Hey All,
I was just wondering what are some of the symptoms of faulty or failing ICs, transistors and caps in various distortion and modulation based effect?
Also, I think I read somewhere that caps are usually working up to their full potential just before they quit, is this true?
Thanks for any comments on these questions.
I noticed when they don't work ther's something wrong with them.
I know this sounds sarcastic, but the easiest way I've found to debug a dead chip is try another one in its' place.
You might want to try to find what blew the first one tho before you stick another one in there.
I don't know that you'll see the right' biasing voltages at it's pins if it's damaged tho...
What I hate is when you try another chip and it still don't work. That's what's happened with my Distortion +. :evil:
RDV
Thanks Pete :lol: Maybe this is a poor question.
So most components don't show signs of failure before they go.
Just as a possible example ICs don't get noisy or caps don't weaken the intensity of the effect when they're dying?
Quote from: u1061810So most components don't show signs of failure before they go.
Just as a possible example ICs don't get noisy or caps don't weaken the intensity of the effect when they're dying?
It depends. Are we speaking of a new DIY effect, or an older store-bought effect?
RDV
Old store bought
Quote from: u1061810Old store bought
Yes, in that case they can do that. Hard to test for though.
RDV
There is no general rule on part failure. Some parts fail in spectacular ways leaving obvious signs of destruction and others won't even show a mark or hint of when damaged. You can't be sure a part is ok just by looking at it. About the only thing you can say about a part's functionality vs. appearence is that you can be sure its probably not working when the part of it has a hole in it with carbon marks around it. :)
Test the part. You can either substitute a similar part or take readings to see if the part is working properly.
Andrew
in low voltage circuits, there's rarely any indication of impending failure. Sometime electrolytics will bulge, but usually not when hooked up to a 9V battery!
Resistors sometimes get discoloured...
Best way to check an IC is to swap it out for a known good one. But, that could blow up your good IC as well! If you've got a CRO you can check inputs and outputs, and if you know what to expect then you can make a judgement.