Burr Brown...is it hype?

[Stevo]

These are expensive chips I was wondering if they are really worth investing in? There are some on e-bay but I dont know the numbers .....i want a single fet op amp like a TL071....are they worth twice as much?

[formerMember1]

from what i hear there is a lot of fakes on ebay, i too want to try a burr brown chip,  i tired the jrc4558 chip in my TS9DX and didn't like it. 

[Hal]

put something on bread and plug away.  I like the differance - they seem to be clearer to me. A little subtle.

I've played with the opa2132

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

The only time I buy a BB chip, is when I HAVE to. The only time I would, is when the alternative (standrd) chip is limiting the performance of my build, or when there is no equivalent chip at all.
The BB label, as such, means nothing. The data sheet, means everything.
I don't do state of the art low noise microphone preamps or scientific instumentation, so I don't use BB very often!
But by all means experiment. When chips are used in fuzz & distortion units, they can be outside where the design was intended, so the data sheet doesn't tell anything useful.

[bwanasonic]

If you are building a circuit that would benefit from improved fidelity, like compressors, preamps, buffers, etc. it's worth trying a BB chip. If you are building a distortion circuit, it is much less likely a BB chip will be an improvement. It also depends how many units you plan on producing. If you are just making *personal use* stuff, the few extra bucks per chip ain't a big deal, but if you plan on producing lots of units, you might want to work with a lower cost chip.

Kerry M

[Fret Wire]

The only time I buy a BB chip, is when I HAVE to. The only time I would, is when the alternative (standrd) chip is limiting the performance of my build, or when there is no equivalent chip at all.
The BB label, as such, means nothing. The data sheet, means everything.
I don't do state of the art low noise microphone preamps or scientific instumentation, so I don't use BB very often!
But by all means experiment. When chips are used in fuzz & distortion units, they can be outside where the design was intended, so the data sheet doesn't tell anything useful.

True. In a lot of cases, I think some of the BB's are overated in terms of performance. The OPA134 (single) and OPA2134 (dual) don't have as much bang for the buck as does the $.50 NE5532, which is quieter. The NE5534 (ext. comp) is also very quiet. Some OPA's, like the OPA177 (single), are truly high performance chips. In some Hi-Fi and video applications, certain BB's do offer improvement, but as Paul already said, not necessarily so with fx. But, you should always experiment, that's one of the nice things about IC sockets. Sometimes, there is not much difference to be had, only noise and power consumption. Other times, a particular ckt will really respond to a particular IC, which may or may not have the best specs. After experimenting awhile, you'll have certain IC preferences for certain ckts.

The real trick is when you find that a particular ckt repsonds well with one certain IC more than the others, examine the ckt and IC data sheet, and try to find out why. The answer is just as valuable in learning as swapping IC's in the socket was. Either way, if you experiment, you'll still come out ahead in the end.

My .02

[brad]

I like them because they have a cool looking BB logo on them.  All opamps are basically the same to me so I go on asthetics 

[Connoisseur of Distortion]

I like them because they have a cool looking BB logo on them.  All opamps are basically the same to me so I go on asthetics 

better put a skylight in your enclosure 

[Andi]

better put a skylight in your enclosure 

Like those modded PC cases - sling some LEDs in there too to light it all up.

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

It's suprising how little one hears about the history of BB, compared to other big semi companies.

"Tom Brown, one of the founders of Burr-Brown, died (oct 72). He was 75. Brown and his partner, Paige Burr, started out in business in 1956. Brown worked out of his basement in Long Island, while Burr did manufacturing and sales in his garage in Tucson, Ariz. The company hit it big several years later with operational amplifiers and later migrated into data converters, making it so attractive that Texas Instruments bought the company two years ago for $7.6 billion. That makes Brown's run one of the more successful in electronics history."
http://iis.eller.arizona.edu/eller_times/december2002/Tom_Brown.html

[Hal]

w00t, long island represent.

[PharaohAmps]

I used to work on transformer testers and power analyzers, many years ago.  The power analyzers were fairly old tech, and didn't use anything fancier than the odd OP37 here and there, but the transformer testers used some pretty sweet parts.  Not that many BB parts, but OP37's, AD712's, AD844, AD848, etc.  We used to have to replace every active device in a particular "circuit block" when we serviced them, on the theory that failing components could take other parts with them when they went.  I had a BIG bag of $6 and $10 op-amps when I left...

The BB parts are VERY nice, but are designed for fidelity, low noise, high slew rate, etc.  For 99.9992% of things I work on, I want parts that AREN'T super nice, to color the sound.  BB's don't.

Matt Farrow

[WGTP]

IMHO, they have a subtly different sound as do most op amps.  You may like it, or you may prefer the cheap ones.  It may also vary depending apon the circuit.  Like most of this tone stuff, it is subjective.   

[Stevo]

I see some opa124p di-fet single op amps for 2.50 each...I think you all have talked me out of them since I do like some color to my tone and dont want a real sterile sound or the likes...........

[vanhansen]

better put a skylight in your enclosure 

Like those modded PC cases - sling some LEDs in there too to light it all up.

And a sticker that says "Burr Brown Inside". 

When I swapped the 4558 out of my SD-1 for a Burr Brown 2134, I could hear a difference in the sound.  The BB made it smoother.  I'm messing around with one now on the breadboard as well for a booster or mild overdrive with a boost.

[formerMember1]

Smallbear said that the TI 4558 chip that he sells, (sku# 1523) is the same one that keeley uses.  He said to also try the RC4559P chip.

I am gonna try both, 

[Stevo]

Who thinks i should get the opa124p Di fet single op amp...I would be making my version of a shaka type pedal... I have two with tlo-71 in them, would they have more gain or no mojo

[Mark Hammer]

If you are building a circuit that would benefit from improved fidelity, like compressors, preamps, buffers, etc. it's worth trying a BB chip. If you are building a distortion circuit, it is much less likely a BB chip will be an improvement. It also depends how many units you plan on producing. If you are just making *personal use* stuff, the few extra bucks per chip ain't a big deal, but if you plan on producing lots of units, you might want to work with a lower cost chip.

Kerry M

BINGO!!  We have a winner!!  There is more common sense in those few sentences than I am usually able to cram into a page.

"Classier" and pricier op-amps can never make up for, or overcome, the sins of poor designs, any more than higher-octane gas will turn an oil-burning jalopy in desperate need of a gasket job into a formula one car.  However, take a good design that aims for loftier goals and supports most of them, and stick a better op-amp in THERE, and chances are the extra money will be worth spending.

If its intended destination is a 4 x 12" stack and an amp set to stun, upgrading from a 1458 to a 5532 or TL072 might be money well spent.  Upgrading to devices that cost a couple of bucks per op-amp stage probably won't yield audible returns unless the destination of the signal is a mixing board and hard disk recorder or studio monitor.

[Penguin]

i like the bb chip for overdrives.  but not for high gain purposes.  i prefer the tlc2262 for high gain.