Well i have been building chip amps for about 2 years now. Previous to that i was a die hard tube head and old marantz 22xx freak. My fav so far is my NIGC (non inverted gainclone)passive pre( 2-50K alps pots) ,battery powered at +/- 24Vdc using the LM3875T (non insulated) chip.I isolate mechanically and electrically the H/S which is a 1.5 lb gold plated brass bar.Enclosure is a simple hammond case.Combined with the Fostex Fe-206e rear loaded front firing horn(my own design tuned to 1/4 loading) its mind blowing, and not that expensive. ron