| Introduction | Specifications | Construction | Electronics | Supplies | Photos | Pluto-2.1 | 

Supplies and materials to build PLUTO

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The pages on this website can give sufficient information for the experienced speaker and electronics builder to duplicate the PLUTO or to build something similar to it. A 32-page manual provides detailed drawings, material lists, assembly and test procedures to build PLUTO exactly as I designed it. Working with the manual will be a great time saver and give you the confidence that you will obtain the speaker's intended performance and the full reward for your efforts.   The cost of the PLUTO Construction Plans is $20

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Building the three power amplifiers, crossover, equalization and power supply circuitry is greatly simplified by using a printed circuit board. Each component in the circuit diagram carries a designation which is repeated on the circuit board. The corresponding component in the material list, contained in the above manual, also carries this designation so that it is easy to just follow the material list when loading a component onto the circuit board. The component leads are soldered from the backside of the board. A few exceptions are spelled out. The most convenient sequence for building up the circuit board is described in the manual. Turn-on and test procedures lead to safe and correct function of the circuit. The cost of a PLUTO circuit board is $50 Shipping is included when ordered with the PLUTO Construction Plans. Otherwise it is $10 in the US or $25 international for up to 6 boards. Electrical test requires a digital voltmeter, DVM, for DC and AC voltage measurements and a source of 1 V sinewave signals of 100 Hz, 1 kHz, 5 kHz and 10 kHz frequency.

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Building the electronic section of PLUTO on your own might be too demanding or time consuming for your taste. You have to order all components yourself. Their cost is around $400 plus $150 for 2 circuit board. Dave Reite can provide fully assembled and tested electronics module like you see on the left. You merely need to screw the four leads from woofer and tweeter drivers into a wire terminal block. It takes two more leads soldered to binding posts, to accept high level input signals coming from a power amplifier output. Indicate to Dave when 240 VAC operation is required so that the transformer is wired accordingly and the proper fuse is installed. The module has heat sinks. The circuitry is configured for the SEAS driver L16RN-SL (H1480-08) of Pluto-2.1.  The cost of each PLUTO Module is $495 plus Shipping & Handling Contact Dave Reite

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In the ORION/PLUTO Users Group you can find useful information for building PLUTO and possibly make contact with PLUTO owners for a listening session.

Updates and continued support are provided on the Owner-Support page that is provided with the Construction Plans.

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To estimate the total cost for a pair of PLUTO assume that the four drivers will be about $250. They are available, for example, from www.madisound.com . Electronic components are about $550 including 2 printed circuit boards. Construction plans and test signal CD come to $100. The pipes, fittings, wood and miscellaneous hardware for the enclosures are around $60 and should all be available at your local hardware store. Thus the total cost is about $1000 for 2 loudspeakers with 4 built-in power amplifiers. You need to be able to cut PVC/ABS pipes to length and build two simple wooden boxes. Assembly and test of the electronics is more difficult and you may prefer to buy them from Dave Reite at $495 each plus S&H.

See also: DIY and the Cost of Doing Business

Payment options

You can order PLUTO plans (€15 per Paypal) from info@LINKWITZ.store

*  DIY construction of the PLUTO module should only be undertaken, if you have some expertise in electronic assembly, test, measurement and component selection. Even with the new circuit board and material list you may still have to procure substitute electronic components due to changing inventory of vendors. I provide an updated Support Page with the Documentation but cannot help you individually. The ORION/PLUTO Users Group has been very helpful in solving problems and answering questions. Contact Dave Reite for completely assembled and tested PLUTO-2.1 Modules. Contact Wood Artistry for completely assembled, tested and custom finished PLUTO Systems that are ready to play. 

** The new printed circuit board comes with PLUTO-2.1 Supplemental Information. It consists of circuit schematics, material list, component layout drawing, component loading table, and frequency response graph. Attachment of heat sinks is made easier since the power IC's have been moved to the edge of the pcb. Hole spacing has been adjusted for currently available capacitor components.

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Hear the LXmini, LXstudio or LX521.4

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    | Introduction | Specifications | Construction | Electronics | Supplies | Photos | Pluto-2.1 |