New to Electronics

I'm new to electronics, but have been a music fan my whole life. Let's just say that has been a LONG time. LOL! 😀 I have recently gotten back into music after a long hiatus. It's a long story that I won't get into, but I'm happy to be back. I love 2-channel audio and prefer speakers. My return to audio was initially spurred by my getting into personal audio. My wife works at night, so I use headphones so as to not disturb her. I use IEMs when I'm out, as I prefer not to have big headphone when I'm out and about. I'm even into car audio, and sold car stereos for a few years at a local shop in MD. I was even into home theater for a while. I think that learning something about electronics will help me in my journey and I'm looking forward to it.

My question to the diyAudio community is, what is the best way to learn electronics? I know almost nothing.

Anyway, it's great to be part of the group. I look forward to the interaction.
 
I think you will find almost universal love for The Art of Electronics here.

If you would like classroom style learning, there are several relevant courses on Udemy.com. I find them better than YouTube videos if you are looking for something that progresses logically through the subject, and the courses are very reasonably priced. As an example, check out https://www.udemy.com/course/crash-course-electronics-and-pcb-design/?couponCode=ST6MT60525G3. It offers 121 hours of courseware for $18.99, including many resources and hands-on projects. If his style isn't for you, there are several other courses and teachers to choose from.

I recently picked up Modern Electronics Soldering Techniques by Andrew Singmin. It is not just about soldering, because Mr Singmin believes that to know how to solder you need to understand the full scope of what you are working with. it's a very interesting approach that covers components, related math, schematics, and basic circuits at a beginner's level. It includes some hands-on projects.

Hope this helps and welcome to DIY Audio....

Michael
 
Check out The Art of Electronics, second edition (but not the third edition).
Avoid books with an audio focus, you want the basic electronics theory.
@rayma, I'll be sure to check it out. However, what is wrong with the third edition? Usually books get updated with the latest information. This is the first time anyone has recommended an older edition of a book.

@mbose, I'll also check out the Udemy course. It sounds right up my alley.

Thanks to both of you.
 
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I think you will find almost universal love for The Art of Electronics here.

If you would like classroom style learning, there are several relevant courses on Udemy.com. I find them better than YouTube videos if you are looking for something that progresses logically through the subject, and the courses are very reasonably priced. As an example, check out https://www.udemy.com/course/crash-course-electronics-and-pcb-design/?couponCode=ST6MT60525G3. It offers 121 hours of courseware for $18.99, including many resources and hands-on projects. If his style isn't for you, there are several other courses and teachers to choose from.

I recently picked up Modern Electronics Soldering Techniques by Andrew Singmin. It is not just about soldering, because Mr Singmin believes that to know how to solder you need to understand the full scope of what you are working with. it's a very interesting approach that covers components, related math, schematics, and basic circuits at a beginner's level. It includes some hands-on projects.

Hope this helps and welcome to DIY Audio....

Michael
@mbose How did you see the $18.99 price? I clicked the link and it's showing me a price of $119.99. 😳😵😵
 
You can preview the art of electronics HERE. I believe it's a great book if you're already technically oriented. If you're not I think it's a steep a curve. It was for me anyway.
Coming at it from a simpler (more hands on for stepped understanding approach -, and thus more enjoyable) , my recommendation is described in This Post.
 
There's no doubt that The Art is much more comprehensive . My interest , however is not only in the subject to be learned but the subjective process of learning it.
As i mentioned in the post linked above, Starting Electronics provides for an organized approach to a succession of "OK, I see." moments that make for getting a feel for what's happening without having to keep too much going in your head. It's a very simple hands on approach that is maybe considered too elementary by some but to my way of thinking nothing tops first hand physical experience , especially when trying to build a foundation of understanding.

It seems most here think that Art of E is the best. I just happen to think that while it's comprehensive, it's only accessible for those who are already somewhat used to dealing with the type of knowledge it treats. I don't think it's a matter of one or the other. To me it's first one , then the other , if you want to go deeper.
I guess the simplest answer is to look at the titles. Starting Electronics and The Art of.
 
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@mbose How did you see the $18.99 price? I clicked the link and it's showing me a price of $119.99. 😳😵😵
So sorry to hear that. They have nearly continuous sales, and that was the price when I copied the link. The sale must have ended between the time I posted the link and you followed it.

I suggest checking back in a couple days, or sign up to get their emails and they should notify you when there's a sale. I can't remember going to the site without them having a sale, but I'm usually not looking for one. I have purchased 7-8 courses there and they were all very inexpensive on sale at the time.
 
There's no doubt that The Art is much more comprehensive . My interest , however is not only in the subject to be learned but the subjective process of learning it.
As i mentioned in the post linked above, Starting Electronics provides for an organized approach to a succession of "OK, I see." moments that make for getting a feel for what's happening without having to keep too much going in your head. It's a very simple hands on approach that is maybe considered too elementary by some but to my way of thinking nothing tops first hand physical experience , especially when trying to build a foundation of understanding.

It seems most here think that Art of E is the best. I just happen to think that while it's comprehensive, it's only accessible for those who are already somewhat used to dealing with the type of knowledge it treats. I don't think it's a matter of one or the other. To me it's first one , then the other , if you want to go deeper.
I guess the simplest answer is to look at the titles. Starting Electronics and The Art of.
The Art of Electronics is definitely a reference type text. It would be a challenge to learn electronics strictly from that text. I would need to supplement it with something else. With that said, I have ordered Starting Electronics. Hopefully that will be a good starting point. Thanks again for the suggestion.
 
As many have said, pick up a book to learn the basics, like ohms law, Kirschoff’s laws and some rudimentary AC theory. Then start building stuff! Start with something very simple. I found that when I got into audio, my curiosity and satisfaction from designing simple amplifiers that actually worked kept accelerating my eagerness to learn more. I’m also into music, and designing and building something that makes good-sounding music come out is magical!

If you’re into music, you might want to check out a really cool YouTuber by the name of Moritz Klein. He builds synthesizers from scratch and takes you through the design of basic building blocks like oscillators and filters.

You’re about to embark on a wonderful journey. Stay curious and don’t be to experiment and sometimes fail!
 
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I'll be sure to check it out. However, what is wrong with the third edition? Usually books get updated with the latest information. This is the first time anyone has recommended an older edition of a book.
Due to user demand (many from here) the AOE author made the third edition significantly more advanced than the second edition.
For many readers, this will be a hindrance rather than helpful. Beginners don't need the latest information, they need clear explanations of the fundamentals. The second edition is much better for this.
 
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