inexpensive and easy DIY ICs?

hpsenicka

hpsenicka

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ThatchEar recently put up an excellent thread on buliding your own "high end" IC's that was very interesting reading... but too costly and perhaps a bit too labour/skill intensive for my needs.

I can appreciate that high-end ICs have a place, but I have a hard time justifying that kind of cost and effort to make ICs for a $60 DVD/CD player.

It did get me thinking about how I would approach this kind of project... and the goals I have in mind....

1) good quality ( better than most IC's available at the BigBox stores)
2) easy to source parts/materials
3) easy to build
4) affordable

Seems to me you could make a very good IC by choosing some good quality sheilded cable, and sturdy RCA plugs of your choice.. a little patience with a soldering iron and you're good to go.

Lots of cabling and connector options exist.. pro-audio cable vs. audiophile stuff vs. CAT5 cable etc.

I'd love to hear some discussion about what other AKers may have already come up with along these lines.... and what impact it had on your system performance.

What parts and materials did you choose and why? Total build cost? Degree of difficulty? Are they digital or analog ICs, or do you use the same for both?? Pics would be a bonus!

There must be a number of good DIY examples out there... I know that Leestereo had some nice looking homebrewed ICs doing duty at AKfest, and I am hoping to build something similar for myself.

Time to show off your skills....
 
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Hpsenicka:

There have been numerous posts here on the subject. A search of "interconnect" and "budget" ot "inexpensive" may provide some nice leads, but watch out for the neverending cable debates.

One of these days I need to make some new ones, if for no other reasons that just to replace the mass of "patch cords" connecting my gear.
 
I am not a big "believer" in esoteric I/C's but...

... I can give you three options that WILL (IMNSHO) sound better (or, at least, different) than the generic 'dime store' I/C's that came with your cassette deck in 1979 :-)

1) 30-ga enamel insulated magnet wire (available from Radio Shack). This is what I use on my real hi-fi, with inexpensive R/S RCA's to boot. One twisted pair works great. The ONLY bad thing I'll say about this is that it's somewhat fragile and benefits in being sheathed (Teflon tubing works great for this).

2) Any decent 50 or 75 ohm coax (e.g., Belden RG-58, RG-59, or RG-6) cable. Use whatever terminations you like. Only drawback is a little lack of flexibility. For my application, though, I liked #1 better.

3) CAT-5 networking cable. Twist all 8 strands together, solder/crimp the terminations of your choice. Also lacks flexibility, but works very well.

I am deadly serious about all three in terms of performance/value ratio. "Suck it and see", as our British friends used to say. :-)
 
mrh... some interesting suggestions.

I would have thought 30ga would be too delicate... would multiple strands be a good idea?

As for coax, it is a no-brainer for video signals I guess, but would it be suitable for audio applications as well? When does impedance matter?

andyman, Thanks for the nudge...here is one thread I found that seems to be very relevant. http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=32046&highlight=interconnect
 
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I like using Canare microphone cable to make DIY ICs, the rationale being that such cable is designed to transmit low level signals with accuracy and be impervious to RF noise and microphony. You can use the 4 conductor (L-4ES) or the 2 conductor (L-2T2S); both cables feature polyethylene as wire insulation with a braided wire sheild. And being microphone wire, both are very flexible and relatively easy to work with (the 2 conductor one being somewhat easier to use than the 4 conductor cable). Many if not most pro music shops will carry Canare cable and its very cheap, typically 0.50/ft; they also make decent of RCAs (F-10) that are very reasonably priced at about $6 a pair but the build is very good, but not really heavy duty. I've attached a picture of the ICs that were used by between Andyman's Marantz 2265B and Squidward's DIY ST-35 tube power amp at AK Fest 2005. The cable is the L-4ES and the blue wires are connected to the center pin and the white wires are connected to the collar (gnd); the shield is only connect to the collar (gnd) at one end (to the RCA connected to the source). The RCAs I used have teflon insulators and cost about $10/pair, total cost was $26.00. And IMHO the quality is definitely comparable to the high-end stuff; but on a beer budget!
 
Silver RCAs (ebay cheap) and Kimber hook wire... Basically they are Kember PBJ ICs but cheaper… :yes:
 
bear.... nice pic!

I don't understand where the 3rd wire in that braid is supposed to be attached. Don't the RCA plugs just use 2 of the 3 strands.. or is the 3rd wire connected to the collar of the RCA plug in a similar fashion as Leestereo's approach?
 
hpsenicka said:
bear.... nice pic!

I don't understand where the 3rd wire in that braid is supposed to be attached. Don't the RCA plugs just use 2 of the 3 strands.. or is the 3rd wire connected to the collar of the RCA plug in a similar fashion as Leestereo's approach?
Click to expand...

Well you need at least three wires to do a bread and actually two of the three wires go to the - and one goes to the +. To my knowledge this is how Kimber does it and others as well…
 
bear.. thanks for clarifying

That's what I assumed, but I wanted to be sure about how the third wire was connected.
 
sources for parts in Canada?

Do any Canadian AKers know of sources for Canare cable ( or equivalent), good quality RCA plugs, etc... in the Greater Toronto Area ( oer even online?).

I tried to look up and check with a couple of pro-audio and electronics shops in my immediate vicinity, but no luck so far.
 
thanks Billfort

I wasn't aware that PartsConnexion was Canadian.... have to look through their catalog carefully. At fist glance the don't seem to carry Canare cable... but they may have something equivalent.

I am familiar with TakeFiveAudio as well, and have used them in the past (they carry DeOxit.. not easy to find in Canada) , but they seem to lean toward more exotic budgets, and may not be appropriate for this project unless I want to go more upscale.
 
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