I know I like to see just how cheap I can get. Things like paying less for primo parts, or designing a circuit streamilined for using easy to acquire bits.

I'll admit I come a bit on the complex and 'spensive end sometimes, but at that point, the performanceis usually an eye opener...

So,back to the question: how cheap do y'all get whilst getting the goods to deliver goose-bumps and grins?
cheers,
Douglas

I guess I was looking at where the cheap line gets drawn. I agree on the effort part of the build. Cutting and mounting is a lot of work.

I got called upon by a friend of mine who is engineering a minimum cost amp. 12AQ5's for the finals and 12AT7 for the input. $20 output Iron and 'lytics everywhere. Voltage doubler PS...

While the exercise on paper is entertaining, I don't think I'd take on such an amp. Major overhaul, and IMO as you noted E-Linear is quite easy and effective.

I don't breadboard. I do some serious tweaking once I get it together in a chassis usually. It's why I don't use much of the 97/3 lead free tin and copper solder from Radio Shack. The stuff does not play well with solder-wick.

I have a bench top adjustable PS. Fairly potent, and enough to run a fairly healthy stereo amp. I don't use it much. I have seen some clip-lead nightmares and with a little one running all ova the place I won't be doing *THAT* today.

I like to build, then mod, then stretch some limits, rearrange the circuit...Bigger PS Iron, change things around in the front end. It can get ugly from time to time. Back to the question...

is it better to go inexpensive at first and upgrade, or buy the expensive bits in the first place and then buy more experimental expensive bits as the development progresses? Does this change with the project? I must admit a certain joy at creating with the least expensive bits I can find, and designing around the short-comings while taking advantage of the hidden strengths.

But it's hard to eval something if one gets to marginal in the parts selection.
cheers,
Douglas

I think you have to pick something which can work. Cheap for cheap's sake is not what I had in mind...

There is also the matter of what constitutes good enough. That there are folks out there who can be happy with something out of the commercial, 60's OEM gear makes me sort of curious. It clearly point to a wide spread of personal taste. this is a good thing. ifit weren't so, it would be easy to pick your performance bracket with a check-book. how good do you want it to sound? concults list...that will be n*10^a, with n and a being determined by the linear cost matrix....
cheers,
Douglas

Hi all,
On the subject of breadboards . We all know my love for cakepans, and they are great for a light, or semi permanent setup.

But for an amp in progress, with lots of iron, I go to the Home Despot or Sears Hardway, and get a hunk of white shelf, cut into amp size bits. White because the surface is hard and smooth but you can drive a sheet metal screw with ease and these eyes can use all the extra light they can get.

For connecting wires and bits together the barrier strips from Radio Shack work great. In the photo this is a whole full bridge rectifier . Most of the other connections are just holding wires of a multi-tap transformer till it’s there turn. There is a similar setup one the low voltage side.

For tubes right now I am using some commercial boards with post on the outside. I like them but there not cheep and I think I have a better idea for breadboarding, more next time. For working with octal tubes there are relay sockets with screw terminals available...John