simple build of an Elliot Sound Products P88(b) premplifier kit

I got one of these kits from Col for the  Elliot Sound Products Project88 preamp and soldered it up.. a relatively easy build after the ALIEN DAC.

Definately has a bit of the DIY kit feel about the unit, but, it sounds great.

After going to a lower power consumption Connex Electronics TDA8920 amplifier instead of my ART SLA-1 amplifier I was finding the Alien DAC was having difficulty driving an unadorned power amp chip with no buffering opamp/premp stage whatsover.. it sounded good but was not very loud..
I went for a very basic enclosure and build, using a very simple plastic box and some milled aluminium knobs from Rockby Electronic Components and switches, RCA adapters and shielded audio cable from Altronics. Even with the relatively low output of the ALIEN DAC the low gain setting on the dip switches was just fine, and I didnt bother with the balance control either (I’ve never had any reason to use one just for listening).
Inside I’m using a bit of polymorph plastic (thats the waxy looking stuf) to hold the PCBs in place.
It is powered from an external 16VAC wall wart (from a long since discarded modem), and measuring with the Jaycar power meter it consumes 3W.

A look inside:

And the back: