Forums - edcor transformer wiring

steve h Verified Member Posts: 5	edcor transformer wiring 06/29/12 at 09:17:56 Could someone from Decware Please post the correct wiring color code for the recommend Edcor power transformer XPWR066-240 to match ZKIT-1 REV 9 2011 . Regards, Steve.
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steve h

Verified Member

Posts: 5

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #1 - 07/02/12 at 04:45:00

Checked through posts and found the info i was after ,although still not sure wiring was correct anyhow finished amp switched on power and no smoke or flashes checked voltages all spot on ,connected source and speakers turned volume up no hum just amazing sounding music straight up!!!
Thank You STEVE DECKERT.for making such a GREAT sounding amp available to all.

Best Regards, Steve.

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mboxler Senior Member Posts: 69	Re: edcor transformer wiring Reply #2 - 07/02/12 at 15:22:57 Hi Steve... Did you end up following the recommended wiring posted by Kaloyanr, including the extra ground wire? How long did Edcor take to deliver the transforms (still waiting). Thanks, Mike
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steve h

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Posts: 5

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #3 - 07/03/12 at 01:50:03

Hi Mike,

Transformers took about 6 weeks, but edcor do make you aware that it takes 5 to 6 weeks .

Power trans info i found in post Re:updated Zkit-schematic.
MIKE@ DECWARE.
I am using 240v power trans which has no green w/white stripe wire so just left this spot empty .Put the two brown wires where the green wires are on the board the two reds to the two reds on the board and the black/red stripe to red/yl.

For the OPT trans i followed the schematic posted by Kaloyanr which shows color code changes ,Posted in new Edcor transformer help.

Make sure you ground volume pot body to the board there is a position for grounding wire next to the volume pot,it is easy to miss this wire !

Good Luck with build I hope this helps.

Regards, Steve.

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mboxler

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Posts: 69

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #4 - 07/03/12 at 04:29:18

Thanks Steve!

Hard to get answers on this forum, and the documentation is outdated. Sorry, but a few more questions.

1) I was planning on wiring the speaker terminals directly to the output transformers, bypassing the PCB. Is that what you did? Seems cleaner.

2) Sounds like you used an external pot. Mind telling me which brand/part number?

3) If you used external RCA inputs, how do you wire +/- from the RCA to the 4 holes on the PCB? My guess is + (center of RCA) to small hole, - to ANY of the three big holes.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help. Wish I could return the favor! Hope not to bother you after this.

Regards

Mike

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steve h

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Posts: 5

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #5 - 07/03/12 at 06:15:13

Hi Mike,

Yes i used an Alps 100k pot from parts connexion

I used PCB Mounted RCA connectors and as for connecting opt directly to speaker posts never thought of doing that .

I purchased two complete kits with the idea of building one amp as standard and one with ASC motor run caps power supply and better quality resistors and coupling caps in the signal path .That way i can compare the two amps,That's the plan but even built using parts recommended the amp sounds great!!! And it's no bother glad to pass on info .

Regards, Steve.

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MattG

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Posts: 30

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #6 - 07/03/12 at 20:48:47

Steve/Mike,
I've been reading this post with interest since I'm in a similar situation, thanks for confirming a few things! And Steve, congrats on getting it up and running with no smoke and no hum! Motivation for sure...

I'm wiring up 2 amps in the same box, each as a monoblock, with external volume pot, rca jacks and speaker jacks.

For the rca jacks I have single conductor shielded cable, with the shield soldered to the solder tab on the body of the jack. The other end bypasses the board and goes right to the volume pot, with the shield soldered to the pot body.

Then I have a 2 conductor shielded cable coming off the other 2 pot lugs - signal and ground - again with the shield soldered to the pot body. In my case, I've bridged the ground lugs together and again connected them to the pot body. At the other end, where the pot would otherwise connect to the board, I'll hook the signal wire to the center hole (bridging to the other center hole since again I'm going mono), and then the ground wire and shield will go to the grounded holes next to the center holes.

For speaker jacks, as shown in previous post, violet and white OT wires directly to the jacks.

I'm hoping this will provide hum-free operation. Steve, did you take any other grounding/hum precautions??

Right now I'm starting the PT wiring, trying to make sure I've got the fuse/switch situation sorted correctly. Also trying to figure out how to work in a Standby switch (I think right after the diodes, before the 1st filter cap, hmm?)

Anyway, thought I'd share since, yeah getting info like this on the forum can be 'difficult'!

If you guys see any glaring problems with my wiring scheme, pls chime in before I apply high voltage! :)

and yeah, the edcor transformers take a while! they look nice tho...

Thanks
Matt

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steve h

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Posts: 5

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #7 - 07/04/12 at 02:10:38

Hi Matt,
The only other grounding was from the earth lug from the mains to chassis ground on the PCB.

As for hooking PT Took a wire from live from mains to fuse holder then to on off switch,one of the black wires from PT to other side of on off switch,the other black wire to neutral on the mains.

I'm not sure about a standby switch.

Regards, Steve.

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mboxler

Senior Member

Posts: 69

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #8 - 07/04/12 at 03:14:23

Hi Matt...

Welcome to our forum within a forum. I hope others start chiming in...the more the better.

This is my first tube build, so I won't be much help. What kind of case are you going to use? I also have two kits, one completed, and waiting for the transformers. If it doesn't blow up, I'll start on the second. I plan on two amps, set up for stereo. I'll bridge using the speaker terminals if needed. I can't comment on your RCA wiring, although I like the idea of bypassing the board whenever possible.

As far as your speaker terminals, will you attach the violet wire from the left channel OT to the positive speaker terminal, attach the white wire from the right OT to the negative speaker terminal, and splice the left channel white wire to the right channel violet wire? This sounds too simple, but...

Anyway, I hope someone can answer your RCA/Pot questions. I'll be "listening" in.

Regards, Mike

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MattG

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Posts: 30

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #9 - 07/04/12 at 19:44:20

Steve, thanks for the info - I'm building on a 15" square aluminum plate, so I've got a 'chassis ground' bolt on the plate, and have wires going to chassis ground hole on the PCB as well as earth ground on the IEC jack, so hopefully I'm good!

Mike, I've got the aluminum plate and then I made a 4 sided wood 'box' so the plate will rest on top just inside, flush with the top of the wood. I drilled/countersunk holes for the volume pot, rca jacks, speaker jacks, iec jack, on/off and standby switches. The 4 OTs are "under" the plate where the circuit guts are, the 2 PTs are on "top" where the tubes will be sticking up. I'll try to get a couple pics up later...

I'm hesitating with PT wiring just b/c my IEC jack is on the 'back' of the box inb/w the speaker jacks, while the power switch is on the 'front' with the volume pot, so I'm trying to figure where I want the fuses to go, then it looks like I'm going to have 2 wires going all the way back to front - 1 from the IEC jack to the power switch, then the PT black wire (which is also towards the 'back' of the plate) all the way to the front switch. Either I run these straight down the middle of the plate or stick them along the inside wood sides...I was hoping for something more 'elegant' ::)

it's just getting a bit crowded on the plate b/c the 2nd "kit" is the Zen ckt done up without a PCB, "point to point" using terminal strips arrayed around chassis mounted tube sockets. I've got 5 or 6 'local' ground wires all going to a 'star' ground pt, along with the chassis ground wires...if one channel sounds better/worse than the other, I guess I'll know why!

Mike, re: the OT wires and speaker jacks, Yes if I read your post correctly, you've got it - connect the OTs in series, then a violet from one and a white from the other to the speaker jacks. 2 stereo amps, you have a quad speaker setup?

Thanks,
Matt

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mboxler

Senior Member

Posts: 69

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #10 - 07/04/12 at 22:29:39

No quad speaker setup. I'm upgrading a pair of Klipschorns I bought in '85. Thought I'd try to bi-amp them, using Marchand electronic crossovers I built from a kit.

Sounded like a fun project, I've heard that 'horns love tubes. Wanted to hear it for myself.

Have a safe 4th! I live in Golden, CO, and the smoke from Wyoming has blown south. Feels like the whole country is on fire!

Good luck with the point to point.

Mike

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mboxler

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Posts: 69

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #11 - 07/05/12 at 14:50:36

Matt...

You got me thinking (dangerous, I know).

1) I was planning on getting an IEC with built in fuse, really simplifies the wireing. Could you get one with a 6 amp fuse, and power both amps from the same IEC and switch?

2) I was pondering your wiring. Were you going to get 2 mono 100k pots, one for each amp? On each amp, using one of the mono pots, run RCA signal wire (center post on RCA) to pin 1 (in). run 2 wires from pin 2 (wiper, out) to each of the middle holes on the PCB pot input, and solder the return tab on the RCA to the body of the pot? Only 2 for the 6 holes on the PCB input would be used? This would give you volume control for each mono amp, I think.

Sorry for my ignorance, but I learn fast.

Mike

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MattG

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Posts: 30

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #12 - 07/05/12 at 18:11:03

I'm down in Albuquerque, and various parts of the state had been on fire sending in smoke you can taste, lovely! We've finally gotten rain showers the last couple days, so hopefully that'll help...that Co Springs fire looks nasty...hadn't heard about WY fires tho, eesh...

uh oh, sorry if I got you scheming! :)

I was just re-assessing my IEC/fuse/switch wiring - you should definitely be able to power both amps from the same IEC/switch - I went in thinking "I've got 2 amps, so I'll run 2 wires off the Live lug on the IEC jack to 2 separate fuse holders, then 2 more wires from fuses to the power switch"...but after I did all that (of course), I'm staring at it, and now I'm thinking I don't need 2 wires & 2 fuses...I've got 1 black wire from each PT going to the switch, same lug...but if EITHER amp has a problem, I want a fuse to blow and power to cut out. I would definitely NOT use a single 6A fuse. So I *think* I really only need 1 fuse, 1 wire to the power switch, and then the other side of the switch feeds both PTs ??? I need to stare at it some more, maybe someone else can check my logic...

re: RCA and volume wiring -- I'm using the 1 dual-gang pot recommended for the kit (altho I probably should've gotten a bigger bodied, chassis mount pot with the bigger lugs, would've been easier to solder all the damn wires on it!)...so I've got a shielded wire going from each signal/center post on the RCAs to input lugs on pot. Shield is attached on the RCA body lug on that end, then pot case on the other end - b/c again these parts are mounted to wood, not the same piece of metal. Then I've got (2) two-conductor shielded wires coming off each side of the dual-gang pot, from the wiper & ground lugs, 1 pair for each amp. The wiper wire (signal) goes to the middle hole on the PCB, then I added a small jumper to feed the other middle hole (as opposed to 2 wires from the pot). The ground wire from the pot goes to one of the pot ground holes on the PCB, with the shield going to the other ground hole. On the pot end, the shield is soldered to the pot body. So I'm using 4 of the 6 holes where the pot would otherwise go on the PCB. Does that make sense? Hmm, pictures would be helpful...

I'm pretty sure this will give me simultaneous/matched volume control over both amps...

I've done mods to guitar amps before, but this is my first build from the ground up, so I too am learning as I go! ;) it can be really helpful to bounce this stuff around until it starts making sense!

-Matt

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MattG

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Posts: 30

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #13 - 07/12/12 at 00:53:32

ok well it's up and running!

I took out the 'extraneous' 2nd fuse/wire, all seems well as far as power supply goes.
Hum/noise seems acceptable/low, so I think that validates the RCA/volume pot wiring/grounding scheme...

I've got an issue with the output being mismatched, but I'll put that in a separate post...

Mike, have you fired yours up yet?

-Matt

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mboxler

Senior Member

Posts: 69

Re: edcor transformer wiring
Reply #14 - 07/12/12 at 02:21:05

Congrats Matt!

I just got an e-mail from EDCOR...trannys shipped today, so expect them in a few days. Trying to make sure I have the voltage check points identified (instructions a little vague).

Also trying to decide on a case. I may put both amps into this

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tube-Amp-Chassis-DIY-18x12x2-5-Aluminum-Project-Box-Encl...

but still thinking.

No hurry, but I'd really be interested in pictures of your wiring, if it's not too much trouble.

Mike

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