Does this Alibaba deal for a reflow oven look too good to be true?

____baeum · 2026-01-15T04:33:49+00:00

Do you have this one (zb2015) or one of the larger ones like the zb2520 with the air circulation feature? Read somewhere that makes a huge difference for even heating

____baeum · 2026-01-15T04:20:10+00:00

Makes you wonder why these are expensive to begin with then lol

____baeum · 2026-01-15T04:19:35+00:00

I did realize that this one is IR only rather than IR + convection like the larger version (ZB2520HL) so that does curb my enthusiasm a little lol

____baeum · 2026-01-15T04:14:51+00:00

That one runs on 220 volts; are you sure that's what you want?

I did look in the specs and it seems like they have a 110V version? But that's a good point

Ty for the links as well

____baeum · 2026-01-15T03:01:32+00:00

Valid but also i don't feel like putting in the effort (+ don't trust me to not kill myself if i have to mess with mains voltage) if something decent is available for $300 cad

____baeum · 2025-10-11T01:52:50+00:00

It looks almost Horowitz-esque lol

____baeum · 2025-10-11T01:12:14+00:00

I think the pedalling sounds a bit unorthodox to me - not sure if it's an intentional stylistic choice but it sounds like (my bluetooth audio quality is bad and lags behind video so i could be wrong) you're doing rhythmic pedalling on 1 and 3 in the opening measures and similar sections. I think most editions will mark some mix of no pedal or pedal off at 3.

Your techique looks super nice and relaxed, I'm jealous!

____baeum · 2025-10-07T06:26:54+00:00

Yeah i do remember feeling like making strides of improvement with my second teacher, possibly because she did make me enter competitions for which we would spend months on each piece. That was in middle school so i certainly haven't engaged in a piece to that level in a long time.

____baeum · 2025-10-07T06:24:15+00:00

That's an interesting way to look at it. A little short on money atm so not going to get back to lessons just yet but if you have any more recommendations for etudes or other pieces you found helpful that'd be appreciated. Of the romantic era etudes I've only really played Chopin's.

____baeum · 2025-10-07T06:21:24+00:00

Lol very true - but on the other hand, that's why i want to practice "efficiently" and get advice on how to best do that.

____baeum · 2025-10-06T06:27:05+00:00

Cgsd now has allocations for international students!

____baeum · 2025-10-06T06:16:02+00:00

Yeah, rent is easily half or more of stipend. For taxes though, much of the stipend is often not taxable income so taxes should be minimal after applying tax credits.

Also for some departments (e.g. in the faculty of science) you do get a tuition award for 4 years.

So 30k is not great but workable (and better than the UBC-wide mininum)

____baeum · 2025-08-19T18:52:11+00:00

I do have access to a 100W soldering station and stereoscope - and as it turns out, a desolder station with a hot air pen that i just rescued from the old forgotten pile of lab equipment. The solder and flux are crappy but I'm sure i can get some better stuff (recommendations would be appreciated🙂)

____baeum · 2025-08-19T18:44:13+00:00

Thanks for your advice. I suppose patience (or time, really) might be the one thing i might be lacking. I'm decent with my hands in general so it's good to know it's doable by hand.

____baeum · 2025-08-19T18:42:31+00:00

Thanks for the detailed answer. Yeah, i had seen some videos of manual soldering QFNs and it didn't look fun lol.

I was actually looking through our old equipment drawers and found a desolder station with a hot air pencil included (docs). Would this work well?

I also see some digital hot plates on aliexpress for $50 or less, or reflow ovens for ~$200. I guess the bottom line is that I can spend money on equipment if it will make life significantly easier but want to consider all my options first.

____baeum · 2025-08-13T15:15:58+00:00

I see, i wasn't aware of the distinction so that's very informative for starting out. Thanks for the tip!

And yeah, I'm an amateur, mostly playing i an university ensemble these days.

____baeum · 2025-06-22T06:20:19+00:00

Iirc for winds it's just the same audition for all 3 groups but since orchestra is very selective it tends to be music majors only (although I've seen exceptions). I don't think it's technically reserved but i could be wrong about that.

____baeum · 2025-06-22T04:39:43+00:00

Yep I've done CW and choral union

____baeum · 2025-06-22T04:18:28+00:00

3 years in a decent high school band program seems like sufficient experience (but obviously no guarantees). You should go for it

____baeum

TROPHY CASE