What is best way to learn to build own equipment?


I wanted to learn how to build my own stereo equipment. I live in Southwest Missouri and I am able to find schools that provide training in electronics. The only thing I have been able to find so far is a weekend program in Chicago that teaches how to build a tube amp.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how the best way to learning how to build your own equipment? I open to any type of training, books, online information, etc.

Thanks for your willingness to try to help me.
cbman
Start building with your intuition as a guide while you are waiting for all the books you're gonna buy to arrive. Or you can move out here and I'll show you, if you have a few years.

Andrew
Synesthesia Studios
Wow Vapor1! Are you kidding? If I could, I'd be breaking your door down tomorrow.

Seriously ... but how about waiting till Monday :)

Get in touch with me at ryan@vaporsound.com
Build a Spud amp kit. Jerry Curtis offers one. This amp is distributed by Hawthorne Audio. You may enjoy reading about their open baffle speakers which could also be a nice DYI project.
Wow Vapor1! Are you kidding? If I could, I'd be breaking your door down tomorrow.
SW MO huh, that's where I grew up. Come to St Louis sometime and we'll teach you all you'll ever want to know about speaker building. And Pete being an electrical engineer can show you the ropes with amp design.
I got my start around age 9-10, reading library books on fundamentals of electricity, electronics, hi-fi systems, and trying simple DIY projects. I will never forget the librarian enquiring what a little kid like me needed with those "big" books? As my skill, experience and confidence grew, I worked on increasingly difficult projects, all of them scratch builds. It helped that I made friends with a couple of other hobbyists, and got to compare project notes.
Just say no. It's addictive.

Start simple. Like a little passive volume control. Lots of kits to choose from with a quick google. Dantimax is one example. Bent Audio still supports DIY guys.
Bottlehead is a company that provides DIY kits to make their amps, relatively inexpensively. While I have not ever heard one, they do have a good reputation.
You've already found it! The knowledge you'll gain in a "hands on" program exponentially beats anything you'll find online or in a book. If that is the case , mind you.
Start with a few simple kits, you can buy some simple electronics kits from Parts Express and other places.

PE Kits

Nelson Pass have a lot of projects on his DiY site

Pass

There is a few kits available on Ebay form China etc however most of them come with junk parts and poor instructions so caution is advised going that route.

Best of Luck and have Fun

Peter