(Part 2) Top products from r/modular

I started with circuit bending. I took a student-taught class as part of the Oberlin College ExCo, which is the Experimental College, where any student can teach a class for a single credit, provided they can demonstrate to a faculty panel that they have something to teach and a plan on how to teach it. That got me started on instrument building, and also on circuit design. I worked on that as a hobby for several years, until eventually I was friends with some people who were getting into Eurorack manufacturing: the 4MS crew, when they were still in Austin. Ralph and Dan encouraged me to move from bending (and breaking) toys into creating circuits, and gave me a few good starting tips (and copies of a few Forrest Mims books, which are absolutely invaluable). Another year or two after that, I was talking with Mickey, and he mentioned that he had the good problem that his modules were selling too fast, and he was bored of soldering, and wanted more time to design. I piped up quick. "I know how to solder! I'm very good at it." The second part was a lie. It's true now, though! Everything more advanced that I know about circuits I've learned from Mickey, the internet, and a bit more book learnin', especially from The Art of Electronics. I told the story of getting started on the pedal (which was my first commercial pedal) elsewhere in this thread.

The biggest hiccup was finding ROHS compliant vactrols! But we're cool on that now. Thanks, XVIVE!

So far as monitors go, i do love my various pairs of KRK's, but in the end it all comes down to preference. That said, I tried a SubPac for the first time today and .... wow. Words won't do this justice. If your budget allows (and, considering your apartment-ness), I recommend the Subpac M2X and a pair of Beyer Dynamic DT 770 Pro

The Horowitz/Hill bible is great, he's a physicist/EE. For some people, though, his interest in the physics isn't necessarily what they geek out on, and so for those people I'd suggest also Practical Electronics for Inventors.

https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Electronics-Inventors-Third-Scherz/dp/0071771336

I found this book to be very easy for beginners to pick up and enjoy, and get started on building far more quickly.

There's tons of tutorials online if you really want to learn how to solder. Bear in mind that (like a lot of things) good soldering is the result of decent tools but mostly a bit of practice. It's not a difficult skill to learn, though.

Some tips off the top of my head:

Buy a decent iron if this is something you want to spend more than a few hours on. Something that can get hot enough so it doesn't wimp out soldering heavy ground connections, terminal strips etc. Don't crank up the heat too much if you're just soldering small components, but don't be a pussy with the heat dial if shit isn't melting fast enough for your liking.

This is possibly my favorite tool I've ever owned. It's more expensive than those small, flimsy solder suckers but it's much more effective and will last forever. Don't dick around with desoldering braid/wicks if you don't have to. IME they aren't very effective, are hard to use, and heat up the board/components too much. For certain applications (maybe surface mount) it can be handy but with through-hole components a spring loaded solder sucker like the Soldapullt is king.

Use rosin core solder, and don't use lead free solder if you're in the US. Lead free solder is a bit more difficult to use.

...that's it for now. Have fun.

Damn I really don't understand this stuff. Also it sounds like maybe you're talking about modifying a homes circuitry(?) and I'm a renter so that's a no go.
Now I'm getting super skeptical of all these Surge Protectors though..

What about this one does it seem ok? It's got a pretty high Joules rating (high number=good right?) and a supposed $50,000 equipment warranty. That all sounds pretty spankin' to me...

I just got this one.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002F6JH6/ref=sxts1?ie=UTF8&qid=1494659489&sr=1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65

Not great with my current 6u 84hp, but should be great for 104hp cases.

Seems like I need the opposite of this: http://www.amazon.com/Hosa-YPP-118-inch-Dual-Cable/dp/B000068O56/ref=sr_1_12?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1464635743&sr=1-12&keywords=1%2F4th+inch+adapter+cables

Is there a store you recommend checking? /new to hardware synths

Amp stands work great for 9U cases. I had my Bento Box in this one.

https://www.amazon.com/Musicians-Gear-Deluxe-Stand-Black/dp/B0018TG8HQ

A trim pot is a passive (it uses no power) module, like the "trim" module from the 2 Hp company, that just turns down the volume on a signal. If you chose to go that route, you should probably buy a cord with a 3.5mm head on one end and a 1/4" head on the other. Hosa makes several cords like this.

I don't need brackets, but rack ears for a 19" rack. I already have a rack with 3u/84hp and some other gear in it, just looking to add a 1u row. I could probably make rails work with something like this but would rather not deal with the hassle and get something that I know will be the right dimensions.

never seen the Adam Hall stand sbefore but they look a lot like the On-Stage 12U stands, which are cheaper per U:

12U stand

Do not buy a cheap soldering iron to start out with, you will just end up having to replace it. Buy either a Hakko or Weller soldering station, and you'll be fine.

https://www.amazon.com/VELCRO-Brand-ONE-WRAP-Double-Sided-Multi-Purpose/dp/B000078CUB

What cables are you using to connect your soundcard to your modular? Are they TRS-to-TRS? For ease-of-use, you should just use TS-to-TS.

TL:DR - Yes.

I started with a Seahorse case. At first I started with 84HP rails and corner brackets from home depot. These just dropped right in on the inner lip and allowed me to close the case. I used velcro to keep them from sliding around. I was trying to avoid drilling into the case. I used Trogotronic DIY Power kits and just had the power cord tucked inside. This worked great until I realized I was losing HP and that I could probably add a 1U row.

So...I 3D printed some rack ears, bought longer rails and cut those to size. I still used velcro to hold it all in place. The Seahorse case is really deep though so I later built my own case.

If you want the plans for the ears send me a PM. If I were to do it different I would place the holes a bit lower on the rails so I could have kept everything patched with the lids closed.

Call your library and get a copy of Allen Strange's Electronic Music: Systems, Techniques, and Controls through inter-library loan.

Work through the book.

Plastic washers will fix your screw length woes and protect your modules.

I thought that they sold different Euro/US PSU models of the cases but maybe they've changed that and have a switching transformer in there now? Somebody else needs to clarify that.

Doepfer PSUs are solid. As others have said, you may have another issue. Try find an outlet tester like the one shown here, but for continental Europe obviously. This will quickly rule out or identify the mains wiring to that outlet as the problem
https://www.amazon.com/Electrical-Receptacle-Outlet-Ground-Tester/dp/B0012DHVQ0

Also, I would suggest disconnecting the Bus Boards if they aren't already.