I’m getting tired of waiting for the LMNC spring reverb, so I’m going to try to make a Kosmified version of this guy:
KiCadded here:
However, at one point (6:58) he says, “Don’t do this if you don’t want to burn your house down” - is he being dramatic, or is there actually a risk of feedback causing an… “uncontrolled temperature accumulation event”? I love the feedback and want to keep that in, but would it work if I combined his two circuits and added a buffer as well as the clipping section?
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I had a quick look (after a boozy lunch - so caveat emptor) - seems like it’s a little melodrama. If I understood correctly, the problem is, even with no input, in certain configurations you might get spontaneous feedback. Probably won’t burn your house down, might fry the spring drivers or an IC or two if left on unattended. Perhaps setting up a switched input jack that grounds the signal when nothing’s plugged in might reduce the chances of damage…
If you don’t leave your synths running when you’re not in front of them you’re most likely fine.
Also, put an extinguisher next to it 
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Hm. I am always careful and don’t leave my machines unattended, but not having an input plugged in is a very easy “mistake” to make, and I think it would be unreasonable to make a circuit where no input isn’t a “safe” configuration. I don’t trust switched jacks, but maybe a proper on/off switch on the power lines could do the trick.
My synths actually live in an all wooden-building that’s technically a UNESCO world heritage site, so I am more sensitive to smoke and fire than most. If there is even a small puff of smoke, it can very quickly escalate the sprinkler system and will drench everything in the room. I do all my building and testing at home but don’t want to make anything that isn’t totally idiot-proof. If there’s actually a fire risk with this design I won’t make it, but if he just means “it will get very loud very quickly” that’s okay.
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