Building OPA Impedance Buffers

completed Alice Mini board

Hot air reflow is so much easier than I thought it would be. The trick to getting everything placed correctly is to eat a good breakfast and not drink too much coffee. I am using these OPA “Alice” circuits in the hydrophones, dual impedance buffers, and Sound Urchin XLR products. They use a high definition, … Read more

Sound Urchin videos

POTAR Design Devices Super Sound Urchin in orange with orange decal

The Sound Urchin is an electro-acoustic instrument that creates off-kilter sounds, atmospheres, and ambiance based on vibration. The entire instrument acts like a pickup and will amplify just about anything it sits on. It can be plucked, strummed, thumped, and “played” in many ways. You are only limited by your own imagination. What are other … Read more

Stereo phono preamp using JAN 6418 tubes

Here is a nice little stereo phono preamp using a pair of JAN 6418 subminiature tubes. This design uses very few components and adds a nice bit of extra oomph and tube tone sparkle to your input signal. I have tested on turntables and cassette decks with great results. Using an IC7660s as a charge … Read more