So, who wants a £42 TL072 equivalent?

[somnif]

Have a need for a dual op-amp and those TL072's just aren't cutting it? Is an OPA2604 just too mundane for your audio needs?

Well look no further my friends, we now have the ultimate in 8 pin chippyness!

https://orangeamps.com/shop/op-amp/

And they're only 54$ a piece... what a bargain...

[WormBoy]

Looks super cool though ...  . Whether it actually sounds 'more musical' ... I doubt it, and it is a bit too expensive to try out. I will wait for the DIY version  .

[juansolo]

Why?! Just why...?

[Willybomb]

I think it was a 420 joke.

[culturejam]

Why?! Just why...?

From Jack Orman on TGP (about this exact op amp):

Discrete opamps are mostly used for pro audio where they need to power the chip with +/-24v so that 600 ohm inputs can be driven to the full dynamic range. Discretes also can add a bit of coloration that can be very pleasing, which many integrated opamps do not have.

There is a very good paper on opamps by Samuel Groner that gives test results for several discretes and high-end IC chips. Interesting reading.

[EBRAddict]

I have a hard time believing his THD number. He didn't list the PSRR, either.

[midwayfair]

That's not  bad price for a discrete op amp fully assembled. They are, however,  pointless devices for anything to do with guitars, because we have no use for better THD handling and other benefits.

Edit just to be clear; the orange as reads like parody and is full of junk, but the basic concept is not.

[juansolo]

Why?! Just why...?

From Jack Orman on TGP (about this exact op amp):

Discrete opamps are mostly used for pro audio where they need to power the chip with +/-24v so that 600 ohm inputs can be driven to the full dynamic range. Discretes also can add a bit of coloration that can be very pleasing, which many integrated opamps do not have.

There is a very good paper on opamps by Samuel Groner that gives test results for several discretes and high-end IC chips. Interesting reading.

Seems like mojo bollocks to me.

Just sayin'

[midwayfair]

It really isn't in hight-current situations to get better performance from physically larger components. Transistors of larger sizes can handle higher voltages, and dissipate more heat than an op amp where the transistors on the die are essentially 2d and in close proximity. in guitar pedals we pretty much never have to worry about physics. The worst that we tend to do is burn out a 1/4W resistor once in a while or maybe set a trimmer to 0R when we shouldn't.

But an most burr brown op amps can supply current to drive 600Ohms and still have exceptionally good bandwidth. fFfor the last couple decades there hasn't been too much reason to bother with discrete op amps. They were way more important when op amps sucked.

[somnif]

Yesterday I had no idea there was an audiophile scene in replacing ICs with discretes.

I think I was happier yesterday....

Not sure why I'm surprised. The cork sniffing trend in the land of tube audio has reached monumentally absurd levels, of course the silicon side of the equation has as well. Turns out, 50$ for a 30 cent component really is a bargain compared to some of these things. 

[davent]

Bursonaudio is another maker and discrete op amps, were available for quite a few years at Parts Connexion. They're carrying another company's at the moment.

http://www.partsconnexion.com/opamp_burson.html
http://www.partsconnexion.com/opamp_dexa.html
https://www.bursonaudio.com/products/supreme-sound-opamp-v5/

dave

[alanp]

As a technical exercise it's pretty cool (and quite dense, for the amount of components.)

Fidelity tends to not be as important as volume for guitar amps, though.

[lars]

So basically, you're paying $54 more for something that is .01% better than a NE5532.

[stecykmi]

So basically, you're paying $54 more for something that is .01% better than a NE5532.

opamps have so many parameters, its actually much worse than a 5532 in some ways but better in other ways.

so it's basically how you measure it. and i doubt they have tested these things the same way texas instruments or fairchild have. for example opamps are rarely specified by THD since that's very audio-specific and i think the results would vary quite a bit based on the signal source and the load anyway.

but according to orange's specs, they do have a blazing fast slew rate though, that would imply they are good at amplifying high volume, high frequency signals. that's almost useless for guitar effects but it might be useful in a mixer or preamp though.

i wonder how (or if) they are able to keep the specs close from unit to unit. discrete transistor, especially jfets, can vary a huge amount from unit to unit. in an IC, the individual transistors are usually consistent as a result of the fabrication process.

[gordo]

I think it's THC numbers...

Ear....