Tag Archives: op amp

Sideband #77: Speaking of Op Amps…

The last Sideband post (over eight months ago) was about Op Amps, mostly because I think they’re very cool but also easy to understand in the context of the Three Rules of Op Amps. [See this post and maybe the one before it.]

I posted about them in part because I also wanted to post about an electronics project I designed (but never built) back in the late 1980s. I thought it was a cool solution that leveraged existing infrastructure and used off-the-shelf parts.

Be advised this post is seriously on the electronics geek side and is mainly a memory with meaning only to me. I used to love designing stuff!

Continue reading


Sideband #76: Fun with Op Amps

Last November I posted about electronics “shortcuts” — rules of thumb that help interpret, even design, a circuit. These are approximations of more complex behavior but work well enough for a first cut at understanding a circuit.

Do not confuse these electronics shortcuts, which are generally good, with electronic short-circuits, which are almost always bad. While both offer shorter paths, that’s not a good thing in the latter case. Sometimes the journey is the only reward.

I intended to continue with op amps but kept putting it off. There are other Sidebands pending, though, so it’s time to drop the other shoe.

Continue reading