Lately I have been keeping myself busy by reading about the Pass B1/Korg triode project and getting the itch to build one (or 5, never mind...). Most of my projects found themselves installed in the chassis of old, non functioning or obsolete audio gear. A lot of the new product chassis run from bud boxes / basic steel to aviation grade aluminum loving machined components. Nice but often adds a lot of cost to a project if you consider connectors, power tranformer's, attaching hardware and so on. I look for old home theater units. They usually are pretty inexpensive (HT people want the latest tech here so these go pretty cheap). Usually these old units have decent connectors, and possibly re-imaginable power supplies and many other usable parts. If you want to put your own "stamp" on the finished project you can always change out the front panel. Amazon (and others) sell product which you use your printer to make your own decals to label the various controls on your front panel. Basically you are making decals like what are found in model kits. After applied and fully dry you clear coat the whole panel. With a little care you end up with a piece of gear that not only brings to life the latest piece of "Passology" but also one that looks as good as it sounds. Oh yes, less electronic related waste in landfills or cluttering cycle yards.
I also encourage diy projects using discarded equipment. I built an ACA, the amp enclosed in 3sets of recycled heatsinks screwed together, and the PS in a 1970s Dynaco amp chassis. I also removed windings from a toroidal transformer to get the correct voltages to power this ACA. Many ways to utilize discarded or used equipment/parts.
Attachments
The amount of people recycling electronic equipment is minimal.
99.99% of people dispose of it in the trash and buy new.
I sometimes use old pc cases for amps but I would never dream of reusing resistors, inductors or capacitors.
Heatsinks are ok to recycle.
I was thinking of using a Sony TA 4650 chassis with blown VFETs (preamp part still working) into a SissySit or DefiSit type. I thought it would just be cool. I have to measure the innards. The heat sinks, parts, and power supply are already in there. The preamp part also works fine and is separate from the amp. The 4650 used 43v rails for the amp, so there is excess there and a power supply card or voltage regulator would be needed to tamp the rails down. The issue is room for cards and ergonomics, it might require creative use of internal space.
It's just a fantasy at the moment, it might not work, but the idea of using antique fascias for a Pass DIY appeals.
It's just a fantasy at the moment, it might not work, but the idea of using antique fascias for a Pass DIY appeals.
A video-switch box bought for a national border camera installation (circa 1990) is now my furnace fan controller box.
I know a guy built a "hot" guitar amp in a toaster-oven. Actually, the one they had at the airport where he worked for many-many late lunches.
I had an EICO tube hi-fi which had multiple problems, and tubes were going out of style. I chiseled the chassis, installed Radio Shack's biggest filament transformer, two Sanken 20W modules, an op-amp. Used it for years as a general utility monitor amp.
I know a guy built a "hot" guitar amp in a toaster-oven. Actually, the one they had at the airport where he worked for many-many late lunches.
I had an EICO tube hi-fi which had multiple problems, and tubes were going out of style. I chiseled the chassis, installed Radio Shack's biggest filament transformer, two Sanken 20W modules, an op-amp. Used it for years as a general utility monitor amp.
it will work only with help of massive forced cooling
so , no go
good for anything AB class (so less or practically no heat) , of course
The size of the cards and the way they are attached to the heatsinks would probably preclude the effort based on size constraints. I have a couple of heatsinks from an old amp that would probably work, but getting them in the right position would probably require a different chassis, or placing the boards outside the main chassis altogether. Just thought experiments so far.
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