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VU-1 VU Meter Kit

Volume Unit Meter

Simplicity Counts, Detail Matters.

No part of this document may be reproduced, either mechanically or electronically, posted online on the

Internet, in whole or in part, without the expressed, written permission of FiveFish Studios. This

document is solely provided to the kit builder of the VU-1 VU Meter Kit.

Last Revision: January 25, 2008

Copyright 

 2008 FiveFish Studios

www.fivefishstudios.com

Summary of Contents for VU-1

Page 1: ... either mechanically or electronically posted online on the Internet in whole or in part without the expressed written permission of FiveFish Studios This document is solely provided to the kit builder of the VU 1 VU Meter Kit Last Revision January 25 2008 Copyright 2008 FiveFish Studios www fivefishstudios com ...

Page 2: ...s that Yes I built this Features Advantages and Benefits of the VU 1 VU Meter Kit Built in rectifying amplifiers allow VU Meter operation by AC or DC input Wide display range covering 13dB to 17dB allowing display of signals with wide dynamic range Regulated LED Drive current independent of voltage supply High efficiency crystal clear Red LED indicators for VU Meter display Wide DC power supply vo...

Page 3: ... free solder 7 Magnifying glass to see what you re doing Especially when soldering IC pins and the Grayhill selector switch 8 Clean and well lighted work area Lots of good lighting clean work area You want to be able to leave your work in progress without packing everything away Extra Tools Nice to have but not required 1 Desoldering pump if you make a mistake you need to pull out the component fr...

Page 4: ...r you But if you re curious on what those bands of wonderful technicolors mean you can go here http www samengstrom com nxl 10116 5_band_resistor_color_code_page en html Capacitors There are two kinds of capacitors used in the VU Meter Kit project We ll discuss the different types here Ceramic Capacitors Ceramic capacitors look like the picture on the left On the VU Meter kit these are colored yel...

Page 5: ...y cause the capacitor to explode Do not the let the small size fool you Even a small capacitor can explode with a lot of force All of the electrolytic capacitors used in the VU Meter Kit have polarity Voltage Regulator The VU Meter Kit uses an on board voltage regulator limiting the supplied DC voltage to the VU Meter chip to 18V This means you can connect this VU Meter Kit to power supply greater...

Page 6: ...Kit board is installed in a vertical configuration you want your LED movement going from BOTTOM TOP If the VU Meter Kit board is installed in a horizontal configuration you want your LED movement going from LEFT RIGHT Four 4 on board jumpers are provided on the PCB to allow you to change the direction of LED movement display Just move ALL jumpers either to the HORZ or VERT position for Horizontal ...

Page 7: ...he leg and straighten with your fingers while the solder is still soft melted DO NOT STRAIGHTEN THE PINS AFTER THE SOLDER BECOMES HARD You d risk ruining the PCB or breaking the part I sometimes use masking tape to hold the component in place on the board while I solder the leads on the other side This is very useful when soldering resistors and small parts etc Use a magnifying glass when solderin...

Page 8: ... shown in the photo below The long leg of the LED goes to the left position Try to make all the LEDs uniform in length STEP 9 Insert the Jumper pins to the headers And you re done VU 1 Installation Guide The VU meter only needs 3 wires to get it working Look at header J1 not JP1 1 The first pin is labeled IN This is connected to either pin2 or pin3 of the XLR output jack 2 The second pin is labele...

Page 9: ...wire is connected Also check that the IN pin on Jack J1 is connected to your XLR jack You can connect it to either pin2 or pin3 of the XLR output jack Check that the LEDs were inserted in the correct orientation Long leg soldered to the left side Check that you installed the jumper headers for JP1 JP2 JP3 and JP4 All jumpers must be either in the HORZ position or VERT position Do not mix and match...

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