[andyr]

Is it just me or does anyone else dislike the PCB pin arrangement which Hugh uses in his amp kits for hookup wire connections?   

Firstly, they introduce an extra solder connection (to say nothing of another metal through which the signal has to pass) and IME, while it's fairly straightforward when you construct the amp for the first time, if you ever have to unsolder the wires - to, say, remove the amp module - and then resolder them, the pin generally comes out with the wire ... rather than the pin staying put and the wire unsoldering from it.   

Now I know the purists amongst you will say ... just put the wire through the PCB-pin hole and solder it to the pad underneath! 

But it's easier to disconnect & reconnect wires when they are soldered from the top - hence, I have continued to use the PCB pins.

I'm thinking that now Hugh uses double-sided PCBs, a far better arrangement would be to have a solder pad on the component side of the PCB, with a hole in it ... so you can push the wire through the hole and solder it in place from the top.

Anybody else think this would be an advantage? 

Regards - and a very happy Christmas to you all    ,

Andy

[Greg Erskine]

Hi Andy,

There is no solution that will satisfy everyone. As well as the options you highlighted some people like those screw terminals.

Your pins shouldn't get hot enough to melt the solder underneath. I pre-tin the wire then form it to shape around the pin (either a U or O shape) then just a quick dab with the soldering iron makes it permanent.

If my memory serves me right, on Hugh's earlier PCBs the pins where a snug fit which helps. Has he changed the hole size on the newer PCBs.

Merry Xmas

[andyr]

Your pins shouldn't get hot enough to melt the solder underneath. I pre-tin the wire then form it to shape around the pin (either a U or O shape) then just a quick dab with the soldering iron makes it permanent.

Yes, that's fine for the first time, soldering the wire to the newly soldered-in-place pins.  I'm talking about the 2nd & 3rd time you try to remove the wires.

If my memory serves me right, on Hugh's earlier PCBs the pins where a snug fit which helps. Has he changed the hole size on the newer PCBs.

Good question.  Maybe?   

Can't see any good reason for doing this, though. 

Regards,

Andy

[stvnharr]

Is it just me or does anyone else dislike the PCB pin arrangement which Hugh uses in his amp kits for hookup wire connections?   

Firstly, they introduce an extra solder connection (to say nothing of another metal through which the signal has to pass) and IME, while it's fairly straightforward when you construct the amp for the first time, if you ever have to unsolder the wires - to, say, remove the amp module - and then resolder them, the pin generally comes out with the wire ... rather than the pin staying put and the wire unsoldering from it.   

Now I know the purists amongst you will say ... just put the wire through the PCB-pin hole and solder it to the pad underneath! 

But it's easier to disconnect & reconnect wires when they are soldered from the top - hence, I have continued to use the PCB pins.

I'm thinking that now Hugh uses double-sided PCBs, a far better arrangement would be to have a solder pad on the component side of the PCB, with a hole in it ... so you can push the wire through the hole and solder it in place from the top.

Anybody else think this would be an advantage? 

Regards - and a very happy Christmas to you all    ,

Andy

Andy,
Are you writing about the pins for the signal wires or those big flat things for power rails and output?
I find the little ones for signal to be good, and the big ones to be as you describe - a pain to work with after the first soldering.
I suppose one could fit somthing different in place of the big flat things without too much trouble.  I've also thought about drilling out the hole in the middle too, but haven't done that either.

Steve

[andyr]

Andy,
Are you writing about the pins for the signal wires or those big flat things for power rails and output?
I find the little ones for signal to be good, and the big ones to be as you describe - a pain to work with after the first soldering.
I suppose one could fit somthing different in place of the big flat things without too much trouble.  I've also thought about drilling out the hole in the middle too, but haven't done that either.

Steve

Haha - hi Steve, 

As Greg noted in his post ... "there's no solution that will satisfy everyone"! 

I was actually writing about the pins for the signal wires - not the spades used for power rails and output.  I like these and, nowadays, I use female spade connectors to attach the wires.  (When I first built my AKSAs, 6 years ago, I decided to be "purist" and drilled bigger holes in the spades so I could solder the wires.  This time around - with the LF upgrade - I decided it was preferable to be able to take out amp modules easily ... so I soldered the wires to the spades on the PSes but use the female spade connectors at the amp end.)

It's the signal wire pins which give me trouble when you need to unsolder/resolder wires to them.

Regards,

Andy

[stvnharr]

Andy,
Are you writing about the pins for the signal wires or those big flat things for power rails and output?
I find the little ones for signal to be good, and the big ones to be as you describe - a pain to work with after the first soldering.
I suppose one could fit somthing different in place of the big flat things without too much trouble.  I've also thought about drilling out the hole in the middle too, but haven't done that either.

Steve

Haha - hi Steve, 

As Greg noted in his post ... "there's no solution that will satisfy everyone"! 

I was actually writing about the pins for the signal wires - not the spades used for power rails and output.  I like these and, nowadays, I use female spade connectors to attach the wires.  (When I first built my AKSAs, 6 years ago, I decided to be "purist" and drilled bigger holes in the spades so I could solder the wires.  This time around - with the LF upgrade - I decided it was preferable to be able to take out amp modules easily ... so I soldered the wires to the spades on the PSes but use the female spade connectors at the amp end.)

It's the signal wire pins which give me trouble when you need to unsolder/resolder wires to them.

Regards,

Andy

Hi Andy,
I've never had any troubles with the signal pins, and have soldered/unsoldered them many a time.
Everyone's experience always seems to be different.

Steve

[AKSA]

The holes are something of a moveable feast;  depends a little on the board maker, and how thick the via plating is on the double sided boards.

I have found that if the pin is a loose fit you can put 'em in the flat jaws of some beefy pliers and flatten the sides a little.  This makes them quite a tight fit regardless, and multiple soldering sessions won't dislodge them.   

Now Xmas is past, we can all heave a collective sigh of relief (my Mom was poorly again this year and this complicated things once again) and Sri, Alessandra and I can prepare for our NYE flight to Bali via Singapore.  I'm not sure I look forward to it (dislike the humidity of Indonesia, knocks me round) but I will force a smile.......

I wish all Aspen guys a great New Years Eve and relaxing Xmas holiday, and particularly those in white Xmas climes where driving can be very dangerous.

I've just returned from a 500 kms drive home from South Australia, serviced the car for one month's storage, and unpacked.  Back to work tomorrow!

Cheers,

Hugh

[andyr]

The holes are something of a moveable feast;  depends a little on the board maker, and how thick the via plating is on the double sided boards.

I have found that if the pin is a loose fit you can put 'em in the flat jaws of some beefy pliers and flatten the sides a little.  This makes them quite a tight fit regardless, and multiple soldering sessions won't dislodge them.   

Cheers,

Hugh

Trouble is, Hugh, I was talking about my Lifeforce modules - which you assemble!   (So I don't get the opportunity to see whether a pin needs flattening - it's already soldered in place.  )

All I know is ... in trying to unsolder the signal wires to one module, the wire lifted out one of the pins.  So I then had to suck away the solder before I could push it back into place and resolder it.  And in fact it was simpler to use a fresh pin ... luckily I had a few spare ones.

So a suggestion - in the spirit of continuous improvement - given that some people like the input pins (and some don't!  ), on all future PCBs you design:

*  why don't you have a 4mm round solder pad on the component side (as well as the small round solder pads you have on the trace side, which you use to solder the pins), and

*  (possibly) leave it up to the customer to decide whether he wants to use pins ... or wires directly (soldered on the top-side to these pads).  It's too hard inside an amp case to solder the input wires to the trace-side pads.

Regards - and have a great time in Bali.

Andy