[HAM] AO-28 Sounds

[David Anderson]

On Jan 19, 2008, at 1:53 PM, Jordan Kersten wrote:
>
> By more transparent and grundgier components do you mean the types/ 
> brands of a cap for example or do you mean the values?
>

Types/brands.

And as Scott says, these are low-fi instruments, but there are a few  
places where knowing the quirks of certain types of components can be  
useful.

For example, carbon composition resistors have a "voltage coefficient  
of resistance"; in other words, they change value a bit with applied  
voltage. In a situation with 1) a fairly high voltage drop and 2) a  
medium to large amplitude signal, you can get some 2nd harmonic  
distortion, which our ears like. In other circuit positions, that  
characteristic doesn't come into play.

I would agree that *in general,* component types don't make that much  
difference in an AO-28, but there are a few spots where that's not  
entirely the case. Not all 12AX7s sound the same, but it's a matter  
of system synergy.

David