There are many books on the topic of how to design and build audio power amps, and I have several of them, as well as books on troubleshooting and repair of audio equipment. At almost 800 pages, this book reflects a vast amount of experience, knowledge, and expertise that is presented in a clear, concise, and understandable way. This book seems to be written for a wide range of interested readers, from those like me who don't have extensive experience and little or no formal education in electronics engineering, to those who work in the electronics fields who want to get a more complete understanding of not just how an amplifier is designed, but how changes can be made to a circuit to develop and refine its performance.
The author has provided a nice balance of references to previous designs and engineers, along with citations, as well as what I consider enough math to fully understand how and why component values and circuit design interact with and affect a circuit. It is not overly math-heavy, which I appreciate, but provides what is needed to support the text, which seems to be to be detailed and objective. This is something lacking in some of the books I've read, where the author seems to be interested in pushing his own paradigm or design philosophy without also presenting alternative approaches, of which there are so many.
This isn't a textbook - it's more like an encyclopedia. The cohesive chapters lay the groundwork for the information that follows, but if you don't have hours to dedicate to a reading session, this is the type of book that can be read by opening up anwhere and finding useful information, which is how I've been approaching the book.
Other audio designers who are a the level of Bob Cordell may well have other ways of approaching circuit design and implementation, even component selection, and there is no shortage of opinions out there on how to design and build audio amps, but I will never know enough to be capable of finding shortcomings with the material and information presented here.
If there is one area that I would have found more useful, it would have been additional circuit diagrams that showed test points and readings so I could better understand how many of the successive circuit refinements discussed are reflected in voltages and currents at important points in the circuits. There are many diagrams in the book that do contain this information, but probably because of my own math shortcomings (note to self; Ohm's Law is your friend), I found that when they were not present in some of the diagrams, it took me longer to understand the effects.
Reading this book has me wishing I could add to my commercial amps those refinements discussed by the author that reduce distortion, improve linearity, and most of all, provide protection for the circuit components and speakers.
For me, this book is not a useful adjunct to my other books - they are now supplements to this book which has now become the basis for the expansion of my knowledge that I will most likely apply for understanding, diagnosing faults, repairing and upgrading the commercial amplifiers I own, well before I try to build my own (if ever I do).
My compliments and appreciation go to Bob Cordell for his huge effort in the writing of this book.
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Massive, Outstanding Reference for Understanding Audio Amp Design and Construction
There are many books on the topic of how to design and build audio power amps, and I have several of them, as well as books on troubleshooting and repair of audio equipment. At almost 800 pages, this book reflects a vast amount of experience, knowledge, and expertise that is presented in a clear, concise, and understandable way. This book seems to be written for a wide range of interested readers, from those like me who don't have extensive experience and little or no formal education in electronics engineering, to those who work in the electronics fields who want to get a more complete understanding of not just how an amplifier is designed, but how changes can be made to a circuit to develop and refine its performance.The author has provided a nice balance of references to previous designs and engineers, along with citations, as well as what I consider enough math to fully understand how and why component values and circuit design interact with and affect a circuit. It is not overly math-heavy, which I appreciate, but provides what is needed to support the text, which seems to be to be detailed and objective. This is something lacking in some of the books I've read, where the author seems to be interested in pushing his own paradigm or design philosophy without also presenting alternative approaches, of which there are so many.This isn't a textbook - it's more like an encyclopedia. The cohesive chapters lay the groundwork for the information that follows, but if you don't have hours to dedicate to a reading session, this is the type of book that can be read by opening up anwhere and finding useful information, which is how I've been approaching the book.Other audio designers who are a the level of Bob Cordell may well have other ways of approaching circuit design and implementation, even component selection, and there is no shortage of opinions out there on how to design and build audio amps, but I will never know enough to be capable of finding shortcomings with the material and information presented here.If there is one area that I would have found more useful, it would have been additional circuit diagrams that showed test points and readings so I could better understand how many of the successive circuit refinements discussed are reflected in voltages and currents at important points in the circuits. There are many diagrams in the book that do contain this information, but probably because of my own math shortcomings (note to self; Ohm's Law is your friend), I found that when they were not present in some of the diagrams, it took me longer to understand the effects.Reading this book has me wishing I could add to my commercial amps those refinements discussed by the author that reduce distortion, improve linearity, and most of all, provide protection for the circuit components and speakers.For me, this book is not a useful adjunct to my other books - they are now supplements to this book which has now become the basis for the expansion of my knowledge that I will most likely apply for understanding, diagnosing faults, repairing and upgrading the commercial amplifiers I own, well before I try to build my own (if ever I do).My compliments and appreciation go to Bob Cordell for his huge effort in the writing of this book.
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2019
Massive, Outstanding Reference for Understanding Audio Amp Design and ConstructionThere are many books on the topic of how to design and build audio power amps, and I have several of them, as well as books on troubleshooting and repair of audio equipment. At almost 800 pages, this book reflects a vast amount of experience, knowledge, and expertise that is presented in a clear, concise, and understandable way. This book seems to be written for a wide range of interested readers, from those like me who don't have extensive experience and little or no formal education in electronics engineering, to those who work in the electronics fields who want to get a more complete understanding of not just how an amplifier is designed, but how changes can be made to a circuit to develop and refine its performance.
Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2019
The author has provided a nice balance of references to previous designs and engineers, along with citations, as well as what I consider enough math to fully understand how and why component values and circuit design interact with and affect a circuit. It is not overly math-heavy, which I appreciate, but provides what is needed to support the text, which seems to be to be detailed and objective. This is something lacking in some of the books I've read, where the author seems to be interested in pushing his own paradigm or design philosophy without also presenting alternative approaches, of which there are so many.
This isn't a textbook - it's more like an encyclopedia. The cohesive chapters lay the groundwork for the information that follows, but if you don't have hours to dedicate to a reading session, this is the type of book that can be read by opening up anwhere and finding useful information, which is how I've been approaching the book.
Other audio designers who are a the level of Bob Cordell may well have other ways of approaching circuit design and implementation, even component selection, and there is no shortage of opinions out there on how to design and build audio amps, but I will never know enough to be capable of finding shortcomings with the material and information presented here.
If there is one area that I would have found more useful, it would have been additional circuit diagrams that showed test points and readings so I could better understand how many of the successive circuit refinements discussed are reflected in voltages and currents at important points in the circuits. There are many diagrams in the book that do contain this information, but probably because of my own math shortcomings (note to self; Ohm's Law is your friend), I found that when they were not present in some of the diagrams, it took me longer to understand the effects.
Reading this book has me wishing I could add to my commercial amps those refinements discussed by the author that reduce distortion, improve linearity, and most of all, provide protection for the circuit components and speakers.
For me, this book is not a useful adjunct to my other books - they are now supplements to this book which has now become the basis for the expansion of my knowledge that I will most likely apply for understanding, diagnosing faults, repairing and upgrading the commercial amplifiers I own, well before I try to build my own (if ever I do).
My compliments and appreciation go to Bob Cordell for his huge effort in the writing of this book.
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Top reviews from other countries
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- ZachariaReviewed in India on March 15, 2020
Improved in every sense over the first edition.
