I am thinking on making a new chassis for my set amp and was thinking on using wood as the top plate and have a metal pan below which will hold all the resistors and such. Has anyone done this? The wood will be solid and be approximately one inch thick. I read somewhere that heat will be a problem causing the wood to crack after a while. The top piece will have no holes except where the tubes and wires come thru. I am planning using some of those tube rings with many holes around the tube sockets. The transformers will be on top. Think heat will be a problem? If so any suggestions on sealing the wood?
Regards,
jea
Regards,
jea
Do to underwhelming response, 😱 I look a look in the Photo Gallery. It seams many builders used wood as the top plate. So I will try it out. I am planning on sealing the underside with some kind of sealer to try to keep any heat from penetrating the wood. Not sure what kind of sealer at the moment.
Regards,
j
Regards,
j
Sealing won't prevent the wood from heating up; for that, you will have to offer the generated heat an easier exit route than through the wood. Sufficient ventilation, either through convection or active ventilation will be necessary if your design generates a lot of heat underneath the chassis. Keeping the tubes (and other heat sources) as far away from the wood will also help. Spending some attention on the selection of appropriate wood is also a good idea, and make sure that the wood that you use has been dried thoroughly before you build the chassis. Plywood is less likely to crack and deform as the grain of the individual sheets will be at right angles. The same goes for OSB, but for both plywood and OSB goes that you might not like the looks of it and you might prefer 'proper' wood.
Hello,
Heat kills electronic parts like electrolytic capacitors. The hotter they get the faster the process.
Think of your box as well insulated, just a few watts of dissipated heat will cause things to cook quickly.
Here is a thought, drill a hole in the top and glue in a 4 or 5 inch tall by 1 inch copper tube as a chimney. Heat rises, it will rise more quickly through the chimney. Also drill or supply a few holes in the bottom to allow the ventilation air to enter.
DT
All just for fun!
Heat kills electronic parts like electrolytic capacitors. The hotter they get the faster the process.
Think of your box as well insulated, just a few watts of dissipated heat will cause things to cook quickly.
Here is a thought, drill a hole in the top and glue in a 4 or 5 inch tall by 1 inch copper tube as a chimney. Heat rises, it will rise more quickly through the chimney. Also drill or supply a few holes in the bottom to allow the ventilation air to enter.
DT
All just for fun!
Well I was going to use drywall to insulate the wood but I think you both are on to something. I think I’ll go that rout. Get the heat out. I like the chimney idea. Just gotta figure out how to do it aesthetically.
Thank you both for your insight.
j
Thank you both for your insight.
j
Hello,
It is that form follows function kind of thing. Buff up the copper tube with some 0000 steel wool, let it turn green. It will be steam punk looking. Better looking than a big old aluminum electrolytic capacitor sticking out the top!
If someone asks, tell them about natural convection cooling being much more quiet than a fan.
DT
All just for fun!
Also do not forget to leave a very generous clearance between the tubes and the surrounding wood.
When you drill the holes for the tubes to stand through, drill them at least 1/2" larger for noval (9-pin) tubes and 3/4" larger for Octals. The heat is most destructive when exposed to the end-grain of the wood.
You might even use a router to flare the holes toward the top.
Good luck
When you drill the holes for the tubes to stand through, drill them at least 1/2" larger for noval (9-pin) tubes and 3/4" larger for Octals. The heat is most destructive when exposed to the end-grain of the wood.
You might even use a router to flare the holes toward the top.
Good luck
Another possibility would be to glue veneer to an aluminum top plate.
Wood that's thick enough to support the transformers will be a good insulator, so the chimney (or something similar) is definitely in order.
John
Wood that's thick enough to support the transformers will be a good insulator, so the chimney (or something similar) is definitely in order.
John
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I build almost all of my amps out of pure wood. There are a few examples here at DIYaudio.com, you can use my username to search the various threads to find them. VT4C.com sells some very nice copper and aluminum tube mounting plates that are perforated for ventilation. These screw very nicely into my wooden tops and provide plenty of heat dissipation. I have never had a cap go bad from heat....yet.
I don't use any metal under my wooden tops either....me thinks not very helpful.
Jeff
I don't use any metal under my wooden tops either....me thinks not very helpful.
Jeff
Another thing to consider is RFI and other forms of electrical interference. I have built wood boxes for gear, then had to line them with foil or aluminium sheet to kill all sorts of intruding junk.
Metal chassis are commonly used to ensure that you don't hear your neighbor's cordless phone or microwave oven.
Metal chassis are commonly used to ensure that you don't hear your neighbor's cordless phone or microwave oven.
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