Lm3886 Gainclone Help

barry.childs · 23rd August 2008, 12:42 PM

Hi, I bought a gainclone kit from a Hong Kong supplier on ebay (before I had heard of Peter Daniels) and am putting it together. I have a plastic box from Maplin, but am unsure whether the toroidal transformer gets too hot for a plastic enclosure, If so I can always make a separate power supply. Any thoughts?
Another thing is I was thinking of not using a selector switch. If I connected a CD player and a Computer and maybe a tape deck to three phono sockets wired in parallel and only one input was swithed on, is that ok? and if more than one was switched on would this cause any damage? Another thing bothering me is input cable and Alps pots. Can you put your hand on your heart and say the amp will sound better if I use silver wires instead of bell wire and a cheap pot instead of a famous make? I would appreciate any replies and help. Thanks Barry

AndrewT · 23rd August 2008, 01:10 PM

the non live circuits will load the live input and very likely distort the signal being fed to the power amp.

Forget silver wire until you have built this and a few other projects.

Nuuk · 23rd August 2008, 01:20 PM

A plastic case for the transformer will be fine. Just make sure that it is sturdy enough and big enough to leave some air round the transformer, bridge etc.

CAT5 is my choice for internal wiring, don't get hung up about silver.

I don't usually have a pot or attenuator in my system (I use an SB3 and use its digital volume control) but I am currently testing a USB DAC and have an old cheap carbon pot after my DAC. Perhaps another volume control will sound better there but it sounds good enough for me not to even think about it. I bought the 'el cheapo' from Farnell.

If you want more than one input, use a selector switch as described here . It's nowhere near as much work as you may think!

barry.childs · 23rd August 2008, 01:31 PM

Excellent help, thank you. I will wire up a selector tonight, and i've found a 10k pot from an old Sherwood. I will try to download a pic of the project so far. Great fun!! Barry

barry.childs · 24th August 2008, 05:09 PM

Tried to download pic, hope it works. I'm going to put the PSU in another matching case. Barry

barry.childs · 24th August 2008, 05:23 PM

And this is a pic of the Amp with the lid on. I can't wait to get the PSU done and try it!!!

Nuuk · 24th August 2008, 09:07 PM

Quote:

I can't wait to get the PSU done and try it!!!

Patience is more than a virtue when it comes to power supply building!

Good work so far!

barry.childs · 5th September 2008, 03:33 PM

Just made the psu. Plugged the whole thing in and BINGO, no hum whatsoever. Fantastic sound from my old Meridian MCD. This is the best amp I have ever owned, much better than my friends Naim set up. He is well jealous, and it cost me about £80 compaired to his £5000!!! The heat sink gets very hot though, hope it does'nt blow up! Thanks everyone for your help; Barry

Puffin · 5th September 2008, 04:20 PM

barry. Welcome to the real world.

Ted205 · 5th September 2008, 04:50 PM

warning - the bug bites

Some very neat wiring by the way

23rd August 2008, 12:42 PM	#1
barry.childs diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Lostwithiel, Cornwall	Lm3886 Gainclone Help Hi, I bought a gainclone kit from a Hong Kong supplier on ebay (before I had heard of Peter Daniels) and am putting it together. I have a plastic box from Maplin, but am unsure whether the toroidal transformer gets too hot for a plastic enclosure, If so I can always make a separate power supply. Any thoughts? Another thing is I was thinking of not using a selector switch. If I connected a CD player and a Computer and maybe a tape deck to three phono sockets wired in parallel and only one input was swithed on, is that ok? and if more than one was switched on would this cause any damage? Another thing bothering me is input cable and Alps pots. Can you put your hand on your heart and say the amp will sound better if I use silver wires instead of bell wire and a cheap pot instead of a famous make? I would appreciate any replies and help. Thanks Barry

23rd August 2008, 01:10 PM	#2
AndrewT diyAudio Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Scottish Borders	the non live circuits will load the live input and very likely distort the signal being fed to the power amp. Forget silver wire until you have built this and a few other projects. __________________ regards Andrew T.

23rd August 2008, 01:20 PM	#3
Nuuk diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Somerset, SW England	A plastic case for the transformer will be fine. Just make sure that it is sturdy enough and big enough to leave some air round the transformer, bridge etc. CAT5 is my choice for internal wiring, don't get hung up about silver. I don't usually have a pot or attenuator in my system (I use an SB3 and use its digital volume control) but I am currently testing a USB DAC and have an old cheap carbon pot after my DAC. Perhaps another volume control will sound better there but it sounds good enough for me not to even think about it. I bought the 'el cheapo' from Farnell. If you want more than one input, use a selector switch as described here . It's nowhere near as much work as you may think! __________________ The truth need not be veiled, for it veils itself from the eyes of the ignorant.

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23rd August 2008, 01:31 PM	#4
barry.childs diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Lostwithiel, Cornwall	Excellent help, thank you. I will wire up a selector tonight, and i've found a 10k pot from an old Sherwood. I will try to download a pic of the project so far. Great fun!! Barry

5th September 2008, 04:20 PM	#9
Puffin diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: U.K	barry. Welcome to the real world.

5th September 2008, 04:50 PM	#10
Ted205 diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2008	warning - the bug bites Some very neat wiring by the way

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