Maybe I should change the name...

of this blog, because I'm so far away from working on power conditioning that it's almost not funny. Instead I've been busy working on my own mini-system, finding ways to improve it one way or another. I've been looking for a good vintage tuner and DAC to put into my CJ/Sumo/Monitor Audio system, and came across at Tandberg 3001 at Goodwins for $275. Now, if you are any sort of FM fan at all you know that a 3001 doesn't sell for less than $700 anywhere unless there is something wrong with it.

So, I went to Goodwin's and got the answer. Aparently this unit came out of some well heeled accumulator (as opposed to collector) of audio gear. The output board was "cracked" and parts in the power supply "assumed their gaseous state." So, I offered him $200 and walked out with it.

Here is a picture of the output board. It's not really as bad as described. The problem is two fold. It seems like a previous owner used really high pressure connectors and pushed so hard on the RCA jacks that it pulled the tabs and the copper off the PCB on the back. The other problem is that these jacks are just tin and plastic.

So, I am left with a couple of choices, I could scrape off some solder mask, and add big gobs of solder, and stick it back in, and start working on the power supply OR I could make a new PCB board sized for Cardas RCA jacks. Well, if you've followed my blog at all, you know which of these two choices I'm going to take. :)

The mechanical drawing of the original board has been completed, now I'm debating which PCB manufacturer to go with. I like the software that Express PCB offers, but I may want options, like thicker copper traces, or gold plating in case I find others who would like to upgrade their Tandberg 3001 or 3001A boards.