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Before you start assembling your SET-300B, please take a few
minutes to read this preface on the construction manual and the kit.
Zen and the Art of Electronics Assembly:
Assembling a high quality electronic device requires a certain frame
of mind. The object is not to rush through and get the kit assembled
as quickly as possible, but to methodically and correctly put together
the pieces of this audio jigsaw puzzle. The kit could take as long as 6-
8 hours to complete, so plan your attack accordingly and take breaks
often, you will find the natural places to do so as you go through the
assembly steps. The final kit appearance will benefit from your rested
mind.
If the instructions are followed to the letter, the amplifier will work
correctly right from the start. If you try to assemble the kit purely from
the pictures/illustrations without reading the body of the text, your unit
will most likely not work.
Please note that this kit is not intended for the complete novice. A
certain level of competency is assumed in electronics assembly - i.e.
the ability to solder, and to be able to use a voltmeter/multimeter.
General Instructions:
Where necessary a simple overview of the upcoming step is
presented to you before you actually do that procedure. This little
preamble will help to clarify the next assembly step and give you a
broader understanding of the construction methods to use, and
hopefully aid you in getting it right the first time. Following this is a list
of the parts or components that will be needed or constructed in this
immediate section, then a detailed description of the assembly
procedures for that section.
The top of the printed circuit boards is the one side that has the white
silk-screening on it. Therefore you know that the backside has no
screening on it and no parts, except it is the backside that the tube
sockets will be mounted to.
Parts Count:
While every precaution has been taken to ensure that you have
received a complete kit, your kit has been picked and packed by
humans. Therefore, please use the Parts List on page 4, to ensure
that you have all parts present and accounted for. Before you
convince yourself that something is missing, check again! Large
cardboard boxes are notorious for hiding small parts, as are the
packing materials.
Stuffing the PC Boards:
If you inspect the main board (this is the largest of the boards with
which your are supplied with), you will notice that all parts locations
have been labeled with the appropriate part reference designator.
Each different set of components has been placed in its own
individual bag, which has its own label which lists the part type. (You
will find the reference designators listed on the Parts List.) Therefore,
when you are asked to install the resistor R1, you simply procure the
labeled bag with that part in it. Once the part is installed and soldered
in place, you can check that component off the supplied checklist in
this manual. There are also several photos and diagrams detailing
parts placement to reduce any possible confusion that may arise
regarding parts placement. Please note too, that there may be some
subtle differences between some of the parts shown in the
photographs and those supplied with your kit. On occasion, our
technical staff may substitute parts with ones of equal or higher
quality.
NOTE: Talking about part substitutions, there are Signature parts
upgrade kits available for the SET-300B. These upgrade kits replace
components in the signal path, input wiring, power supply filter caps,
coupling caps, the addition of film bypass caps, and
vibration/isolation components. (see page 25 for details)
The parts for your Assemblage kit have been packaged into several
groups: capacitors, resistors, semi-conductors, and hardware. Each
component type is individually packaged to allow for ease of
identification.
The process of stuffing the main board with parts is in fact a relatively
simple procedure - Generally the sequence will be to simply obtain
the bag containing the appropriate part, carefully bend the leads,
place the part into the holes in the PC board, then solder and trim the
leads. (Please review our soldering instructions on the next page).
Soldering:
Let it be said once, to get it out of the way - all soldering must be done
with rosin core solder! There is no warranty on equipment in which
acid core solder has been used. Please use the silver solder
provided in the kit.
Wire Stripping:
Unless otherwise instructed elsewhere in this manual, the normal
procedure to ‘prepare’ a cut wire is as follows;
qTrim or cut the wire to the desired length.
qStrip back the wire jacket 3/16”(~5mm), to expose the wire inside.
Use your favorite tool, the knife or wire strippers. If you are using the
knife, please be careful and read the instructions on the following
page.
qTwist the wire strands to gather them together and then solder them.
This is called the ‘tinning process’.
Mechanical Assembly:
The SET-300B has been designed with ease of assembly in mind. To
this extent, the chassis has been designed with built-in standoffs, to
which the PC boards are attached. This allows the PC boards to be
easily installed and removed.
There is a minimum of wiring involved in putting this kit together -
generally the power transformer must be wired to the PC boards, the
output transformers connect to the speaker binding posts and the
300B sockets directly, and the IEC socket connects the power
transformer and AC switch board. The Mute switch and the input (I/P),
RCA jacks are wired to the Main PC board.
We will leave most wiring until the last few steps, as we will first
concern ourselves with correctly placing and soldering all the
components to the PC boards.
Please be sure to follow the installation instructions closely, because
some important mounting details etc. may be included in any step.
Before You Start - Kit Overview
