hex inverters

[waky]

Eh, well basically i dont really get how do you get  audio effects out of one, can anyone explain please?.

im probably not making myself clear, according to what i know an inverter is a logic gate that.... well inverts a logic voltage,  if i get logic 1 the inverter returns a logic 0. thats what i know..

so are these "4049" and all of those digital ics logic gates? or some other kind of device also called inverter? and the "hex" thing means what?


and if these are indeed the logic gates i describe how do they go from that to producing an audio output?

[Lurco]

first step: http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=69500.0
second step: search for "hex inverter" to find more of such threads

[R.G.]

Your perception is correct except for a special case of misuse.

The first generation of CMOS logic was as simple as they could make it. So the inverters were simple pairs of N and P channel devices rigged up to invert. This happens to be an OK push pull amplifier if you misuse it by biasing it in the middle of the power supply by feeding back its own output. The gain is low-ish for such an opamp-style biasing, but it does work. It has some bad side effects, such as high power use and asymmetry, but it works. Only the unbuffered families (-UB or -UBE) work well this way, and then only the simplest of gates.

[waky]

lurco: well i searched before posting all i saw was a bunch of "my red llama isnt working posts" so i asked. i also tried google but all i got were tons of datasheets.
thx for the link btw

rg: oh i get it, so if try to use a buffered version it wont work because i cant be biased?, and the asymmetry is the reason it disorts? or does it also clip the signal when the gain is too high?

[snap]

"hex" is from the Greek language for "six" (because there are 6 inverters in those 4049 and 4069 ICs!)