Advice to future DIYers: Don't drink a pot of coffee before you begin soldering your final project together. I usually pride myself on my soldering skills, but I'm usually not shaking due to copious caffeine consumption. Truthfully, I never figured out what went wrong with my final project. It was basically the circuit I outlined below (see "Recipe for my favorite oscillator") but I think something went wrong with the amplification area of the circuit. I thought it might be some problem with solder dots touching, but as I tried to clean it up, I made the connections progressively worse and eventually connected 5 pins of my 14093 to each other with a big blob of solder. After scraping the connections clear with a knife my circuit buzzes quietly; a pale shadow of its former self. I'll try to salvage it sometime, I don't like the idea of wasting such a wonderful chip.
Anyway, it's been an enlightening journey in DIY class. I learned a lot about electricity and sound. I got to listen to my hair. I will forever treasure my radio-shack mini-amp and the assortment of tiny electrical components which currently litter my carpet. I still think the class needs more enameled copper coils though. Many thanks to Dr. Twombly and my classmates. Have a safe and productive summer everyone!
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