Oakley Sound Systems FAQ
For technical support on all
Oakley projects please now refer to the knowledgeable and helpful
Oakley Sound Forum
which is hosted at ModWiggler.com. I do
not provide official building support for Oakley projects, but I
am usually available for help via the forum.
Do you supply ready
made units?
I only sell bare
printed circuit boards and a few parts for people to construct
their own modules.
Do you sell whole kits?
Oakley Sound do not sell full DIY kits.
However, an increasing number of full component kits for Oakley 5U and Eurorack
modules are on offer at Synthcube in the US.
I thought you sold modular
synthesisers?
I no longer sell PCBs to make modular
synthesisers. Many of my modular designs are now available from
Synthcube.
Do you supply ready
made cases?
No. For studio and home use
you may wish to consider the cases from All
Metal Parts in the UK as they have
a good range of flat pack 19″ rack (ie. 10U wide for 10
single width MOTM format modules) 5U, 6U and 10U metal cases with
rack rails to the front and rear of the case. As an example their
5U high, 300mm deep case is part number AMP05007. They can also
supply blank panels (eg. AMP130045) for any rear mounted power
supplies and pairs of rack rails (AMP31002) for mounting your
modules. I recommend 200mm deep cases for use with the
recommended external ‘line lump’ power supplies, while the deeper
300mm ones should be used for internally mains powered systems.
To mount standard Oakley MOTM
format modules into a 19″ rack you will need a pair of
either All Metal Part’s AMP31002 or Synthcube’s MOTM 19A rails for every 5U of height.
A 5U high 200mm deep 19″ steel case
from All Metal
Parts. Front and rear rack strips are fitted to
allow the module rack rails to be mounted on the front and a
power supply panel to the rear.
Unless you need a very shallow
depth for horizontal work then for Eurorack systems I recommend
again using the steel cases available from All
Metal Parts in the UK as they have
a good range of flat pack 19″ rack (ie. 84HP wide) 3U, 6U
and 9U high metal cases with rack rails to the front and rear of
the case. The modules are then held in place using 84HP mounting
hardware such as ‘Z rails’ and ‘Z ears’ from TipTop. Although
wood cases look beautiful they can allow excessive heat to build
up within your modular unless sufficient air gaps are created,
and, unless sufficiently screened, do not stop unwanted radio
interference either entering or leaving your modular.
Three Euro Dizzy boards powered from one
Oakley Euro PSU fitted to a 4U high aluminium 19″ rear
mounted panel in a 6U high 200mm deep rack case from All Metal Parts.
Module mounting rails and rack ends are from Tip Top Audio.
Where do you get your
front panels?
Either at Schaeffer in Germany or Frontpanel
Express in the US. Alternatively,
you can obtain panels for many 5U and Eurorack modules
from Synthcube in the US.
Can I buy the
Schaeffer front panels direct from Oakley Sound ?
No. These need to be ordered
from Schaeffer in Germany or Front Panel Express in the US. Both
companies offer an excellent service. The Frontplatten Designer
software is a free download and features secure online ordering
too. See the Schaeffer or Frontpanel
Express websites for more
information.
Do you have any older
issue PCBs for sale?
No. The only PCBs that I have
for sale are the ones listed on the project webpages. If you do
need an older PCB, maybe to match up with an older panel design,
then please do post a request on the support forum.
Can I buy schematics/PCB
artwork for the modules?
I do not sell any schematics
for any of our currently sold modules or PCBs. Relevant
schematics are only provided for purchasers of the project PCB.
Schematics for most non
current Oakley projects are available from Oakley Sound as pdf
files for a small fee, although do check the legacy support page to see if they are available for free download.
PCB artwork is not available for any of my products old or new.
Are your projects hard
to make?
This one is tricky to answer.
It all depends on your ability. If you can solder reasonably well,
and have the patience to read through all the documentation, you
should be able to manage. However, if you rush and find your
project doesn’t work, that’s when you are going to need more
electronic knowledge. Being able to read a circuit diagram is an
obvious advantage. If you want to get started, perhaps, a good
way is to start on something simple.
My Oakley DIY project
doesn’t work, what then?
Join the Oakley Sound Forum
which is hosted at ModWiggler.com. Then
after checking that your question hasn’t already been answered
you can post to the list for advice. I, and many other builders
of Oakley equipment, are present on the forum and should be able
to help.
Please do not contact me
directly regarding building problems or generalised parts
enquiries. All enquiries for help should be made through the Oakley Sound Forum.
Are all your boards
lead-free?
All boards are RoHS compliant,
which means they do not contain lead (Pb) . All boards can be
soldered with either lead free solder or lead based solder. The
boards are finished using a lead free HASL process.
What sort of solder
should I use?
All of my current boards can
be soldered with either lead free or old fashioned leaded solder.
I still prefer to use Pb/Sn solder for my own projects because it
is easier to work with.
Who are Oakley Sound
Systems?
The company was originally called Sound
Systems and was formed by me, Tony Allgood, in 1984 whilst I was
studying at university. Initially, it was only a side line to my
professional career as an electronic design engineer. However, in
1996, as interest had grown sufficiently in my products and
services, I formed Oakley Sound Systems. At first this was
predominantly a repair business to local music shops and
musicians, but the growth of the internet allowed me to start to
manufacture and sell PCBs and other products.
In the period between 1999 and 2005 Oakley
Sound Systems sold ready made modulars, modules and printed
circuit boards direct to people all over the world. My modules
have been used in film production, at live concerts and in many
hundreds of home studios.
In June 2005 a decision was made to hand over all
merchandising to another company whilst continuing to design new products. Then
in September 2010 Oakley Sound Systems
started to sell PCBs directly again. In March 2016 the repair and
servicing side of Oakley Sound Systems was closed so that I could
spend more time developing new products.
By 2026 it was time for me to retire and sales of my
modular designs were handed over to Synthcube.
Can I build these
modules to sell to friends?
Of course, you can.
What is a GBP?
It is the currency of the
United Kingdom.
GBP is a short hand way of
writing ‘Great Britain Pound’. This is the accepted way of
writing our currency by the International Standards Organisation
when you can’t use the ordinary ‘curly L’ pound sign. Paypal and
the webpages on this site use GBP. It should be noted that UKP,
although more correct in terms of the countries that it
represents, should not be used.
GBP is called ‘pounds sterling’
on the money markets. It is not affiliated to the Euro in any way.
100 pence make 1GBP. So 6.50GBP
is six pounds and fifty pence.
Where on Earth is the
United Kingdom?
Not quite a FAQ, but I have
had it asked a few times now. The UK is currently England,
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is just
England, Scotland and Wales. The word ‘great’ in Great Britain
originally comes from an early designation of it being the larger
of the two main land masses that form the British Isles.
The UK lies north of France in
Europe, but is not connected to mainland Europe. A narrow stretch
of sea called the English Channel separates us from France.
I live in rural Cumbria, England, 20 miles
from the Scottish border, and close to the Lake District. The Lake District was
home to many famous people such as Coleridge, Wordsworth, and Beatrix Potter.
Can I make my SRE330 (or
other rack project) internally mains powered?
If you have the skills to do
this you probably wouldn’t be asking the question. Only fit an
internal mains supply if you know what you doing. I cannot
endorse this method of powering any Oakley product.
Where do I get all the
other parts for the project?
Rapid Electronics (UK), Mouser
(Worldwide), CPC (UK), and Farnell/Newark (UK/US). Small Bear (US),
Banzai (Germany) and Musikding (Germany) are also useful.
Parts codes for most of the
common parts used in Oakley projects can be found in our lengthy
parts guide which is found here. This is a PDF
document which also contains many Rapid, Farnell and Mouser order
codes that you may find useful.
What’s the Mouser /
Farnell / Rapid (etc) part code for ….
Due to limited time I am not
able to answer this question for every part you need to buy. My
Builder’s Guides and Parts Guide should
give you sufficient information for you to purchase all the parts
from your own suppliers without too much difficulty. You will
also find that the Oakley Sound Forum
will be very helpful too if you do get stuck.
Rapid, Farnell and Mouser part
codes for most of the common devices used in Oakley projects can
be found in the Parts
Guide.
What is the form
factor of those Alpha or ALPS pots you use?
For the 5U and rack modules
the pots I use are the very common 16mm format that is preferred
by many modular and synthesiser manufacturers. There is 0.2″
between pins in one gang and gangs are separated by 0.2″.
There are two gangs in a stereo pot and one gang in a normal mono
pot. Shaft length varies with supplier but it may be cut down
with a hacksaw or Dremel. Shaft diameter is either 6mm or 6.35mm
(1/4″) and you can buy them in either slotted knurled shafts
for push fit knobs, or smooth round shafts for screw fit knobs.
All newer eurorack modules use the common 9mm vertically mounted
pots.
This is a 16mm Alpha pot with a short
knurled 6mm shaft.
Do I get a paper
invoice with my order?
Smaller orders, that is, those
below 270GBP, will not include a paper invoice. Larger orders
will typically have the invoice attached to the outside of the
parcel, and usually another inside the parcel. However, all
customers will be sent an invoice as a plain text e-mail as soon
as I confirm payment has been made. This contains all the details
of the order. All customers are given their own individual
customer order number, and I keep a full record of all
transactions for around seven years.
What is your VAT
registration number?
Unlike many countries, small
businesses in the UK do not require VAT registration. I therefore
have no VAT number nor do I charge VAT on any of my products.
However, VAT may be collected by your country’s border agency
acting on your government’s behalf. If this is the case, you will
normally get an e-mail or letter telling you that VAT needs to be
paid before your order can be handed over to you.