Projects

I confess: I am a techie at heart. I've been using a soldering iron since I was a small child, worked in electronics in the military and as a field engineer in industry for many years, and have built and tweaked subs, preamps, speakers, and other components. The first thing I do after a new component is out of the box is to "pop the hood" and visually check it out.

Here, then, are projects that you might find interesting.

Cable Lifters

Posted 02/19/2020

Dry wood is one of the best electrical insulators, behind diamond and air. All of the parts for these cable lifters came from Hobby Lobby: 2" x 3" wood bases, dowel rods, thread spools, and wood glue. Sandpaper and paint are optional. Glue the dowel rods to the bases, with a nice amount of glue forming a ring or collar around the rod at the base. Let dry. Lay the spools on a table, flat end down, spaced evenly apart.

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DIY Power Cord

Posted 07/31/2009

WARNING AND DISCLAIMER: Working with high voltages can cause serious injury or death. You may read the following project description for entertainment only, which is the intended purpose.

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Audio Research LS22 Preamplifier

Posted 10/31/2007

The Audio Research Corporation LS22 Line Stage Preamplifier was chosen for this upgrade project because it has a lot of features and a lot of potential. The features that make it attractive are:

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DIY "Jensen 44" MC Step-up Transformer

Posted 06/30/2006

Several years ago, I borrowed an Air Tight ATH-1 moving coil step up transformer and it changed my life. Well, maybe it was not a life-altering experience, but in audio terms, the audition was significant. The Air Tight sounded exceptional, adding a noticeable amount of richness and depth of tone. It also seemed to provide a better load for the moving coil cartridge.

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"DIY Hydra" Power Conditioner

Posted 11/30/2005

WARNING AND DISCLAIMER: Working with high voltages can cause serious injury or death. You may read the following project description for entertainment only, which is the intended purpose.

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Passive Preamplifiers

Posted 06/30/2005

Here is a basic schematic for an excellent passive 'preamp':

passive pre.gif (2249 bytes)

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Magnepan 10.1 Speaker

Posted 04/01/2005

NEWS FLASH...

The Magnepan 10.1 speakers arrived and quickly proved 3 things:

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Conrad Johnson Premier 15 with Jensen MC Transformers

Posted 06/30/2004

These are the first images of Jensen JT-347-AXT MC transformers installed in a Conrad Johnson Premier 15 Series 2 phono preamplifier. These are wired in 1:12 gain, for 21 dB. With the transformers installed, the total gain of the Premier 15 is 75 dB. The CJ was quiet without the Jensens, but now noise is inaudible.

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AER "S-1" Full Range Speaker

Posted 10/31/2003

Holy alignment-jamming, Batman!

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The Perfect Subwoofer

Posted 01/31/2002

Note: I think I know what I'm doing here at the outset, so I have arrogantly titled this project "The Perfect Subwoofer". If the result is only an improvement over my previous reference, I'll be very happy. I also realize that perfect in one system might be anything but perfect in another. How is this possible?

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Fostex "S-168" Full Range Loudspeaker

Posted 09/30/2001

What is a full range speaker? Ideally, there will be one driver reproducing the entire audio range (commonly considered to be 20 Hz to 20 kHz). There will be no crossovers needed, no integration issues between two or more separate drivers, and no time alignment, phase or polarity errors.

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Onkyo T-9 Tuner Modification

Posted 12/31/2000

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