The end of the J201?

[Galego]

Well, this thread might accelerate it if people don't already know this, but did you notice that mouser says that this component will no longer be produced?

If you go to Fairchild Semiconductor, it says that it has been replaced by the smd version, so it's not all bad, unless you don't do smd...
http://www.fairchildsemi.com/search/tree/controller?searchText=J201&x=0&y=0

So, are there really proper alternatives for the diy'er that doesn't do smd?

[runmikeyrun]

I tried to order an MPF102 from the electronics store by me last week and they said those were going out of production as well.   

[Mark Hammer]

Thanks for the heads-up.  Generally, the way things work, parts end up sitting in smaller retailers' bins for years after their discontinuance.  They may not be findable in quantities that will support industry, but certainly in quantities that will continue to support hobbyists like us, until everything goes digital.  That is, after all, how people can still be repairing and building stuff that uses MN3005s, MN3007s and CA3094s.  Those puppies were discontinued ages ago.

[a soBer Newt]

The SOT-23 is about half the size of a TO-92 its really not that bad 

[CynicalMan]

It can't be conveniently breadboarded or socketed. Soldering is also more difficult, especially if you don't have tools for it. I agree with Mark that they'll be available for ages to come, but not in prices or quantities like before. If through-hole components disappear, it will be a lot more difficult for people to get into electronics or effects as hobbies.

Size comparison, the bottom two transistors.

[artifus]

so this is what all those mayan calendar predictions were all about!   

[sault]

Sooo.... is this part of a larger trend?

[BubbaFet]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yikes... the future IS NOW ! 
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[phector2004]

Will SO-23's bridge vero traces nicely? 

[deadastronaut]

    rip j201...

[Mark Hammer]

Sooo.... is this part of a larger trend?

Actually, it's part of a smaller trend.  

[smallbearelec]

  rip j201...

Naaa...They Will Continue To Be Available In SMALL Quantities For DIY. I have gotten in on the "last buy" with a couple of distributors, and I have a few "aces in the hole"--shops not well-known to retail customers that have unbranded devices as well as die-lot that they can draw on. Will take a few weeks, but will happen. Many on this board have scratched my furry back for 10+ years; I will scratch yours.

SBE's Obsolete Devices Policy will apply going forward: No bulk sales, DIY and repairs only, and we reserve the right to limit quantities ordered. I don't like having to do this, and it's a conscious business choice: SBE can't be a brokerage for semiconductors. Commercial pedalmakers will adapt, as they can either evolve designs for surface-mount or fish for through-hole on the broker market as I myself have done to secure our stock.

Regards

[Galego]

I will move to using only the smd version. First the prices will rise, then we'll see fake J201 on ebay... Meh I just can't be bothered to go through all that.

[Mark Hammer]

I'll tell ya what's NOT going to be phased out as things get progressively smaller in scale: illuminated magnifiers! 

[nexekho]

What might be quite useful is a breakout board for SMD transistors; a little bit of board with pre-tinned solder pads and leads.  Turn it upside down and press the transistor against the bench, apply heat to the back and the pads reflow briefly to grab the transistor.

[Electron Tornado]

Naaa...They Will Continue To Be Available In SMALL Quantities For DIY.

The question on everyone's mind then, is, for how long, and for how much?

If we consider that surface mount components is where things are going, then where is the hobby and DIY community headed? It's tough to breadboard with SMD. Will we end up doing 99% of our experimenting using circuit simulation software, and only deal with the hardware in the final build stage?

One upside might be that with all the through-hole stuff that's out there, there may be a market for "SMD to through-hole" adapters for various components, in a similar vein as the DIP to SIP adapters for ICs that are around now.

[defaced]

Most of the DIY SMD stuff I've seen in other ares of DIY electronics has really just involved good soldering skills.  With a little bit of component lead and some 3 pin male header material that SOT-23 package and be stuffed into a bread board.  Fun? Depends on your definition, but probably not the most enjoyable thing to do.  Doable? Yes.  And if the TO-92 and SOT-23 devices perform similarly enough, I'd keep a stock of TO-92 packages on hand for breadboarding and use SOT-23s for the real builds. 

[Mark Hammer]

The question on everyone's mind then, is, for how long, and for how much?

Well, keep in mind that manufacturers make these announcements so that commercial OEM clients have some lead time to adapt their designs and products to the nonavailability of certain components in very large quantities.  Announcing that transistor X will cease production in, say, August 2012, does not mean that Fairchild will drop back to making a few hundred a day until then.  They may continue to make tens of thousands a day until then.  So if principal OEM clients change their designs starting in September, and fabricate their last runs of the previous design using inventory purchased in March, that still leaves a LOT of unused Fairchild trannies sitting around.

And if company X makes the changeover to SMD form factor and fabrication methods in September, that doesn't mean they will have used up the remainder of their inventory by that point.  What's left over will find its way to resellers, which is often how places like Small Bear come by their exotic parts.  Keep in mind the OEM manufacturer can't do a damn thing with them and would like to reclaim the space and cash flow, so it's not like they hold out for the kind of prices that someone with a half dozen SAD4096s stashed under their mattress might.

The prices and availability will be decent for many years after you've decided you're tired of ROG projects.

[bhill]

And Fairchild is not the only manufacturer. So don't worry about the idiots on Ebay who think they are worth $9 each.

[B Tremblay]

The prices and availability will be decent for many years after you've decided you're tired of ROG projects.

You know, we do have projects that don't use FETs.