000. It doesn't grab the center as hard as when in Mono, so kicks, snares, etc... hit harder. I think the only time I've preferred the Mono SC was for vocal bus, where I had Lead and BGV bussed to the same stereo Aux (usually I process LV separately, but I'm trying new things in my mixing routines). It leveled the group nicely, in that instance. All in all, a good option to have.

I have mine wired so they illuminate when NOT depressed. I like the pretty lights. 8)

 

[Pieter001]

Hello,

I have a little problem with my sb4000. I try to calibrate the unit. When i send a 1khz signal tone through the unit i get only a output signal when the unit is in bypass mode. When i turn the unit in compression mode the output signal is gone. The bargraph meter don't show any output level in compression mode. It shows only the input signal.

Any idea whats wrong?

Gr,
Pieter

 

[Ptownkid]

I'm no expert...but I get the feeling it could be many different things without more info. Can you post some pictures? Are you sure the ribbon cable is installed correctly?

 

[Pieter001]

Thanks for your reply.
I installed the ribbon cable the same way as the pictures show in the instruction doc. I dont have a camera at the moment. I try to take some pictures later

Gr,
Pieter

 

[Pieter001]

Found the problem! I installed to many jumpers.

 

[Ptownkid]

Excellent! that was quick, haha. Congrats.

 

[studio1670]

Finished both my units!  Both are working great.

Thanks for the EXCELLENT project.  First class all the way around.  Great documentation, front panels and PCBs.

Also thanks for the work it took to get the parts kits together.  Even though it took a while to get, it saved me lots of time.  I hate sourcing parts.

Thanks!
Mike

 

[Songguy]

Had a problem. Problem solved by reworking the anolog meter and led wires. Sweet!

Time to calibrate  ;D

 

[sr1200]

Just want to make sure i got the right ones to dim the buttons on the front panel.  R140 and R141 1k5 to 2k?

 

[sheadstedford]

yea i was thinking of doing the same thing as mine are super bright!!!

 

[sheadstedford]

I bellieve they are 470nf

I figured you were going to say somewhere around there.  This is too low for driving the input of the compressor.  The output capacitance of your tube stage into the 22K input impedance is creating a nice High Pass Filter.

You need to put a cap in parallel with each of the 470nF caps to increase the capacitance.  A 10uF or 22uF bipolar electrolytic cap should do the trick.  Or you can use two polarized electrolytic caps back-to-back.  Remember capacitance is halved when you put two caps in series, so if you use two back-to-back I'd go with the 22uF's for a total of 11uF.

Do this, your bass will come back.

I have literally looked everywhere for a 250v 22 or 10 uf non polarized electrolytic capacitor and cannot find them anywhere!!
only 100v ones.

I dont really want to put two polarized caps back to back as i have been told not to by many people.....any one know of anywhere where i can purchase these??

 

[ruckus328]

I dont really want to put two polarized caps back to back as i have been told not to by many people.....

And their reasoning was what?

 

[ruckus328]

Just want to make sure i got the right ones to dim the buttons on the front panel.  R140 and R141 1k5 to 2k?

Sure, anything over 1K will just lower the current, simple ohms law (I=V/R)  Assuming a 2V voltage drop on typical LED and 12V supply rail, it's (12-2)/1000 = 10mA LED current.  Changing resistor to 1K5 will drop current to 7.5mA, 2K will be 5mA (probably getting on the dim side).

 

[minor_glitch]

Alright, I'm just about to start my build so I'm going to get my painfully stupid questions out of the way now.  I scanned through all the metas but I couldn't find any good info.

I need advice on screws and nuts.  Yes, screws and nuts!  For some crazy reason, I have barely any screws/nuts/washers lying around so I have to stock up.
There are about 5 billion choices from mouser/digikey/whatnot and I really have no idea what standard sizes are used.  I have rack screws, so that part is easy, but I'll need screws and nuts for the case, iec, star ground, neutrik connectors, tranny, vu, etc...

Also, does anyone have a source for 14awg wire for the ground?  I ordered a whole bunch of 22awg from allelectronics, but they don't have anything thicker than 18, and mouser wants me to order a few hundred feet at a time, when I only need like 10-25 feet at most.  I guess I could just sacrifice the power cord from a lamp if need be.  Actually, I wonder if they have 14awg at home depot. hmm

That's it for now. Stay tuned for more potentially ridiculous questions as I progress through my build.haha

 

[dtrax]

For screws, I use 6-32 for star ground, mounting trannies, etc.... For most things anyways.

I tend to use 4-40 size for mounting PCB's and IEC inlet. PCB mounting holes aren't "standard", so using 4-40 is the lowest common denominator. However, Ruckus' pcb mount holes are for bigger than some pcb's I've bought; I like the adhesive plastic standoffs if I can use 'em, which I did for my SB4K build. Hm, I seem to be going off topic...

If you order a case from say, Par-metal, it comes will all the screws necessary for assembly. I got my 4000 case from DIY Parts Supply, and was good to go. VU meter's come with screws as well.

What I do is while making a Project on Mouser.com, is add in at least (25) 6-32 screws of a few different lengths, 6-32 nuts, (25) 4-40 screws of varying lengths and 4-40 nuts. Over time I've amassed a Sh*tload!

For short lengths of hookup wire, hit up ebay. You get charged a hefty markup, but if you only need little bits here and there, it's worth it. Personally, I bit the bullet and bought rolls of all necessary wire for audio projects. It keeps me motivated to use it all! 

EDIT: here's a link to the mouser page I use for screws - http://www.mouser.com/catalog/catalogUSD/643/1961.pdf

Alright, I'm just about to start my build so I'm going to get my painfully stupid questions out of the way now.  I scanned through all the metas but I couldn't find any good info.

I need advice on screws and nuts.  Yes, screws and nuts!  For some crazy reason, I have barely any screws/nuts/washers lying around so I have to stock up.
There are about 5 billion choices from mouser/digikey/whatnot and I really have no idea what standard sizes are used.  I have rack screws, so that part is easy, but I'll need screws and nuts for the case, iec, star ground, neutrik connectors, tranny, vu, etc...

Also, does anyone have a source for 14awg wire for the ground?  I ordered a whole bunch of 22awg from allelectronics, but they don't have anything thicker than 18, and mouser wants me to order a few hundred feet at a time, when I only need like 10-25 feet at most.  I guess I could just sacrifice the power cord from a lamp if need be.  Actually, I wonder if they have 14awg at home depot. hmm

That's it for now. Stay tuned for more potentially ridiculous questions as I progress through my build.haha

 

[minor_glitch]

Awesome.  Thanks so much for the information!  I'll definitely stock up on screws this time. 
I ordered the case, parts and vu from diy parts supply too, so I guess I'm covered there.

 

[Neil]

You can also look for equipment that's been junked and reuse wire and hardware out of it. Try either a second-hand shop, junkyard, or Salvation Army type place and you'd be surprised what you can get out of some pieces.

 

[Ptownkid]

I tend to use 4-40 for almost everything...hit up www.redco.com and you can get pan, and countersunk head machines screws and nuts nice and cheap. That'll cover you for almost everything... Since you are in toronto, you can get alot of things from www.sayal.com. That's where i usually get my wire.

http://www.redco.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=37&cat=Connector+Mounting+Hardware