All items tagged with Mark Driedger (10)

It's Tube Time! audioXpress May 2022 Glass Audio Special!

April 11, 2022 by audioXpress Staff

It's Tube Time! audioXpress May 2022 Glass Audio Special!

It's time for the Glass Audio/Tube Focus edition of audioXpress. In this issue, Michael Boele shares his long-term review of a pair of 2021 new production Western Electric 300Bs, Merlin Blencowe explains how to add Bluetooth to a Tube Amp, and Alan Kimmel introduces us to the possibilities of the Pentriode. There's also a Market Update report on vinyl sales and the latest trends in turntables and cartridges, as well as a review by Stuart Yaniger of the latest Orchard Audio Starkrimson Stereo Ultra GaN-based amplifier.

Voice for True Wireless Earbuds, GaN, and More Exciting Audio Frontiers in audioXpress April 2022

March 11, 2022 by audioXpress Staff

Voice for True Wireless Earbuds, GaN, and More Exciting Audio Frontiers in audioXpress April 2022

The April 2022 issue of audioXpress offers an overview of voice for true wireless stereo earbuds with contributed articles from Knowles and Fluent.ai. Stuart Yaniger reviews the possibilities with GaN amplifiers, and Steve Temme explains the evolution of Rub & Buzz measurements and the latest perceptual algorithms. Ethan Winer designs a sample & hold circuit for a guitar-controlled, all-analog synthesizer project, Richard Honeycutt explores the meaning of “frequency response” as applied to rooms, and Mark Driedger explains why and how to test tubes.

You Can DIY!: Revisiting The Remaking of a Champ

March 9, 2021 by Mark Driedger

You Can DIY!: Revisiting The Remaking of a Champ

In this article, Mark Driedger revisits “The Remaking of a Champ,” inspired by Kirk Elliott’s original article for Glass Audio (1992). The Fender Champ is considered “the” classic tube practice amplifier and it has been remade a few times over. Driedger created his own version, including a provision to easily try different output tubes. This article was originally published in audioXpress, January 2016.

audioXpress May 2019 Glass Audio Special is Now Available!

April 9, 2019 by audioXpress Staff

audioXpress May 2019 Glass Audio Special is Now Available!

For audioXpress May 2019 -Glass Audio Special - we’ve put together a very strong edition, with some of best tube experts sharing a series of DIY projects for all skill levels, from restoration projects to new amplifiers, preamps, and headphone amps. We review the Nu:Tekt HA-K1 headphone amplifier using the novel Korg Nutube 6P1 device, and interview the founder of Parks Audio. We go deep on measuring voltage regulator ripple rejection and we even look at square-wave testing. All inside audioXpress May 2019!

An Accurate Bias Meter for Tube Output Stages

August 2, 2017 by Mark Driedger

An Accurate Bias Meter for Tube Output Stages

Accurately setting the bias level for push-pull output stages is important to maximize amplifier performance and tube life. This circuit measures error relative to the target bias current and error relative to a balanced condition in the push-pull pair. The meter is compact, low-cost, simple, and accurate thanks to the use of a window comparator IC - a Linear Technology LTC1042. This article was originally published in audioXpress, July 2012.

audioXpress July 2016 Now Available for Download, Directly from the Speaker Factory to Your Hands

June 10, 2016 by audioXpress Staff

audioXpress July 2016 Now Available for Download, Directly from the Speaker Factory to Your Hands

The July 2016 issue of audioXpress is now available and includes something for everyone. We visit Sinar Baja Electric — the birthplace of speaker driver brand SB Acoustics, report on AXPONA 2016, Mark Driedger shares his amazing D70 Stereo Tube Amplifier project, and we explain how to test Dante-enabled audio devices. And that’s just the start! Download the July 2016 issue now!

Extending the Arduino-Based Tube Power Amplifier Controller

May 28, 2016 by Mark Driedger

Extending the Arduino-Based Tube Power Amplifier Controller

In the February 2015 issue of audioXpress, Mark Driedger discussed a tube power amplifier controller based on the Arduino open-source microcontroller. In this follow-up article, Mark Driedger explains how to use some of the Arduino’s untapped capabilities to incorporate the bias meter into the amplifier controller with virtually no additional hardware. A temperature sensor and over-temperature shut-down capability are also included. This article was originally published in audioXpress, May 2015.

Arduino-Based Tube Power Amplifier Controller

May 27, 2016 by Mark Driedger

Arduino-Based Tube Power Amplifier Controller

In a nod to the Maker Movement, this project uses a common open-source microcontroller module, the Arduino, to build an automatic power controller for a tube power amplifier. The resulting controller is very simple — a $25 Arduino module, a couple of dual op-amps, a few other components, and a 5-VDC power supply plus some opto-isolated switches. This article was originally published in audioXpress, February 2015.

audioXpress January 2016 Music Focus Edition is Now Available

December 14, 2015 by audioXpress Staff

audioXpress January 2016 Music Focus Edition is Now Available

Our special January 2016 “Music Focus” issue is full of practical projects oriented toward music amplification and recording. Read the interview with Philip Graham, the founder of Ear Trumpet Labs, our Rocky Mountain Audio Fest 2015 show report, and a review of the iSEMic 725TR microphone. Learn even more about SPL measurements and audio networking.

It’s Here! The Glass Audio DIY Special audioXpress May 2015 Edition!

March 31, 2015 by audioXpress Staff

It’s Here! The Glass Audio DIY Special audioXpress May 2015 Edition!

The Glass Audio Special edition is a tradition we have retained since the former title was merged with other magazines to become audioXpress. audioXpress still publishes tube-related articles, but we feel this is one of the highlights for our readers and it certainly is among our authors due to the amount of articles we receive — increasingly addressing applications outside of the typical high-end living-room stereos.