Denton J. Dailey

College Professor: Electrical Engineering and Robotics.

Author:

Electronics for Guitarists, 3rd Edition (and a bunch of other stuff covering transistor circuit analysis, microprocessors, etc).

Check out the Facebook page for corrections, extra schematics, etc.

www.facebook.com/ElectronicsForGuitarists

In the third edition I’ve added a lot of new stuff on effects circuits including analog multipliers, noise gates, effects loops, digital sampling and quantization. Additional tube amp designs, tube parameter derivation from curves, and clarification of some complex concepts.

The third edition comes in at a bit over 500 pages in hardback form and (at present, 29 Dec 2022) the price is not too insanely bad at around $50.00. I have no control over this.

Personally, my favorite chapters are still the ones that cover effect circuits (phasers, flangers, etc.) and vacuum tube amplifiers. Don't expect a rehash of Marshall or Vox amp circuits. There are tons of books and web sites on those already. If you want to learn some basic tube amp design techniques this is the book for you. If you really take the time to follow through the design procedures presented and maybe even try a few designs of your own, I think you will be amazed at the understanding you have gained when you look at books and web sites that present schematics for other amplifiers.

I had been designing, building and repairing guitar effects/amps for years (since high school, actually... though my design skill were rudimentary at best in those days). Over Christmas break in 2009 I decided to organize the massive amounts of effects/amp related stuff I had developed over the years. My original intent was to get things into some form that might be suitable for use in the EE classes I teach. Soon, it occured to me that this might make a pretty decent book in itself. Over the course of the next year I wrote the book, and fortunately, if really fits well into Springer's lineup. If you are not familiar with Springer (and Springer-Verlag), they are really big in the heavy duty theoretical science, engineering, mathematics and medical areas. I'm talking graduate level stuff on quantum mechanics, string theory, wavelets, neurobiology, etc. My book is really informal in style compared to those types of books, but I think it's a nice addition to their lineup.

Other books I've written include:

Programmable Logic Fundamentals using Xilinx ISE and CPLDs. Prentice-Hall, 2005.

Electronic Devices and Circuits. Prentice-Hall, 2001.

Operational Amplifiers and linear Integrated Circuits. McGraw-Hill, 1989.

Small Computer Theory and Applications. Mc-Graw-Hill, 1988.

In my spare time I like playing the guitar, collecting guitars, racing mountain bikes, lifting weights, racquetball, motorcycling (street and dirt), running, and similar things.