Ebay VTL5C3

[alparent]

Anybody ever tried those?

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/1Pcs-VTL5C3-xvive-audio-opto-coupler-high-qual-Fp/293030295829?hash=item4439f77915:g:e~MAAOSwJrdcic1o

The posting says VTL5C3....I know they are not the real thing!
But the markings on the parta only says VTL!?
Yes, I could just get some and try them, but I was just curious if anybody tried those? 

Thanks

[deadastronaut]

nope, i roll my own.

while i'm here, what is the actual difference with ''ready made vactrols''

and led/ldr combo's?.   

surely they are still just led/ldr.....or is there some mystery magic to them? as i read some say they have a faster response time...? just curious as ive been using led/ldr lately.

sorry for hijack...as you were. 

[ElectricDruid]

Sorry, I've never tried them either.

while i'm here, what is the actual difference with ''ready made vactrols''  and led/ldr combo's?. 

For one-offs, I don't think it matters. You can tweak stuff until you get it how you like it, and the differences are going to depend on what LED/LDR you put in your roll-your-own version. Could be faster, could be slower, could be higher resistance, could be lower.

With a ready-made vactrol, you get a datasheet and a specification. While they're pretty widely variable, they do fall within certain limits, so you've got something you can design with. That matters if you're putting together a pedal that needs to work when it's first fired up.

So the short answer is "convenience". If a circuit is designed for vactrol X, and you plug vactrol X into it, it should work straight away. If you plug some home-made thing in instead, you might get lucky, but more likely you'll have to adjust a few bits. How important that is depends on your aims and objectives and perhaps your skill level.

(I came up against this doing the FilterFX pedal design recently. In the end I used Xvive VTL5C3's - which I would recommend, they're a fun part to play with).

Tom

[deadastronaut]

cheers tom.....yeah value of ldr matters a lot going by my experiments.

so it is just an led?..3mm?..colour?. and cadmium sulfide still then. (ldr)

might have to just buy some to try...

[vigilante397]

I saw these on the bay a while back and had the exact same thought, how do I actually know what I'm getting? So I wasn't able to pull the trigger and went somewhere more reliable

EDIT: Looks like these are the ones I was looking at: https://www.ebay.ca/itm/5-Pcs-VTL5C-Series-VTL5C1-5C2-VTL5C3-DIP-4-Audio-Amplifier-Linear-Opto-Coupler/143190434962

They say VTL5C1 5C2 and 5C3, how do I know what I'm getting?

[Ice-9]

I have had the Xvive  VTL5C1 and 3's, still have a few spars in my bits box and they have worked fine, I get them from a reputable supplier so am quite sure they are genuine (Xvive) products. I have no idea if those ebay one's will be genuine but have no reason to doubt it.

[bluebunny]

They look dodgy to me.  The Xvive ones have "Xvive" written on them (according to Xvive website, and also Thonk and Banzai).

[Kipper4]

Depends on the application. If  can roll my own and tweak the circuit. I do.
If I think it would be a strong candidate for say a mutron iii , then I'd buy from a reputable source. I rued the day thonk stopped selling those vtl's.

"How do I know what I'm getting ?"
Last time I looked at those bayers they had a drop down to choose.
Funnily enough the vtl I wanted was always out of stock.
I gave up.

I have considered those Xvive.
Last time I did vactrol stuff I used nsl32 for ease of availability in lots of countrys.


Is there a data sheet for the Xvive. If it doesn't do what it says you shouldn't have any trouble getting a PayPal refund.


I wish you all the best in your quest sir.

[smallbearelec]

Both the XVive and Coolaudio versions of the VTL5C3 have been available for awhile and have gotten good feedback.

[Kipper4]

There we go. Smashing thanks bear

[bluebunny]

I rued the day thonk stopped selling those vtl's.

Thonk is now stocking the Xvive VTL5C* vactrols, Rich.   

[italianguy63]

Anybody ever tried those?

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/1Pcs-VTL5C3-xvive-audio-opto-coupler-high-qual-Fp/293030295829?hash=item4439f77915:g:e~MAAOSwJrdcic1o

The posting says VTL5C3....I know they are not the real thing!
But the markings on the parta only says VTL!?
Yes, I could just get some and try them, but I was just curious if anybody tried those? 

Thanks

I too usually "roll my own too."  However, I too saw these on FleaBay about 2 years ago and I picked up 4 of them.  I haven't even measured them yet to see if they are similar to each other.  I have a Naughty Fish PCB I plan to build out eventually, and am going to give them a try.  I will report back eventually.

MC

[Kipper4]

It still have my naughty fish for shed but not boxed. The switch was a pain to source iirc.
Plus I have a spare board. And 4x vtl in stock from the thonk days.

You can make a great filter with a SVF and nsl32. Half decent rectifier.
I like it funky. Trigger hippy.

Do please let us know when you try it Mark. I'd be interested in the results.
Thanks @bluebunny too.
.
Cheers big ear.

[BluffChill]

There are an awful lot of them on the UK eBay site from various sellers, almost all from China, I bought 5 but haven't had the chance to try them yet.

Some people believe the VTL5C3 is the 'magic' one which gets you the best results but I'm yet to discover it. For example on the fuzzdog website, he recommends the VTL5C3 for Mu-Tron builds etc as it works best across all ranges whereas others, including hand-rolled ones, can be hit-miss across different settings and need adjusting to compensate.

From what I hear the xvive models are the best you can get in terms of authenticity. CoolAudio also do some but I have a feeling they're more or less the same.

[Kipper4]

I like "magic".
More precisely I like what I know works. Not affiliated btw.

The adjustment needed does not have to be that hard in an SVF.
I guess it depends what wah sound you want.
If you have listened to some of the sounds a mutron iii is capable of.
Well many of them I couldn't see myself using often.
Some I could play all day....

I'm sure at some point I will try the Xvive, knowing my penchant for vactrols.

Does that make me vacuous 

[cabintech]

Nothing 'magic' about the VTL5C3. Each of the VTL5Cx devices have different specs for on/off times and on/off resistance. For example see the table here that compares the 1, 3, and 4:

https://cabintechglobal.com/vtl5c3xv

Pick the one that fits your circuit requirements.

[vigilante397]

Since I'm not affiliated with Cabintech Global I'm allowed to say this here: Those guys rock. Excellent source for BBD and other specialized audio chips (and vactrols, obviously) at the best prices I've found in the US.

[bluebunny]

the best prices I've found in the US

Not bad shipped to the UK, either.

[Ice-9]

the best prices I've found in the US

Not bad shipped to the UK, either.

Regards the vactrols, you can get them direct in the UK from Thonk.