Model 1 Preamplifier

Schulz Model 1

1982. The Burmester 808 was the spark.

The Burmester 808 left a lasting impression. Its control design became one point of reference. Model 1 itself went its own way.

Model 1 was built as a dual-mono preamplifier. Two identical circuit boards sit one above the other, one for each channel, while the power supply is housed in a separate chassis.

Schulz Model 1

The large controls were inspired by the Burmester 808.

Schulz Model 1

The volume controls took a different path. A stereo master control set the listening level, while separate left and right level controls allowed the balance to be adjusted independently. Rotary switches and individual resistors were used instead of conventional potentiometers. At the time, stepped level controls of this kind were still unusual in hi-fi.

Schulz Model 1

Finding the right resistor values for the stepped volume control was another matter. Today it would take seconds on a computer. In 1982, the solution came from logarithmic graph paper: draw a straight line, read off the values.

Schulz Model 1

Three line inputs. Separate MM and MC phono. Tape out. External power supply.

Schulz Model 1

Model 1 was built as a two-box preamplifier. Its power supply was housed in a separate chassis, kept away from the audio circuitry.

Schulz Model 1

Both chassis were made by hand in a small basement workshop. Each steel panel was filed to final size, stripped of mill scale and polished by hand for chrome plating. The two enclosures alone took around three months to make.

AC came in here; DC went out to the preamplifier.

Schulz Model 1

A separate chassis helped keep magnetic fields, heat and mechanical interference away from the audio circuitry

Schulz Model 1

Built in 1982. Still working.