The invention provides a grounding structure and a grounding method for a vacuum tube audio amplifier, the grounding structure and the grounding method including: with respect to a power source, utilizing a power circuit without a choke, an anti-coupling circuit, and a filament voltage regulator circuit; and with respect to the grounding method, utilizing an negative output terminal of an audio output transforming circuit or a negative terminal of a filter capacitor in the power circuit as a single ground terminal of the vacuum tube audio amplifier, and not arranging a grounding metal bottom plate therein, in order to achieve a compact, lightweight desktop model of a vacuum tube audio amplifier.

A multi-frequency tunable low-noise amplifier and a multi-frequency tuning implementation method therefor. The amplifier comprises: a system controller (13) and a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) matching tuner (12) connected to the system controller (13). The system controller (13) is configured to respond to a first operation executed by a user via a user interface (15) when in a first mode, to acquire a first matching value produced on the basis of the first operation, and to output the first matching value to the MEMS matching tuner (12). The MEMS matching tuner (12) is configured to be controlled by the system controller (13) and to support the amplifier working on different frequency bands in tuning processing, thus allowing the matching value of the MEMS matching tuner (12) itself to match a current working frequency band.

An electrical circuit comprising a modulating chopper configured to receive a differential input signal at a first frequency and modulate the differential input signal to a second frequency to form a modulated differential signal, a null amplifier coupled to the modulating chopper and configured to amplify the modulated differential signal to form an amplifier output, wherein amplifying the modulated differential signal causes a ripple in the amplifier output, a demodulating chopper coupled to the null amplifier and configured to demodulate the amplifier output to form a demodulated differential signal having a first portion at the first frequency and a second portion at a third frequency, an integrator coupled to the demodulating chopper and configured to integrate the demodulated differential signal to form an integrated differential signal, and an attenuator coupled to the integrator and configured to attenuate the integrated differential signal to compensate for at least part of the ripple.

A class D amplifier output stage including an input for receiving an input signal, an output for providing an output signal to a load, serially coupled upper and lower switching devices configured to provide an output signal to the output, a driver circuit configured to receive the input signal, and to derive therefrom first and second drive signals for driving the upper and lower switching devices alternately from a conducting state into a non-conducting state and vice versa, such that the conducting state periods of the upper switching device with respect to those of the lower switching device are mutually exclusive and separated by dead time intervals during which both upper and lower output transistors are non-conducting. To reduce distortion and more particularly, total harmonic distortion (THD), the amplifier output stage includes a substantially linear circuit configured to provide a bidirectional current sink for residual currents from the load occurring during at least part of each dead time interval.

A Class D amplifier is described herein that includes an outer loop, an inner loop, and a notch filter. The notch filter can be located between an output of the outer loop and an input of the inner loop. Alternatively or in addition, the notch filter can be located within the outer loop of the Class D amplifier. Ripple content can initially be present at an input to the inner loop of the Class D amplifier, causing nonlinearity in the inner loop and distortion in the audio output signal. The notch filter can filter the ripple content at the input to the inner loop, thereby reducing the nonlinearity present in the inner loop and the distortion in the audio output signal.

Resistor mismatch may be digitally compensated based on a known resistor mismatch, power supply information, and/or other operating parameters of the amplifier. The digital compensation may be applied to the digital input signal before conversion for processing and amplification in the analog domain. An amplifier with digital compensation for resistor mismatch may be used in a class-D amplifier with a closed loop and feedforward feedback. A class-D or other amplifier with digital compensation may be integrated with electronic devices such as mobile phones.

A low power amplifier architecture that employs a single-ended (single triode) push-pull (SEPP) vacuum tube and output transformer arrangement, and that cancels unwanted amplifier signal components such as hum and noise. The SEPP amplifier operates to cancel power supply ripple and local EMI induced noise in the output transformer by providing reverse polarity of the primary coils of the output transformer.

An amplifier may include a main signal path having a plurality of stages compensated by feedback elements, the plurality of stages comprising an output stage configured to receive electrical energy from a power supply and an auxiliary path independent of the main signal path and comprising an output stage compensation circuit configured to generate a compensation current proportional to noise present in the power supply and apply the compensation current to cancel a power supply-induced current present in at least one of the feedback elements.

Embodiments relate to a chopped amplifier system where a ripple reduction filter placed outside of a main signal path is disclosed. The chopped amplifier system includes a chopped amplifier having an input terminal and an output terminal, where the input terminal receives an input signal and the output terminal provides an output signal including a ripple that is based on an offset voltage of the chopped amplifier. The ripple reduction filter is placed in a feedback loop path that receives a portion of the chopped amplifier's output signal and provides a feedback signal to the chopped amplifier that reduces the ripple at the output of the chopped amplifier. The ripple reduction filter includes a digital controller and other circuits that can handle large disturbances such as large signal slew rate events and large common-mode steps without reducing the effectiveness of the ripple reduction filter in reducing the ripple.

Described examples include multistage amplifier circuits having first and second forward circuits, a comparator or sensor circuit coupled to sense a signal in the second forward circuit to identify nonlinear operation or slewing conditions in the multistage amplifier circuit, and one or more sample hold circuits operative according to a sensor circuit output signal to selectively maintain the amplitude of an amplifier input signal in the second forward circuit and/or in a feedback circuit in response to the sensor circuit output signal indicating nonlinear operation or slewing conditions in the multistage amplifier circuit. Certain examples further include a clamping circuit operative to selectively maintain a voltage at a terminal of a Miller compensation capacitance responsive to the comparator output signal indicating nonlinear operation or slewing conditions.