Active Filter Cookbook

by Don Lancaster
#21168 - $14. 95 - Howard Sams & Co. , (Contact Details)

When you meet Don you come away with the feeling that here is a person that thinks he knows everything about everything.

You don't have to read too many of his books and articles before you begin to agree with him.

It would be difficult to do a better review of the book than Don does himself in the preface where he says:

"This book is about active filters. It is user-oriented. It tells you everything you need to know to build active filters, and does so with an absolute minimum of math or obscure theory.

If you know nothing at all about active filters and simply need a frequency-selective circuit, this book will serve you as a catalog of "ripoff" circuits that are ready for immediate use - with math ranging from none at all to one or two simple multiplications.

If you are interested in the how and why of active filters, there is more-detailed information here that lets you do more-involved design work, optimizing things to your particular needs and perhaps using a simple handheld calculator for the actual final design effort.

Finally, if you are an active-filter specialist, you will find in this text a unified and detailed base that includes both analysis and synthesis techniques that can be easily expanded on by using a computer or programmable calculator. This book should be extremely useful as a college-level active-filter course book or supplemental text."

I agree but wish that he had broadened his definition of "active" beyond just op-amps to include the serial analog delay devices that will ultimately play an important role in the design of many useful filter sections.

But other than that minor point I consider "Active Filter Cookbook" to be a definitive reference work on the current state of the art in filter design - how they work, why they work and how to make them work. If you're serious about electronic music (or just electronics generally) you should add this book to your library.

ELECTRONOTES

"So you want technical articles, huh?"

Response to the questionnaire last issue showed a great interest in technical articles and construction projects. If you are an advanced hobbyist with a real passion for knowledge, Electronotes will fill your needs plus some. Their articles are primarily technical dissertations on results of current research being done, schematics of circuits which may be useful in synthesizers, and educational articles which teach the novice what he needs to know to be able to dig into the deeper material-circuit design, microprogramming, application and realization of theoretical material. Electronotes is becoming heavily involved in utilizing microprocessors and digital technology in electronic music. Current articles which are representative of their format include: "D/A Conversion for Equally Tempered Scales", "Design and Applications of Sample-and-Hold Modules with Slew Limiting and Cascading Features", a continuing series entitled "Back to Basics" which discusses fundamental electronic concepts, and a series entitled "Microprocessors in Electronic Music" which deals with how processors work, how to program them and what all that microprocessor lingo means. There is an average of about six schematics and contruction articles per issue, and a "buy, sell, trade" section in the rear. All issues are loose sheets punched for 3-ring notebooks, and back issues since 1972 are available. Current subscription rate is around $16, and if you write to them, I think they may send you a sample copy with subscription information.

Electronotes, B.A. Hutchins, (Contact Details)