Circuit Design Philosophy

Self Taught Kiss:

I prefer to recreate things rather than perform simple tweaks, commit to outright restoring or even trying to reinvent the wheel. I like to take what is stock and, while keeping the spirit of it, rearrange varying amounts of what was already there. I do this to better suit an array of modern studio uses for a particular donor instead of its original intentions. So when I get a new donor amp that I haven't seen before I don't immediately try to shove a square peg in a round hole. Instead I look at what the donor has to offer and work from there. Since I always reuse the power transformer, that is the best place to start. Most of them aren't labeled, so I look up the tubes themselves and see what their respective heater and hi-pot voltage requirements are. Then I can reverse engineer at least what the minimum capabilities of the power transformer are. Most vintage iron was used in circuits that gave it plenty of headroom even beyond this minimal capability, but I try to keep whatever I replace the stock circuit with at or below the stock usage levels. If I have to goose it a bit, though I know this old stuff can take it. Once I have the voltage capabilities I look at the tube sockets themselves. Of course I can always swap out a 7 pin for a 9 pin or a 9 pin for an 8 pin octal, but sometimes it is best just to keep it simple and use what is there. Simple things like the stock socket types and layout often get my wheels spinning as I search out suitable circuits to place in my donor chassis. Once I have a general idea of what I want to put in there I consider controls and input/output. How many pots, switches, and jacks will I need to make my new circuit fully operational? What kind of space do I have or need to make in the chassis to fit what I need? Will there already be some extra functionality built into the stock unit that I can find a function for in the new circuit? At this point I will start to make changes to the new circuits. I like to add simple functions to my mods that are useful to modern recordists without making the new device overly complicated. I really strive to keep things simple and made the old ways. You'll never find anything frivolous in my units, though I do like to take advantage of slight tweaks that can greatly enhance the usefulness of a device. In the end the principle of K.I.S.S. or “Keep It Simple, Stupid” reigns supreme.