call me mad...call me silly....

Well, I had one of those rare weird inspirations.......they are always scary!!
So I picked up an old PAT4 preamp for $55, not even sure if it works or not, but don't really care, bought it for the chassis and hopefully some other parts I might be able to use.
But I am going to convert the PAT4 into a SP9 preamp. Pretty much have to gut the PAT4, buy the SP9 main PCB kit, PH10 phono preamp kit and associated bits and pieces, do some re work on the front and rear of the chassis and design and have made a completely new front & rear facia panel, I'll be using Front Panel Express for that.
Since I do not have a tape deck, will not install that switch/option and keep the audio inputs to a minimum, Phono, CD, Tuner and one Aux.
Might have been easier and perhaps cheaper to just buy the complete SP9 kit, but then I might not have as much fun!!
Once I start the project, will post photo's etc as it progresses.

so I received my PAT4, have stripped it down to the bare chassis which I've cleaned up, once some extra holes are drilled and cleaned, will give it a coat of silver paint, the cover too will have vent holes drilled and will be finished off with a coat of plasti dip.
The SP9 main PCB kit, PH10 kit and the tubes have been ordered.
The transformer and mains plug receptacle too are on their way.
Have designed the new front and rear face plates, need to wait until I get the SP9 kit to double check on the dimensions for the tone etc controls, then I can order those too.
Been taking photo's along the way, will post them once I'm further into the build.

You certainly jump on the kits. Here are some alternatives to mull over:

Speakers:Speaker kits Bob also recommends this site. The budget 1 is particularly good.

Preamp1:PAt-4 ALternatives He offers two phono options, a TCLA, and a PAT-4 rebuild. They're all excellent. I built his PAT-4. The Aikido is excellent.

Preamp2:More boards I built the hybrid with Roy's phono and PSU . Reaiiy good. (I ditched the Koren phono.)

yeah....thats my problem, once I get into something new, I go all out!!......  
Well like I've said, for now, I've gone with the SP9 and PH10 kits, should work really good.
But knowing me, once I learn more about tubes, amps & preamp, I will probably try other stuff as well!!
bless my wife's heart!!!!

Roy's preamps do sound really good. Btw: I sold a DIYtube ST70 to someone who built the Zaph sr71 and the same pre as you're building and he's ecstatic about the sound. Now just add a line conditioner by Furman from Sweetwater

added the first few photo's of the conversion

https://s1029.photobucket.com/user/MontanaWay/story/119609#

I suggest Rustoleun Brown Hammertone for the cover. It provides a nice, pebbled appearance.

that too could look old school, I prefer a simple matt black, where this will end up residing would be difficult to see real details of the cover, also the main reason that I went with just simple holes for ventilation.

well, now that I have the PS9 & PH10 pcb's...guess what!!??!!....the PAT4 chassis is too small!! D'OH!!

So, I have designed my own chassis where all the tubes and the toroid will sit on top, including a pair of Nixie tube VU meters, got the VU meter kit from a guy in Germany.
I think it will look pretty darn neat!
Gonna cost me some for the chassis, but what the heck.
Once I have the chassis, will start posting photo's, be about 2-3 weeks at least.

OK, I have pretty well settled on the custom SP9 layout, here are a couple of photo's with the tubes laid out as they would look on the top of the chassis. Of course the toroid will be covered by a round black transformer cover.
You can see the VU meter tubes on the front.

https://s1029.photobucket.com/user/MontanaWay/slideshow/

Very strange, indeed. I measured the PAT-4 and PAS-3 and they both measure about 13" x 8". I use Roy's small toroids on the PAS-3, which results in a tight fit. I guess that your toroid is too big. Roy's current PS offerings should work. Or am I just confused?

if I were only trying to fit the SP9 pcb and the toroid, I could just get them in, but not with the PH10.
And I also have the VU tubes driver board to fit in. Mind you, I was not going to fit those in the PAT4, they come with their own enclosure, but since now I have designed my own SP9 chassis, I can easily fit all three pcb's in it, as the toroid will sit on top as per the photo's I uploaded today.

Montana,
Just a reminder: you can recycle the PAT-4 chassis.

New PAT-4

Note: You'll need a bipolar PS. Some are available on ebay.

Power Supply

I think you can still order one. It fit right where the can resided.

pmarcin wrote:Montana,
Just a reminder: you can recycle the PAT-4 chassis.

New PAT-4

Note: You'll need a bipolar PS. Some are available on ebay.

Power Supply

I think you can still order one. It fit right where the can resided.

thanks for the info, something to keep in mind for sure!
I am waiting to get all the custom chassis parts this week, once I get them will start posting photo's.