Tour of my audio repair workshop & test equipment

[@MrCarlsonsLab]

Nice Lab, thanks for the tour!

[@philsanalogbasement]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge with the rest of us, watching your videos over the years was a big part of what got me to this point!

[@gregj.gotham4402]

I was lucky to spend a hr at Phils Lab today meet and greet and dropped off my two Stromberg Carlson AP-437 6550 p/p mono block 1959 original boxes NOS amps plus a third AP-437 in case a part is needed, I can say Phil comes very recommended by many tech men. Thank you Phil. I can’t wait to view my amps go through your magic . Better when I get it all back to my home for some critical listening time.

[@Zodliness]

You ain't an official repair man until you've got a couple of Flukes to put on show. 😉 Thanks for sharing this unique little tour into your corner of the world. 👍

[@ErCanEverything]

You have a wonderful workshop my Friend🙂🤝

[@Rivenworld]

That Textronic Curve Tracer isn't just functional, it is absolutely beautiful, a real work of mechanical/electrical art. Love it (In case you hadn't guessed).

[@philsanalogbasement]

It sure is! The ceramic strips inside are beautiful. Also, the HP 5342a is another work of art,on the inside at least. If you’ve never seen one torn down, look up @curiousmarc video on it

[@jessihawkins9116]

I found a 577 at a thrift store for $40 and am restoring it for my lab 😌

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@jessihawkins9116 oh man, I’m jealous!! I’d love to upgrade someday.

[@jessihawkins9116]

@@philsanalogbasement yeah. They said it was an oscilloscope that wouldn’t turn on. They were going to trash it 😆

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@jessihawkins9116 that’s funny, I’m going to an auction this weekend and they have two hp 5372a time interval analyzers listed as oscilloscopes, hoping to get one dirt cheap

[@waltwimer2551]

Anytime I think my electronics lab is cool, I see something like yours which blows mine away! 😳 Bravo! Congratulations!

[@philsanalogbasement]

Thanks Walt! I definitely took inspiration from posts of yours in the VETE FB group :)

[@waltwimer2551]

Thanks for the kind words! There is a lot of great gear in that group, and a lot of great lab ideas. A few things I particularly love about yours: 1. Overall organization! I love the dedicated soldering area, separate from most of the test equipment. 2. Several awesome instruments, such as the Tektronix 11000-series, the Tek color digital oscilloscope, the spectrum analyzer, function generators, etc. And several great items that are still on my "to acquire" list, like the DMMcheck and Hakko fume extractor! Also, your 575 is working! I finally obtained one, but I haven't had a chance to check it out. I suspect it will need some significant TLC... 3. Your frequency standard and distribution amplifier setup. Very nice. I have a GPSDO, but I don't have it in any kind of permanent setup yet. And I don't have a distribution system for it at all. I have some plans (dreams?) to clean up more of my basement so that I can relocate my workbench to a new area and significantly expand it. That will also free up a bunch of space from its current location which I can then use to better organize and consolidate my audio system. One of these days! Once again, you've created a fantastic setup! Cheers!

[@Eduardo_Espinoza]

@Walt Wimer The basement is the best common ground! :)

[@NicholasT-f9n]

@@waltwimer2551 The best lab is using the least possible amount of equipment & investment to achieve the most possible results. There's alot of redundancy here for trophy purposes.

[@waltwimer2551]

@@NicholasT-f9n I see absolutely nothing wrong with collecting vintage test gear in order to preserve history and engineering works of art. People do the same with cars, stamps, vintage toys, vintage radios, books, beer cans, signs, and on and on and on. 😎👍

[@robertling9872]

Beautiful, thanks for sharing.

[@azmrblack]

That 575 is absolutely beautiful - looks like you just picked it up in 1960. True museum quality! ♥

[@M5AXA]

Greetings from the UK , Nice lab with some of the best test equipment around. Very impressed with the layout.

[@larrybud]

That tek 575 curve tracer is a work of art.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Sure is. Although I’m taking a road trip next Friday to buy a really nice 576 to replace it, been looking for a while.

[@cthoadmin7458]

Wow, never seen such immaculate test equipment. It fairly sparkles like the polished chrome on hot rods.

[@zaidhussain5206]

Nice tour & good collection of equipment , good luck in your life.

[@ACCOUNTANTB]

its a dream lab man !!!! - i really wish i had room for all....!!!!

[@borisj4054]

Envious of owning all that modern test equipment. Costs a fortune here is Australia. Most things are hard to find and go for high prices here. Just paid $6000 for a Tek P7054 oscilloscope without input connectors. Still using a hp 141 spectrum analyser. Still, I am close to retirement so guess you got to stop sometime keeping up.

[@JohnUsp]

Your lab is awesome, I'm sure you dedicated a lot of time studying for the best instruments and searching online for good available instruments and prices. A lot of Dedication and patience. Congrats!!!! You don't have so many videos about electronics, would be grate if you do videos about Audio, I would be very interested. Thanks for showing your lab.

[@welderfixer]

Very, very nice lab. I'm soooo jealous. Maybe someday I'll have better gear than I currently own. A word of warning about the red ink on the Simpson meters - I forgot my meter was exposed to the shop lights and ink faded. I'm so mad at myself for that. Protect all of your red colored printing from fading folks.

[@johncloar1692]

Nice shop Ben nice to have one like that back in the day I work on consumer electronics. Thank for the video.

[@gerardzi7930]

Oh! Me i have a just a 1741hp scope and Wavetek audio generator and also multimeter ! Your labo is fabulous 😊

[@radio655]

Beautiful shop! Your equipment looks exquisitely maintained, loving it!

[@KeritechElectronics]

That's some impressive collection! Greetings from my little lab in Poland, where I live, work and record, doing it all on a very limited budget. Tighter than Ethel Granger's laces!

[@stoptherussiannazis50]

yeh ,,steeampank ,, collection - its true!

[@allthegearnoidea6752]

Nice tour. I liked the curve tracer.

[@PicaDelphon]

Nice Setup..

[@soloperformer5598]

Nice equipment and much of it reminds me of my days in the electronic repair and calibration days, particularly the Tektronix curve tracer.

[@Chris_at_Home]

Pretty nice setup. I worked in electronics and telecommunications most of my 50 years work career. My last position was a gateway earth station where we used all but a few transponders on a C band satellite.

[@PrimeHiFi]

Amazing shop! Thanks for taking the time to show it off! Just subscribed 😊

[@RC-Heli835]

Nice! Looks like you have something for every imaginable problem!

[@SinnerSince1962]

Congrats. You just won the prize for best lab EVER!

[@philsanalogbasement]

Hahah thanks but not quite! Maybe you haven’t seen CuriousMarc’s channel :-)

[@raygianelli3612]

Very nice setup! I should never have left New York, I could have a basement lab too, and one I wouldn't have to share with the car!

[@philsanalogbasement]

At least you can just open the garage door and unload these monsters onto your bench! I need to install a dumbwaiter or something to them downstairs ;)

[@saitom2762]

dream workshop!

[@WN8HGZ]

cant wait to see some of your equipment repairs thanks

[@Eduardo_Espinoza]

What a unit! :) Almost like a spaceship lol :) Tnx 4 sharing! :D

[@bruceng4690]

You've got a lot of amazing toys

[@PhG1961]

Amazing and very impressive!

[@dmc4936]

Thank you for sharing. Awesome setup.

[@zaperfan]

Thats an awesome lab congratulations

[@AethericTheorem]

Dope lab, man! Just found your channel. I plan on doing a tour of mine in the near future...

[@atelier_HiFi]

Jealous of your space and how well you are organized (read: Love it!)

[@philsanalogbasement]

Thank you!! It's always a work in progress, but I try to keep it neat.

[@atelier_HiFi]

I get mine cleaned up occasionally…. Just to shoot a video, otherwise, when it is clean, I never find anything 😂

[@conwaynoel3715]

Excellent vid, great space.

[@christophertadeo6120]

What can I say.., one man's redundancy is another man's compendium... 😳👍

[@patrick4228]

Would you be kind enough to let me know the times when you are not at home? And also please where you keep your spare key to your lab?

[@donnadie8929]

igualmente hermoso ese lab multiuso

[@Testequip]

An awesome audio lab.

[@gregorymccoy6797]

Very impressive lab and tidy, too.

[@Hobby_RadioNerd]

I’m jealous. Very nice setup.

[@flint9591]

Nice collection of high quality gear !

[@charlieb3943]

Your lab-shop kicks ass!

[@reginaldcrudstump383]

Some nice gear there.

[@made.by.morten.laboratories]

I am sub 1000 :-) Great view into your impressive workshop

[@YT32-16branch]

Awesome bench

[@RickyScott-q1w]

Nice bench.

[@kaanseler3357]

Very nice collection of equipment, what is missing is a good usb sound board with measurement sw. Which has 10s dB better resolution and noise performance

[@philsanalogbasement]

The levear vp-7725d has stellar specs on thd, thd+n and an ultra low distortion oscillator. I would have been ok with a QuantAsylum, but they have been out of stock for a very long time due to chip shortage. I noticed they recently restarted production and may pick one up as it can perform other measurements I can’t easily do

[@chotuusian4127]

Nice workshop and good work

[@zdravkomadzhov4529]

Unique! Congrats! 😲

[@iancooper2338]

Great setup man! Something to aspire to 👍

[@windward2818]

The variac is usually after the isolation transformer and has a higher current rating (+40%) and CB protected. The isolation transformer in the video looks like a Tripp-Lite IS1000 Isolator, which only puts out 8.3A at 120VAC. Which means your AC power supply rig is only good for 1000 Watts which is fine. The 1000 Watts at 120VAC is about the max you can have without an inrush current limit feature for an E core isolation transformer on a 20 Amp branch circuit. If you go larger than 1000 Watts you usually make your own custom AC power supply with added features. One being the use of a hospital grade toroidal isolation transformer (20 Amp) with internal thermal switch and winding shield. However, the inrush is rather massive, so a inrush current limit circuit is added. I like the switched resistor method and not the MOV. The resistor approach mean you can quickly power cycle. The MOV should be allowed to cool down, or have a cool down timer.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Yeah, I rarely need over 200 watts when using those tools. Since that video i've changed the setup a bit. I replaced the Variac and Dim Bulb with a Tektronix TU-75B. I also added a HP 6813A AC Power Source connected to a 25a 240v circuit for all of my AC needs. Still have the isolation transformer on another bench for working with some tube gear.

[@windward2818]

@@philsanalogbasement The HP 6813A look like a nice unit. It is interesting that the TU-57B uses internal incandescent bulbs that can be switched in and out of circuit from the front panel, but it does not have an AC current meter which is really important for repair. In the USA for electronic manufactures repair depot (troubleshooting to component level), with the increased use of switching power supplies, there are usually at least two AC power supply centric test benches, one for repair/burn-in and one for calibration/test, separated by 6 feet or more (derived from the NEC?). The repair/burn-in bench usually has a custom fully isolated AC power supply, and many procedures and test gear to maximize equipment and technician safety. Like the use of battery operated scope (like a Scopemeter) or a PC based scope with High Voltage probes if specific test waveforms have to be documented. Equipment fully power with certain types of faults can explode electrolytic capacitors while it is being worked on, which is a bit scary for inexperienced techs. Obviously, at repair/burn-in the unit is given some basic tests, needed preliminary calibration and then burned in (amount of time varies), with some tests being rather unique depending on why units are returned to repair from outgoing test. The calibration/test bench has a pure sinewave AC power supply with analyzer much like the HP 6813A. However, many times you will see two units the pure sinewave variable isolated (mains only) power supply and an AC power analyzer (sometimes a custom ordered bench unit with specific accuracy requirements) which usually has the following as a minimum: Very accurate AC volts and AC current, Power Factor, AC Amps THD, AC Volts THD, Real Power, Apparent Power and AC current leakage (often a separate meter). The calibration/test bench is never used for repair due to the technician and test equipment safety, and the different procedures and training needed. A senior technician will obviously be able to man either of the benches. A cart is used to move the repair around the shop. Once the unit is repaired the cart is moved from the repair bench (area) to the calibration/test bench (area), being documented along the way. If the unit does not pass calibration/test it is returned to repair with the responsible electrical design engineer being flagged to help analyze the faulty unit.

[@lawan1603]

I make audio amplifiers/electronic crossovers, my most xpensive instrument is a siglent 25Mhz oscilloscope at $200😂

[@rangthang879]

Dream set up

[@cipheroth]

LOVE IT !! I WANT TO BE LIKE YOU

[@reprobite]

With regards to the Hakko I have both, the one that you can change to an iron grip is nowhere near as powerful as the one you have and can clog, you got the right one!

[@philsanalogbasement]

Is the FM-204 the one you have? Interesting..

[@reprobite]

@@philsanalogbasement yes I had the FM-204 station after I got the 240V UK version of the FR301, it is a little better the way you can hold it like a pen but overall the 301 is way more powerful at melting the solder so you can use the trigger quicker. Much faster if you have a ton of pins to desolder.

[@philsanalogbasement]

thanks for the feedback, they are very expensive and no comparisons I could find online. The FM-204 seems to have higher suction(15L/m vs 11L/m on the 301) but slightly lower high end temperature (450C vs 500C of the 301), I rarely need to turn the FR-301 up past #1, since i mostly work on single sided boards, so it's surprising based on specs alone, but good to know.

[@reprobite]

@@philsanalogbasement yeah I went from the specs too expecting it to be more impressive, but if you think the vacuum is directly next to the subject on the 301 vs on the 204 it has to travel all the way down the tube, I have a feeling that also has an effect

[@hyper2high]

Nice👍👍

[@3madeamps]

nice shop

[@vincentmillard7692]

That's SoLdering Sod er ing is something else!!!

[@greentelly280]

Just a hobby !? It's definitely a professionnal workshop you have here!

[@Amir-kz6yq]

Nice lab, not jealous at all

[@jimcatanzaro7808]

Love the shop

[@mp-ov9dh]

what a lab! holy crap

[@philsanalogbasement]

Wait til you see the updated video that I'm going to do soon :-) Been some major improvements in the last year+ since that vid.

[@apooravsingh6374]

Your lab is neat. Can you make a video about how you organize your stuff?

[@philsanalogbasement]

I promise to make a video one day when I organize it :-)

[@nazeerabdulrahuman9526]

Wow very impressive ❤

[@marmurua]

Damn! What a lab!

[@jeanious2009]

Super nice.

[@LikeDotAudio]

Very nice stuff!

[@hernancoronel]

Loved it! Thank you!

[@manwong2513]

Everybody's dream, and my dream for 60 years.

[@CT1JRZ]

Nice!

[@javierzamoramanes2257]

👌👌👌🙌

[@edescrambler]

Vehen dreams come true!

[@DougLucy]

Great lab! What is the stand you are using with your Hakko FX-301 desoldering gun? I use the same gun, but I haven't found a good matching stand yet.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Thanks! It’s a Hakko C1100. It’s pretty good, although even in its most vertical position the FR301 still kinda rests on its cord, so ideally it would be placed on the edge of a table. amzn.to/4eOvTG1

[@LanceMcGrew]

I always say having too much is almost enough.

[@rw6ark]

На картинке закон Ома) 73!

[@FW_20]

Perfect!

[@mmaranta785]

Nice shop. You’re rich!

[@hernancoronel]

LOL: shows a zillion dollars worth of equipment and proceeds to criticize the price of the Hakko desoldering iron that costs around USD300!

[@philsanalogbasement]

Haha, you’re right… thanks for the laugh. Truth be told, the only item in the video that I paid over $1000 for was the Siglent spectrum analyzer. Almost everything else was less than $500. it’s amazing the deals you can get on test equipment in the USA these days, especially if you take a little risk and buy items that appear to need minor repairs. I mean who wants to pay $300 for a solder sucker when I can get a HP 8644B that had an msrp of $24,305 in 1992 for 265 bucks? Lol

[@fullwaverecked]

Nice Lab! Any advice regarding where to find parts bins? Thanks!

[@philsanalogbasement]

I found these on Facebook marketplace locally. I think it was a little bit of luck, although I have seen other listings since then for cheap akro mils style bins here and there. Many times they have components in them. I’ve had really good luck with Facebook marketplace when it comes to finding things I want. They aren’t always available right away but since it keeps track of what you search for, when someone does end up listing them, they tend to show up in recommended items.

[@fullwaverecked]

@@philsanalogbasement Thanks. I'll try that. The more you hunt, the luckier you get.😸😎👍

[@10yoss]

I wish I was your neighbor!

[@jjoonathan7178]

Nice lab!

[@eugenepohjola258]

Howdy. That's not a lab. That is engineering in Star Trek Enterprise ... Regards.

[@xblinkusedfinchx]

love the gear! looks like a dream workshop! I'd love to learn how to diagnose and repair my own equipment. is there a guide or classes you would recommend to someone with no radio knowledge and limited electrical knowledge to get started.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Hi Joe, I mostly recommend KZbin, there are a huge number of extremely talented people on here and thousands of videos on repairing radios, hifi equipment, etc. if you look through the channels I’m subscribed to, that’s a good place to start. What type of stuff do you want to learn the most? Maybe I can make a more specific suggestion

[@xblinkusedfinchx]

@@philsanalogbasement I'd like to learn building a audio amplifier, all the way up to some things like repairing automotive engine controllers and modifying equipment

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@xblinkusedfinchx For building an audio amplifier from the ground up, (assuming you're talking transistor, not tube) check out JohnAudioTech on youtube. He has some great videos where he builds some small amps, talks about the various types of amplification, etc. For automotive engine management, that's what got me started with working on electronics nearly 20 years ago. I built a Megasquirt ECU kit for a car I had at the time. Although it is just a kit, you learn a lot about it, and I also had to modify it quite a bit to work with my ignition system at the time etc. And there's also mr Carlson's lab for general all around electronics knowledge!

[@superchered58chevy]

Do you have any videos on what you mentioned about the isolation transformer not being safe/modified? I have the same one at my shop.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Yeah, In it’s default configuration the transformer secondaries neutral is bonded to ground, which you don’t want. If you google it there are a bunch of articles / forum posts on it and how to change that.

[@myradiovideos]

Very Nice. On your Bulb Load device, home made, what king of electrical wall switch are you using? Thanks in advance Robert

[@philsanalogbasement]

A standard SPST household switch

[@myradiovideos]

@@philsanalogbasement So the switch turns AC power on and off, but you dont have a way to remove the bulb from the circuit? IF you want to bypass the bulb how do you pull that off?? Maybe when you no longer need the current limiter, you just unplug the load and go right into AC power?? Thanks for clarifying this for me.. Robert

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@myradiovideos I just unplug the device and plug it directly into the variac/isolation transformer or wall depending on the circumstances. I am planning on rebuilding the dim bulb setup in the near future, with the ability to do what you mention, meters, multiple bulbs, etc

[@myradiovideos]

@@philsanalogbasement ok got it and thanks

[@jimmycake7143]

whats the box next to the variac? has AC outlets. Surge?

[@philsanalogbasement]

The one with the light bulb on it? A “dim bulb tester” I did a video on them a few months ago as well

[@exabyte2402]

What is the function of the extracter in 10:00?

[@arnbon6241]

For soldering fumes.

[@exabyte2402]

@@arnbon6241 thanks.

[@seeharvester]

So what type of stuff do you repair? And would you be willing to take on a couple of jobs? I've been on the lookout for years for someone I can trust to work on some equipment for me. I tend to trust a hobbyist who knows what he's doing over a repair shop that's just out to make money. Stuff I need repaired: Pioneer receiver SX 780; old Galaxy Pluto 10-11 meter multi mode radio (CB). What say you?

[@philsanalogbasement]

I'm mostly interested in 70s'-80's HiFi at the moment, so the SX-780 is right up my alley. I still work full time in an unrelated field, so I'm not interested in having gear shipped into me for repairs. If you happened to be near the Rochester, NY area then we could talk.

[@seeharvester]

@@philsanalogbasement Darn! I'm about 750 miles south. Maybe one day if I travel that way.

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@seeharvester you could try Arnel Bautista in Virginia Beach. He’s very highly regarded and although I see him post mostly on a marantz restoration Facebook group I’m in, I heard he does Pioneer too

[@seeharvester]

@@philsanalogbasement Oh wow! That might work! I'll check into it. Thanks.

[@Pang_Yau]

Like an episode of ancient aliens

[@vonleyser]

Hobby, Curious if you repair audio equipment for general public ? If so where might you be located ( city is fine ) as I would prefer not to have to ship something. I have a Kenwood KA-7100 that is a bit sick & needs some love. I'm on far west side of Houston.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Hi, sorry I don't really do repairs for the general public, I just don't have time since I still work a regular job. I'm pretty far away anyways - Rochester, NY. I know there are some good techs/shops in the Houston area, but I don't have any specific recommendations. Good luck!!

[@vonleyser]

@@philsanalogbasement then how do you know there are good techs or shops in the Houston area ? Appreciate your response anyway about your availability.

[@philsanalogbasement]

@@vonleyser I’m in a few Facebook groups related to vintage audio repair and I have seen posts of quality work from some guys in that area, but I don’t have a quickly accessible list, or time to try and go dig those posts up, sorry. Good luck with the repair!

[@thumperman8490]

When you stack test gear like that don't you get over heating issues? Hope your gear is well insured!!

[@philsanalogbasement]

No issues - first, it’s not all powered on at all times like shown in the pic, usually only 2-3 pieces of gear depending on what I’m working on. Also, most of this equipment was designed to be rack mounted, where they would be stacked even more densely and in an enclosure. Most of the HP equipment has large fans in it for that reason

[@pibbles-a-plenty1105]

It's obvious you have a better source of income than what you can derive from repairing hi-fi's. So this is your hobby space. It's too neat. BUT you are missing the MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF EQUIPMENT - A METERED VARIAC. .......My Lord! A DIM BULB dim bulb. 😁😆😅🤣😂😉

[@philsanalogbasement]

It has an ammeter on it. I also have a line splitter and an amprobe ac50a leakage current clamp (.01mA resolution) if want better resolution. I have been collecting parts to put it all in a nice enclosure with panel meters eventually. I mostly work on transistorized equipment, so it doesn't get much use anyways.

[@brocksamson8634]

Dude wtf where do you get all this stuff. This is my dream.

[@philsanalogbasement]

Mostly eBay to be honest. But yea, I feel for the people who aren't in the USA - it sounds like it's much more difficult to obtain a lot of this stuff in other countries. The guys from Australia are the most vocal ;)

[@dulemml]

pre pedeset godina tektronix uredjaje su imale samo drzavne institucije.privatna lica nisu imala novac da ih kupe. ja sam restaurao jedan tek 525a i povremeno ga koristim.

[@Chiavaccio]

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@hassindoembro]

❤❤❤