[sdiy] Buying directly from Texas Instruments

[David Riley]

On Oct 5, 2021, at 11:22 PM, Roman Sowa <modular at go2.pl> wrote:
> 
> I almost got pre-production units, but finally they were out of stock too. Looks promising as next general-purpose throw-it-at-everything opamp. TL07xH is completely new opamp, in different technology. It's CMOS, while old one was bi-FET.
> It somehow resembles old TL07x in specs, some are better oviously. But it all looks to me like this:
> 
> - hey, Frank, you ready with this month's new opamp yet?
> - yeah boss, but it's kinda pointless, we design new opamps every month and nobody's buying them
> - let me call Karen from logistics
> (calling Karen now)
> - well Frank, you know what she told me, they can't keep up shipping that old crappiest shit, TL07x, whaddaya know...
> - hey, boss, I got an idea. That new opamp is pretty much the same as most other stuff we've made and all the specs differ not much from old TL07x. And it does not phase reverse! Let's call it "upgraded version", huh?
> - OK, let's do this. What's next version letter available... is it H? Let's call it TL07xH then!
> - It also uses less silicone on cheaper process, we can finally get rid of that manufacturing anchor, I still cannot get it why it got into production in the first place. Was it when your grandpa was the boss here?
> - That's not relevant! And don't tell anybody it was your idea or you'll be fired! Looks like I'm gonna get a big bonus for this...
> 
> or something like that.

Ha, I mean, basically.  It's close enough to suit most *general* purposes of the TL07x/8x, but there are a few differences in specification that would give me pause in saying it's a substitute, particularly in its behavior around the rails.

It looks like a very nice upgrade, in general, but I'd be worried about unscrupulous or inexperienced buyers substituting it (either way, whether I'd designed it in or not) because it just looks like a new die revision from the part numbers.  But I don't think you're wrong about their logic in reusing the part numbers. :-)

It sure has made a bloody mess of the datasheet, though.


- Dave