SCA chassis?

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2007 9:33 am

Hey guys,
I've been doing some searching and to my surprise I couldn't find, well, anything on the Seventh Circle Audio stuff. I'd assume many people here know about the company.

www.seventhcircleaudio.com

What I'm thinking about doing is buying the A12 module, power supply, and harness (and whatever else I may need).

The problem is that they don't have any single space chassis(es?, haha don't know if that's a word or not) available. I don't really want to purchase a 300 dollar chassis if I end up not thinking the pre is so great and not buying any more from them.

Now for my real question: How hard and/or logical would it be to construct my own chassis? Would it introduce a lot of excess noise? How would I go about doing this?

Thanks in advance guys. This company looks very promising, just don't want to spend 300 dollars if I don't have to. Could buy a few 57s for that haha.

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2007 12:16 pm

nickeveslage wrote:

How hard and/or logical would it be to construct my own chassis? Would it introduce a lot of excess noise? How would I go about doing this?

It would be relatively straightforward for someone who is experienced in electronic construction work. I would not recommend it as a first project if you have not done any of this sort of thing before.

Getting the module to accept a mic input and produce an amplified output should not be that much of a problem. However, you have indicated you want to use it as an evaluation platform for testing the sonic qualities of the preamp, and for this to be meaningful, you need not only proper constructional and housing techniques, but also experience in knowing how to put such things together in a way that does not compromise the performance. You have to judge whether you are in that position.

Incidentally, this is more the sort of question that is dealt with over at the Prodigy Pro forums. http://www.prodigy-pro.com/forum/index.php

Don't forget you need the $75 discrete opamp as well.

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2007 6:45 pm

I guess I'm not too concerned with actually assembling the module itself. I'm wondering about the chassis. I'd assume it's not something I could just rig up a temporary housing for in a handbuilt wooden box or something. Maybe though. That's what I'm asking.

No worries about the actual pre amp assembly.

(Thanks for the reply, by the way!)

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2007 6:52 pm

It occurs to me that not everybody would like the Seventh Circle stuff...........that would be maybe one or two people in the world......perhaps someone with a very very picky ear . And maybe a lot of self-righteous ego.....

Either way, buy the big box....You can always sell it as well as the module you might not like. These things simply hold their value quite well. But my guess is, if you dont fall anywhere close to those categories I described, yer gonna want to fill that sucker up.

Also be aware that there are many manufacturers jumping on the 'lunchbox' bandwagon and offering their stuff in single-card 500-rack units. So the power supply and the chassis will work for a myriad of devices, not just Seventh Circle.

Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2007 6:58 pm

Hey thanks Davedog, off to research!

Posted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 12:11 pm

Davedog wrote:

Also be aware that there are many manufacturers jumping on the 'lunchbox' bandwagon and offering their stuff in single-card 500-rack units. So the power supply and the chassis will work for a myriad of devices, not just Seventh Circle.

The SCA chassis is not, currently, 500 series compliant.
http://seventhcirclestudios.com/SCA/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=595&highlight=500

Posted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 4:57 pm

My BAD and indeed they have a point....however I do believe there are manufacturers out there that build a 500 compliant box AND that particular version of transformers in them. It seems the Purple Audio stuff might be the one.....ummm...not sure but I do know that some are now coming in with a double size(width) module that is 500 series compliant.

You're still gonna love the Seventh Circle stuff......

Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2007 2:48 pm

I've built 2 a12's so far and they sound killer. I don't think you'll be dissapointed with anything from sca.

As for the chassis I bought the a12's and a power supply and built my own chassis out of 1/8 plywood for the top and bottom and back. thicker for the sides and solid hardwood on the front. I did this mostly cause I couldn't justify the price of their chassis when I could build one in a couple of hours.

When I built mine I had plans of lining the chassis with copper foil or something and putting a shield between the power supply and modules, however in my haste to use it I tried it without anything, just the wooden box and it's dead quiet. I did however mount the modules at the opposite end of the 2u chassis from the supply. I might have more issues as more modules get added and wind up closer to the ps, in which case I'll do the shielding.

Hope this helps.

BTW If you are considering the wood box, I don't think you'll fit them into a 1u chassis. Also make sure youve got some ventilation.

Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 11:28 am

it's been about a year since i started filling up my SCA rack, and i luv's 'em all, across the board (2 n72s, n a12's, 2 c84s, waiting on the last 2 channels as tim has mentioned one more module that's supposed to come out sometime soon.)

you do realize that you get the power supply and chassis for $300, right (as long as you by at least one module at the same time)?
go to the pricing page and try it out. (wiring harness also included)

i'd recommend getting the chasis, as it's actually quite a good deal for what you get, professional looking (though not flashy by any means), very well built, rugged, well shielded, etc.

plus, as mentioned above, the resale value on these things is exellent, i've seen them on ebay a few times and they always go for more than the price of the kits....

i'm not a "my product is the best product" type of guy that normally likes to shill for any particular company, but- these. things. rock. the. casbah.

Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 1:55 pm

I'm not seeing anywhere on the SCA website that says that the power supply and wire harness are included with the chassis. I don't see why it would be as they are somewhat spendy on thier own.

Hopefully I'm wrong though

Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 3:45 pm

Quote:

I'm not seeing anywhere on the SCA website that says that the power supply and wire harness are included with the chassis.

They're not, but if you order a chassis, power supply, wiring harness and at least one module at the same time, the shopping cart calculates a package discount. You can get details by clicking Order->Ordering Instructions from the main nav menu. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 2:33 pm

thanks Tim

Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 9:02 pm

I was not aware of the discounts. That almost completely rids me of any thought of possible doubt! Looks like I'd basically be getting the chassis for free in a sense with the package discount. That's great! I'll need to start budgeting for that....my rent is going up dramatically soon. Sad

Haha, too bad the new store I work at doesn't offer any commission. I've sold a few nice Breedlove guitars in the last week or two.

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2007 6:30 pm

Buy the chassis. Then, buy two of each module. Or 8 of one. Or four of one and four of another. It doesn't matter. You'll end up with 8 top of the line pres that you'll use your entire life, that you built, and that yield results others pay 10 times the price for.

Plus, as you can see by the above post, Tim couldn't be more communicative and helpful. Unless you're a machinist, or know one, cut to the chase and buy the chassis!

Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 9:50 pm

You'll love 'em! I do Smile

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