Choosing and Using Electronic Parts: A Survival Guide, Part 2

Everything you need to know about how parts function, and how to select and maintain them. In the second part of this article, the author continues to examine electronic circuits with a look at some common circuit components, like resistors, semiconductors, diodes, small signal transistors, power Semiconductors, and microelectronics. This article series was published in audioXpress, from November 2001 to January 2002.

Three great amplifier designs, practical test and measurement, acoustical treatment advice, and more are all included in audioXpress April 2016. Building new audio products with audio networking? Then don’t miss this month’s Standards Review article on RAVENNA/AES67 development.

“I Can Hear It. Why Can’t I Measure It?” is the title of an excellent article written by Dan Foley and featured in this month’s issue. It could also be the slogan for our audioXpress March 2016 issue, which focuses on Test and Measurement. We tried to combine reviews, and practical and theoretical perspectives for this issue. Download it now!

Stuart Yaniger wrote a great article for audioXpress in February 2009, The ImPasse Preamplifier, describing a tube preamp to drive a pair of Nelson Pass’ First Watt F4’s (or other low-to-unity-gain power amplifiers) in balanced mono. Yaniger’s preamp is truly an elegant design with very, very low distortion, using a 6SN7 to drive a 6922 in balanced mode. There are LED’s, NE2H neon lamps and depletion MOSFETs in the design.

This month, audioXpress features an updated version of the Willow amplifier, especially designed for the DIY community, and a three-way loudspeaker project with an external active crossover network. We visited Eighteen Sound in Italy, discuss experiments with Dolby Atmos, audio networking development based on Audinate’s Dante technology and learn how to measure Reverberation Time (RT). And if you are interested in recreations of the famous Fairchild compressor/limiters, rectifier tubes, and how to properly test tubes, don’t miss this month’s audioXpress.

Sennheiser has been named a CES 2016 Innovation Awards Honoree for its state-of-the-art Orpheus headphones. The electrostatic headphone system has been honored in both the ‘Headphones’ Category and the ‘High Performance Home Audio-Video’ Category. Sennheiser’s Orpheus, which will be hand-crafted in Germany and available from mid-2016, impressed the jury with its combination of innovative technology with carefully selected materials and highest-quality craftsmanship.

The basic circuits on which Erno Borbely based most of his projects are described in “JFETs: The New Frontiers, Part I and II,” published in Audio Electronics AE 5/99 and 6/99, and “All-FET Line Amp,” published in audioXpress May 2002. As the author admits, these were the “building blocks” on which many - if not all - of his amplifiers are based. This articles continues his JFETs series and was originally published in Audio Electronics, Vol 5 1999.

The basic circuits on which Erno Borbely based most of his projects are described in “JFETs: The New Frontiers, Part I and II,” published in Audio Electronics AE 5/99 and 6/99. Referring to these articles frequently, the author admits, these were the “building blocks” on which many - if not all - of his amplifiers are based. This article is the first part, as originally published in Audio Electronics, Vol. 5 1999.

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.

Introduced in 1948, the Fender Champ single-ended 5 W guitar amplifier is “the” classic tube practice amplifier and it has been remade a few times over. In 1992, Kirk Elliott shared his take on the design, transforming the stock Champ into a quieter, safer, and more reliable studio amplifier. This article was originally published in Glass Audio Volume 4, Number 2, 1992.