The ESP based DIY preamp Part 4.

The preamp comes together like a drawer. The aluminum front panel is glued to the front of the inner box made out of 4 mm plywood. It fits into the outer orange enclosure made out of MDF. A set of rubber feet is attached with screws from beneath through the outer enclosure and fasten into the wooden boarder the inner box is riding upon.

This is what it looks like from the rear.

And this is what it looks like from the front.

I am super happy with the look. It is retro with a modern flair just like I envisioned it.

This preamp has a functional focus and it is perfect from a functional point of view. It does exactly what I want it to do, no more no less, and what it does it does well. I named it PreFUNK, a preamp with a functional focus, but also as an homage to Parliament and Funkadelic.

Nice looks and great functionality are all good, but how does it sound? I am pretty biased of course, but it instantly became my favorite preamp just sound-wise. It is hard to describe, but it is very precise and neutral with none of the NOOLOM filters enabled. But it is easy to add some depth and warmth with the flick of a switch or two. I just love the quality of the sound.

No drawbacks? Well of course. It is not dead silent. I can hear a faint hiss at very high to full volume (especially on the phono input). It is probably a combination of an unshielded wooden box and a far from the optimal grounding scheme. This build is far from over yet. I actually get the feeling that I got years of tweaking ahead of me. But that is the beauty of DIY, I can spend endless hours on this preamp just for the joy of it.

So where do I go from here? I will start with the construction of a "Faraday cage". It will be an inner box made out of aluminum that will shield all boards carrying signals. I will then redesign each of the boards I made myself and make new better versions (with more attention to grounding). But I will enjoy just one more vinyl before I swap it out, just one more... ;)

This marks the end of this fourth post about my ESP based DIY preamp. Stay tuned for future updates even if it might take a while. :)