Newbie::Where to start???

[freerichie85]

Hi all..
I am just a newbie.. i've got some decent theoritical knowledge in basic electronics and op amp 741.. I've done 2 basic projects(not actually a project.. just tried the circuits available online).. i just want to know how to start designing circuits... i just want to know how u great people started it.. i just dont know how to design even a simple circuit.. can someone suggest me the way to start designing circuits?? just elementary ones.. like, how to design an alarm circuit using 741.. or somethin of that sort.. pls help me..

 

[Styx]

you need an idea first. Once you have a target, the rest is details

 

[stevez]

Usually the reason we design things is so that we can make something or accomplish something. Our design usually has the constraints of limited resources - time, money, technology, safety, skill, etc.

It appears that what you want to accomplish is learning so that eventually you have knowledge, skills and experience. You may want to take that and actually do something - design a radio or audio amplifier - or you may be quite satisfied with just the knowledge.

You need some knowledge and skills to start with and you've indicated that you have some. Adding to those skills certainly would help (courses, degree, etc) or you simply dive in with what you have and see how it goes. You will learn by doing - and some 'doing' is essential to any knowledge or skill building endeavor. Whether or not you'll learn the right things by diving in right away remains to be seen. If you were to follow some tutorials or publications or self-teach courses it would seem that the likelihood of learning the right things is greater. If you are anxious to start doing something then do a little research on the things you can make with a 741 or similar op amp (you said you were familiar with them). Copy designs- build them, test them, change them. Experiment to see how theory compares to actual results - to the extent that you can with the instruments on hand. When you feel you undertand - then move on.

It does help to have a specific area of interest in mind - audio amplifiers might be one area, robotics are another. Be careful not to fall into the trap of wanting to do everything all at once. Don't start and expect that in one project you'll be successful at designing and building a high power, high quality stereo amplifier. Start with a single channel amp and be happy if you get anything out of it at all - walk before you run!!

Books - Radio Shack has some good beginners books. ARRL and RSGB have great publications for radio amateurs - many who want to learn electronics. My favorite is Paul Scherz "Practical Electronics for Inventors." Don't overlook the 50 in 1 or 200 in 1 kits that appear to be toys for children - lots to be learned. You can build the stuff - then reverse engineer to see why it works. Lots of learning there.

Anyway, enough babble. I hope this helps.

 

[jrz126]

I've done 2 basic projects(not actually a project.. just tried the circuits available online)..

In my opinion, this is the best way to get some electronics knowledge (other than going to school for it). I just found some schematics for circuits that pertained to my other interests. (like cars, car audio ect.) Then I would figure out what exactly was going on in the circuit.

 

[Someone Electro]

You may yust start by puting parts of varius cicuits togther.

I do this lots of times wen designing circuits.

For exsample:
I made an "in wall porver wire seker" out of an transformer coil,LED Bar driver chip,an 555 timer... so i tock the LED Bar chips circut of the datashet,made it more sensitive,put an 555 timer cicuit to make an beep (it beps at a higher freq wen the wire gets closer(wen more magnetic enegy is piked up by the coil))


All you have to know is how components work in varius circuits.

Like allready sed try to understand how varius cicruits work.

:wink:

 

[freerichie85]

Thanx a lot!!!

Thanx "Someone electro, jrz126, stevez, stix..." i'm really happy that genius' like u ppl try to help amateurs like me.. surely got a gud idea from ur posts.. will contact periodically and keep in touch.. wish me all the best.. Thanx again!!!

 

[Someone Electro]

Meby if you cod tell us what kind of circuits (radio,high voltge,light,audio...) are you interested in we cod sugest you some simple circuts

i find an 555 Timer circuit useful (it gives you good oscilation in a wide range of freq 0.00001Hz-300kHz)

 

[freerichie85]

741??

I wud like to do something in 741.. i'm not into 555 ics.. but i know quite some theory in 741.. so suggestions in this field, wud be much more helpful for me..

 

[samcheetah]

Re: 741??

I wud like to do something in 741.. i'm not into 555 ics.. but i know quite some theory in 741.. so suggestions in this field, wud be much more helpful for me..

what do you want to do with the 741? an opamp is a basic building block of hundereds of thousands of applications. you can make voltmeters, ammeters, voltage regulators, precision rectifiers, temperature sensors, smoke detectors, A/D converters, D/A converters with opamps. and believe me this is just a small portion of the numerous applications of opamps. 741 applications is not a field. you describe what you want to accomplish and then somebody here will tell you how to do it with a 741

i hope that helps