Also in the case of resistors and capacitors etc. There are several distributors, but for the sake of clarity I have added link only to one. Componentsīelow is a list of suggested electronic components. Only a little desk space and few tools are needed. Straight or curved depending on your preference. For example, ANENG has decent inexpensive models. As long as it can measure resistance and voltage, you should be fine. I used this ChipQuick product, but other brands work just as well. I use my 20-year old Weller, but TS100 has gotten good reviews. As long as it’s temperature-controlled, you’ll be fine. If you’re not planning on building more electronics, it is worth considering borrowing the tools or visiting a makerspace. There are many alternatives and several suppliers, so take the following list only as a suggestion. Here is a short list of tools and parts required for the build. Guide to Building Your Own Headphone Amplifier Partly because I want to show how it’s done the “hard way”, but mostly because those tools are what I have easy access to. In this guide, I will be using a soldering iron and solder paste. If you’re using a hot air station, ensure the airflow doesn’t blow the smallest components off the board. Depending on the size of the component, it can be a good idea to hold the component gently down when soldering with an iron. To place a component, put a tiny blob of solder paste on each of the pads on the PCB, and put the component in place with tweezers. With the hot air method, work in small groups of components, and with soldering iron, place only a few components at a time so that you’ll have room to work in. Even a cheap iron is enough, but make sure it’s temperature-controlled.įor the oven and hot plate methods, place all components first before heating. Only method able to work with solid solder. Takes more effort to produce pretty results. Unfortunately, the airflow can move small components around, so care is required. Hot air stations are excellent when small fixes are needed, since you can focus the heat on a small area, unlike with an oven, but you can heat the whole component at once, unlike with an iron. Hot air reflow stationīlows hot air to heat the components and melt solder paste. The initial heating period is rather long and nothing happens, and then suddenly everything happens at once. The fact that the glass fiber material circuit boards are made of is a good thermal insulator makes this method inefficient as well. Cooling the board is difficult to control. The circuit board is heated from underneath until temperature is high enough to melt the solder and reflow the components. Hot plate / skilletīasically a poor man’s version of the reflow oven. The board is cooled in a controlled manner to prevent the solder joints from becoming brittle. From easiest to most difficult method: Reflow ovenįrom converted toasters to large industrial systems, these heat the board until the solder paste melts and surface tension pulls the components in place. Most of these use solder paste, which is essentially a sticky paste made of tiny solder balls and flux which helps the molten solder to flow. Some are easier to do but might require specialized equipment. There are many different methods for soldering SMD components. To keep things simple, the smallest components in NS-01 are in 0805 size, or 2.0 x 1.2 mm. The biggest obstacle is the size of the components, but that can be helped simply by using a magnifying glass or a microscope. There is a lot of talk among the hobbyist community about how SMT/SMD is difficult to use, but my personal experience is that SMT is actually easier to assemble by hand than through-hole components.

Later revisions may introduce small changes, but the overall structure should remain the same.

The rest of the circuitry makes up the power supply. This two-stage approach should in theory improve the distortion performance, as the same device doesn’t have to deal with both voltage and current amplification. The amplifier itself is composed of two stages: For example, the default configuration uses only two different resistor values. For the sake of simplicity, the part count is kept minimal. These are rather small, so some care is required not to lose any parts inadvertently, but the assembly itself should be relatively straightforward. To keep the physical size small, the board is designed using surface mount components. The version presented here should be able to output 90 mA at 7 volts RMS, and work with even low-impedance headphones. It is not the simplest possible project, since it was designed with size and performance in mind. The NS-01 is a small DIY headphone amplifier. Complete unit, plugged in and playing What is NS-01? A step-by-step guide to assembling a high-performance amplifier in an afternoon for under $50.

Diy reamp kit