
OP279
–11–
REV. D
UNIT Y -GAIN, SALLE N-K E Y (VCVS) FILT E RS
High Pass Configurations
In Figure 35a is the HP form of a unity-gain 2-pole SK filter
using an OP279 section. For this filter and its LP counterpart,
the gain in the passband is inherently unity, and the signal phase
is noninverting due to the follower hookup. For simplicity and
practicality, capacitors C1-C2
are set equal, and resistors R2-R1
are adjusted to a ratio “N,” which provides the filter damping
“
α
” as per the design expressions. A HP design is begun with
selection of standard capacitor values for C1 and C2 and a
calculation of N; then R1 and R2 are calculated as per the figure
expressions.
In these examples,
α
(or 1/Q) is set equal to
2
, providing a
Butterworth (maximally flat) response characteristic. T he filter
corner frequency is normalized to 1 kHz, with resistor values
shown in both rounded and (exact) form. Various other 2-pole
response shapes are also possible with appropriate selection of
α
. For a given response type (
α
), frequency can be easily scaled,
using proportional R or C values.
+V
S
–V
S
U1A
OP279
1
3
2
4
8
IN
R2
22k
V
(22.508k
V
)
R1
11k
V
(11.254k
V
)
C2
0.01
m
F
R = R2
0.1
m
F
Z
f
(HIGH PASS)
C1
0.01
m
F
GIVEN: ALPHA, F
SET C1 = C2 = C
ALPHA = 2/(N^0.5) = 1/Q
N = 4/(ALPHA)^2 = R2/R1
R1 = 1/(2*PI*F*C* (N^0.5))
R2 = N*R1
1kHz BW SHOWN
OUT
7
5
6
R = R1+R2
Z
f
(LOW PASS)
GIVEN: ALPHA, F
SET R1 = R2 = R
ALPHA = 2/(M^0.5) = 1/Q
N = 4/(ALPHA)^2 = C2/C1
PICK C1
C1 = M*C1
R = 1/(2*P1*F*C1* (M^0.5))
1kHz BW SHOWN
IN
R2
11k
V
(11.254k
V
)
C2
0.01
m
F
0.1
m
F
C1
0.02
m
F
OUT
U1B
OP279
R1
11k
V
(11.254k
V
)
a. High Pass
b. Low Pass
Figure 35. 2-Pole Unity-Gain Sallen Key HP/LP Filters
A Single-Supply Headphone Amplifier
Because of its high speed and large output drive, the OP279
makes for an excellent headphone driver, as illustrated in
Figure 34. Its low supply operation and rail-to-rail inputs and
outputs give a maximum signal swing on a single +5 V supply.
T o insure maximum signal swing available to drive the head-
phone, the amplifier inputs are biased to V+/2, which is in this
case 2.5 V. T he 100 k
resistor to the positive supply is equally
split into two 50 k
with their common point bypassed by
10
μ
F to prevent power supply noise from contaminating the
audio signal.
16
V
50k
V
220
m
F
LEFT
HEADPHONE
10
m
F
50k
V
50k
V
100k
V
10
m
F
LEFT
INPUT
+V + 5V
1/2
OP279
16
V
50k
V
220
m
F
RIGHT
HEADPHONE
10
m
F
50k
V
50k
V
100k
V
10
m
F
RIGHT
INPUT
+V
+V + 5V
1/2
OP279
Figure 34. A Single-Supply, Stereo Headphone Driver
T he audio signal is then ac-coupled to each input through a
10
μ
F capacitor. A large value is needed to ensure that the
20 Hz audio information is not blocked. If the input already has
the proper dc bias, then the ac coupling and biasing resistors are
not required. A 220
μ
F capacitor is used at the output to couple
the amplifier to the headphone. T his value is much larger than
that used for the input because of the low impedance of the
headphones, which can range from 32
to 600
. An addi-
tional 16
resistor is used in series with the output capacitor to
protect the op amp’s output stage by limiting capacitor dis-
charge current. When driving a 48
load, the circuit exhibits
less than 0.02% T HD+N at low output drive levels (not
shown). T he OP279’s high current output stage can drive this
heavy load to 4 V p-p and maintain less than 1% T HD+N.
Active Filters
Several active filter topologies are useful with the OP279.
Among these are two popular architectures, the familiar Sallen-
K ey (SK ) voltage controlled voltage source (VCVS) and the
multiple feedback (MFB) topologies. T hese filter types can be
arranged for high pass (HP), low pass (LP), and bandpass (BP)
filters. T he SK filter type uses the op amp as a fixed gain voltage
follower at unity or a higher gain, while the MFB structure uses
it as an inverting stage. Discussed here are simplified, 2-pole
forms of these filters, highly useful as system building blocks.