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Although defective, this product is a good value for the money and has excellent performance. I would also recommend it if the purchaser is skilled at or feels comfortable with PCB repair. I've purchased several of these kits for different applications and will likely purchase more in the future. The supplied 1/8" soldered-in audio connector is generic enough to be used for tip-ring-sleeve (stereo) applications, yet only tip and sleeve (mono) connections are needed in this amplifier. However, the PCB traces were apparently laid out originally for a connector part that had the tip connection on the opposite side from the part that is now being supplied with the kit. As a result, the signal coming in on the tip is not connected to the input capacitor--hence no amplifier input, so the amplifier appears dead. The solution is to either panel mount the connector and wire it appropriately back to the board OR, if soldering the connector onto the PCB, make a modification to the PCB as shown in the attached photos. The first attached photo illustrates how a 1/8" male plug tip, pushed into the connector jack that would be mounted on the component side of the board, makes a connection to the board thru-holes on the RIGHT but those PCB terminations go nowhere, yet the PCB circuit trace that really needs to carry that signal into the amplifier is on the LEFT. (Note in the first photo the little silver-colored spring tab just to the right of the inserted plug tip that in turn is connected to the rightmost thru-pin on the jack.) The second photo shows the modifications that are needed to fix this issue. The trace on the left (at the arrow) is cut all the way through the copper trace with a razor blade to break the connection; also a wire is soldered on the right (see inside the red oval) to take the real input "tip" signal over to the amplifier input capacitor. Following this 2-step board modification, the amplifier works great. There are many distributors of this kit on eBay. Some kits MAY use the correct part, but the kits I've purchased in the past do not. Until or unless the correct connector jack is included in the kit (one with the "tip" connection on the LEFT in these photos instead of on the RIGHT), this invasive modification to the board will correct the problem and enable an excellent LM386-based kit to be enjoyed in many different audio amplifier applications. My review will still be 4 stars, because I'm rating the amplifier value and performance (5 stars +) with only modest penalty for those vendors who substitute the incorrect part. However, I believe that "quality" should be rated as inferior (1 star), as all the kits I've tested have had the issue described here--the issue appears to be pervasive. Further, I suspect that most eBay distributors get their kits already packaged by the same group of sub-vendors. Those sub-vendors need to be apprised of this issue and start inserting the correct part into the kit. If the correct part is no longer available, then the PCB itself should be modified before it is distributed to unsuspecting customers; or as a minimum, PCB modification instructions, similar to the second attached photo, should be provided to future purchasers.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Nice little amp setup. Plan on using if for a ham radio project.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
it didn't work - could be my soldering... good solder practice tho...
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
It's a Chinese LM386 kit. Don't expect miracles. But there's no harsh surprises either. Came with all the parts, don't need instructions to assemble this one. Worked fine until my dog tried to eat it.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
The circuit works great, use it to repair an old board on a mini guitar amp. Guitar sounds great on
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New