You Can DIY!: A High-Performance 60-Watt Class A Amplifier - Part 2 Power Supply and Measurements

The continuation of this 60-Watt Class A amplifier project, named the ax-Amplifier, this design uses Augmented Feedback Error Correction (AFEC) to achieve ultra-low distortion and improve key audio performance parameters without adding too much complexity and cost. The first part of this article described the amplifier design in detail. This second part details the power supply system and conclusion with measurements. This article was originally published in audioXpress, May 2024.

From the experienced hands of Andrew C. Russell, of Hifisonix fame, comes the ax-Amplifier, a Class A design that uses Augmented Feedback Error Correction (AFEC) to achieve ultra-low distortion and improve key audio performance parameters without adding too much complexity and cost. Published in two parts, the first article addresses the amplifier design in detail, with Part 2 detailing the power supply system and conclusion with measurements. This article was originally published in audioXpress, April 2024.

This article details a lifetime project from audioXpress' technical editor Jan Didden. After a successful restoration project of a pair of precious ESL-63 Quad electrostatic speakers, he opted to design and build the eDD, a well-performing high voltage amplifier to directly drive electrostatic speakers. This challenging but successful DIY project with a design goal of 1500V RMS at 20mA RMS over the full audio band, took a while to complete but was a success. This article shares every step of the construction.

For the speaker builders, Perry Marshall details everything there is to know about his beautiful Live-Edge Dipoles project. A design that was inspired by two slabs of birch the author brought home, allowing to finally bring to fruition his idea to build these dipoles. Marshall reveals all the specifics of the driver choices, radiation pattern, and crossovers, while explaining the effects of the obtained radiation pattern and how the speakers behave in practice. This article was originally published in audioXpress, January 2021.

An audio load is an essential piece of test equipment for any audio electronics workshop. Having created the very popular Heathkit ID-5252, more than 35 years ago, Gary Galo decided to design a new option for everyone to build now. The ID-5252 contains four 8Ω, 60W power resistors. The biggest limitation of the Heathkit load is power handling. Series and parallel combinations can be used to produce various resistances and power levels — up to 240W at 8Ω, using all four resistors. But, simultaneously testing both channels of a high-powered amplifier requires two ID-5252 units. Fortunately, the raw parts for building an audio load are easy to find.

Focusing on a practical, hands-on perspective, George Ntanavaras, details the design and construction of a phono preamplifier for Moving Magnet (MM) cartridges and a Line/Headphone amplifier with two additional inputs and volume control. All the amplification stages are based on top-quality audio op-amps such as Texas Instruments' OPA1642 for the phono stage and OPA1612 for the Line/Headphone stage. Almost all the components of the device are contained on a single PCB for easy construction. This article was originally published in audioXpress, February 2022

The first article from audio expert Ethan Winer about Modern PCB Design Practices, gave a general overview of board design using surface-mounted devices (SMDs). The article examines current practices and methods for designing four-layer printed circuit boards using surface mounted components (SMDs), and this second part explains specific strategies and related issues to deal with the design and production of great quality PCBs. This article was originally published in audioXpress, March 2023.

In this two-part series, Ethan Winer examines current practices and methods for designing four-layer printed circuit boards using surface-mounted components (SMDs). A great article for our DIY readers and many developers who often are faced with the need to build and test their projects on a properly designed, prototype printed circuit board. Part 1 presents an overview of the process, while Part 2 he will explain specific strategies. Many related issues will be described along the way.

Most of our readers still remember Tom Perazella’s extraordinary egg speaker project with SB Acoustics Satori drivers, featured in the September, October, and November 2018 issues of audioXpress. Inspired by that design, Metz decided to build his own version, and also explore his own take with an active crossover tri-amp approach using a miniDSP 4x10HD system feeding a dedicated six-channel amplifier using Purifi 425W Class-D units. The new Egg Speaker Amp and System is an inspired take on the original. This article was originally published in audioXpress, July 2022.

Ethan Winer offers his fifth Guitar-Controlled Synthesizer article where he describes how to make two key modules needed by every analog synthesizer: the Voltage Controlled Amplifier (VCA) and Voltage Controlled Filter (VFC). This article explains two different VCA circuits, with a simpler one that works fine for one-off projects where precise unit-to-unit repeatability isn’t needed, and a second circuit similar to the VCA in the original Moog synthesizers. This article was originally published in audioXpress, August 2022.