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The circuit below illustrates powering a LED (or two) from the 120 volt AC line using a capacitor to drop the voltage and a small resistor to limit the inrush current. Since the capacitor must pass current in both directions, a small diode is connected in parallel with the LED to provide a path for the negative half cycle and also to limit the reverse voltage across the LED. A second LED with the polarity reversed may be subsituted for the diode, or a tri-color LED could be used which would appear orange with alternating current.... [read more]

This dual polarity power supply is easy to build, requires few parts, and is adjustable from 0-15 volts. It is great for powering op amp circuits, as well as other circuits that require a dual supply voltage.... [read more]

Today, almost all computers contain logic blocks for implementing a USB port. A USB port, in practice, is capable of delivering more than 100 mA of continuous current at 5V to the peripherals that are connected to the bus. So a USB port can be used, without any trouble, for powering 5V DC operated tiny electronic gadgets. Nowadays, many handheld devices (for instance, portable reading lamps) utilise this facility of the USB port to recharge their built-in battery pack with the help of an internal circuitry.... [read more]

This is an audio power amplifier, with its final stage giving 40 W/8 Ω at Class A. The power transistors, are always ON , allowing a very high current to flow.... [read more]

This is a very simple, low cost, Hi-Fi quality power amplifier. You can build it 5 ways, like it’s shown in the table (from 20 W to 80 W RMS).... [read more]

In this circuit, an SCR is used to slowly vary the intensity of a 120 volt light bulb by controlling the time that the AC line voltage is applied to the lamp during each half cycle.... [read more]