This was probably inevitable.
A dual-mono LM3886 kit from ChipAmp.com (now gone), with Avel Lindberg transformers in a compact enclosure from Design Build Listen (still in business, but not in the business of making enclosures). I liked the simplicity, but not the sound.
That build started a longer line of exploration: how the implementation of otherwise straightforward op-amp circuits affects both measurable and audible performance.
That line of work eventually led to HiFiOcean.
What I would pay attention to now is not the chip itself, but:
The circuit here is simple. Making it behave well is not.
A dual-mono LM3886 kit from ChipAmp.com (now gone), with Avel Lindberg transformers in a compact enclosure from Design Build Listen (still in business, but not in the business of making enclosures). I liked the simplicity, but not the sound.
That build started a longer line of exploration: how the implementation of otherwise straightforward op-amp circuits affects both measurable and audible performance.
That line of work eventually led to HiFiOcean.
What I would pay attention to now is not the chip itself, but:
- grounding and system integration;
- layout and PCB artwork;
- optimized feedback loop;
- stability in a real build under various conditions, e.g. when clipping.
The circuit here is simple. Making it behave well is not.
