Learning to solder
is (kind of) like learning to eat with chop sticks ~vs~ a fork or spoon.
flowing metals on metals - is really pretty easy...
If I haven't been on the work bench in a while. I still *practice*
or better, I warm up, get "the feel of working with" the iron,
like not driving for a while. It comes back to you...
until then, I work on less critical projects.
Solderless connections plug and play kit variants, does not
readily permit pride filled comments of the builder. But,
talking about it is not near as fun as building gear.
[Learn to solder] - or - be happy with electronic commodities.
is (kind of) like learning to eat with chop sticks ~vs~ a fork or spoon.
flowing metals on metals - is really pretty easy...
If I haven't been on the work bench in a while. I still *practice*
or better, I warm up, get "the feel of working with" the iron,
like not driving for a while. It comes back to you...
until then, I work on less critical projects.
Solderless connections plug and play kit variants, does not
readily permit pride filled comments of the builder. But,
talking about it is not near as fun as building gear.
[Learn to solder] - or - be happy with electronic commodities.
Here we go again with soldering / solderless/ wiretapping.
Just some background: I can solder, in fact I soldered together a working transistor radio circuit back in 1991 using the circuit from an electronics kit. More recently I re-soldered the connection on my TEA 2025 PC amp board.
Let's look at it differently then: with a good soldering iron and quality solder, soldering could work for me, but the fumes are the problem. An extractor should help.
By the way I was watching a documentary about a phone manufacturing company in India and was shocked to see them soldering - by hand - some of the connections.
For prototyping purposes solderless can be very effective. I have built 3 class A circuits so far.
So the real question is: is there a smokeless soldering system? Is it possible to come up with a 'hot soldering gun' like a glue gun where you could simply place small drops of molten solder onto the wires - or components - a little heating wire could be used to heat up the components beforehand.
How about a soldering tube that is sealed off and contains a heater element to heat and produced small globules of solder?
Just some background: I can solder, in fact I soldered together a working transistor radio circuit back in 1991 using the circuit from an electronics kit. More recently I re-soldered the connection on my TEA 2025 PC amp board.
Let's look at it differently then: with a good soldering iron and quality solder, soldering could work for me, but the fumes are the problem. An extractor should help.
By the way I was watching a documentary about a phone manufacturing company in India and was shocked to see them soldering - by hand - some of the connections.
For prototyping purposes solderless can be very effective. I have built 3 class A circuits so far.
So the real question is: is there a smokeless soldering system? Is it possible to come up with a 'hot soldering gun' like a glue gun where you could simply place small drops of molten solder onto the wires - or components - a little heating wire could be used to heat up the components beforehand.
How about a soldering tube that is sealed off and contains a heater element to heat and produced small globules of solder?
Not to mention soldering causes global warming and climate change.
So do class A amplifiers.
Not all components can be placed with a ‘pick and place’ machine, because they are too big or heavy or a location cannot be reached. This is done in almost all pcb manufacturing.
A tube like this https://www.amazon.com/Shrink-Solder-Sleeve-Crimpless-Connectors/dp/B01M1032A7 exists for connecting 2 wires together with the only use of a heat gun. Don’t think it exist for tiny transistor legs. Also be careful, there is a temperature limit AND time limit when soldering semiconductors.
Seems like one of your concerns is the extra heat released into the environment contributing to unwanted global changes.
Why not use a lens or curved mirror to focus sunlight onto the soldering iron to heat it up? Any heat released was already going to hit the planet.
Sounds tedious but could work.
I don't know if I'm serious or sarcastic 🤔
Fumes? Invest in the protective gear that they use in movies when they capture a space alien 👽 . Now i know I'm sarcastic
Why not use a lens or curved mirror to focus sunlight onto the soldering iron to heat it up? Any heat released was already going to hit the planet.
Sounds tedious but could work.
I don't know if I'm serious or sarcastic 🤔
Fumes? Invest in the protective gear that they use in movies when they capture a space alien 👽 . Now i know I'm sarcastic
hard to read/gauge this post
Good one(s) man! I .am. being serious about sarcasm ~ about being serious ~ (not yours) the conundrum... [I realize, what I wrote makes limited sense] it's not supposed to?
There are conflicting aspects of this initial post. I do struggle taking it seriously. Addressing Papa in such a fashion... is sort of a fauxpas. He has done SO MUCH to promote and benefit this community, without direct remunerative benefit.
Realizing human induced climate change (is utterly fake, grossly misreported) being imposed upon us by the elite, to control, tax and monitor us. I digress? it is a part of Agenda 21 plan, with the COVID1984 EPICdemic, as the global noose tightens... Lock downs??? I have been at home building amps, breathing solder fume deeply into my lungs challenging my fate...
The HiFi hobby is one of "spending electrons" in exchange for beautiful music in our living environments. I do struggle with the morality of that... but then there is Lost Wages, burning 24/7 in the desert... Again I digress.
The real environmental impact of this vocation is minimal when compared to so many things... Living in a class A/B world, I compromise.
"concerns is the extra heat released into the environment contributing to unwanted global changes."
I don't know if I'm serious or sarcastic ��
Good one(s) man! I .am. being serious about sarcasm ~ about being serious ~ (not yours) the conundrum... [I realize, what I wrote makes limited sense] it's not supposed to?
There are conflicting aspects of this initial post. I do struggle taking it seriously. Addressing Papa in such a fashion... is sort of a fauxpas. He has done SO MUCH to promote and benefit this community, without direct remunerative benefit.
Realizing human induced climate change (is utterly fake, grossly misreported) being imposed upon us by the elite, to control, tax and monitor us. I digress? it is a part of Agenda 21 plan, with the COVID1984 EPICdemic, as the global noose tightens... Lock downs??? I have been at home building amps, breathing solder fume deeply into my lungs challenging my fate...
The HiFi hobby is one of "spending electrons" in exchange for beautiful music in our living environments. I do struggle with the morality of that... but then there is Lost Wages, burning 24/7 in the desert... Again I digress.
The real environmental impact of this vocation is minimal when compared to so many things... Living in a class A/B world, I compromise.
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and how about you stop answering this topic which makes no sense here?
I suggest that he holds the components tight between his fingers and the problem is solved.
I agree, it smells of tictoc and co troll and as long as I do, I propose a wire from an amp without components or better (evo 2), components connected between them in wifi 5g bluetooth zigbee .
...can be a little sacarsm but above all a lot of annoyance...
I suggest that he holds the components tight between his fingers and the problem is solved.
I agree, it smells of tictoc and co troll and as long as I do, I propose a wire from an amp without components or better (evo 2), components connected between them in wifi 5g bluetooth zigbee .
...can be a little sacarsm but above all a lot of annoyance...
@Ozark HiFi Doctor Please don't quote me out of context. I was being serious/sarcastic about my comment of using a lens to focus sunlight. Your post makes it look like my serious/sarcasm is aimed at the human impact of global climate change.
There is a solderless kit here:
Solderless High Impedance Audio Amplifier Kit 1
But let me explain my reasoning:
I have soldered stuff before. For myself, the soldering warm up time, lack of a suitable work bench and a working are, probably suitable solder, and the need to prototype the circuit forced me to look at alternatives to soldering. Breadboards did not work very well, but I was able to build a circuit using terminal blocks and get it to work.
That was all well and good for my building a simple circuit prototype.
Many of the amplifiers depicted in the solid state forum do have many solder less connections, and seem to work very well. When I see the simple circuits from DIY audio projects and also the Amp Camp amplifier shown here: https://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_amp_camp_1.pdf I got to wondering if the connections could be made with wires and crimped connectors or terminal blocks instead of point to point soldering. The kits will be attractive to a wider range of enthusiasts, and those who may not be able to solder in their homes or apartments for whatever reason.
I do not know if that sort of connection scheme would cause the amplifier not to work correctly: whether it would increase distortion or if there might be the possibility of overheating if the connections are unreliable. These questions can be answered, I would think, most satisfactorily by the designer of the amplifier himself. That is why I posted the question here.
If it turns out that this is a dead end, so be it. I am sending an email to Mr. Nelson Pass to make it clear that I did not mean to disrespect his work.
There is a device that seems to create drops of controlled solder without smoke:
Semi Auto Glue Dispenser PCB Solder Paste Liquid Controller Dropper Fluid dispenser AD 982 220V|dispenser solder|dispenser solder pastedispensing controller - AliExpress
Solderless High Impedance Audio Amplifier Kit 1
But let me explain my reasoning:
I have soldered stuff before. For myself, the soldering warm up time, lack of a suitable work bench and a working are, probably suitable solder, and the need to prototype the circuit forced me to look at alternatives to soldering. Breadboards did not work very well, but I was able to build a circuit using terminal blocks and get it to work.
That was all well and good for my building a simple circuit prototype.
Many of the amplifiers depicted in the solid state forum do have many solder less connections, and seem to work very well. When I see the simple circuits from DIY audio projects and also the Amp Camp amplifier shown here: https://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_amp_camp_1.pdf I got to wondering if the connections could be made with wires and crimped connectors or terminal blocks instead of point to point soldering. The kits will be attractive to a wider range of enthusiasts, and those who may not be able to solder in their homes or apartments for whatever reason.
I do not know if that sort of connection scheme would cause the amplifier not to work correctly: whether it would increase distortion or if there might be the possibility of overheating if the connections are unreliable. These questions can be answered, I would think, most satisfactorily by the designer of the amplifier himself. That is why I posted the question here.
If it turns out that this is a dead end, so be it. I am sending an email to Mr. Nelson Pass to make it clear that I did not mean to disrespect his work.
There is a device that seems to create drops of controlled solder without smoke:
Semi Auto Glue Dispenser PCB Solder Paste Liquid Controller Dropper Fluid dispenser AD 982 220V|dispenser solder|dispenser solder pastedispensing controller - AliExpress
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@BasicHIFI1
With regards to First Watt DIY kits, you are pursuing a dead end. You may of course purchase fully assembled Pass Labs or First Watt products and enjoy the wonderful sound of designs from Nelson Pass. There are other audio products that may be available with pre-soldered PCBs, but even these typically require some soldering of the final assembly.
Best of luck.
With regards to First Watt DIY kits, you are pursuing a dead end. You may of course purchase fully assembled Pass Labs or First Watt products and enjoy the wonderful sound of designs from Nelson Pass. There are other audio products that may be available with pre-soldered PCBs, but even these typically require some soldering of the final assembly.
Best of luck.
I won't say much more, the Hypex kit looks good.
There are many pre-soldered boards available, and that is one option, except for possible quality control issues, but there we go.
I will be testing an endless series of solderless bread-boarded or terminal block prototypes.
Many thanks to those who gave valuable inputs.
There are many pre-soldered boards available, and that is one option, except for possible quality control issues, but there we go.
I will be testing an endless series of solderless bread-boarded or terminal block prototypes.
Many thanks to those who gave valuable inputs.
There are a several ways of making solderless connections. Not all of them are suitable for power amplifiers but crimped loop connectors and terminal blocks is probably one of the more secure ways. You could use butt joint crimp terminals to connect components to wires to then secure to terminal blocks.
There are also the “father and son” or so-called “summer camp” kits that use spring clips. Those are like breadboards for small signal circuits. You cannot pass appreciable current through them. Like these:
50-in-One Electronic Experimenter Kit
Higher power / current solutions are:
1. Crimp connectors and terminal blocks
2. Snap lock type connectors like Wago
3. Wire nuts like home electricians use
4. Wire wrap and wire wrap terminals
5. All screw terminal blocks
6. Press fit cold weld terminals for heavy amperage motor/battery connectors
Am I missing anything? Everything else is is temporary hobby/summer camp stuff.
Soldering is not hard. I think I first learned when I was 8 with my father’s big pistol grip Weller resistive tip gun. I think these were the first portable soldering irons, invented in 1941. Still used today when you need 200w of heating in 6 seconds flat.
Weller
You could also get a pre-assembled JLH 10w Class A amp board fully assembled with screw terminal blocks. Get a Class A SMPS with screw terminal blocks and all speaker and input connectors without solder connections. It can be done. A JLH sounds quite good and is a true power amp.
Diy Kits 1pcs JLH 1969 class A amplifier Board high quality PCB MOT 2N3055 with Heat sinks|amplifier board|amplifier board class aclass a amplifier board - AliExpress
There are also the “father and son” or so-called “summer camp” kits that use spring clips. Those are like breadboards for small signal circuits. You cannot pass appreciable current through them. Like these:
50-in-One Electronic Experimenter Kit
Higher power / current solutions are:
1. Crimp connectors and terminal blocks
2. Snap lock type connectors like Wago
3. Wire nuts like home electricians use
4. Wire wrap and wire wrap terminals
5. All screw terminal blocks
6. Press fit cold weld terminals for heavy amperage motor/battery connectors
Am I missing anything? Everything else is is temporary hobby/summer camp stuff.
Soldering is not hard. I think I first learned when I was 8 with my father’s big pistol grip Weller resistive tip gun. I think these were the first portable soldering irons, invented in 1941. Still used today when you need 200w of heating in 6 seconds flat.
Weller
You could also get a pre-assembled JLH 10w Class A amp board fully assembled with screw terminal blocks. Get a Class A SMPS with screw terminal blocks and all speaker and input connectors without solder connections. It can be done. A JLH sounds quite good and is a true power amp.
Diy Kits 1pcs JLH 1969 class A amplifier Board high quality PCB MOT 2N3055 with Heat sinks|amplifier board|amplifier board class aclass a amplifier board - AliExpress
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