PAIA 9700 Addition (Part 3)

And I also started on the first PAIA modules I bought from the new series. It is a Linear to Exponential converter with a signal inverter. Here you can see the parts that came in the kit. And actually I was a bit disappointed about it, because there is not much to build. Most components on the PCB are SMD and they are already mounted. So the only thing to do is to solder the potmeters, jacks and one potmeter and then you assemble the front panel to the PCB and put the knobs on. And then you are done.

Here is a picture on the finished module where you can clearly see the SMD components on the PCB. I can imagine why PAIA solders them on themselves, since this is not something you can easily do at home, but I don't understand why they chose this option. This clearly takes out the fun in DIY for me :) Well I don't know if all their new modules are like this. I guess I'll look into that first before I order them. On the other hand they have some nice new stuff that would complement the 9700S I already have.

And here is a picture of the other side of the PCB. As you can see not much on there. The wire on there was already in place as was one of the potmeters. I came with a note that there was an error on the PCB making this potmeter work the wrong way around. And they already installed that mod as well. Pffff actually they could have build the whole module just as easy and ship it ;) Ah well I had about and hour of fun with this project and luckily I have some more complicated stuff lying around still ;)

 And here is the cabinet with the new power supply and the module installed in the rack below the PAIA 9700S. As you can see there is plenty more room for more modules. I still need to hook up the power and test it though. So I don't even know yet if it works. But I really like the new way they incorporated the power supply in the normally unused space of the rack mount on the left side of the cabinet. I'm still planning on building a TR-808 clone and I might consider this Frac format for that one too and buy another case from PAIA. They are cheap and look nice in my opinion. I will just have to design some front panels myself then. A nice project for the near future :)