| New "Tube" Books [message #78867] |
Fri, 03 January 2014 09:51  |
FL152
Messages: 29
Registered: April 2011
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Chancellor |
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Almost ten years passed from my mini review of the 1st Edition "Building Valve Amplifiers" on another forum:
db.audioasylum.com/mhtml/m.html?forum=tubediy&n=59322&highlight=Building+Valve+Amplifiers+Damir&r=&search_url=%2Fcgi%2Fsearch.mpl%3Fforum%3Dtubediy%26searchtext%3DBuilding%2BValve%2BAmplifiers%2BDamir
The 2nd Edition expanded original six chapters with about 50% of new material, various additions to old contents. There's brand new chapter 7: "Practical Projects", with detailed explanations of building new "Bulwer-Lytton" amplifier, RIAA power supply and Hybrid Balanced RIAA stage from author's other book, "Valve Amplifiers, 4th Edition".
As always with Morgan Jones, I enjoyed his writing style, picky amused exagerrations (baking 1% resistors all day in the oven to make them better) and English humour ("Metalworks for Poets" - still epic after all these years!). Of course, some of the author's findings, materials, tools and solutions are specific and subjective, but as a whole, the vast knowledge and helpful "tips and tricks" make this book valuable to any tube DIY-er. The book is almost twice as thick as the 10 year old original, has quality paper and solid illustrations - every DIY-er now has a mission to buy one, and to buy the author a cup of tea if ever met him in person.
Oficially third Vanderveen's book on English, "Designing Tube Amplifiers" is a bit different then the first two. It is (sadly) much "thinner" (only about 185 pages) and it's content isn't primarily theory about tubes and transformers. This book is more oriented to DIY-ers with (some) knowledge about theory and amplifier building. It tried to give some summary about practical aspect, and to give (if possible) some answers to technical and musical, subjective questions of this hobby. There's a link with book contest:
http://www.elektor.com/Uploads/Files/Product/ContentsDesigningTubeAmplifiers.pdf
In my view, author gives good short explanations of technical subjects, his subjective experience and various decisions to the designing, building and testing of tube amplifiers. The accent is on the harmony of subjective and objective (technical) goals on the "path" to "perfect" amplifier.
There're some interesting (both technical and subjective) author's findings, some almost "philosophical" and some very practical (for example, good practical advices about measurements). There is even some advice for tube amp professionals wannabies, and some emotional/holistic/personality approach. After all, isn't all this hi-fi "business" half technic and half alchemy? 
My only objectives are that the book is (too) short, and some schematics are too small, otherwise - interesting and a quality book, as always from one of the World's most respectable authors about tubes and (their) transformers.
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| Re: New "Tube" Books [message #78907 is a reply to message #78867] |
Tue, 07 January 2014 05:06  |
FL152
Messages: 29
Registered: April 2011
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Chancellor |
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I just realized that link to "TubeDIY Asylum" (part of Audio Asylum) is redirected to "TacoBell" or something. Because it "goes" through Audioroundtable forum. The link otherwise works.
This only shows the culture and human level of the owners of Audio Asylum.
I'm not writing anything on that forum for about 9 years now.
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