# Anyone know where to find some 2N5952?



## Vikingbros (Jan 24, 2022)

Can't seem to find a place that sells them anywhere. Is anyone aware of alternatives?
I live in Canada if that makes a difference


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## Harry Klippton (Jan 24, 2022)

How about this?









						2N5952 Quad Set for Phasers - GuitarPCB
					

N-channel Jfet 2N5952 Quad Set - Hand Matched - Genuine Fairchild Tested.




					guitarpcb.com


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## Vikingbros (Jan 25, 2022)

Harry Klippton said:


> How about this?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thank you, quite expensive probably will look a little more but it is better than nothing.


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## Username123 (Jan 25, 2022)

Vikingbros said:


> Thank you, quite expensive probably will look a little more but it is better than nothing.


It is a bit expensive but it is a quad matched set of transistors. Those are always a bit spendy.


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## Vikingbros (Jan 25, 2022)

Username123 said:


> It is a bit expensive but it is a quad matched set of transistors. Those are always a bit spendy.


Could you elaborate? I buy transistors on Tayda for 30 cents, what's the difference here?


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## Username123 (Jan 25, 2022)

Vikingbros said:


> Could you elaborate? I buy transistors on Tayda for 30 cents, what's the difference here?


Yep. In some circuits the transistors have to be matched in order for the circuit to work properly. I don't know a ton about transistors in modulation circuits, so maybe somebody more experienced than me could elaborate a little more. So that costs more. It's also a quad matched set, so all 4 of then have to be matched. It can take a lot of transistors to sort 4 matched transistors. Also, if you say you can't find any, then they are probably a rarer component that demands more money. Supply and demand, rarity and a decent amount of that specific transistor (think 100 at the minimum or more) to be able to offer a quad matched set. That sums it up nicely.


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## JamieJ (Jan 25, 2022)

I just recently bought a matched set from banzai. I don’t know if they are any good yet though.


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## Mcknib (Jan 25, 2022)

It depends on what you want them for 

If it's a phaser buying a matched set to me is the easiest solution 

Trying to match them yourself can be hit and miss and you'd need to buy a few then test and match them as already said, add to that the fact they're now obsolete you'd also run the risk of buying fakes 

You can use different FETs but most through hole FETs are hard to get these days so people generally use SMD FETs and adaptor pcbs 

Our resident match king @fig will let you know how long it takes 

A set if that's what you need at that price is ok when you consider a guaranteed genuine 5952 can cost up to $5 for one and FETs as we know can be all over the place even from the same batch


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## Bricksnbeatles (Jan 25, 2022)

Vikingbros said:


> Could you elaborate? I buy transistors on Tayda for 30 cents, what's the difference here?


First off, 2N5952s are obsolete, so they’re gonna be more expensive to begin with— you can usually expect to pay ~$1-2 each for many of the obsolete JFETs, and some of them as high as the $5-10 range. With many effects you need to match the gain range of the transistors for optimal performance— this is especially true in certain modulation effects.
Since you’re asking about 2N5952s, I’m guessing you’re building a phase 90/XC Phase. That will need a matched quad pair in order to function optimally. Your options in that case are either to buy a matched pair for $15-20, or to buy 50+ un-matched 2N5952s, measure each one, and hopefully you’ll be able to assemble a few matched sets (you’ll almost definitely get at least 2 matched quad sets that way, but the fewer you buy, the chance of a matched quad pair appearing decreases exponentially)— it’s a much bigger upfront investment, and it eats up a lot of time to go through and test them all, but you’ll hopefully get a few quads, and you’ll also have plenty of matching pairs and singles to use in other projects. The cost of the expensive quad sets is because someone else is takin the time and doing the labor to test and match all of the transistors. It’s just up to you how much your own time is worth, how much use you’ll get out of all of the other transistors you’d need to buy to assemble your own quad set, and what you’re willing to put out as a maximum upfront cost. Then you can decide which is the more worthwhile method to you. Hope that helps!


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## fig (Jan 25, 2022)

yup


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## fig (Jan 25, 2022)

Just used one of those quad sets in this XC Phase...creamy!


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## Vikingbros (Jan 25, 2022)

Out of curiosity, what does it mean to have matched pair? If I were to buy a bunch and match them myself (I am not), how would I go about doing that? 

If you can't tell yet, I'm quite knew to all of this.


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## fig (Jan 25, 2022)

This is a great start...


			http://geofex.com/Article_Folders/fetmatch/fetmatch.htm
		

Then there is our own @Chuck D. Bones 





						What's All This Matching Stuff About? - part 1
					

People talk about matching transistors, but what do they mean?  There are a few instances in pedal circuits where matching transistor parameters to each other or to circuit requirements is essential for proper performance.  1. FET-based Phase-Shifters Many Phase Shifters used JFETs as...




					forum.pedalpcb.com


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## fig (Jan 25, 2022)

That said, if you just need a set for a build, DM me.


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## Vikingbros (Jan 25, 2022)

fig said:


> That said, if you just need a set for a build, DM me.


Wow thank you for the offer, I have already bought them from the link above. Your links are very informative


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## Vikingbros (Jan 25, 2022)

thewintersoldier said:


> What exactly are you looking to build? If it's a phaser, which I'm assuming is a phase 90, there are lots of ota based phasers that IMO sound better. They are cleaner, have more range and speed variety, and best of all, no matching! Matched quads are up there in price with matched germanium sets. But If you wanna build some things, you gotta pay to play. Try building an analog delay lol.


I am building a phaser. The idea is to learn more and learn to build my own. I always find it funny that I started getting into pedal building thinking I would save a lot of money


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## fig (Jan 25, 2022)

Giving up the guitar saves money. Any other alternative produces an equal and opposite reaction. It's a law or something.


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## Bricksnbeatles (Jan 25, 2022)

Vikingbros said:


> I am building a phaser. The idea is to learn more and learn to build my own. I always find it funny that I started getting into pedal building thinking I would save a lot of money


If you really want to save money building pedals, try the bigger stuff from DeadendFX— instead of buying an original EMS Synthi HiFli unit for $6,000, you can build your own for only $550 and 200 hours of labor 😂


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