grenert

I've set up an account with UPS and had items shipped from overseas to me. As has been said, it's really easy. Also, for me, UPS is the most reliable way to get stuff, and I can provide the account info to the shipper so they'll ship UPS even if it's not their usual method.

Waterfield bags are awesome, and IMO waaay better looking than most anything out there. Plus, they've got padded sleeves for your laptop, iPad, etc. I've got the cargo: You can customize them pretty heavily to get what you want. Check it out: SFBags - WaterField Designs - Cargo Bags - Messenger Bag - Laptop Sleeve - Laptop Bag - Cool Briefcase

Jameco (in Pars' link) has some suitable adapters, and I have used one of them with my Gammas. However, they don't come with the correct DC plug at the end. So, you'll also need to replace the plug with one like this (1.3 mm inner diameter): https://www.jameco.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&productId=71192&catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&krypto=9x3mj8umRTrXCB%2BGZ5pvwLsdJ1BWPBy3UDbP1UYKq3uAqAskOQ8PphM6icQyNTrz0%2FZ5Innm1r7r%0D%0AaqLZPx6BDA%3D%3D&ddkey=https:StoreCatalogDrillDownView Make sure you have the + and - polarity correct when you replace the plug!!! Center pin is positive, outer sleeve is ground. If you want to go totally DIY, this is a perfect task for a TREAD or Sigma25. Tangent has a lot of information on the TREAD page on how to power it with any cheapo wallwart (about 9VDC would be the right kind to use; thrift shops are loaded with these). I just put my TREAD in-line with the power cord in a small Radio Shack box:

The YJPS is a nice power supply, but it's only a single rail, so no-go with the Dynalo.

Just ordered a similar setup from the exact same place myself. I was going to order a magnifying lamp until I saw this thread. I do my tinkering near a window, and in the past, the evening sun through that window toasted a piece of bread as it passed through a pitcher of water that became a magnifying glass. So, no magnifying lenses is preferable Back to the original post, I was able to clamp on part of my original Radio Shack helping hands (not too bad, really, as helping hands go) to my Panavise. I run a spool of solder on one of the arms and use the two clips to hold wires and component parts.

If you want to check you DMM's DC voltage accuracy, Joe Geller sells some very reasonably priced, calibrated 10V standards. Geller Labs Products He's also the guy who made the JCan resistor noise measurement device. More DIY insanity fun!

I've bought an HP oscillator from that seller before. They are as honest as they can be (too low prices to really test something). Their shipping costs are also reasonable. Note the meter defect they mention. Don't know anything about that specific meter, but it's nice that it has a triple supply where all three appear to be variable (most have a fixed 5V and two variable). My best luck has been with craigslist buying old HP supplies, which are bulletproof. They are heavy and not easy to ship carefully and cheaply. However, outside of Silicon Valley, these are not so easy to come by locally.

Here's a link to the manual for the HP 6228B that Pars mentioned: http://cp.literature.agilent.com/litweb/pdf/06228-90001.pdf

If the family doesn't come through on Christmas Day: Hewlett Packard HP 6234A Dual DC Power Supply - eBay (item 360219838135 end time Dec-28-09 10:45:10 PST) Small, bipolar supply. Current limited to 200mA. Should work great if you don't need more current.

I think one nice thing about the kit you linked to is that it is a dual supply. There are a lot of times when you'll need both + and - rails. If you decide to go with a fancier supply, a feature that I really like is current limiting. That way you reduce the risk of frying your project or your PS if you have a short, oscillation or other cause of excessive draw.

I wouldn't say they aren't liked very much around here. I think some people, like you and I, love them, and others hate them. I've only heard two pairs of these, and I enjoyed both. Both pairs were well-used. Perhaps the drivers take some time to "develop?" Is your pair new or used? I think they can sound thin relative to other headphones because, compared to something like the HD650, they do not have obvious mid-bass. My pair definitely has plenty of very low bass (e.g., kick drum). The only beef I have with mine (well, the only one besides the weird, "space-age" design) is they really leak sound, to the point where they function as speakers for everyone else in the room.

One heads-up when viewing at a big box store: I can't prove this, but it sure seemed like they were pumping really low-quality, compressed video into most of the TVs. I never really saw what my TV was capable of until I actually owned it and played a Blu-Ray disc. If you can, preview a live HD broadcast, or better yet a Blu-Ray disc; but this is hard to do at the big box stores. I ended up with an LCD because I watch in a room with a lot of windows, including directly opposite the TV. As has been said, everyone has priorities. For me, the glare on all of the plasmas was more than I could stand. Blacker blacks is very unimportant to me, and the brighter screen on the LCD won me over. I agree that plasma is better from a wider viewing angle, but I'm always right in front of the screen anyway. Find out what is important for you. Finally, I'd consider getting a Netflix-capable DVD player/TV if you don't already have a way to stream directly to your TV (more convenient than plugging in the laptop for me). That is my wife's favorite feature on our new TV.

Those are the same ones I use. Yes, I can't believe how much other caps cost. With my DAC, I soldered the THS4032 and AD8599 on Aries adapters directly to the board. I never tried using sockets, so I don't know if that would've worked for my setup.

Oops, sorry, I used the dual THS4032. Still, parallel smaller bypass might be worth trying. Also, I used a larger rail-to-rail capacitor (2.2 uF polyester).

When I put those same chips in my Denon, I paralleled a 0.1uF C0G surface mount chip directly across the FM leads.