Soldering 101 for Audiophiles

Much useful info here. I find I can do virtually any soldering job, from thick wire down to tiny surface-mount ICs, with two irons: 40W Radio Shack and Antex 15W mini-iron with .012" gold needle tip from www.telephoneparts.com. The gold needle needs little tinning & does not deteriorate with use.

Antex 15W mini soldering gun:

ANT-C/3U mini-iron with 3-prong grounding
ANT-8G .012" needle gold tip

Cardas no-lead solder sounds great but requires too much heat to use safely with surface mount components or when soldering directly to IC pins. Be aware that with no-lead solder a good joint looks dull just like a bad joint.

Good low temp silver-bearing solders include WBT and Radio Shack p/n 64-013. The RatShack solder is also a thin diameter .022", which can be essential for small components & PCB pads.

Finally, a good tractor lamp with an illuminated magnifying glass from Staples, a small table-top vice, a Ratshack mat with grounded wrist-wire, and a RatShack Helping-Hands arms with alligator clips to hold things in place.

jj2468

Nice post - your info has brought back memories of the man who helped me build my Hafler amp when I was in junior high school. I was hopelessly baffled by the instructions, and my Dad contacted him to help me out.

And yes, I now recall he showed me a few simple demonstrations where he would heat the wire with the tip of the iron, hold it there for some heat, and then stream the solder onto the joint by touching it simultaneously against the iron and the joint, and withdrawing the solder first, and then the iron.

He was the kind of guy who looked like he knew how to solder, while also looking like he didnt know how to tie a tie, which in this instance I took as a good thing.

He didnt seem to use any abrasives or solvents, but then again he was not an audiophile - just a regular electronics geek.

I think this thread is a great resource for someone like me starting to solder.
I'm glad cwoldon asked the question. I started watching the tangent video, read everything here, and I feel I'm much better about soldering.

1. Buy solder and flux and read the directions. "Michael Percy's" website has a good selection and reliable information. The 3 or 4 types that come up are all reputable and as usual folks have their preferences and reasons. If I were you I'd buy the solder with a low melting point as ease of use is what you obviously need; however any of them will provide a satisfactoty result-if used properly. Percy is reliable.
2. Prep the joint spot on the tweeter.First remove the old wire where it it attached to the tweeters by bringing the hot tip(preheat the tip) of your pencil/gun(hereafter called an 'iron') to the joint. Touching the joint heat it quickly until a gentle rub from a piece of cloth causes the old wire to be released. I like to remove the old solder at the same time rubbing the cloth on the hot spot. The old solder does not have to be fully removed or perfectly clean. (Your pencil/gun "must" be hot enough so this is accomplished in a few second or you risk heating areas nearby-which you'do not' want to do- this is what others are warning about. "If" your pencil will not heat the target quickly(i.e. to not heat up surrounding area) then I would obtain(rent) a gun with a hotter tip.) Quickly reheat the spot until a dab of the new solder wire melts onto it. This piece is now ready.
3. Now prep the wire end. Cut the insulation off the tip of your new wire - perhaps an inch. Preheat you iron. Heat the end of the wire quickly until touching the solder to it results in a drop of solder melting into the tip of the wire. Remove heat as soon as the drop melts into the wire.The wire is now ready.
4. Align and touch together the 2 items to be soldered exactly the way you want them to be permanent.
5. Bring the hot iron to heat the 2 items simultaneously until the solder wire touched to them melts a drop which fuses the 2 together. Immediately remove the iron and allow joint to cool naturally - without disturbing it for the 'say' 5 seconds it take to stabilize. You should now have a stable soldered joint. I hope this makes sense for you. Feel free to ask questions so we get you back to enjoying your system. Best wishes. Pete

Don't follow the directions in step 4. You need a mechanical as well as an electrical connection. This means you can't just tin both pieces, touch them together, melt the solder, remove the heat, and hold it until it solidifies. Any movement before it hardens will result in a bad joint.

If the 2 objects won't stay together without solder you should not proceed. Wrap the wire around the lug or through the eye if it has one or twist them together or whatever it takes so they don't fall apart when you let go, and then solder them together.