Thank you guys for helping me out with this DAC. Really appreciate it.
By the way, the second wave of components I purchased are coming in now. First of the second wave to come is the NE5534 OPAMPs.
Considering that I'm quite busy these days (kids and all), it would take some time to start the soldering works.
In the meantime, can you guys recommend me a good, budget soldering iron for general soldering and for soldering smd components ?
By the way, the second wave of components I purchased are coming in now. First of the second wave to come is the NE5534 OPAMPs.
Considering that I'm quite busy these days (kids and all), it would take some time to start the soldering works.
In the meantime, can you guys recommend me a good, budget soldering iron for general soldering and for soldering smd components ?
hi eljoantonyn
for bigger components (not SMD) an e.g. ersa 40W is ok. .e.g.
0340KD - ERSA 30 S, Ersa Lotkolben elektrisch, 40W, 230V
for soldering SMD its about 10-12W what you need......but with a very thin and good quality solder pin on the end !
I personally have a metcal de-soldering equipment so its not cheap
chris
for bigger components (not SMD) an e.g. ersa 40W is ok. .e.g.
0340KD - ERSA 30 S, Ersa Lotkolben elektrisch, 40W, 230V
for soldering SMD its about 10-12W what you need......but with a very thin and good quality solder pin on the end !
I personally have a metcal de-soldering equipment so its not cheap
chris
I already have a 25W soldering iron but thats not suited to smd soldering.
Yeah, soldering stations are costly !
I tried Mouser but they are very very costly !
There are some at Amazon.in but let me check Taobao and Aliexpress first.
YIHUA 908+ 60w Electric Soldering iron Station Thermostat Pocket Mini iron Solder Station For SMT SMD Welding Rework Repair-in Electric Soldering Irons from Tools on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
Seems like a good option for my needs !
Yeah, soldering stations are costly !
I tried Mouser but they are very very costly !
There are some at Amazon.in but let me check Taobao and Aliexpress first.
YIHUA 908+ 60w Electric Soldering iron Station Thermostat Pocket Mini iron Solder Station For SMT SMD Welding Rework Repair-in Electric Soldering Irons from Tools on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
Seems like a good option for my needs !
Grace DAC is back on sale at Massdrop !
Very tempting !!
Any idea about Nichicon UKA caps ?
When selecting 'Audio Grade' in Mouser, ELNA SILMIC II as well as Nichicon UFG, UKA, UKT, UMW & USW shows up.
No UKZ & UHZ !!
Also no Panasonic FMs too although they have it in stock.
May be Panasonic FMs are not mean to be for audio ?
BTW, ELNA SILMIC is the costliest of the bunch though.
Very tempting !!
Any idea about Nichicon UKA caps ?
When selecting 'Audio Grade' in Mouser, ELNA SILMIC II as well as Nichicon UFG, UKA, UKT, UMW & USW shows up.
No UKZ & UHZ !!
Also no Panasonic FMs too although they have it in stock.
May be Panasonic FMs are not mean to be for audio ?
BTW, ELNA SILMIC is the costliest of the bunch though.
The vishay 038 is good for digital also if you can’t find any of the fm.
Those Nichicon KA look great, haven’t used them, but very likely they won’t sound bad or anything, based on what I’ve come to know about the rest of their parts.
Definitely get some of the wima fkp2 as well as some Siemens ks, box type parts for the output filter that’s around the op amp. That will make as much or more difference than all the power supply improvements.
Those Nichicon KA look great, haven’t used them, but very likely they won’t sound bad or anything, based on what I’ve come to know about the rest of their parts.
Definitely get some of the wima fkp2 as well as some Siemens ks, box type parts for the output filter that’s around the op amp. That will make as much or more difference than all the power supply improvements.
I have bought all replacement caps (ELNA SILMIC II) except for those mentioned above.
Now, should I replace those too ?
I tried to see if the ELNA branded caps (shown in the pics) are genuine. The data sheet on the ELNA site mentions only blue, brown and silver caps. There are no yellow and red. But, in some other sites, there are mentions of yellow colored 'cerafine' caps and the ebay is full of the red coloured 'cerafines' like the ones on my DAC PCB.
I just don't know if its real or not !
If I get an opinion of you guys, it would be awesome as I can order new caps and replace them when I'm free. Any help would be greatly appreciated !
@Phase
OK, so, what do you propose on what should I order this time ?
Nichicon UKA ?
They also have Panasonic FMs but when I select 'Audio grade', it disappears !
Its much cheaper that the SILMICs !
Here are the caps mentioned in that quoted message
Attachments
Don’t get hung up on the audio caps thing, I mentioned it, or someone did, as that’s an easy way to find decent caps for the analog portions of your dac.
The Panasonic fm are great, just make sure and get the lower voltage versions and/or make note of the esr that they have so you don’t lessen the potential of the regulators to do their job. Different parts for different functions.
For the few dollars it would take to replace those yellow and red caps, it’s going to be worth just knowing they aren’t fake. Either those ka or Silmics.
The Panasonic fm are great, just make sure and get the lower voltage versions and/or make note of the esr that they have so you don’t lessen the potential of the regulators to do their job. Different parts for different functions.
For the few dollars it would take to replace those yellow and red caps, it’s going to be worth just knowing they aren’t fake. Either those ka or Silmics.
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Thanks for the reply Phase !
BTW, can I replace the caps near the PCM 2704 based on this PCB layout ?
USB audio DAC with PCM2704
Got all the relevant pages data sheets of the chips used in this DAC board printed. Tomorrow, I'll check if its as per the recommended design.
BTW, can I replace the caps near the PCM 2704 based on this PCB layout ?
USB audio DAC with PCM2704
Got all the relevant pages data sheets of the chips used in this DAC board printed. Tomorrow, I'll check if its as per the recommended design.
The small difference that may be gained by merely swapping parts in that part of the dac is going to be hard to tell by ear, and maybe not at all without changing things that aren’t practical to change, like the entire layout. That kind of development would require more testing and equipment than just using references to experience gained on other similar dacs.
You should focus more on the analog portions, power supply improvements. You will probably be pleasantly surprised at what you can achieve without much consideration, provided there hasn’t been any tragic error built in to the pcb.
There will be a trade off between what is easy to gain and what is a wasted effort or just microscopic gains.
You should focus more on the analog portions, power supply improvements. You will probably be pleasantly surprised at what you can achieve without much consideration, provided there hasn’t been any tragic error built in to the pcb.
There will be a trade off between what is easy to gain and what is a wasted effort or just microscopic gains.
@Phase
OK, I'll get it from Amazon as its much cheaper compared to Mouser.
BTW, there is some interesting discussion regarding caps in the signal path and in power supply filtering. The poster says for filtering application, ripple current is important and he recommends PW series.
For caps in the signal path, he says leakage is more important and recommends KL series which isn't an 'audio grade' cap. UKA 'audio grade' series also has good leakage.
Anyone Use Nichicon UKA Series Caps?
NOW, what about coupling and de-coupling ?
Shall I get the PW series or just get the Panasonic FM and call it a day ?
OFFTOPIC:
I was just checking the evaluation boards in Mouser and found this.
TLV320DAC3202EVM Texas Instruments | Mouser India
Is it any good ?
Or, is there any better evaluation boards that we can get for cheap from well known sources like Mouser ?
OK, I'll get it from Amazon as its much cheaper compared to Mouser.
BTW, there is some interesting discussion regarding caps in the signal path and in power supply filtering. The poster says for filtering application, ripple current is important and he recommends PW series.
For caps in the signal path, he says leakage is more important and recommends KL series which isn't an 'audio grade' cap. UKA 'audio grade' series also has good leakage.
Anyone Use Nichicon UKA Series Caps?
NOW, what about coupling and de-coupling ?
Shall I get the PW series or just get the Panasonic FM and call it a day ?
OFFTOPIC:
I was just checking the evaluation boards in Mouser and found this.
TLV320DAC3202EVM Texas Instruments | Mouser India
Is it any good ?
Or, is there any better evaluation boards that we can get for cheap from well known sources like Mouser ?
I didn’t think there were any electrolytic capacitors in the signal path, were all power supply.
You are going to have to spend some time comparing the different types, if it’s that important, since the internet is full of different opinions. Maybe try and figure out what these parts are actually doing and what the actual weight or significance of their potentially different properties will be.
You are going to have to spend some time comparing the different types, if it’s that important, since the internet is full of different opinions. Maybe try and figure out what these parts are actually doing and what the actual weight or significance of their potentially different properties will be.
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