Hello,
Does anyone have a source for legitimate BC550/BC560 transistors?
BC550 can still be purchased, but BC560 seem to be gone from "normal" channels (i.e. Digikey, Mouser, etc.).
Anyone had any luck with Ebay or Aliexpress? Care to list any specific sellers?
What about CDIL (Continental Device India Ltd) version of the BC550/BC560 that is available via TME (Transfer Multisort Elektronik)?
Thank you,
David.
Does anyone have a source for legitimate BC550/BC560 transistors?
BC550 can still be purchased, but BC560 seem to be gone from "normal" channels (i.e. Digikey, Mouser, etc.).
Anyone had any luck with Ebay or Aliexpress? Care to list any specific sellers?
What about CDIL (Continental Device India Ltd) version of the BC550/BC560 that is available via TME (Transfer Multisort Elektronik)?
Thank you,
David.
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Sadly, the end has come for most cheap, through-hole semis. The sources now are often generic parts for maintenance, repair and amateurs like us. Often, some marked parts qualities aren't even close to the OEM specification but CDIL have improved their game in recent years and likely is an exception. By "legit" I assume you mean qualified products from reputable sources, since the organisations who developed and produced the largest quantities of semis have left the scene or changed identity, brands etc. long ago.
The CDIL parts are cheap enough so why not buy a quantity and test them out in a real application yourself (Hfe range, noise level, Vceo max. etc.) and return to the thread, letting us know what you think in your experience. I'm sure there is a majority of others, especially beginners in this position, facing an SMD or nothing future, who have never thought to build up a stash of such preferred but obsolete semis so the feedback will be appreciated.
The CDIL parts are cheap enough so why not buy a quantity and test them out in a real application yourself (Hfe range, noise level, Vceo max. etc.) and return to the thread, letting us know what you think in your experience. I'm sure there is a majority of others, especially beginners in this position, facing an SMD or nothing future, who have never thought to build up a stash of such preferred but obsolete semis so the feedback will be appreciated.
Just change your designs to use KSC1845 and KSA992. Pin out is different but it’s a better transistor pair.
CDIL are fine when used as singles.
When you want to match them though, things can get very tricky. We still have access to OnSemi parts here, which will match to 3% out of the box and you can get 1% matches more than 50% of the time.
I got 12 close-matched (1mV Vbe and 1% hfe) from about 20 devices. With CDIL, a 1mV Vbe match is probably not possible at the same time as 1% hfe match, just because of their diffusion process.
You could also adapt schematics to allow for large part mismatches, such as offset adjustment in diff pairs and such to make up for the poorer matching. CDIL now manufactures a lot of parts that are otherwise obsolete, but they can only be used as replacement parts or testing/cannon fodder.
I have zero confidence in the brand after a string of failures in multiple product types and batches, the most egregious of which were Vbe multiplier failures from BD139s dying. And the BD139 has been manufactured by CDIL for over twenty years now. I just can't imagine them making decent parts.
I've purchased some lots of the Philips NOS BC560 from eBay earlier and those were fake, all with hfe below 200. I tried a batch of 'Fairchild' on my next eBay round which turned out to be NPN transistors. Bad as CDIL are, at least their parts are PNP transistors and all have hfe >500, so they will meet the base spec, hopefully, or a large number of them will.
When you want to match them though, things can get very tricky. We still have access to OnSemi parts here, which will match to 3% out of the box and you can get 1% matches more than 50% of the time.
I got 12 close-matched (1mV Vbe and 1% hfe) from about 20 devices. With CDIL, a 1mV Vbe match is probably not possible at the same time as 1% hfe match, just because of their diffusion process.
You could also adapt schematics to allow for large part mismatches, such as offset adjustment in diff pairs and such to make up for the poorer matching. CDIL now manufactures a lot of parts that are otherwise obsolete, but they can only be used as replacement parts or testing/cannon fodder.
I have zero confidence in the brand after a string of failures in multiple product types and batches, the most egregious of which were Vbe multiplier failures from BD139s dying. And the BD139 has been manufactured by CDIL for over twenty years now. I just can't imagine them making decent parts.
I've purchased some lots of the Philips NOS BC560 from eBay earlier and those were fake, all with hfe below 200. I tried a batch of 'Fairchild' on my next eBay round which turned out to be NPN transistors. Bad as CDIL are, at least their parts are PNP transistors and all have hfe >500, so they will meet the base spec, hopefully, or a large number of them will.
Attachments
This post from a few months ago mentions a few places for BC560c:
https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/gro...c560c-onsemi-fairchild-buy-3.html#post6255625
https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/gro...c560c-onsemi-fairchild-buy-3.html#post6255625
Try the Japanese 2S series, if you get those.
A1015, for example, if you need a small signal PNP transitor for audio use.
But nobody sells fake CDIL parts!
Lots of fakes of Western parts.
As repairmen wind up their business, more so after the covid induced lockdown, it is getting hard to find repair persons for cameras, watches and audio systems.
And most are above 50.
So the parts also are seeing a down turn in sales.
And with labour getting expensive, the scene is more of replace rather than repair.
So I see more of these discarded items in the flea markets, many times an easy fix, but discarded as being out of fashion or too expensive to fix.
A little off topic...
But in India at least we do get components that are out of date elsewhere, though quality could be a problem.
A1015, for example, if you need a small signal PNP transitor for audio use.
But nobody sells fake CDIL parts!
Lots of fakes of Western parts.
As repairmen wind up their business, more so after the covid induced lockdown, it is getting hard to find repair persons for cameras, watches and audio systems.
And most are above 50.
So the parts also are seeing a down turn in sales.
And with labour getting expensive, the scene is more of replace rather than repair.
So I see more of these discarded items in the flea markets, many times an easy fix, but discarded as being out of fashion or too expensive to fix.
A little off topic...
But in India at least we do get components that are out of date elsewhere, though quality could be a problem.
I face exactly the same dilemma. Im building a Per Anders phono pre, but only have a few BC560s. I need dozens, so I think I’ll just knock together a test jig and test BC557s.
The BC559 is closer to the BC560 noise spec than the 557. The KSC devices indicated earlier thread are better options and need only one lead switched.
I thought you mostly worked with SMDs? The BC860 will probably be the best option for an almost direct replacement.
I thought you mostly worked with SMDs? The BC860 will probably be the best option for an almost direct replacement.
You nailed it, sir. If we want to be real green we should change this system of throw away devices. It is fully normal that consumer electronics have a life span of just 2 years...Even simple things like power distribution units fall apart these days... or their switches break down after 2 months... I recently ran across NOS NIB EU made switches and am astonished how good their quality is. There was a time when "built to last" was not just a marketing slogan. I decided to find more EU made NOS NIB stuff and do some projects with those. If everything is meant to be thrown away my DIY devices should offer high build quality, ease of use and longevity.
At least Covid has taught us that flying is one of the main polluters of the air despite all the soothing words about CO2 reduction. The air here hasn't been as clean in 30 years. As hard it may be for those that work in that business I think we all would benefit from less flying. Just before Covid started there were 47.000 airplanes in the air worldwide continuously....
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You measure the hfe with a multimeter, and listen to the noise in the first stage of the test circuit 🙂
With transistors operating at the limit, everything is more complicated 🙁
With transistors operating at the limit, everything is more complicated 🙁
Why don't you use BC327-40 and BC337-40 instead (40 is the same as hfe grade C)? They are still active and are lower noise devices than BC550C/BC560C.
Stein
I made one using a TL072
It works
Unless you have very rare records, go digital in full or compressed formats.
And whatever you make, see if you can record the music on to an electronic storage device.
It works
Unless you have very rare records, go digital in full or compressed formats.
And whatever you make, see if you can record the music on to an electronic storage device.