I had a temp ground to one of the chassis bolts to allow me to test. Final position will be the base plate to the side of the pcb. There is absolutely a cap between RCA and ground. 
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I expect once you get your ground finalized the noise will go away. Looking at your pics I donāt see anything questionable. If itās still there afterwards, just post big pics where details can be seen and we can figure it out.
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Thanks for the opinion and support GZF. I do agree, I think a proper chassis earth is the last step.
I see youāve nicely heat shrunk the IEC connector, I didnāt, and I largely relied on the metal body of the IEC connector to provide chassis grounding.
I did run a chassis bolt afterwards, because I could, but it didnāt really make a difference.
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I in fact bought a proprietary shroud for the IEC coupling. It was only a few euros and is thick rubber. I felt this was an excellent way to make sure it was properly electrically isolated as well as additional safety with the case open.
Iām not going to admit how many times I touched the live 110V line on my Elekit 8150 when I was debugging it. Iāve never accidentally touched a live line at the IEC connector, but the elekits switch is on the front, and there is a live PCB track that runs down the entire left side of the internals.
I probably did it 3 times before I realized what was shocking me.
Mains voltage while not good for you isnāt usually an issue if you follow good practice of make sure your not grounded and one hand in the case at a time.
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It was one of the things I promised my partner when I started messing with things that plug into the mains - that I would be overly cautious with safety measures in the live sections. Thatās why I went with the iec spade connectors and mounting connectors on the pcb for the power in as well as the shroud on the coupler.
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Awww. Thatās sweet!!
My wife just says ādonāt kill yourself, someone has to make dinner.ā
The build is looking great. This has become my favorite thread!!
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I did something similar once switching the ins and outs on a guitar pedal i built.
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I also have to add this is a great write up and i admit i didnt finish reading the post (its 4am and i need to work in 2 hours, attempting sleep) but it looks very well laid out. And the pics are very good and clear.
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I spent a couple of days ignoring the amp in order to come back to it with fresh eyes. I installed a proper ground post and remounted the alps pot directly to the board. I added a wire from the pot casing to the ground post. Still that hum!! So I went back to basics and checked my connections against the pcb schematic. Pretty much the first port of call was the incoming groundā¦ and I found my culprit. Stripped and re-tinned the wire. Re soldered it to the board andā¦ success!!! The amp now has an extremely black background. I switched out the opamp to a Muses 01 and now I am listening. Itās nice. I like it a lot. My Whammy is sounding on par with my RNHP I think. Itās hard not to let my sense of accomplishment interfere. Itās smoother in the mids and less aggressive in the treble. Bass is comparable. Vocals are a little more forward too. Subtle differences but I can see myself enjoying this a lot.
And so a final post of this build log. One of the most worthwhile things Iāve done. I learnt so much, enjoyed the whole process including setbacks immensely. Iād do it again in a heartbeat and I highly recommend the experience to anyone who is on the fence about trying to build an amp. I am already thinking about constructing another amp build - a power amp probably.
Thanks for reading and for all the comments offering enthusiasm, help and encouragement. I think I can safely say that without this forum and group of people I would never have done this. Happy to answer any questions anyone might have, or to offer info on where I sourced things and how I solved issues to anyone who builds one. If you do please do feel free to add your build log below too!
Edit to add: It has soundstage, much more than the RNHP or my Gustard. A real sense of space and positioning.
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Nice looking setup! - The amp is slick! 
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Oh, you this was a satisfying post, complete, very nice pictures and folks jumped in to help. The PASS amp kit should be next, nice pair of monoblocks. Maybe last a pair of those new GR research desktop speakers coming out later this year and you have yourself a full set-up.
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it is actually pretty darn good looking. The Muse01 opamps in the Asus dac/amp I have carried it far, good choice there.
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Your next project is an F5. Go forth and prosper!
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Iām interested in both the F5 and the Amp Camp speaker amps. Iāll let this settle and enjoy it and later this year when I am ready for another electronics project pick one. I have some sculptures and ink drawings I want to work on before that and Iād like to get whichever dac I choose first too.
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Also please could an admin type move this into the DIY section? It probably should have been there all along!
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I donāt think we have one, but I tagged it DIY.
You can move topics yourself I think as well.
Itās part of the drop down on the topic title.
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Cool, thanks. I Wasnāt sure either but I noticed some other things with the DIY tag soā¦ thatās probably what I meant? 
We can/ Good to know.
Just an FYI, thereās now an ACA mini as well. Itās essentially an F5 minified. At roughly 5" X 5" itās also desk friendly. Will probably show up in the store this year or next. Price should be max $200 based on the BOM.
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