I had not planned another case so soon, but I had bought a 4ms Row Power 35 supply, thinking that my Row Power 30 was broken. Not broken, just the wrong regulator. 4ms Company sent me a replacement 5V regulator for the Row Power 30. Now I had a brand new Row Power 35. What to do?
So I ordered a Make Noise 104 hp skiff without power, plus a distribution board. The board I wanted was out of stock, so Detroit Modular suggested a DOEPFER A-100BUS POWER BUS BOARD VERSION 6. This bus board seemed OK and has 22 keyed headers. It even came with wires having sta-con connectors at each end. This was a good match for the Row Power 35, which has a position for an MTA-156 4-pin header, the same as used on MOTM. I cut off the sta-cons at one end of the wire bundle and attached an MTA-256 female connector.
I did make a mistake, orienting the power header so that the wires come out the left side, possibly interfering with the neighboring module. Photo below also shows the black banana jack I always add to my cases for interconnection with modules that use bananas. I will say that the Make Noise skiff is sturdy. The aluminum sides are thick. The ends are made of a circuit board type material, though.
The Doepfer bus board has an odd mounting arrangement, with holes along only one edge. I mounted it on 1/4 inch nylon standoffs, using every other hole, and added rubber feet along the other edge for support. (You can’t see the feet in the picture.)
Another bit of weirdness with the bus board is how the connectors stick straight up. This might not matter in a deep Doepfer case, but here it means the module in the middle of the skiff will have to be shallow.
Nice. Looking to do something similar as I just picked up a used unpowered Make Noise skiff. While I expect to be going with a 4MS row power, I don’t have it yet. Planning ahead…
So that MTA-256 4-pin header & MTA-256 female connector are what I’ll need. Wondering specifically where you got them from. Google search brings up a variety.
Thanks.
Hi Bob. Mouser part numbers:
Header 571-6404454
Housing 571-3-640426-4
Cap 571-6405514
Remember to put the header in the opposite way from the way I did. And be careful to match up the voltages to whatever distribution board you use.
That is super helpful…and thanks for the other tips/reminders.
Much appreciated.
Hey…you’re that guy with that avatar on that site where people discuss wiggling mod(ules).
Yeah, Bryan. I’m that pugix guy.
Hi Richard,
After filling up most of my unpowered Make Noise Skiff, finally getting around to switching out flying bus from 4MS Row Power 35.
” I cut off the sta-cons at one end of the wire bundle and attached an MTA-256 female connector.” – how did you attach the 4 cut ends to F MTA-256? Trying to avoid getting a Molex crimper and pins (since not much long term use for them). Can they be soldered? And are you satisfied with this Doepfer busboard?
Thanks
Hi again, Bob.
I always solder MTA-246 female connectors. I position the connector in a small plastic vise that won’t damage it. I strip 1/8 inch of insulation from the wire (typically #20 or #22 gauge) and tin it with solder. Then I use a small flat blade screwdriver to press the wire into the pin slot, and kept in place by the the insulation being held in the plastic groove. Finally, I solder the wire to the pin, being careful not to melt the plastic housing. Just press the tip of the tinned iron into the joint so that it contacts both the wire and the pin, and add a little solder, making sure it flows well and dries shiny. Since the wire is going through the groove and into the pin, it stays low enough for the white plastic cap to be slid over.
One advantage of doing it this way is that you don’t need the exact wire gauge and insulation, which you do for the IDC (insulation displacement connector) system.
I think the Doepfer busboard is pretty good. It’s a little strange that the mounting holes are only on one edge. The best busboard I’ve used is the ACL EVE 1, which I described elsewhere.
https://pugix.com/synth/diy-eurorack-case/
Hi Richard,
As usual, very helpful information. Appreciate that.
The Doepfer does seem wonky with mounting holes on one side and ACL EVE 1 seems to be out of stock and of course costs more, so went with Nano busboard here https://nano-modules.com/busboards/
(I am very happy with their MAR mixer).
Will see how it goes once I get parts from Mouser and some wire.
Thanks