23-04-2023, 04:22 PM
Many thanks, Trevor - I think that's the first time I've been called "eloquent" :-)
I must admit that I worried about making that post. Indeed, I composed something very similar a few days ago but abandoned it. Naturally, I didn't want to offend Rob, but we needed to steer him towards a professional. These aren't the units to be learning on - a "disposable" car boot sale find would be a much better guinea pig!
We all have different journeys, and mine doesn't involve any formal fault-finding training. I just about got an electronics degree, but found it all rather academic and it didn't really further my progress. I'm mostly self-taught, as I'm not a very good pupil (ironic, given what I do for a living!). I learned to design electronics from text books and existing designs, and by building things. At first, proven designs, but as knowledge builds, increasingly my own designs. Lots and lots of mistakes were made along the way, but of course, debugging a design is where you learn the most - building a kit or a proven design only really gives you constructional experience, which is useful, but doesn't really help you to learn how to design.
Anyway, as a result, always I start by analysing the circuit. That's different to a lot of repair engineers that I've known over the years, who had amazing memories that meant they were very quick at sorting stock faults, but sometimes struggled with new faults. I lack that photographic memory so am slower than them with stock faults, but I'm usually able to fix the faults that stump them. I guess that made me less valuable as stock faults were much more common, but then, I do lots of different things - fault finding is only part of it.
But whatever our story, it's taken decades to get here. It is sometimes frustrating when people expect to get to our level without putting in the legwork, but patience is required on both sides.
The internet makes things easier today, with free access to amazing resources that go far beyond what my local and school libraries could offer back in the day. But there is a downside: many now expect instant, easy answers which require minimal thinking. And that's often what you can find. But subjects like electronics require much more work.
Anyway, rambling a bit now - just thinking out loud, and just for clarity, none of that is aimed at Rob or anyone else...
Rob, really good news that you're hopefully sorted now on the electronics side. The cosmetics are rather challenging. I'm not very good at that side of things, so am looking forward to seeing what you come with.
All the best,
Mark
I must admit that I worried about making that post. Indeed, I composed something very similar a few days ago but abandoned it. Naturally, I didn't want to offend Rob, but we needed to steer him towards a professional. These aren't the units to be learning on - a "disposable" car boot sale find would be a much better guinea pig!
We all have different journeys, and mine doesn't involve any formal fault-finding training. I just about got an electronics degree, but found it all rather academic and it didn't really further my progress. I'm mostly self-taught, as I'm not a very good pupil (ironic, given what I do for a living!). I learned to design electronics from text books and existing designs, and by building things. At first, proven designs, but as knowledge builds, increasingly my own designs. Lots and lots of mistakes were made along the way, but of course, debugging a design is where you learn the most - building a kit or a proven design only really gives you constructional experience, which is useful, but doesn't really help you to learn how to design.
Anyway, as a result, always I start by analysing the circuit. That's different to a lot of repair engineers that I've known over the years, who had amazing memories that meant they were very quick at sorting stock faults, but sometimes struggled with new faults. I lack that photographic memory so am slower than them with stock faults, but I'm usually able to fix the faults that stump them. I guess that made me less valuable as stock faults were much more common, but then, I do lots of different things - fault finding is only part of it.
But whatever our story, it's taken decades to get here. It is sometimes frustrating when people expect to get to our level without putting in the legwork, but patience is required on both sides.
The internet makes things easier today, with free access to amazing resources that go far beyond what my local and school libraries could offer back in the day. But there is a downside: many now expect instant, easy answers which require minimal thinking. And that's often what you can find. But subjects like electronics require much more work.
Anyway, rambling a bit now - just thinking out loud, and just for clarity, none of that is aimed at Rob or anyone else...
Rob, really good news that you're hopefully sorted now on the electronics side. The cosmetics are rather challenging. I'm not very good at that side of things, so am looking forward to seeing what you come with.
All the best,
Mark
