Heard Music
I replaced C2 with a 47uF 500 v cap, with leads. Had to use wire jumper from C2+ to R4.
Used Ty's Check out for Dummies. Readings were right on. Powertube heaters were 6.3 v, rec tube 5 v and 417.
Put in tubes. Nothin. L1, choke only, and R4 were zip.
Tried L1 choke and aux cap, I got zapped and amp is playing! Meter on shows 1 on left of meter (dead or fuse?), the other meter on R4 reads 383. HUMming.
When I took meter off L1 music died.
I grounded it, that's why it worked, and when I took ground away it stopped. Looking at schematic L1 is choke to aux cap which goes to T1 redyellow
which is grounded. Only T1 red yellow wire tested positive for
for ground.
Do I need a ground at L1?
And?
I replaced C2 with a 47uF 500 v cap, with leads. Had to use wire jumper from C2+ to R4.
Used Ty's Check out for Dummies. Readings were right on. Powertube heaters were 6.3 v, rec tube 5 v and 417.
Put in tubes. Nothin. L1, choke only, and R4 were zip.
Tried L1 choke and aux cap, I got zapped and amp is playing! Meter on shows 1 on left of meter (dead or fuse?), the other meter on R4 reads 383. HUMming.
When I took meter off L1 music died.
I grounded it, that's why it worked, and when I took ground away it stopped. Looking at schematic L1 is choke to aux cap which goes to T1 redyellow
which is grounded. Only T1 red yellow wire tested positive for
for ground.
Do I need a ground at L1?
And?
Music
Looked at L1. The leads for choke and aux cap had gotten to where choke lead wasn't getting connection. Equalized the leads now music.
Volume isn't where I would like, can turn all the way up with out being too loud..
One speaker has hum*, and when volume control is turned up there is a range where there is crackle, then crackle goes away as control is turned up more.
*When I was checking earlier I saw a difference in signal strength from one channel to the other at input terminals.
Thank you for help!
Looked at L1. The leads for choke and aux cap had gotten to where choke lead wasn't getting connection. Equalized the leads now music.
Volume isn't where I would like, can turn all the way up with out being too loud..
One speaker has hum*, and when volume control is turned up there is a range where there is crackle, then crackle goes away as control is turned up more.
*When I was checking earlier I saw a difference in signal strength from one channel to the other at input terminals.
Thank you for help!
Well, how do you know the volume control is the problem?
Personally, I think it is easiest to just get a bare bones system working correctly - triode, no CFB, no volume controls, just basic input to the board, basic output to the speakers, and make sure the board and all of your essential connections are all working properly before adding on non essential, luxury, options. Otherwise, you really don't know whether or not you still have problems with the board, with the input wiring, or the volume control, or the output wiring, or some other optional stuff.
And technically, you still have problems with the board - C2 is not correct and C1 is missing. Wasn't this so you could get the board working, check the B+ to make sure it is within the normal range and eliminate that as the reason for your filter cap exploding, and then get the power supply right, check out the basic wiring, and then move on to non essential luxury stuff like rectifier switches, volume controls, etc?
Diddling around with an auxillary cap that you really don't need at this point, had you chasing gremlins, which is why I suggest forgetting about that kind of stuff for now.
My $0.02 FWIW, probably $0.02.
Win W5AJG
Personally, I think it is easiest to just get a bare bones system working correctly - triode, no CFB, no volume controls, just basic input to the board, basic output to the speakers, and make sure the board and all of your essential connections are all working properly before adding on non essential, luxury, options. Otherwise, you really don't know whether or not you still have problems with the board, with the input wiring, or the volume control, or the output wiring, or some other optional stuff.
And technically, you still have problems with the board - C2 is not correct and C1 is missing. Wasn't this so you could get the board working, check the B+ to make sure it is within the normal range and eliminate that as the reason for your filter cap exploding, and then get the power supply right, check out the basic wiring, and then move on to non essential luxury stuff like rectifier switches, volume controls, etc?
Diddling around with an auxillary cap that you really don't need at this point, had you chasing gremlins, which is why I suggest forgetting about that kind of stuff for now.
My $0.02 FWIW, probably $0.02.
Win W5AJG
I am not disagreeing, far from it.
If you were to offer two initial diagnostic suggestions what would they be, and what changes, readings where should be looked at/for?
And why. The old "give a man a fish or teach him how to fish".
My thinking about volume control is that when it is changed/turned the results to me seem proportional. I.E, if the problem were in output turning the volume control would have no effect. No?
If you were to offer two initial diagnostic suggestions what would they be, and what changes, readings where should be looked at/for?
And why. The old "give a man a fish or teach him how to fish".
My thinking about volume control is that when it is changed/turned the results to me seem proportional. I.E, if the problem were in output turning the volume control would have no effect. No?
I sort of thought I just did.
Worrying about a volume control, when you still haven't got the power supply right, just seems misplaced to me. Maybe the present test set up for your power supply configuration is causing, or contributing, to the problem.
Do you have cathode feedback enabled? Maybe it is backward on one of the channels?
I don't know anything about your volume control. To me, it just seems non essential right now. You mentioned an MP3 player earlier - doesn't IT have a volume control? Maybe there is some weird interaction between the MP3 and the load presented by your volume control. I certainly don't know. It just seems to me like a variable that doesn't contribute anything at present except potential problems.
It seems reasonable at this point to assume the cap that exploded was installed backwards, and it took out the rectifier tube as well as itself. It might be best at this point to get the correct caps installed at C1 and C2 before proceeding further.
I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, so I try to keep my variables to an absolute minimum, to the extent I can. Maybe someone else has a better suggestion.
Win W5JAG
Plan of attack
So a plan is to
Remove volume control, go direct from 3.5 jack to input on pcb. Hum crackle gone?.
Add C1,47uF 500v leaded cap (making sure soldered to top and bottom of board, and watching polarization). Use Ty's for Dummies.
Watch B+, if B+ below 500 install tubes.
At that point what else should be checked?
So a plan is to
Remove volume control, go direct from 3.5 jack to input on pcb. Hum crackle gone?.
Add C1,47uF 500v leaded cap (making sure soldered to top and bottom of board, and watching polarization). Use Ty's for Dummies.
Watch B+, if B+ below 500 install tubes.
At that point what else should be checked?
I don't know what the Ty's for Dummies is, but, so far, it doesn't seem all that helpful.
Put the tubes in to measure the voltages. Without the power supply being loaded down by the current drawn by the power tubes, the voltages will be too high. Your readings will not be accurate and you may blow a capacitor again.
Win W5JAG
Put the tubes in to measure the voltages. Without the power supply being loaded down by the current drawn by the power tubes, the voltages will be too high. Your readings will not be accurate and you may blow a capacitor again.
Win W5JAG
Mostly good day.
Removed volume control, using MP3 player direct. There was a loud hum until I plugged MP3 in, hum stopped. Nice clear music when turned MP3 on.
I then installed 47uF cap at C1( per SSE parts list). Caps have neg sides towards each other. Turned on amp. Quiet. When MP3 turned on clean clear music that could be turned up LOUD.
B+ at R4 is 492 volts.
I was thinking all good.
T1 green, and power tube heaters read 30 v.???
T1 yellow, closest to "front" of board reads zip, while the other T1 yellow and pin 2 for rectube reads 498.??? Pin 6 read 182.
Amp is wired in triode, no volume control, choke not R1, with an auxilary cap.
Removed volume control, using MP3 player direct. There was a loud hum until I plugged MP3 in, hum stopped. Nice clear music when turned MP3 on.
I then installed 47uF cap at C1( per SSE parts list). Caps have neg sides towards each other. Turned on amp. Quiet. When MP3 turned on clean clear music that could be turned up LOUD.
B+ at R4 is 492 volts.
I was thinking all good.
T1 green, and power tube heaters read 30 v.???
T1 yellow, closest to "front" of board reads zip, while the other T1 yellow and pin 2 for rectube reads 498.??? Pin 6 read 182.
Amp is wired in triode, no volume control, choke not R1, with an auxilary cap.
According to this earlier post in this thread, that is about what is expected:
The heaters are elevated at DC, so IF your voltmeter is set to DC, this looks OK to me.
IF your voltmeter is set to DC, this looks OK to me.
Sounds like your board is working properly, finally.
Win W5AJG
No problem, glad it is working.
Yes, ONE change at a time.
I don't have an opinion on this.
No, just turn it on and enjoy it. Some tubes, however, may sound better ( or worse ) after they get good and hot. If they sound worse, get a new tube.
Yes, it is a good sounding amp, and I bet it sounds REALLY GOOD after a long struggle to get it going ....
Win W5JAG
Great Listening
I listened to my amp last night for around four hours. Using my ipod for input and volume control. Got it on a cable around 18 feet long.
The speakers I am using now are from my sons old stereo multiplayer- at least fifteen years old. One of those mp3, cd radio things with the speakers that fold into it for moving.
Mine sounds great.
Can't wait to hook it up to my Klipsch speakers.
Hopefully my next post will be in pictures thread.
I listened to my amp last night for around four hours. Using my ipod for input and volume control. Got it on a cable around 18 feet long.
The speakers I am using now are from my sons old stereo multiplayer- at least fifteen years old. One of those mp3, cd radio things with the speakers that fold into it for moving.
Mine sounds great.
Can't wait to hook it up to my Klipsch speakers.
Hopefully my next post will be in pictures thread.