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I was out of beginner's luck this time round as it didn't work first time. After a late session of multimeter testing I got it working - dodgy solder joints being the culprit.
I get everything else from rs,cpc,rapid, bitsbox, banzai, diyguitarpedals.au and pedalhacker electronics for mojotastic bits
Here's the problem I'm having with the Jan Ray clone:
The Jan Ray clone is this one - http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/vemuram-jan-ray.html - but it only gives distortion when the Bass pot is turned all the way to the right (actually from about 80% to 100%). If the Bass is, say, centred then the Gain control does nothing (except it seems to lose some treble when turned to the left). The trimpot on the vero also has to be all the way to the right to get any kind of distortion. The Treble and Volume pots work OK. I'm using trim-pots mounted on a breadboard instead of full 16mm pots for testing, but that shouldn't make a difference. I've double-checked all connections, solder joints, and components. Looking at the schematic I can't see how this could be like this.
Meanwhile, a shipment of a variety of pre-painted Hammond enclosures and other components has arrived so I can continue with the Deep Blue Delay clone and the Skreddy Lunar Module Deluxe.
Paint is still curing on the Timmy enclosure...tomorrow I'll clear coat it, wait another day and assemble it.
I think I've caught the pedal building bug ;-)
Now to clear coat the Timmy enclosure...
And here are the guts of this cool cat:
It's a pedal in honour of our musicologist cat, Jasper (or Jazzy as we called him), who sadly had to depart to a higher plane last summer. Jazzy would offer advice on the tones, pedals and guitars he did or didn't approve of by either curling up on the chair and making a small buzzing sound, or exiting the building. Thus the control names of "Shout" (Volume), "Buzz" (Drive), "Scratch" (Treble) and "Purr" (Bass).
The paint job is...not so brilliant. One thing I learnt the hard way is DON'T DO YOUR OWN SPRAY PAINTING! It cost me a week in wasted time waiting for the primer, paint and clear coat to dry; and the Rustoleum paint is actually pretty poor. I had grand ideas of elaborate designs with the Posca pens but in the end I just wanted to get on with it. Next pedals are going to be pre-painted.
Today, I assembled and connected all of the outboard hardware, and fired it up and it works a treat. Very pleased.
So, I did it. I completed my C18Q1 challenge of learning some (basic) electronics and building a pedal. I've learnt a hell of a lot with the help of all who commented in this thread, and especially @Adam_MD, @Danny1969, and @m_c. So thanks to you all! :-)
And now I've caught the pedal building bug, I'm working on the enclosure for the Lunar Module Deluxe Fuzz, and then the Deep Blue Delay...
Well done indeed
Welcome to the club it’s particularly addictive and really satisfying to play with a board full of pedals you made yourself.
If you fancy some interesting powder coated enclosures at some point head over to Banzai they’re based in Germany and do some great colours if you want something other than white, black, blue or red etc
https://www.banzaimusic.com/B-Size/
Black sparkle is my current fav
I have a quick question about the quality of some capacitors I bought on ebay.
These are them - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Radial-Electrolytic-Capacitors-120-Pack-10-each-12-values-Kit-Assortment-Mix-UK/111246171219?hash=item19e6c9dc53:g:yQkAAOSweW5VJcWl
The bundle consists of different manufacturers names depending on the value. There is "Chengx", "Chenxing", "Jwco", "Chongx", "DS" and something else I can't read. Are these cheap and nasty caps? Should I be worried that they might crap out on me?
I always buy capacitors from reliable sources, as it avoids any doubt as to source and quality. They may work perfectly well, but then they might not. Only way to know, would be to test them for capacitance, and ESR. But neither of those will tell you what voltage they are actually capable of.
With electros I only ever use Nichicon or Panasonic and always use the mini sizes either 5mm or 7mm in height.
As for ceramic caps, I know @Adam_MD you said to use NP0 or C0G ceramic types, but Bitsbox only does a limited range of values. For example, they don't have 150pF, 220pF or 470pF values. Do you know where to get a wider range of these?
http://www.diyguitarpedals.com.au/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=12_25
The other option is you start buying in bulk from RS components or CPC in the UK. This option involves paying more up front but paying less per component. I started buying all of the parts in bulk for several pedals at a time then just buying the parts I needed after that in bulk. You'll pretty quickly build up a pretty large stash and will be able to build most pedals out of the parts you already have in stock.
If you only ever want to build a few pedals then stick to bitsbox and diyguitarpedals etc but if you decide this is the hobby for you then start buying resistors, caps etc from RS components in quantities of 100. It works out cheaper in the long run if you keep building and use them all.
I can pm you some of the part numbers I buy from RS if you want to check them out let me know.
I brought a bundle of 1uf to 1000uf 25V from an ebay shop a while ago which were pretty cheap but I've just looked at the shops only showing large values now