Synth-DIY Yahoo! Groups Archives

Thread

DIY newbie question.

2006-09-26 by Rune Sagevik

I`ve just recieved a couple of Psycho LFO pcb`s and a couple of
questions quickly came up..

This is more of a DIY/electronics general q. and not specific to the
LFO`s I guess..

I`ve visited Elby Designs page, and in the CGS parts lists you can
find there it is referred to using 1/4 watt 1% metalfilm resistors.
What I was wondering (as I`ve not to much electronics skills yet) is:
To what extent is it possible to use types of resistors with other
watt specifications?

I`m asking because I got hold of a bunch of 1% metalfilm resistors at
0,6 watts.. Could I use these with great result? Why or why not? My
initial thought was yes, and that the only result of this would be
higher power consumption of the module itself but I dont know.. right
or wrong?

thanks
and
regards
Rune

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-26 by sasami@hotkey.net.au

>I`m asking because I got hold of a bunch of 1% metalfilm resistors at
>0,6 watts.. Could I use these with great result? Why or why not? My
>initial thought was yes, and that the only result of this would be
>higher power consumption of the module itself but I dont know.. right
>or wrong?

Power consumption is not the issue. A different wattage rating indicates the
maximim power a resistor can dissipate without damaging itself, so
technically, as long as a resistor is dissipating less power than it is
rated to dissipate, it can be used. The second issue is physical size.
Usually, higher wattage rated resistors a bigger, and simply won't fit. I do
believe the resistors to which you refer are exactly the same size as the
usual 1/4w resitors. If such is the case, they can be used with confidence.

Ken
_______________________________________________________________________
Ken Stone sasami@...
Modular Synth PCBs for sale <http://www.blaze.net.au/~sasami/synth/>
Australian Miniature Horses & Ponies <http://www.blaze.net.au/~sasami/>

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-26 by Rune Sagevik

Ah, I see.
Thanks, you`ve just made things clearer for me :) I would probably
have found the nswer to this by searching the internet, but here the
answers are usually swift and correct. ..and with me being a bit
lazy.. this was the preferred option :)

Yes, these resistors are of the exact same size as the 1/4w type..
so this would mean that I can continue to order cheap 0,6w resistors
for my future projects..
Great news :)

thanks a lot.
Rune

Show quoted textHide quoted text

> Power consumption is not the issue. A different wattage rating

indicates the

> maximim power a resistor can dissipate without damaging itself, so
> technically, as long as a resistor is dissipating less power than

it is

> rated to dissipate, it can be used. The second issue is physical

size.

> Usually, higher wattage rated resistors a bigger, and simply won't

fit. I do

> believe the resistors to which you refer are exactly the same size

as the

> usual 1/4w resitors. If such is the case, they can be used with

confidence.

>
> Ken
>

_______________________________________________________________________

> Ken Stone sasami@...
> Modular Synth PCBs for sale <http://www.blaze.net.au/~sasami/synth/>
> Australian Miniature Horses & Ponies <http://www.blaze.net.au/

~sasami/>

>

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-26 by Richard Brewster

You can get 1% 1/4watt resistors from Mouser.com quite cheap, and if you
intend to do a lot of building it pays to buy 200 quantity for $4.00
US. That is 2 cents apiece. Are your 0,6w resistors cheaper than that?
If those are 10% tolerance I would stay away. You want at least a 5%
tolerance resistor. And for some things you do need a 1% tolerance. I
only use the 1% tolerance from Mouser, because they are so cheap. Now
that I have built up my resistor stock I hardly ever have to order more
resistors for new projects.

Richard Brewster
http://www.pugix.com

Rune Sagevik wrote:

Show quoted textHide quoted text

> Ah, I see.
> Thanks, you`ve just made things clearer for me :) I would probably
> have found the nswer to this by searching the internet, but here the
> answers are usually swift and correct. ..and with me being a bit
> lazy.. this was the preferred option :)
>
> Yes, these resistors are of the exact same size as the 1/4w type..
> so this would mean that I can continue to order cheap 0,6w resistors
> for my future projects..
> Great news :)
>
> thanks a lot.
> Rune
>
>
>
>> Power consumption is not the issue. A different wattage rating
>>
> indicates the
>
>> maximim power a resistor can dissipate without damaging itself, so
>> technically, as long as a resistor is dissipating less power than
>>
> it is
>
>> rated to dissipate, it can be used. The second issue is physical
>>
> size.
>
>> Usually, higher wattage rated resistors a bigger, and simply won't
>>
> fit. I do
>
>> believe the resistors to which you refer are exactly the same size
>>
> as the
>
>> usual 1/4w resitors. If such is the case, they can be used with
>>
> confidence.
>
>> Ken
>>
>>
> _______________________________________________________________________
>
>> Ken Stone sasami@...
>> Modular Synth PCBs for sale <http://www.blaze.net.au/~sasami/synth/>
>> Australian Miniature Horses & Ponies <http://www.blaze.net.au/
>>
> ~sasami/>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> The CGS Modular Synth home page: http://www.cgs.synth.net/
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-27 by Rune Sagevik

Yes I know..
Mouser is great (and quite fairly priced), but I`m afraid that
there`s other issues involved as well :)

As I`m currently living in Norway I have to pay a certain amount of
freight and VAT when ordering from abroad. I could probably save a
couple of dollars if I ordered large quantities. That said..

My supplier in Sweden has got a fairly nice selection of components,
and the price range for his resistors varies from 0.19 - 1.44 swedish
kroner (approx) 1 Swedish Kroner is at current rate 0.136451 USD
which then gives a price range of approx 0.025 - 0.196 USD for his
parts. (But he hasn`t got to many of the 1/4w resistors in his
webshop.. so therefore the 0,6w type..)
and also.. when ordering from abroad, if I stay below a certain
amount I dont have to pay any form of taxes, and when ordering for
lets say 100-200 NOK it is small enough to be sent by letter form
which is faster and cheaper.. So I`m afraid all this is down to
economics..

I`m a cheap bastard :) ..no to be serious.. at the moment I`m mostly
doing this for learning and experience, and by doing it this way its
no big deal if I don`t get things to work because I`ve hardly paid
anything for it.

I am however planning to buy higher quality (and the right type of)
components when I get the hang of this stuff :)

regards
Rune

Show quoted textHide quoted text

--- In cgs_synth@yahoogroups.com, Richard Brewster <pugix@...> wrote:
>
> You can get 1% 1/4watt resistors from Mouser.com quite cheap, and
if you
> intend to do a lot of building it pays to buy 200 quantity for
$4.00
> US. That is 2 cents apiece. Are your 0,6w resistors cheaper than
that?
> If those are 10% tolerance I would stay away. You want at least a
5%
> tolerance resistor. And for some things you do need a 1%
tolerance. I
> only use the 1% tolerance from Mouser, because they are so cheap.
Now
> that I have built up my resistor stock I hardly ever have to order
more
> resistors for new projects.
>
> Richard Brewster
> http://www.pugix.com
>

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-27 by Laurie Biddulph

I thought all the BOMs on my website used 1% 1/2W Metal Film from the MSR25
Series by Phoenix. If you can point to where I refer to 1/4W that would be
appreciated.

Most synth circuits will work with 1/4W resistors without any problems.
There are a few exceptions most often where they are used in power supplies
but good schematics/BOMs will usually emphasise those as been different. You
will also probably find in most instances that you can even use 1/8W.

Usually, as you increase the wattage you also increase the size so
substituting larger wattages may result in assembly problems however there
would be no side-effect on the circuit.

I also almost exclusively use 1% resistors even though in many cases 5% will
work fine. Many of Ray Wilson's circuits use and list 5% for the major part
with him specifying 1% in the more critical areas. By staying with 1% I have
a smaller variety of stock to carry and can also buy larger volumes so the
small cost difference between 5% and 1%, I feel, is of little consequence.

I also prefer to stay with Metal Film for the same reason even though Carbon
Film will work fine in many instances.

Using larger wattage resistors has NO bearing on the power drawn by your
circuit. It dictates how much the component can safely carry without damage
so in this case a 0.6W resistor can dissipate 600mW of power and will
achieve a specified temperature in doing so (see the components datasheet)
whilst a 1/W resistor can only dissipate 250mW before reaching a similar
temperature.

In the end it will come down to budget and 5% Carbon Film can generally be
used. However you will need to check the circuit and look for areas where
the design specifically requires the tighter tolerance. Irrespective of that
I would tend to argue that the few cents you might save using, say, 5%
resistors instead of 1% would be insignificant compared with the cost of
other parts. A prime example would be pots, knobs and jacks where you are
paying anything from 50 cents to a few dollars and THAT is where you should
be aiming to save money.

Best Regards

(Mr) Laurie Biddulph
Mobile: 0400 257 645

Elby Designs
ABN: 70 022 727 605
http://www.elby-designs.com

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----- Original Message -----

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From: "Rune Sagevik" <rsagevik@...>
To: <cgs_synth@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 27, 2006 5:51 AM
Subject: [cgs_synth] DIY newbie question.

> I`ve just recieved a couple of Psycho LFO pcb`s and a couple of
> questions quickly came up..
>
> This is more of a DIY/electronics general q. and not specific to the
> LFO`s I guess..
>
> I`ve visited Elby Designs page, and in the CGS parts lists you can
> find there it is referred to using 1/4 watt 1% metalfilm resistors.
> What I was wondering (as I`ve not to much electronics skills yet) is:
> To what extent is it possible to use types of resistors with other
> watt specifications?
>
> I`m asking because I got hold of a bunch of 1% metalfilm resistors at
> 0,6 watts.. Could I use these with great result? Why or why not? My
> initial thought was yes, and that the only result of this would be
> higher power consumption of the module itself but I dont know.. right
> or wrong?
>
> thanks
> and
> regards
> Rune
>
>
>
>
>
> The CGS Modular Synth home page: http://www.cgs.synth.net/
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Re: DIY newbie question.

2006-09-27 by Rune Sagevik

> I thought all the BOMs on my website used 1% 1/2W Metal Film from

the MSR25

> Series by Phoenix. If you can point to where I refer to 1/4W that

would be

> appreciated.

Terribly sorry. You are of course right about this. Been a while
since I visited your page, and I apparently remembered wrong .

> In the end it will come down to budget and 5% Carbon Film can

generally be

> used. However you will need to check the circuit and look for areas

where

> the design specifically requires the tighter tolerance.

Irrespective of that

> I would tend to argue that the few cents you might save using, say,

> resistors instead of 1% would be insignificant compared with the

cost of

> other parts. A prime example would be pots, knobs and jacks where

you are

> paying anything from 50 cents to a few dollars and THAT is where

you should

> be aiming to save money.

Absolutely agree. Resistors and other parts are generally very cheap,
and as you say pots and knobs is the more expensive parts. Then
again.. if building a high quality module I wouldn`t want to save
money on anything.. I`d rather pay a bit extra to get good quality
pots and jacks.

Thanks for great input on this. This is very useful info for me as a
newbie. I`m sorry if I`m asking to stupid quiestions :)

regards
Rune

Cgs synth

DIY newbie question.

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