ðə sˈɪmplɚ ɡˈælvɐnˌɑːstæt kənsˈɪsts əvə hˈaɪvˈoʊltɪdʒ sˈoːɹs pɹədˈuːsɪŋ ɐ kˈɑːnstənt vˈoʊltɪdʒ wɪð ɐ ɹᵻsˈɪstɚ kənˈɛktᵻd ɪn sˈɪɹiz: ɪn ˈɔːɹdɚ tə fˈoːɹs ɐn ˈɔːlmoʊst kˈɑːnstənt kˈɜːɹənt θɹuː ɐ lˈoʊd, ðɪs ɹᵻsˈɪstɚ ʃˌæl biː mˈʌtʃ hˈaɪɚ ðɐn ðə lˈoʊd ɹᵻsˈɪstɚ .
The simpler galvanostat consists of a high-voltage source producing a constant voltage  with a resistor  connected in series: in order to force an almost constant current through a load, this resistor shall be much higher than the load resistor .