Uploaded December 2015 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Buffer preamp. for Crystal pickups.
Old record players normally have crystal (piezo) type pickup cartridges, which need high impedance (resistance) input on the amplifier.
Also the signal voltage is too high for the phono inputs, and too low for the Aux inputs on modern amps.
Here I show how a cheap RIAA preamp can be easily converted to give the required load and voltage, to connect to the Aux (Line in) of a modern amp.
Modern amps and RIAA preamps have too low resistance.
Buffer preamp. for Crystal pickups.
Old record players normally have crystal (piezo) type pickup cartridges, which need high impedance (resistance) input on the amplifier.
Also the signal voltage is too high for the phono inputs, and too low for the Aux inputs on modern amps.
Here I show how a cheap RIAA preamp can be easily converted to give the required load and voltage, to connect to the Aux (Line in) of a modern amp.
Modern amps and RIAA preamps have too low resistance.
