La Révolution Deux

Fred Briggs - 'Face - Fenderish Booster/Overdrive

2012-02-25T01:20:00.001Z

I really like this one, it's a booster/overdrive with a nice Fendery feel and voice to it. As you can see there are some values which you can alter on the schematic that allow you to tailor the tone to your exact needs. Firstly the supply voltage - the lower the voltage the less overall gain and clipping you'll get, more voltage = more gain and clipping. The jfet choice also makes a difference to the tone of the circuit; 2N5457s give more gain but are more compressed sounding (better for the Fender "tweed" emulation) than the MPF102s (better for the larger Fender "twin" type emulation) which have more headroom but less gain. You can use almost any jfet type in this circuit 2N5458, J201 (I didn't like these, they were too compressed and gainy - almost fuzzy!), you just need to find your type! If you want to learn a little about jfet's and their properties check out this article over at runoffgroove: http://www.runoffgroove.com/fetzervalve.html. Finally the 3n3 tone cap can be altered to your preference, a higher value will lower the high end gain, a lower value will allow more high end drive.

In my final build I'll be using MPF102 jfets running at 18V with a 4n7 tone cap to keep the high end under control. This setup provides a nice "cranked twin" tone and is really dynamic and reactive to your playing, a decent low end is retained while it still fizzes out at higher gains.

I took inspiration from a range of sources for this little circuit; firstly this patent from 1943: http://www.muzique.com/amz/SRPP.pdf

And this microphone preamp (1997):

And one of Tim Escobedo's excellent circuit snippets - the Syrupp Booster (2002):

All comments are welcome, for the freestompboxes.org topic check here: http://www.freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=16321

WIP - Projects in the pipe line!

2012-02-24T11:14:00.000Z

Ok, so I've got a few projects in the pipeline. First up is a continuation of my work with boosters - I've already published the "'64 Vintage" (a Vox voiced boost/overdrive), I've got the "E11even" (A Marshall voiced booster/overdrive) and the "'Face" (A Fender voiced booster/Overdrive) to release soon. I really like these three designs and I've been building them in conjunction with each other to ensure that they stack really nicely. When you've got all three you can interchange their positions and settings for all sorts of great overdrive tones :-)

Also on the bench is my version of the much acclaimed Fulltone OCD, which is probably one of the most popular boutique pedals ever. The Briggs version is super versatile with diode switching options, a saturation control, bass and treble controls, a boost control and an option to switch between 9V and 18V, all the old OCD tones are there but the options to go crazy and craft your own sound are huge. I'll be putting this one up in the next few days!

So that's what's coming up - is there anything else you lot would like to see? Any custom designs or interesting concepts? I'm open to suggestions!

Toxic Pedals Muddy Drive = Another repainted JOYO Ultimate Drive...

2012-02-24T00:02:00.000Z

Ala Freakish Blues the people behind "Toxic Pedals" have gone and done the "buy cheap JOYO clones, repainted/rebrand them and then sell them on as your own." trick. It turns out the Toxic Pedals "Muddy Drive" is the Joyo "Ultimate Drive" (Which is itself a clone of the Fulltone OCD/Voodoo Labs Overdrive) which has been repainted and had a few values on the circuit board switched. Here's some images of the Toxic Pedals "Copenhagen Muddy Drive":

Here's an image of the Muddy Drive (on the left) compared to the Joyo "Ultimate Drive" (on the right):

And if that's not enough here's an image of the top side of the Muddy Drive PCB:

Now, there's nothing technically/legally wrong with doing this. I just think it's a bit cheeky, wouldn't you agree?

Here's the topic on freestompboxes.org: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=16287

Klon - Buffer

2012-02-22T11:32:00.001Z

People like the Klon, they like anything to do with the Klon. People have been building up the Buffer section of the Klon and selling them as a standalone unit. Well, there's the schematic of the buffer section and here's a vero layout from Mcaviel:

Now many people ask me why use a buffer? What does it do? The short answer is that if you use 1) Long cables or 2) Lots and lots of true bypass fx or 3) Low input impedance FX (Fuzzes, Wahs) then you are probably experience "Tone suck" - a loss of high end "sparkle" with your tone. A Buffer can be used to counteract this when used in the correct position. For an excellent article covering buffers and their use check out this: http://screaminfx.com/tech/why-and-when-to-use-a-guitar-buffer-pedal.htm

Pete Cornish - LD-1 - Buffer

2012-02-20T11:38:00.002Z

Pete Cornish doesn't like true bypass: http://petecornish.co.uk/case_against_true_bypass.html

So inside all of his pedals he includes a buffer to aid the switching process and act as a line driver for the remainder of the pedal chain. He sells these individually as the LD-1 (and LD-3 with the mute switch and tuner output).

Here's a description from the Cornish Website:

"Our low noise discrete component Class A pre-amplifier has been specifically designed to overcome the problems often encountered with amplification of Electric Instruments fitted with magnetic transducers.

A frequent cause of these problems is the mismatch of the impedance in the electrical circuit between the pickup and subsequent equipment: this mismatch has been completely eliminated with the introduction of our LD-1™ Line Driver.

The input impedance is identical to a high quality tube amplifier and our Class A Pre-amplifier also features a highly effective RF filter which will help prevent interference from nearby radio transmitters.

The pickup output should be connected directly to the LD-1™ input with a low loss, screened cable; the LD-1™ output can now be fed to any effects or volume pedals (if used) and then on to the amplifier, using fully screened cables throughout.

A further use of the LD-1™ is to isolate long cable feeds which can cause signal and tone losses at the end of an effects chain, particularly if the final effect has a high impedance output (for instance a 250KW foot volume pedal). When using many effects it can be beneficial to add a LD-1™ mid way along the chain thus preventing a build up of signal losses that can occur with mismatched impedances between effects."

Well, someone's taken a few Pete Cornish pedals apart and here's the schematic for the buffer:

And here's a vero layout from IvIark (http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com):

Colorsound - Power Boost / Overdriver

2012-02-19T21:22:00.002Z

[Colorsound Overdriver]

[Colorsound Power Boost]

This is the classic pedal for that Beck/Gilmour tone. Build one - you won't be disappointed! Look - here's Jeff Beck with his:

Here's the Colorsound description:

"So what's the difference between the Power Boost and the Overdriver ?? Um . . . .nothing ! Except the case . The Power Boost was born in the late sixties - the idea was to give guitarists a boost . . . . . in power , and it did ! Guess it was just luck that when you turned the pedal up full it sounded like the best stack ever ! We we're really popular with glaziers in those days , windows were shattering right accross London ! Then the pedal was taken to the Dallas trade show where it was given a huge standing ovation ( like clapping - the guitars hadn't been invented yet ) and a bunch of flowers - you see the American market was ready for the sound but felt it looked a bit too . . . well . . .orange .

So , it was rehoused in a grey hammerite case , called the Overdriver , Jeff beck made 'Blow by Blow' with it , and the rest , as they say , is a mystery . . I mean history ! Recently I was lucky enough to be presented with three , unused Power Boosts circa 1968 - they we're still in their packing , never been sold - they sounded just great - just like a new one ! No kidding - I A/b tested the pedals old and new and blindfolded I couldn't tell the difference . . . well I could have felt for the master volume - we have added that - windows are expensive these days !"

And a demo video of the Powerboost/Overdriver in action:

Here's some gut shots:

And the schematics of the different variations there have been over the years:

And here's a vero layout for the Overdriver:

Here's a great article covering all aspects of the Overdriver/Power Boost: http://www.kitrae.net/music/Music_mp3_Colorsound_Sound.html

And the forum topic on freestompboxes for extra tips and discussion: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1153

Univox - Super Fuzz

2012-02-19T14:48:00.000Z

"This is my Fuzz pedal. There are many others like it, but this one is mine. My Fuzz pedal is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my Fuzz pedal is useless. Without my Fuzz pedal, I am useless. I must play my Fuzz pedal true. I must play harder than my enemy, who is trying to outfuzz me. I must outfuzz him before he outfuzzes me. I will. Before God I swear this creed: my Fuzz pedal and myself are defenders of Rock 'n Roll, we are the masters of our enemy, we are the saviors of my life. So be it, until there is no enemy, but peace. Amen." - Fred Briggs, 19/02/2012.

The Univox Superfuzz is an absolute classic - it's buzzsaw power fuzz tone has been employed by many of Rock's greatest guitarists. One of the best known users of the Superfuzz was Pete Townshend of The Who - he used it for that classic big box fuzz tone on his later records and was the reason his tone sounded so damn good on the "Live at Leeds" recording.

Here's some more info from thewho.net regarding Pete Townshends use of the Super Fuzz:

"The U-1093/U-1095 Univox Super-Fuzz fuzz pedal represents a key part of Pete Townshend’s classic stage sound. He used versions of the Univox Super-Fuzz between 1968 and 1978. You can hear the effect clearly in recordings from this era — the signature “buzz saw” sound during leads and rave-up outros.

Pete began using the Super-Fuzz in late 1968, likely November or December, with the first documented occasion being the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus in Wembley on 11 Dec. 1968, which also represents Pete’s and John’s first known use of their Hiwatt-badged Sound City stacks.

Prior to this, he used a variety of fuzz pedals in his setup, including the Sola Sound Tone Bender in 1965/66, Marshall Supa Fuzz in 1967–68, as well as employing a Grampian spring reverb unit for distortion in 1967–68, and, most recently as the August 1968 U.S. tour, the Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face.

He used the first version of the Univox Super-Fuzz, the metal grey version, on stage from late 1968 to mid- to late-1971, when he switched to the reddish-orange die-cast version with the large pedal surface. He used this version until 1978, where the last use of the pedal was 15 May 1978, at the Shepperton show filmed for The Kids Are Alright."

And here's an image of him stomping on it:

Rock and F**king Roll!!

Here's yet more info taken from the Univox Super Fuzz wikipedia article:

"Origin

The circuit was designed in the late 1960s by the Japanese company Shin-ei, (who also produced another well known fuzz box, the Shin-ei Companion FY-2) and manufactured in Japan by Unicord. The first Super-Fuzzes were made in 1968, and production continued until the late 70s.

Design

The first units were made in a simple stamped sheet metal box, painted grey, with a blue Univox sticker on the top. Around 1970 production was changed to a die-cast metal box, with a large pedal featuring a rubber cover that had the words "Super-Fuzz" embossed on it. The first die cast units were either grey or black, with a green or black foot pedal. Around 1973 or so, they were all produced with an orange pedal, with a green or blue foot pedal. The later models also featured an internal trim pot for controlling the octave balance.

Alternative manufacturers

Although the Univox is the most well known incarnation of this circuit, Shin-ei licensed this circuit out to dozens of manufacturers, including Ibanez, Apollo, Companion, Shaftsbury, Mica, JAX, Kent, Teisco, Marlboro, Royal, and many others. With a slightly altered input stage, the circuit is identical to the Ibanez Standard Fuzz. Sometimes it was packaged with a wah pedal, or with the tone switch being a footswitch, or both. This circuit is also very similar to the famous Fender Blender and Roland Bee Baa. More recent applications of this circuit type can be found in Guyatone's TZ-2 Fuzz, MJM China Fuzz, Black Candy Superfuzz Deluxe, Prescription Electronics' OUTBOX, BOSS's FZ-2 HYPER Fuzz, and others, although most tend to agree the newer versions do not sound quite the same.

Sound

This unique fuzz tone is an octave fuzz using two germanium diodes to produce the square wave clipping. The controls are 'Balance' (volume), 'Expander' (fuzz amount), a two position 'tone' switch, and an on/off footswitch on top. There are two unique features of this device that set it apart from other distortion and fuzz pedals. The first is that the full-wave rectification of the circuit produces an upper octave as well as a slight lower octave. This also gives the sound a lot of compression and gives a mild ring modulator effect. The second unique feature is a tone switch that engages a 1khz filter that "scoops" the mids, giving a very fat, almost bassy tone, unique to this circuit.

Today, the Super-Fuzz is being manufactured under the name "Classic Fuzz" by Wattson Classic Electronics, which is in no way associated with Univox, Unicord, or any of the original companies that manufactured the Super-Fuzz. Other versions of the Super-Fuzz circuit are available from boutique companies like 73 Effects and Black Cat.

Super-Fuzz users

Notable musicians who have used the Super-Fuzz include:
Pete Townshend of The Who
Poison Ivy of The Cramps
Mark Arm and Steve Turner of Mudhoney
J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.
Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins (Although he was much more famous for using the Fender Blender and the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff)
Fu Manchu
Adam Yauch of Beastie Boys
Hillel Slovak of Red Hot Chili Peppers
Joe Preston of Thrones
Tony McPhee of The Groundhogs
Kurt Cobain of Nirvana (Although he mainly used the BOSS DS-1 and DS-2.)
Josh Homme of Them Crooked Vultures, Queens of the Stone Age and Kyuss
Chris Walla of Death Cab for Cutie
Gary Louris of The Jayhawks [1]
Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys uses the Ibanez Standard Fuzz, a nearly identical circuit in an altered housing."

And if you still need extra help understanding how this monster sounds here's a nice demo (It's one of the older grey models):

And here's how one that isn't so battered looks (I much prefer the look of the orange ones!):

Pretty damn awesome! Now, you're gonna want to build one now - here's the Super Fuzz schematic and some close relatives:

Here's a schematic for the Ibanez Fuzz Wah that is very similar:

And the Boss Hyper Fuzz FZ-2:

[Here you can see the control layout]

[nice tidy insides!]

And here's a great clone of the original circuit board from http://members.fortunecity.com/uzzfay/home.html :

Alternately if you don't like PCBs here's a great vero from Mike Livesley:

Here's a great post from mictester that answers some common Super Fuzz questions:

"LucifersTrip wrote:
I finally got around to reading this killer thread...Excuse me if I missed it here somewhere, but I was just curious about a couple things I didn't come across that I was surprised wasn't discussed.

1) What would be a typical hfe of a 2SC539 and 2SC828 in an original Superfuzz?
(my guide shows 90-700 for the 2SC539 and 65-700 for the 2SC828, which is a large range)

- The 539 had a slightly better noise spec. The 828 seemed to be almost any old transistor that came off the line and they couldn't fit into any particular category! In my experience, the circuit works best with high hfe for the first two transistors and lower for the rest. I used BC109Cs for the first two transistors and then a CA3046 for the rest. Sounds really good!

LucifersTrip wrote:
2) Since there are 2 different transistors (2SC539 for Q1,4,5,6 and 2SC828 for Q2,3) used according to the schematic,
why does it seem everyone is subbing all the same transistors for Q1-Q6?

- The types aren't too critical, though it helps if the long-tailed pair are matched and the resistors around them are matched too - you get much more octave that way. Almost any silicon transistors will work well in this circuit!

LucifersTrip wrote:
3) Did anyone try any germanium subs (and re-bias) for any of the transistors?

- There's no point. It wouldn't sound much different, and it would be quite temperature sensitive. The biggest change you can get is by using silicon instead of germanium diodes for the clipper!"

For more info check out the great thread on the freestompboxes.org forum: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=3354

Barber - Dirty Bomb

2012-02-18T21:57:00.002Z

Culturejam took one of these apart over at freestompboxes ages ago, I thought I'd add the project here just to keep things ticking.

Here's the description from the Barber website:

"Extremely versatile, high gain distortion, provides wider range of stellar tones.

From ultra chunky, to scooped and back to thick again.

Toggle switch selects mid range character for three distinct modes.

Sweet and powerful Vintage two band E.Q.

Internal adjustable Bass Boost for powerful sub frequencies.

True bypass footswitch delivers clarity when bypassed.

All hand wired in the USA, traditional award winning Barber layout and wiring.

Cascading FET circuit, with MOSFET distortion for incredibly realistic tube quality sounds. "

Ok, now here's an internal gutshot for you:

And a schematic drawn by Culturejam:

As you can see from the gutshot the build quality is top notch. However I'm not sure what they mean "by cascaded FETs". Hmm. It's basically a Marshall Shredmaster with Mosfet clipping diodes...

It does sound nice though:

Now, what you need to do it go and build a Marshall Shredmaster with switchable diode clipping options..

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum topic for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5592

Skreddy - Lunar Module

2012-02-18T21:06:00.000Z

[The three knob standard Lunar Module]

[5 knob Deluxe Lunar Module]

Marc Alfs of Skreddy pedals is a top builder, he creates some of the best "Pink Floyd" tones there are out there. Here's the description from the Skreddy website:

"The Skreddy Pedals™ Lunar Module was designed for "that" certain silicon fuzz tone guitar solo I fell in love with on a best-selling 1973 album [sic - Dark side of the Moon!]. I intentionally voiced this thing aggressively so it will cut through any mix. Very satisfying and addictive "vintage" fuzz tone.

Unlike typical silicon fuzzes, which can sound thin and raspy, the Lunar Module has a dense sound that can be darkened to taste.

Classic late 60's/early 70's fuzz tones with extra control, versatility, and added noise reduction. Using 3 transistors instead of 2, a pre-distortion bass control, and a post-distortion treble control, the Lunar Module yields a multitude of uses."

And here's a description of the controls:

"Controls:

Volume - This sets the output volume. You can adjust your Skreddy Pedal to roughly the same volume as your bypass signal (i.e.; “unity gain”) or you can boost your signal for a fatter tone.

Fuzz - Takes you from gritty, touch-sensitive overdrive all the way to aggressive, saturated, slightly sick fuzz. Warning: it can get noisy at high settings.

Body - Dials in the amount of bass going into the fuzz section, for everything from tight overdrive to full-voiced distortion to thick, nasty fuzz. Warning: it can get noisy at low settings.

Brite - You can get more brilliance and “hair” or make it darker and smoother, to suit your amp and taste.

Range - Sets the gain of the input transistor. Turned all the way up, the Lunar Module will be fuzzier and more aggressive, but also noisier. Turned lower, there will be a darker, tamer response. I tend to like it about 20% backed off from max."

And here's a demo of the Lunar Module in action:

You've got to admit it sounds pretty damn good! Marc really does wring the best tones possible out of his circuits...

Well, the schematic is available thanks to Marc himself:

As you can see it's basically the same as his Screwdriver with parts substitutions but don't dismiss, they mke a big difference (Marc is well know for being very particular about his parts selection and actually uses it as an integral part of his design philosophy). Now go and build one using this vero layout by gilmour_pugliese and play Dark Side of the Moon over and over and over again:

And here's the freestompboxes.org forum topic for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6270

Tone Monk - Seed of Life

2012-02-18T00:40:00.000Z

Tone Monk effects have been around for a while now. He's run into a little trouble recently: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15903 (The shortened version is that he's been building lots and lots of "his circuits" using PCBs he's blagged for a knock down price from Madbean (and possibly General Guitar Gadgets) by pretending he was using them in an educational manner *AND* that all his circuits are ripped off - but that's nothing new now is it!). However, the Tone Monk pedals are still very popular so I thought I'd cover a few! First up the "Seed of Life", here's the official Tone Monk description:

"Our Seed of Life Professional Overdrive was developed for guitarists to end their ultimate quest for tone. In the beginning of 2010 we released our Seed of Life VII and took the circuit a few steps further. There are several features in the circuit of the Seed of Life that allow you to actually control your tone. An Input control that controls your input the way a tube preamp does. With the texture options and controls of this pedal you have the power to shape your tone in ways you have never heard it before. The 3-way texture switch offers an array of saturations from transparent to colored tube driven qualities. The Form EQ control allows you to roll off high end frequencies at half the rate that it accentuates low-mid frequencies, in reaction to the texture you choose, to 'form' your over all tone. The drive control works as gain drive saturation. All controls interact with each other, so you can literally get thousands of sweet spots and finally have the ability to create your own sound. The Lush/Fat option allows you to choose between the standard rich tone of the Seed of Life and a wider tonal option. Many players who use a combination of Humbucking, Single coil, and P90 pickups find this feature to be extremely useful and a breeze to compensate for the change in pickup output/tone on the fly without having to actually change the tonal settings on the pedal. All of our pedals are hand built, one by one, and include: A combination of silver, lead free, and rosin core solders where needed in the circuit. No PC mounted potentiometers, switches or jacks- everything hand wired. 22 gauge silver/copper/tin wiring where needed for minimal resistance and proper conductivity. WIMA, Panasonic, and Xicon (electrolytic) capacitors. All tested. All properly matched diodes. CLIFF Switches and Switchcraft Jacks."
Here's the Pro Guitar Shop demo:

So what's inside? Well have a look:

And another:

AAAAAANNNNNNDDddddddd it's a Tubescreamer built on a General Guitar Gadget's PCB: http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/projects/17-distortion/82-its8-tube-screamer-808-replica-project

If you check out the modifications sections the circuit in the Seed of Life is the same as is noted in the "Expensive Boutique Screamer", which is in fact the same as the Landgraff Dynamic Overdrive. Seiche posted this diagram on freestompboxes.org:

So there you have it, if you want to build one buy a GGG pcb and get building.

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum topic for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=15708&start=40

Colorsound / Sola Sound Tonebender MKII Professional

2012-02-12T19:22:00.001Z

The Sola Sound/Colorsound Tonebender MKII Professional is probably the second most famous Fuzz box after the Fuzz Face. It's a three transistor fuzz circuit that creates an unholy amount of gain and sustain. For an idea of how it sounds - Jimmy Page used one with his Dragon Telecaster from the Led Zeppelin 1 era, yes, it's THAT tone. Sola Sound also produced the circuit for Vox, Marshall and RotoSound. These units were named the Vox Tone Bender Professional MKII, Marshall Supa Fuzz and RotoSound Fuzz Box. For a really detailed history of the Tonebender series of pedals check out this: http://www.stompboxes.co.uk/History.html from David Main of D*A*M (A guy who really does know fuzz boxes!).

[an original Marshall Supa Fuzz]

[three original Vox Tonebenders]

[a Tonebender MKII circuit with Mullard OC81 germanium transistors]

Here's a 1968 advertisement:

And here's a receipt for Jimmy Page's Tonebenders from SolaSound!

And here's a video of the D*A*M Tonebender MKII Professional in action, I think you'll agree it sounds pretty mind/ear/sense destroying:

Now here's the schematic. Here you can see the three transistor layout. As with any simple fuzz circuits the transistor type and gain is a huge factor in deciding the overall tone of the unit. It's recommended that the gain of Q1 ~ 70hfe with Q2 ~ 70-90hfe and Q3 ~ 100-120hfe. I've built many Tonebenders with many different type of transistors. Always use a germanium transistor for Q1, then you can experiment with low gain silicon transistors. Experiment and have some fun, you'll certainly find a decent fuzz tone or two! For some more detail on exact circuit operation and mods visit: http://fuzzcentral.ssguitar.com/mkII.php

Here's a PCB layout available from Tonepad: http://www.tonepad.com/getFile.asp?id=86

References:

1) http://www.led-zeppelin.org/joomla/studio-and-live-gear/312
2) http://fuzzcentral.ssguitar.com/mkII.php
3) http://www.stompboxes.co.uk/History.html
4) http://theheliopolisofblossius.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/tone-bender-mkii-build/

Keeley - Katana Boost

2012-02-11T00:18:00.001Z

The Keeley Katana has been a popular boost pedal since it was introduced. It's circuit topology is simple yet it manages to produce everything from a small boost to add a bit of life to leads right through being able to smash the front of a tube amp into submission and natural break up. Here's the description from the Keeley website:

"As far as guitar clean boosts go, the Katana is KING TONE. It's the pedal to have for the finishing touch on your tone.

Want a mirror image of your tone, only louder? This is it. The Katana is also a fat, harmonically rich boost, just pull out on the volume knob and stretch your imagination with overdriven tone! You can keep it on all the time to push your amp harder, or as an occasional boost to cut through the mix.

Obsessed or Compelled with the Fattest, Fullest Drive? Well, Before other people started using Blue LED's and non-diode clipping stages, there was the TMB and Katana.... Cascading FET stages do the tube-amp-thing like nothing else!"

And here's a video of the Katana in action:

And here's the schematic redrawn for you:

And a nice PCB Layout by RYANUK: http://www.box.com/s/zqpak9putdef8up82m51

And the transfer: http://www.box.com/s/z6fry11n4g10dldqraug

The dual cascaded Jfet stages do sound good, the charge pump ups the voltage to 18v and gives the circuit double the gain of a similar circuit running at 9v. It does introduce it's own clipping when the 10uF cap is switched into bypass the source resistor on the first stage, I prefer the tone without the cap switched in, a possible mod would be to use a smaller cap here to introduce some treble/mid boost to the tone. I also suggest changing the 4k7 resistors for 10k trim pots to allow you to tune each jfet to it's optimal bia's point around about 1/2 V (9v in this case). Build one up, they sound pretty decent for such an easy build!

Here's the Freestompboxes.org forum topic for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=2946

Fred Briggs - '64 - Vintage Vox Tones Galore!

2012-02-10T22:24:00.001Z

Here's another (nearly) new one from me. It's a tricked out super mod of the old Electro Harmonix LPB-1 circuit that produces some lovely singing overdrive tones reminiscent of an old VOX from their 1960's heyday. I took the Lovepedal Englishman (A supposed Vox AC30 / AC15 emulator) as a base and went from there - Firstly I wanted a little more gain, hence the 4k7 collector resistor. Along with more gain I wanted more emphasis and clipping on the higher mids to replicate that treble laden Vox overdrive hence the 82nF bypass cap and the 47k/22nF mids filter at the end of the circuit. These changes make the circuit sound livelier and give it more character. The use of the *super* low forward voltage SB340 diode in combo with the BAT46 diode produces harmonically rick asymmetrical clipping, the levels of which can be controlled using the "Headroom" control. The headroom control also allows a nice rich low end to be retained while allowing the top end to be clipped, as you roll back the clipping a nice tube like "note attack sag" effect becomes prominent - it's quite pleasing and cool to play with. The use of the 2N3565 transistor is due to some tests carried out a while ago where it was found that the 2N3565 sounded best in these sort of applications, you can replace it with a 2N5088 or BC108 or, in fact, any decent gain NPN transistor.

Here's the schematic for you:

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum thread where there's some discussion on the design: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=16153

Here's some images of the finished pedal:

Classic vintage Vox tones. You'll notice this version has a diode switch installed which is basically the same as the Lovepedal Englishman's set up (But instead of the dual BAT 46, there's the BAT 46/SB340 combo) that lets you alter the diode settings between BAT 46, 1N4148 and nothing. The switch is used in series with the "Headroom" control to add an extra dimension of tones..

Nick Greer - Sucker Punch

2012-02-09T23:56:00.000Z

Here's another Nick Greer box for you, this time it's something with a little more grit - the Sucker Punch. Here's the description from the Nick Greer website:

"The Sucker Punch is a high gain, thick, meaty true distortion pedal. The pedal utilizes it's own preamp and "power amps" in order to achieve distortion. This allows the pedal to achieve distortion reminiscent of the crunch of a vintage Marshall Lead with power tubes on their warm, glowing death bed. The pedal is not limited, however, to just high gain crunch tones. Players will find a wide range of gain settings on tap, from light/medium amp-like breakup all the way to full on distortion."

And here's a demo of the Sucker Punch in action:

Spaceace76 took one to pieces (with the help of another part I understand) and traced a schematic:

The cap marked "???" is 100nF. It's another 386 distortion with a jfet booster in front. As I've said before I'm not a fan of 386 based distortions due to the nasty decay on the notes - some people like them though... But then again some people do listen to Death Metal ;-)

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum topic for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7290

Nick Greer - Ghetto Stomp

2012-02-09T23:42:00.002Z

Nick Greer is better known for his amplifiers than he is for his FX, he has produced a few that do interest people though. Luckily the forum folk over at freestompboxes have taken them apart and had a little look. Firstly here's a description of the Ghetto Stomp from the Nick Greer site:

"Three knobs sit atop this beautiful pedal. Imagine a pedal that actually sounds and feels like natural amp breakup! If it's Tweed, or old Valco tones you seek look no further. Classic tones, very responsive to the guitar's volume knob. Can also work very well to tame a loud amp. This pedal goes in the range of fuzz and distortion, while retaining the feel of natural tube amp breakup and sag. Gain, Tone, and Level knobs allow the player a great amount of flexibility. This pedal is wonderful in meshing with one's current overdrive sound and can even be used as a rhythm distortion. Fat and lovely, this is the player's pedal."

And here's a quick demo video of the Ghetto in action:

Well soniciv took his Ghetto stomp apart and traced the schematic:

And here's a gut shot (Don't get me started on that black tape!):

As you can see from the schematic it's another Electra Distortion derivative. What can I say? They do produce some good tones when used in conjunction with a decent amp!

IVIark from tagboardeffects.blogspot.com has produced this vero layout for the Ghetto Stomp:

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum thread for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3984

Just saw this - oh the irony!

2012-02-09T15:33:00.002Z

The man himself would turn in his grave!

Lovepedal - Black Magic Distortion

2012-02-09T11:36:00.003Z

Here's the Lovepedal Black Magic (the photo shows a pedal board with the Black Magic in the top right corner). There is only sparse information on these around on the internet but from what I've managed to cobble together it was a pretty old design that was an attempt to get some Eddie Van Halen "Brown Sound" tones. Greg over at freestompboxes.org picked one up and duly traced it out. Here's the schematic:

As you can see it's a very simple 386 based distortion, some people reckon it's based on Aron Nelson's "Smash Drive" circuit:

To be honest the circuit is so simple it's hard to tell if it is or isn't. Personally I don't like the sound of this thing, the distortion is crackly and the decay is gated and unmusical - I can see why Sean took it out of production pretty quickly!

Here's a vero layout by mcaviel, it's unverified but a quick check suggests it's OK:

Here's the freestompboxes.org forum thread for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=12735

Lovepedal - Pedal list

2012-02-09T11:16:00.002Z

Here's an interesting image that shows the Lovepedal product line and their deviations and similarities. Johann Burkard. It's a couple of years old now and pretty out of date. But you can add items to it with the Freemind Mind Mapping software. Check out the original post and make additions to it here:

http://johannburkard.de/blog/music/effects/lovepedal-pedal-list.html

Kurt Cobain - Nirvana Gear

2012-02-06T01:04:00.003Z

[NOTE - This post includes projects for the BOSS DS-1, ProCo RAT, Electro Harmonix Big Muff Pi, the Electro Harmonix Small Clone Chorus and the Little Angel Chorus]

Kurt Cobain - arguably the last great Rock star. In 1991 Nirvana's Nevermind changed the face of guitar music for good. The sound was pretty much unstoppable with the aggressive roar of Kurt's overdriven tones softly complimented by the chorusy wobble and jangle of his clean licks. Kurt used a wide range of gear and it's nearly impossible to pinpoint exactly what gear he was using at what point during his career, however with a little research I've come up with a DIY guide to building your own Kurt Cobain pedalboard so you too can sound like the King of Grunge. The equipment I've chosen (FX pedals) were used mainly in Nirvana's Nevermind period...

Kurt used a range of guitars but by the time he came to record Nevermind he'd settled on the cheaper Fender models for his main sound; the Fender Mustang and Jaguar are now synonymous with Kurt but any guitar with a humbucker installed in the bridge position and a single coil elsewhere will be able to produce his tones.

His main preamp was a Mesa Boogie Studio .22, these were run into Crown Power Base 2 power amplifiers. Kurt used these to drive anything from a single stack to four 8x12 stacks (depending on the size of the venue). To get Kurt's tones you're going to at least need a closed back 4x12 cab, anything less and you just won't get the required air movement and low end thump. The preamp was set fairly clean, this allowed Kurt to use his distortion boxes to generate all of his signature aggressive distortion tones.

Here's an image of Kurt Cobain's stage rig from around 1992:

As you can see it's pretty simple - a BOSS DS-1 Distortion box into an Electro Harmonix Small Clone Chorus Pedal. However, it is also known that Kurt used a ProCo RAT and an Electro Harmonix Big Muff during the recording of Nevermind.

[One of the best album covers ever?]

In this guide I'm going to offer projects to build a BOSS DS-1 Distortion, a ProCo Rat and an Electro Harmonix Big Muff. I will also provide a project for the Electro Harmonix Small Clone but will also cover a project detailing the construction of a simpler Chorus circuit (some of the parts in the original Small Clone are now quite rare and hard to purchase).

So, first up is the BOSS DS-1 Distortion:

It's an age old classic and produces that pronounced nasaly distortion and clipping which became Kurt's go to heavy tone. There's a great project for the BOSS DS-1 Distortion over at tonepad.com here: http://www.tonepad.com/getFile.asp?id=78

And here's a schematic for reference:

Next comes the ProCo RAT. Personally I like the RAT more than the DS-1, it's got a slightly more open tone and isn't as nasal:

Again there is a great project on the tonepad site, check it here: http://www.tonepad.com/getFile.asp?id=89

And a great schematic taken from a tracing of a RAT produced in 1986 (About the right era!):

A massive part of the RAT sound is the diode type. You can change the 1N4148 for anything really, I like red LEDs in mine, Mosfets setup as diode clippers also sound decent. For the Nirvana tone go with the 1N4148s.

Next the Electro Harmonix Big Muff Pi. The Big Muff has been a firm favourite for distortion mongers since the 70s and it's one of my favourite pedals. It creates a smooth, compressed distortion sound like no other pedal I've heard before.

Once again we're off to tonepad.com for our project file: http://www.tonepad.com/getFile.asp?id=94

And a reference schematic:

Finally we're onto the choice of Chorus pedal. Kurt used his Electro Harmonix Small Clone chorus on nearly every record he made. Come As You Are gives you a great idea of the tones the pedal can create:

The Small Clone gives the guitar that watery almost liquid effect. Now the problem with building the Small Clone is the rarity of some of the parts, the key chip is the MN3007 which are now obsolete and very expensive. They are in stock at Banzai Music but cost over 8 euros a piece: http://www.banzaimusic.com/Delay-Chips-Clock-ICs/.

Once again tonepad hosts a great project file for the Small Clone, check it out here: http://www.tonepad.com/getFile.asp?id=97

I'm going to suggest something a little different though. The "Little Angel MKII" is a simple chorus circuit designed by Rick Holt and Mictester over at freestompboxes.org. It use the common and easily attainable PT2399 delay chip as it's heart. Here's the schematic, PCB transfer and PCB layout:

There is an even simpler version available that only uses a single dual op amp presented in the Little Angel thread on freestompboxes.org here: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=10276

So there you go, put together your own Kurt Cobain / Nirvana pedal board! If you've got any questions, please email me or leave a comment :-)

Soulsonic FX - Hunny Bunny

2012-02-05T17:20:00.001Z

Soulsonic makes some cool effects. The Hunny Bunny is one of the best. He's released a schematic on the freestompboxes.org forum. First here's the description from his site:

"The Hunny Bunny is what I consider to be my first truly original design overdrive. The basic idea was to get away from the generic “Tube Screamer” style opamp+diodes concept while still having the tone-shaping character that has made that style popular.

The result is a clever hybrid of the opamp and discrete styles: an opamp does the basic tone shaping and drives a MOSFET to create a very natural overdrive.

The timbre of the overdrive is controlled by the “Honey” knob. At minimal settings, the overdrive is tight and crunchy – a very “British” voice that sounds right at home barking out classic AC/DC riffs. As it’s turned up, the overdrive gets thicker and more saturated, and when the Gain control is up high, it’s no longer appropriate to call it an overdrive because it’s become a great heavy sustaining distortion. A simple passive high-cut Tone control lets you tame down the highs if you’re playing through a bright amp."

There's a decent sound clip on his site too. Here's the schematic:

Madbean has produced this PCB layout for the Hunny Bunny: http://www.box.com/s/na1r16nka8vs4fejmgz8

The tone control is just a simple adjustable low pass filter positioned at the end of the circuit.

Top Tone - Light Drive / Pete Cornish SS-2

2012-02-04T19:27:00.002Z

Pete Cornish has been at the helm of the stompbox production queue with clientele ranginf from Lou Reed to Noel Gallagher and David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. The SS-2 is now discontinued and has been replaced with the SS-3. However the SS-2 remains a solid favourite and it looks like it's circuit secret is out and about.

Here's a demo video of the Cornish SS-2 in action (Versus the Gearmandude's [I swear this guy is Jack Black!) own 808 remake. I actually prefer the sound of the Luther Drive here...):

The Top Tone Light Drive is a straight circuit clone of the SS-2 and MWichini of the freestompboxes forum has produced this schematic of the unit:

[NOTE - The tracing of this pedal is still in progress - check out the link to the freestompboxes forum topic to check it's progress!]

As you can see it's nothing new in the world of stompbox distortion. However, this is missing one of the classic Cornish components - that input buffer he always talks about (Note this is taken from the SS-3 description):

"The input to this unique device is our universally acclaimed High Impedance, Unity Gain, Class A, Buffer Preamp with it's superior RFI rejecting capability (to eliminate Radio Station interference) and Low Impedance Audio output, allowing the use of extended cable runs from the SS-3™ in bypass mode. The fixed High Impedance load presented to the Guitar allows the pickups to operate at their optimum, even when several effects units are connected after the SS-3™. The Unity Gain Buffer also prevents "Ghost Distortion" being audible in Bypass Mode. Our effects get the most benefit from being fed into a clean, full frequency response amplifier and I recommend that when you receive your pedal you connect it up without anything else in line, just Guitar/Pedal/Amp, and discover the way the controls interact, both with themselves and the guitar/amp controls. Adding the rest of your effects, you may find that you need to make slight adjustments to these to compliment the constant signal provided by the SS-3™."

However, we've got a schematic for that too, here it is:

So basically what you've got to do is run one of those buffer circuits in front of the Light Drive circuit and you've got an SS-2.

Personally I'm not a fan of the sound of the SS-2 but I guess David Gilmour has more say on tone than myself, just ;-)

Here is the on going thread on freestompboxes.org: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=16071

Fred Briggs - Dual Band Vibrato

2012-02-04T16:27:00.000Z

Here is a new design from myself. As far as I know it's a concept that hasn't been explored before (Although the Catalinbread Harmonic Mesmeriser uses a similar technique with an LFO running with opposite phase outputs to drive dual tremolo/vibrato circuits). Essentially the signal is split into two parallel paths - one path for treble and one path for bass. Using the dual LFO setup you can set your own depth and speed for each frequency band, this makes for some really strange effects with pseudo phase shifting occurring due to the cross over in frequency bands and the resultant signal cancellations. Some settings give a clear vibrato, others sound almost "uni-viby". I like setting the bass to a slower vibrato with the treble set quite quickly, it gives a really ethereal quality to your tone. Add in a bit of delay and you're into real psychedelia!

This project is currently not finished, although it does sound damn good so far, I'm still exploring all the possibilities that this concept holds. There is a thread over at freestompboxes.org detailing it's continuing progress: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=72&t=15956

Once I've got this circuit finished I'm thinking about building a few up and sending them around as demo boxes. Yep, I like this circuit that much!

Joyo - Ultimate Drive / Freakish Blues - Alpha Drive

2012-02-04T13:29:00.001Z

Joyo (Which have been rebranded Harley Bensonpedals are all the rage around the Boutique scene at the moment. It's common knowledge that the Freakish Blues Alpha Drive is just a repainted Joyo Ultimate Drive. However, the Ultimate Drive is just a clone of the Fulltone OCD (Which itself is a close copy of the Voodoo Labs Overdrive). It's a long family tree....

Here's a demo video of them side by side:

And here's a nice clip of just the Alpha Drive:

And here's the schematic:

Now, you could build yourself an OCD clone and have done with it, or you could buy one of these for $35 and save yourself some cash:

If you want to build yourself an OCD clone check out this great project on the blog: http://revolutiondeux.blogspot.com/2008/07/fullclone-vlod-fulltone-ocd-by.html

Here's a nice post detailing some gain modifications to the Joyo circuit: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=15833

Dunlop - JH-F1 - Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face

2012-02-03T14:57:00.000Z

Jimi Hendrix, not much to say really. He invented guitar tone. Here's an offering from Dunlop that gives you the chance to recreate the awesome walls of fuzz carnage he used to create! Here's a gutshot:

And a video of this bad boy in action:

AnalogGuru traced the schematic here:

You can build it on any standard Fuzz Face PCB/Vero layout. Just make sure you make the correct parts substitutions. Have Fun, and make sure you play Purple Haze:

Zvex - Woolly Mammoth

2012-02-03T14:18:00.001Z

The Zvex Woolly Mammoth is a Bass fuzz pedal designed by the boutique virtuoso Zackary Vex. It's been in his product line for many years and has proven a popular effect for both guitarists and bass players alike.

Here's the description from the Zvex website:

"Sensitive and touchy, This bass fuzz has tremendous bottom end and a beautiful harmonic structure that sounds blistering with a guitar too..

TAMING THE BEAST

The harmonic structure can be radically altered using the "PINCH" knob. It adjusts the pulse width of the waveform.

In the leftmost position, the waveshape is quite symmetrical which produces a smooth creamy sound. Turning it up slightly introduces lovely intermodulation distortion. Turning it clockwise narrows the waveshape into asymmetrical pulses, making the tone reedier and brassier. This also introduces an unusually smooth 'gating' action, which gives you an absolutely eerie silence between notes.

At most settings you will notice that low frequency pressure is preserved. This circuit has a frequency response that continues several octaves below audibility. The subs will knock everything off of your amps, so put the the bottles on the floor. No kidding.

The "WOOL" knob adjusts the amount of fur around the note. The "EQ" knob tilts the spectral response, turning to the left adds lows and softens the highs. Turning to the right adds highs, then mids, and finally reduces lows. the "OUT" knob Is designed for smooth repeatable level settings

In our continuing effort to be friendly towards the earth, the universe and it's inhabitants; no animals were harmed during the making of this pedal.
Oh, and the circuit (designed by Chuck Zwicky) draws less than one-half of a milliampere (0.0004 amps, typical). That is less than one-hundredth the current consumption of most 'commercial' pedals, giving this pedal about as high a battery life as you can find anywhere. In fact, if you use an alkaline battery and always unplug the input cord between sessions, you may never have to change it at all!"

And a demo video of the Woolly Mammoth in action:

The schematic has been about for many years now (I believe it was one of the first on freestompboxes), here it is, traced by AnalogGuru:

As you can see it's the standard Fuzz Face layout with a few mods here and there. The large input/output caps allow more bass through, there's a Big Muff style tone control at the end of the circuit and the pinch control, which controls feedback between the two transistor gain stages.

Here's an uncredited but verified vero layout for you:

And the freestompboxes.org thread (all 26 pages of it!) for reference: http://freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=4