Newbie question regarding pots and faders

[unrise_lyrical]

Hey guys,

first post, woo. Okay, I've done a small amount of electrical work in the past but never anything like a midibox...but I like a challenge :) Im looking around at prices atm to get a rough idea of how much I need to budget to make this...

First off, are these pots suitable for use?

http://www.futurlec.com.au/Potentiometers/POT10K.jsp

they are 10k linear taper, which is the same as the pots on the avishowtech site, just a fair bit cheaper :) Also, am I going to run into any problems using those (knurled shaft) with knobs that have a tightening screw fixation?

and, next question :) will these sliding pots be suitable? couldnt see any on the avishowtech site, but I figured as they work in the same way as the rotary pots, 10k would be the right thing to be looking at?

http://www.futurlec.com.au/Potentiometers/POT10KBSLIDE.jsp

7.3cm travel should be fairly decent control over im guessing? I mean, hell, the novation I used to use only had something like 4 - 5 cm sliders.....

thanks for the help guys :) awesome site this is...cant wait to start mucking around with all this!

oh, ALSO, i was wondering is it possible to have the faders hooked up to an on/off switch and led as well to switch them off if you have automation already set up in the sequencer you are using and you dont want them to be functioning? or can you not interupt their signal? not exactly sure how to explain what I mean...but do they consantly need a singal flowing to the CORE module?

And, how do you get pots to click at 135 degrees like on mixing desks with EQ pots? I want to run several pots for panning in channel strips, but I'd like to obviously have them click in the centre instead of manually having to ensure each one is exactly centred....

thanks guys

[asafnetzer]

Hi unrise and welcome,

Regarding pots, I use the ones you've mentioned from futurlec and they are quite nice, not as smooth as I would have liked but for that price no complains.

The sliders work the same as the rotary pots, just takes more panel space  ;)

Travels wise, you have to see for your self, sometimes a sorter travel works better.

I have tried once to fit a screw in knob on a knurled shaft, it doesn't work well, as the pot has a gap and fastening  the knob would distort the shaft and

the knob wouldn't sit properly, you can try inserting a wood / metal bar into the gap.

Last, if you want your pot to click / pause at 135 degrees you'll have to buy a center detent potentiometer, someting like this

http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bin/item/LPC-10K/470/10K_LINEAR_POT_W_CENTER_DETENT,_PC_MT_.html

Hope this helped,

Best regards,

Asaf

[unrise_lyrical]

thanks heaps for the speedy reply mate! have you tried pots from the website you linked to? are they perhaps smoother operating than the ones I linked to originally? would rather spend a little more money and get pots that have a smooth action so I can get finer control :)

thanks again!

[asafnetzer]

I haven't ordered from allelectronics before, It was just the first link I have found regarding center detent pots.

They seem to have good deals for some pots but it looks like spares so you won't find the same brand with different values that often.

And regarding the futurlec pots, there is no problem with their control or fine tuning it's just that they do not feel

like pots you could find on a Vestax mixer, again for $0.50 they do the job.

My advise, order 1 of each kind from futurlec when you order some other components and check them yourself, best way to find out if they are right for you.

If you wise for high quality potentiometers, look for Spectrol 148/149, Up to $5 a piece.

Best regards,

Asaf

[unrise_lyrical]

cool, thanks for your help mate! i will go with the cheap ones for now :) like you said they will still do the job, and if this midibox goes well i can look into a second (more grand!) one with more exxy components :) thanks again! appreciate it!