AW: To earth, or not to earth...

[Eric at Svetlana Electron Devices]

At 08:59 AM 12/4/97 -0000, you wrote:
>Anyone have a schematic for a vca with 120db snr ?

Why not just make a volume control using an LED/CdS cell
optocoupler? I know, it's not linear. But it is quiet.

>BTW I use banana plugs, and a star earth layout - my modular is the
>quitest analogue I've heard.

Star earthing is a major advantage when building tube
equipment using point-to-point wiring. Most modern tube amps
are made on PC boards, and frequently have stability problems
due to the inability to use a star ground. PCBs are very limiting!
(Especially when you can't use inner grounding layers due to
high voltages!)


Eric Barbour
Svetlana Electron Devices
Portola Valley CA USA