Banzai V2 Headamp

OK guys, ever wanted to go back to basics or just found yourself on a budget tighter than a seagull's ass?
I did the former last year and revisited a CMOY project I had lying about. After fiddling about for some time and actually building some crude prototypes that worked quite well I decided to find a cheapass commercial available kit and see how long that would get me. I stumbled upon the "Banzai V2" on eBay at 20$ and ordered it straight away.
I am well aware that PROPER CMOY's should be mounted inside an original "Altoids" can, but I wanted something a little less portable, something suited for my work desktop.
Here is the result: The BREADBOARD BANZAI!




What I did was I added a mains power supply, and by that I mean I found an old laptop charger in the shed that provides 19V. It goes into the socket on the lower left through to the switch supplied with the kit (since we are keeping this on a budget). From the switch it goes to that piece of prototyping board where magic (don't ask) happens and out comes +9V / 0 / -9V which happens to be exactly what the Banzai need to run! Power goes to the backside of the PCB to keep the visible parts nice and tidy.
Input and output sockets were replaced by better (but still cheapass) RCA sockets and a 6mm Jack socket. Although I have several Alps potentiometers lying collecting dust I decided to keep the volume control provided with the kit and that is about it.
Put it all on a piece of wood (I've got wood) and mount connectors and controls on a cheapo aluminum profile and you are ready to go. No shielding whatsoever, so pleace come by and spill your coffee in it to get a broken nose and an imprint of your teeth on my knuckles.
Job well done, I took it to my office where it currently resides.


This is my current office-setup:
Banzai V2 HeadAmp
JVC HR-900 Headphones (not modded - yet)
Creative X-Fi Surround 5.1 (not modded - yet)
I put the damn thing together and tested, sound OK though not in the same league as my M^3. Actually I found I thought I heard the sound to be "muddy"? What to do? Go through the box marked "bits'n Pieces" (don't you have one?) to find a new Op-Amp. I had an LM4562 lying around which I put in... Now we were getting somewhere and I found myself rocking my feet to the music again!