Valve Amplifiers

click here for more details, find new or used items	Morgan Jones Our price £30.39 (£31.99) New from £25.35 Used from £31.74 Pages: 624 (Paperback) ISBN: 0750656948 Pub: Newnes Pub date: 2003-08-28 Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 157250

Reader Reviews:

View from a novice (0/0 people found this helpful)

Very thorough and starting with basics. I've a real interest in valve amps but never strayed into electronics before. I was surprised by the amount of theory you need to get your head around and the standard of Maths required. Jones does a good job of walking you through it, though I had to keep going back some pages to re-read what didn't fully sink in. Not an ideal first book, electronics for dummies would be a better place to start.

Glad I bought it, it's a keeper.

Comments on 1st Edition of Valve Amplifiers (3/3 people found this helpful)

I find it puzzling that this book has survived to see a 3rd edition. Readers with an EE background will be dissapointed with this book. Meant to be a practical book on this subject it is better at the mechanical donkey work aspects of the amp building than the electronics. All said, the book can be a good starting point for debutants with useful nuggets of wisdom appearing once in a blue moon;

Beware of mathematical and conceptual CLANGERS especially on pages 237-239 on the feedback calculation which are NOT applicable to controlled sources. The author has been made aware but chose to ignore - I trepidate to think he really does not know any better.

Morgan's noise calculation approach is bog standard but, alas, real world triodes (notoriously, in my experience, some NOS and even frame grid types like the E88CC) can be far far noisier than the 2.5/Gm and the author would have you believe so, again, caveat emtor! The author also exhibits a fettish for elaborating resistor combinations to achieve 1% accuracies out of standard series all quite ridiculous efforts best spent else where.

Personally I would not bother with building any of the designs in the book there are much better ones around. The zero feedback E88CC based designs are interesting but not much more. I hope noise and microphonics that can plague such designs prove acceptable to those that do not heed this advice.

After 10 yeras I still glance at this book once in a while but competent amatures will outgrow the book pretty quickly... and this is probably a backhanded compliment if that means it did its job.

Excellent all-rounder (12/12 people found this helpful)

Jones has really cornered the market with this superb bible on valve audio - there really isn't a more comprehensive guide with the same refined expertise that he clearly possesses. The writing is clear and concise covering a wide range of useful topics.

If like me you are a relative beginner in amplifier theory it will provide a low-pain introduction into the field (be warned there's few introductory notes on basic electronics - you'll need another textbook for that; however, the style encouages learning a minimum of theory for maximum effect), and I've been assured by various other sources that for advanced users it will still serve as an invaluble reference book.

I'd also like to note that it would be an ideal first book for getting into musical instrument amplification.

Top marks.

Technically accomplished and an enjoyable to read too! (18/18 people found this helpful)

This book covers valve audio electronics from basic principals and progresses to very sophisticated modern tube designs. The accomplished writing style makes the book an easy and enjoyable read with just enough gentle humour too provoke the occasional smile. The author obviously knows his subject well and is able to communicate it clearly. The in-depth coverage of passive components is a particular bonus. There is also a useful section on construction and testing. Armed with this book you could design and build you own valve amplifiers, I did.

Morgan Jones' grasp of audio systems is exemplory. (5/9 people found this helpful)

This is a fine book well explained, having known the author through his lectures, I know that his explanations always hold up to close scrutiny.

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