Simple P-P Board & Parts Kits

[rknize]

Originally Posted by tubelab.com

Russ, you know I have been busy, but I totally forgot that I have your 12AT7's. I will send them back the next time I go to the post office. I will include a handful of my surplus 12AT7's. Anything else you want me to stuff in the box?

Haha...don't tempt me. ...and no rush, George...I have enough JAN tubes to keep me going for a while.

[tubelab.com]

George, I would be down for the simple SE kit.

The parts to complete the Simple P-P kits are on order from Digikey. NONE of the usual first run distributors has ANY 500 volt snap in electrolytics suitable for use in the Simple SE. Digikey back ordered my cap order for the Simple SE and quoted me a January 2011 delivery date! Most of the Panasonic stuff has been removed from their catalog.

I found some Cornell Dubliers (good caps) but they are $8 to 17 each! I have some Illinois Capacitor parts on order, but I won't put them in kits until I stress test them.

I have been sourcing parts for some complex RF projects at work and finding that everything is hard to get. Simple opamps, voltage regulators and mosfets are on long lead times, often 6 months or more.

[noodle]

Will you post here when the simple pp kits are available?

[Ty_Bower]

Originally Posted by tubelab.com

NONE of the usual first run distributors has ANY 500 volt snap in electrolytics suitable for use in the Simple SE.

If the Simple SE ever makes it to a new revision, it might be handy to have space on the circuit board for mounting a pair of 300V caps in series at the locations where high voltage is required. It would certainly make sourcing these critical components a little easier. It would also cater to those daredevils who want to run 800VCT or higher power transformers.

Of course, finding that space is another matter. Your board manufacturer would also charge you another setup fee for a new run. Oh well.

[w5jag]

Originally Posted by Ty_Bower

...

it might be handy to have space on the circuit board for mounting a pair of 300V caps in series at the locations where high voltage is required. It would certainly make sourcing these critical components a little easier. It would also cater to those daredevils who want to run 800VCT or higher power transformers ....

I just soldered two 350v caps in series, and soldered the free ends to the pcb. That connection outlasted most of the tubes plugged into the board, and one power xfmr.

A small daughterboard could be made that would give a neater look.

Parts shortages seem to be the norm these days - I ordered a DZ Kit Sienna in early July, and don't expect to see it for at least another month, maybe longer.

Win W5JAG

[tubelab.com]

Parts shortages seem to be the norm these days - I ordered a DZ Kit Sienna in early July, and don't expect to see it for at least another month, maybe longer.

I talked to the DZ guy and the Flex Radio people at Dayton. Both said the same thing. They had parts on order for months that were way past the delivery date only to have the distributor cancel the order at the last minute. Flex Radio is finally shipping the Flex 1500. I know people who waited nearly two years to get theirs.

I have been working on a two way radio prototype at work. We can't get small quantities of simple things lke opamps, LDO's, mosfets and even chip caps. Digikey charged us $5 each for a 4.7 uF 100 volt ceramic chip cap!

Our sourcing people say the problem is getting worse, and will not ease up until way into 2011. Too many production lines were idled or shut down during the 2009 crunch, and many component manufacturers are wary of hiring new people or ramping production up too fast.

If the Simple SE ever makes it to a new revision, it might be handy to have space on the circuit board for mounting a pair of 300V caps.....Your board manufacturer would also charge you another setup fee for a new run.

I have about 100 Simple SE boards in stock. I sell about 1 per week now. I don't see changing it any time soon. The best deal there is to leave the electrolytics out and use off board motor run caps.

What I need to finish is the external power supply board. I have several different versions partially breadboarded. The Tubelab SE can benefit from an external regulated supply so that the mosfets and the output tubes can run from a different voltage and the negative supply rail can be regulated. This gets the heat off of the board for the guys that want to run the 300B's and bigger tubes on 400+ volts. It can be used for the Simple SE especially if you want to run pentode mode, or stuff sweep tubes into it. And yes it is needed to extract big power from the Simple P-P. Finding one design that fulfills all of those requirements isn't easy.

[w5jag]

Originally Posted by tubelab.com

.....

Our sourcing people say the problem is getting worse, and will not ease up until way into 2011. Too many production lines were idled or shut down during the 2009 crunch, and many component manufacturers are wary of hiring new people or ramping production up too fast.

As a small businessman myself, I sympathize with you guys having all that money tied up in parts inventory, but not able to ship product for lack of a few parts.

Last I talked to the DZ guy, he indicated even mundane parts, like mini jacks and speakers, were tough to come by.

Unfortunately, I do not see the business environment changing in the short term .

[howard99]

Well after looking the Simple PP for a long time I am ready to build. Wanted to check if the parts kits are ready yet, assuming parts actually shipped to George. Also besides the board and parts kit what else will I need. So far I think it is transformers, tubes and a chassis. Thanks Howard

[sherpa]

with all these issues with getting electrolytic capacitors what would be the issue going with all motor run caps? for a simple SE i was thinking of going with 40uf, 80uf, 80uf and adding the choke. what are your thoughts? i thought of the 40uf to be easy on the rectifier tube.

[Ian444]

Howard, other parts might include - IEC inlet, fuse, power switch, RCA sockets, speaker output posts, vol control.
Sherpa, post 16, Tubelab says use offboard motor run caps on the Simple SE.

The 500V Illinois Capacitor are cheap, I ordered some for another amp, hope they hold up to close to their 500V rating, if not, I will need a Plan B...