Hi Guys first time posting a question here. Hopefully someone can give me some insight on this issue.
I have recently made a LM386 amp for guitar everything is working fine with that, but what I wanted to do is add an LM3915 VU Meter after amplification.
The problem is I cannot find anything on the net that really answers my question. So here goes.
I have built the LM3915 meter and it is all working great (except the potentiometer doesn't seem to do anything, but that's another issue). I have tested it out with a guitar connected and an iphone (to play music) and the meter is doing exactly as expected. The problem is the LM3915 only seems to have an input stage, meaning signal goes in, but where do I connect an output stage i.e. a speaker, so I can hear the music or guitar. Does pin 5 act like an input and an output, in which case shall I just connect an output jack to pin 5 and ground as well as having the input connected to pin 5. I hope this make sense to someone. The way I imagine it is: Sound Source - Amp - VU Meter - Output.
Here is the link of the amp I made (with some changes).
and here is the LM3915 schematic that I used.
Just some extra info: I have read the datasheet for the LM3915 and I cannot get the example in the datasheet to work, I have no idea why it doesn't work. The link above is the only version I have been able to get to work.
Hopefully someone can help me understand this.
I have recently made a LM386 amp for guitar everything is working fine with that, but what I wanted to do is add an LM3915 VU Meter after amplification.
The problem is I cannot find anything on the net that really answers my question. So here goes.
I have built the LM3915 meter and it is all working great (except the potentiometer doesn't seem to do anything, but that's another issue). I have tested it out with a guitar connected and an iphone (to play music) and the meter is doing exactly as expected. The problem is the LM3915 only seems to have an input stage, meaning signal goes in, but where do I connect an output stage i.e. a speaker, so I can hear the music or guitar. Does pin 5 act like an input and an output, in which case shall I just connect an output jack to pin 5 and ground as well as having the input connected to pin 5. I hope this make sense to someone. The way I imagine it is: Sound Source - Amp - VU Meter - Output.
Here is the link of the amp I made (with some changes).
Just some extra info: I have read the datasheet for the LM3915 and I cannot get the example in the datasheet to work, I have no idea why it doesn't work. The link above is the only version I have been able to get to work.
Hopefully someone can help me understand this.