rainton
Well-known member
Hey guys,
here's the thing: I built a couple of tube mics recently, and since I'm located in Europe I always had the problem to get a nice vintage looking Mic PSU chassis for my projects.
Twice I ordered the PSU chassis from Collective Cases, and even though it looks quite nice:
a) it's very expensive to have it shipped over here from the states (chassis + shipping + tax = approx. 125 Euros)
b) it's a lot of drilling and extra work
c) the quality is ok, but it could be better
And since I made my first successful steps of designing some chassis with my LA2A chassis group buy I figured why spending a lot of money on a PSU chassis I'm not completely happy with, when I can design my own one instead
I wanted to have a really high quality chassis, as close as possible to the vintage original Neumann PSU chassis in terms of looks, and I wanted it to be a breeze to build a tube mic PSU with it.
So before I write a novel here, I'll post some pics of my finished prototype (for a MK-U47) and thenI'll explain:
OUTSIDE:
INSIDE:
Here you can see this is not just the external chassis, but also a dividing panel inside with all cutouts, holes necessary to mount the components easily:
In the last pic you can see the dividing panel also includes an integrated mounting bracket for the voltage adjustment pot.
The way this pot is installed allows for turning the pot with a screwdriver through a small hole in the front of the chassis.
Here's a close-up:
But not just that - there are also some holes in the bottom of the chassis where a pair of banana jacks (or something similar) can be installed. So if you want to readjust the voltage, you don't have to open up the chassis, you just flip it over, plug in your multimeter from the bottom and readjust the voltage from the front with a screwdriver:
Also there's a second mounting hole for another pot in the dividing panel if needed.
Basically, apart from the obvious cutouts on the outside(XLR, IEC, Binder, etc) this chassis offers all holes necessary to mount:
- power transformer
- pcb(s)
- choke
- adjustment pot(s)
- cutouts for wiring/enough space for components
and most holes, (power tranny, choke, handle, feet, fastening holes for the lid...) even include high quality stainless steel nuts punched into the chassis for a smooth ride while mounting the components. 8)
The chassis itself is made from steel with a dark grey hammer finish and the material is thicker and more sturdy than e.g. the collective cases psu. The chassis is a 100% made in Germany.
Also the chassis will come with feet and a really nice & sturdy leather handle which feels great when holding the chassis. ( I always found the one on the cc-psu to be a little flimsy)
Here's my old Collective Cases chassis PSU I built for a U47 compared to the one I designed to be my new standard
On this picture you can see, the Collective Cases chassis definitely looks cool! And if you're located in the US it's great for the price!!
But I wanted to do something with a really authentic vintage look, that offers everything needed to make building a tube mic psu a breeze. And when I built this prototype - I'm telling you - I never had that much fun putting a mic psu together ;D
Here's another pic without components:
The one I built is made for a U47 type mic, but actually I want this chassis to be suitable for as many tube mic projects as possible.
And I wrote above that the chassis will even include the holes for the pcb.
At the moment this includes only Zayance's MK-U47 psu pcb, but I want it to include the necessary mounting holes for all other popular tube mic projects out there.
Also my U47 pus doesn't need a pattern switch on the PSU so I didn't include it. But I thought about a way to create a mark inside the chassis, so if you need a pattern switch, it's easy to drill a hole at that spot to install a pattern switch
So this feeler has 4 main goals:
- finding out if there's a greater interest in such a nice PSU chassis
- getting the dimensions of as many different mic PSU pcbs as possible, so I can include their correct footprints (mounting holes)
- how many want the cutout for the mic to be XLR, how many want the larger Binder/Amphenol, any of you want the original tuchel?
- should there be a hole for the pattern switch by default, or should I just leave a mark inside the chassis for the right spot to drill?
I'm aware the way I designed it is not the cheapest way to go (it will still be for European builders though), but it's definitely by far the easiest and most elegant way
That said with all the above mentioned included we only reach an acceptable price range if we are as many as possible.
So including everything stated above with more than 20 chassis made we look at 119 Euros each. (excl. VAT if applicable)
If we reach more than 40 it'll come down to 105 Euros each.
And that's the 5th reason of this feeler which I want to open to discussion:
- Do you rather pay a price like this and have only high quality parts (e.g. thick leather handle) and the convenience of things like punched in stainless steel nuts
- or do you rather save on a couple of bucks and sacrifice ease of use
Because - I'm sure it would be possible to design it a little cheaper (e.g. getting rid of the nuts, choosing a lower quality handle, no feet, etc) , but certainly not that much since the most expensive parts, are the complex dividing panel and the bottom chassis.
And I think with the Collective Cases chassis there's a great lower cost option out there - at least for US builders...
Ok, guys I'm really interested in your thoughts.
Here's THE LIST - please check if you're on it and if I got the correct number of chassis you want
lampas (2) PAID
DerEber PAID
Upacesky PAID
chefducuisine (2) PAID
mrcase PAID
dmp (4) PAID
bancho PAID
jafo PAID
tskguy PAID
Sredna (2) PAID
simonlef PAID
radiobug (2) PAID
kosi (2) PAID
craig (2) PAID
stelin (2) PAID
CBR (6) PAID
jpharao (2) PAID
roger.unc (2) PAID
59flame PAID
olebrom PAID
nattycee PAID
flatresponse (2) PAID
fazeka PAID
jackinthebox (2) PAID
Zander PAID
Mans Lundberg (2) PAID
gbruler (2) PAID
Aaudio (2) PAID
duantro PAID
mrerdat (2) PAID
rainton (3) PAID
poctop PAID
mellsonic (2) PAID
here's the thing: I built a couple of tube mics recently, and since I'm located in Europe I always had the problem to get a nice vintage looking Mic PSU chassis for my projects.
Twice I ordered the PSU chassis from Collective Cases, and even though it looks quite nice:
a) it's very expensive to have it shipped over here from the states (chassis + shipping + tax = approx. 125 Euros)
b) it's a lot of drilling and extra work
c) the quality is ok, but it could be better
And since I made my first successful steps of designing some chassis with my LA2A chassis group buy I figured why spending a lot of money on a PSU chassis I'm not completely happy with, when I can design my own one instead
I wanted to have a really high quality chassis, as close as possible to the vintage original Neumann PSU chassis in terms of looks, and I wanted it to be a breeze to build a tube mic PSU with it.
So before I write a novel here, I'll post some pics of my finished prototype (for a MK-U47) and thenI'll explain:
OUTSIDE:
Here you can see this is not just the external chassis, but also a dividing panel inside with all cutouts, holes necessary to mount the components easily:
In the last pic you can see the dividing panel also includes an integrated mounting bracket for the voltage adjustment pot.
The way this pot is installed allows for turning the pot with a screwdriver through a small hole in the front of the chassis.
Here's a close-up:
But not just that - there are also some holes in the bottom of the chassis where a pair of banana jacks (or something similar) can be installed. So if you want to readjust the voltage, you don't have to open up the chassis, you just flip it over, plug in your multimeter from the bottom and readjust the voltage from the front with a screwdriver:
Also there's a second mounting hole for another pot in the dividing panel if needed.
Basically, apart from the obvious cutouts on the outside(XLR, IEC, Binder, etc) this chassis offers all holes necessary to mount:
- power transformer
- pcb(s)
- choke
- adjustment pot(s)
- cutouts for wiring/enough space for components
and most holes, (power tranny, choke, handle, feet, fastening holes for the lid...) even include high quality stainless steel nuts punched into the chassis for a smooth ride while mounting the components. 8)
The chassis itself is made from steel with a dark grey hammer finish and the material is thicker and more sturdy than e.g. the collective cases psu. The chassis is a 100% made in Germany.
Also the chassis will come with feet and a really nice & sturdy leather handle which feels great when holding the chassis. ( I always found the one on the cc-psu to be a little flimsy)
Here's my old Collective Cases chassis PSU I built for a U47 compared to the one I designed to be my new standard
On this picture you can see, the Collective Cases chassis definitely looks cool! And if you're located in the US it's great for the price!!
But I wanted to do something with a really authentic vintage look, that offers everything needed to make building a tube mic psu a breeze. And when I built this prototype - I'm telling you - I never had that much fun putting a mic psu together ;D
Here's another pic without components:
The one I built is made for a U47 type mic, but actually I want this chassis to be suitable for as many tube mic projects as possible.
And I wrote above that the chassis will even include the holes for the pcb.
At the moment this includes only Zayance's MK-U47 psu pcb, but I want it to include the necessary mounting holes for all other popular tube mic projects out there.
Also my U47 pus doesn't need a pattern switch on the PSU so I didn't include it. But I thought about a way to create a mark inside the chassis, so if you need a pattern switch, it's easy to drill a hole at that spot to install a pattern switch
So this feeler has 4 main goals:
- finding out if there's a greater interest in such a nice PSU chassis
- getting the dimensions of as many different mic PSU pcbs as possible, so I can include their correct footprints (mounting holes)
- how many want the cutout for the mic to be XLR, how many want the larger Binder/Amphenol, any of you want the original tuchel?
- should there be a hole for the pattern switch by default, or should I just leave a mark inside the chassis for the right spot to drill?
I'm aware the way I designed it is not the cheapest way to go (it will still be for European builders though), but it's definitely by far the easiest and most elegant way
That said with all the above mentioned included we only reach an acceptable price range if we are as many as possible.
So including everything stated above with more than 20 chassis made we look at 119 Euros each. (excl. VAT if applicable)
If we reach more than 40 it'll come down to 105 Euros each.
And that's the 5th reason of this feeler which I want to open to discussion:
- Do you rather pay a price like this and have only high quality parts (e.g. thick leather handle) and the convenience of things like punched in stainless steel nuts
- or do you rather save on a couple of bucks and sacrifice ease of use
Because - I'm sure it would be possible to design it a little cheaper (e.g. getting rid of the nuts, choosing a lower quality handle, no feet, etc) , but certainly not that much since the most expensive parts, are the complex dividing panel and the bottom chassis.
And I think with the Collective Cases chassis there's a great lower cost option out there - at least for US builders...
Ok, guys I'm really interested in your thoughts.
Here's THE LIST - please check if you're on it and if I got the correct number of chassis you want
lampas (2) PAID
DerEber PAID
Upacesky PAID
chefducuisine (2) PAID
mrcase PAID
dmp (4) PAID
bancho PAID
jafo PAID
tskguy PAID
Sredna (2) PAID
simonlef PAID
radiobug (2) PAID
kosi (2) PAID
craig (2) PAID
stelin (2) PAID
CBR (6) PAID
jpharao (2) PAID
roger.unc (2) PAID
59flame PAID
olebrom PAID
nattycee PAID
flatresponse (2) PAID
fazeka PAID
jackinthebox (2) PAID
Zander PAID
Mans Lundberg (2) PAID
gbruler (2) PAID
Aaudio (2) PAID
duantro PAID
mrerdat (2) PAID
rainton (3) PAID
poctop PAID
mellsonic (2) PAID