MOTM

Your pics will be a boon to DIY.  It's appreciated.  I never imagined my 
simple circuit mod for the 120 would be so popular.  I still have the 
original perf board version in my parts bin, which was replaced with a 
DB-120 board.  Couple of points:

I tend to solder some wires directly to boards, like the DB-120 power.  
I did that to simplify the power cabling.  I also soldered directly the 
four coaxial inputs from the 120 board, rather than use a connector, as 
you see in the top left in this photo.

http://www.pugix.com/images/MOTM-120R-back.jpg

Using a header and connector does make final assembly a bit easier, and 
later you can separate the boards for maintenance (not often needed, 
though).  You struggled with how to hook the coax into the small MTA-100 
connector.  I *always* solder these.  They have a press-fit design that 
takes insulated wire of the correct size (the MOTM power cables are a 
good example).  But unless you have the right tool, you may not get a 
good electrical connection.  Just jamming the wire in leaves the way 
open for oxidation and loosening.  Soldering is advisable, but a little 
tricky.  I use a small plastic vise to hold the connector and do one 
wire at a time.  You need a fine pointed soldering tip, preferably on a 
temperature-controlled iron.  You can make a good solder joint without 
melting the plastic connector (maybe singeing it a little, which does no 
harm -- I have never ruined one).  Then you have a good electrical 
connection.  Solderless connectors are OK, but only when they are fitted 
to wires with the proper tools.

One more tip:  I balked at the Mouser price for 100 feet of RG-174/U 
coax, when my supply ran out.  I found some military grade RG-174/U on 
Ebay that was selling in 25 foot lots for $2.00.  ($5.37 total with 
shipping.)  Remember to check Ebay for odd parts.

Richard Brewster
http://www.pugix.com


wjhall11 wrote:
> Dear all -
>
> Will's high-school spring break is over, but we made a bunch of
> progress over the last week.  We took a bunch of photos of our motm101
> and motm120 construction.  This is probably boring to most, but our
> goal in doing so has become twofold.  First, to hopefully point the
> way for other DIYers.  Second, to document our efforts.
>
> Explaining the second point first - years ago, over a couple bottles
> of  wine with a sculptor and a poet friend of mine, in response to my
> complaining that I always feel like I'm never accomplishing anything,
> they recommended that I try doing what they do - keep copious records
> of everything... reciepts, photos, newspaper clippings, etc.  So I've
> done so every since.  So I cann look back at what I've done - and not
> have it just just disappear (like tears in rain).
>
> And as for the first point, well - when we started building this
> synth, we hadn't done anything like it before.  Oh - I'd made some
> simple things like microphone cables - speaker cabinets.  A very cool
> road case for my Hammond.  I'd done maintainence on my analog tape
> recorders... but never anything so involved as this synth.  And we're
> so encouraged by our successes - we want to share this with others who
> are new to all this.
>
> Especially in light of Paul's completely understandable move away from
> kits - maybe this'll help the newbees.
>
> OK - so - anyway - here's the URL of our synth project home page:
>
> http://www.dragonflyalley.com/billAndWillMOTMSynth.htm
>
> And here's the 120 constrruction page:
>
> http://www.dragonflyalley.com/motm120Construction.htm
>
> Please proof-read and comment about how we can improve things.
>
> Thanks so much, all - for your support and help.
>
> Bill and Will
>
>