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Nickosaurus
11-05-2015, 08:01 PM
Hey guys,

I've had an interest in electronics since I first starting modding my Epiphone SG installing a coil tap. Ever since then I've progressively achieved more difficult wiring (push/pull pots/series wiring/killswitches etc) and eventually built my first pedal (A/B/Y box).

Sufficient to say I've been bitten by the bug.

Whilst I'll never be an EE, after some research I've found a really cool project. It's a Beavis Board, which is essentially a break box and breadboard so you can test your prototyping through an amp without taping everything to the workbench :P Even just in researching breadboards and applying schematics to them I've learnt so much. I feel like this will be a good step towards building my own custom circuits.

Here's a pic of the breakbox design:

http://beavisaudio.com/bboard/images/io_diy.jpg

I've got almost all the parts now. Just going to Jaycar tomorrow to buy an enclosure. My end goal is to be able to prototype and design my own schems.

dave.king1
12-05-2015, 07:42 AM
I'm seriously thinking about building a Boss Slow Gear clone to add to the board, I made one from an old Electronics Australia circuit back in about 1970 ( Attack Delay Unit ).

Gave a nice violin effect without using a volume pedal.

Rabbitz
12-05-2015, 03:18 PM
Hi Dave,

Any idea what the unlabelled op-amp in the circuit is?

Nickosaurus
12-05-2015, 03:59 PM
Damn Dave that's over my head currently. I'm starting with some simple pre-amps/boosts/fuzz/ODs then when I'm more confident I'm definitely wanting to make a CH1 clone. Love that chorus

WeirdBits
12-05-2015, 04:00 PM
Just did a quick search and this page (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/PJ03BossSG1.html) has some info about it.

"The IC is a standard single op-amp, so TL071, TL081, TL061, LF441 or dozens of other IC works very well, and even better than the 741. Note the standard dual op-amps ARE NOT COMPATIBLE with this layout! This means that your lovely 4558, TL072 or LM358 will horribly die..."

Parts list (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/pjimages/BossSG1complist.txt) and schematic (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/pjimages/BossSG1Sch.gif) from above.

(I wondering the same thing)

lawry
12-05-2015, 05:35 PM
Yeah. Like Weirdy says, any of those single op amps will work and be aware that the 741 is the noisiest one there is. My recommendation is the TL071 because they're cheap, readily available and reasonably clean sounding. For some reason the better sounding op amps come in dual and quad packages. Go figure. Should be a cool little project, this. Looking forward to some sound bites when you're done.

stan
13-05-2015, 04:36 AM
looking forward to a range of NikoPedals

keloooe
13-05-2015, 05:52 AM
I've been bitten by the electronics bug as well... I've even begun starting to work out my own line of pedals...

dave.king1
13-05-2015, 08:09 AM
Just did a quick search and this page (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/PJ03BossSG1.html) has some info about it.

"The IC is a standard single op-amp, so TL071, TL081, TL061, LF441 or dozens of other IC works very well, and even better than the 741. Note the standard dual op-amps ARE NOT COMPATIBLE with this layout! This means that your lovely 4558, TL072 or LM358 will horribly die..."

Parts list (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/pjimages/BossSG1complist.txt) and schematic (http://topopiccione.atspace.com/pjimages/BossSG1Sch.gif) from above.

(I wondering the same thing)

Thanks Scott, I hadn't found that site yet so it answers the question for both Rabs and myself.

The previous one I built was very simple and from memory only cost a few bucks but with inflation over the last 40+ years I guess it would be a rather expensive exercise today

Fretworn
13-05-2015, 10:41 AM
BYOC have the Slow Gear in kit form.

http://buildyourownclone.com/collections/envelope-triggers/products/lazysprocket

dave.king1
13-05-2015, 04:08 PM
Nice find Fretty, will save stuffing around with biscuit board and point to point wiring

And following through the links available as a kit in Oz for less than the current exchange rate
http://www.pedalempire.com.au/collections/byoc-pedals/products/lazy-sprocket

Fretworn
14-05-2015, 10:47 AM
Either would be cheaper than the $400+ that second hand Slow Gears go for on eBay!

keloooe
14-05-2015, 12:29 PM
Gotta love DIY pedals!

Nickosaurus
15-05-2015, 07:59 PM
Half of why I'm learning :D

Enclosure is now drilled and I'll be painting it ASAP. Not sure on design yet. .. Might just keep it simple. Post pics when I get home tomorrow

Nickosaurus
27-05-2015, 09:33 PM
http://i.imgur.com/xH8uDqU.jpg

*reposting image because Beavis website is down*

Hey guys,

Just trouble shooting the pedal. Hooked it up to the amp but Im not getting bypass signal so something is up. Pulled out the MM and started following the signal. Going from 9v jack to the b10k pot, Im' getting full signal across 3/2 lugs which is good.

Following the signal from the 9v jack to the LED, I'm getting full signal all the way through until it goes from the LED's cathode leg to the footswitch. Should this be or should i have signal to the footswitch too? This is with switch on/off. The LED isn;t lighting up either.

Mr Fox69
28-05-2015, 01:27 PM
Check the wiring of the 3PDT switch. Have the poles been soldered correctly?

Rabbitz
28-05-2015, 04:00 PM
Ok, that drawing is just confusing...

From your text, when you say "Following the signal from the 9v jack to the LED, I'm getting full signal all the way through until it goes from the LED's cathode leg to the footswitch." do you mean you are following the 9 +ve? If so, then as it is a DC circuit and it gets to a diode (LED) and stops makes me think of a couple of things, coupled with "the LED isn't lighting":

1. Diode is reverse biased, that is to say it is in backwards - that will stop DC every time, coz that's what diodes do.

2. The resistor just prior to the LED is Open Circuit (i.e. busted).

3. The LED is Open Circuit.

First up, disconnect the power and set the DMM to ohms and measure the resistor. It should be as per its advertised value.

Next, plug the power back in and measure the voltage available at the 9v jack. According to the image the centre lug should be 0v and the left hand lug +9v. Make sure this isn't back to front - that is make sure the plug pack isn't wired wrong.

Next again with the power off, and using the ohm meter measure across the LED. In one direction it should be open (infinite Ω) and the other it should be 0 Ω.

Then make sure it is wired in the right way...

I hope this helps.

Nickosaurus
28-05-2015, 06:11 PM
Thanks for the advice guys. Can't do any more on this until the weekend but here's a picture of how the 3pdt is wired - it looks okay to me but I'm pretty nooby.

http://i.imgur.com/KuHHUYg.jpg?1

Rabbitz
28-05-2015, 06:31 PM
Ummm After having a look at some other descriptions of this beast, the drawing has become even more confusing.

It appear that it is drawn from a component layout view but shows the components from underneath. Kind of like an xray view. Or is it?

In other words, it is not clear that the switch wiring (for example) should match the drawing - it may need to be a mirror reflection. As if you were looking down from above the switch.

It might help if you could point out the three common terminals on the switch.

Why don't guitar "electronics" people just make circuit diagrams? It is too easy to misinterpret sketches.

Nickosaurus
28-05-2015, 06:37 PM
So I just did a little experiment with the LED, a 2.2k resistor and a 9v current.

The DC jack only has 2 pins as I'm not using a battery on this. One pin is long one pin is short.

When I attached the anode to the short pin, I got no life in the LED

When I attached the anode to the long pin, the LED came to life

Now i'm wondering - does the LED have reversed polarity or have I flipped the 9v jack wiring?

WeirdBits
28-05-2015, 07:18 PM
It depends on your power supply, but typically the DC jacks on pedals are wired as centre negative (-ve). So, the short centre lug that connects to the tip of your powerpack is -ve and the longer edge lug is +ve. This allows the +ve to switch between battery or powerpack (with switched jacks), while the -ve is used as the pedal's master on/off via its connection to a stereo jack.

Nickosaurus
28-05-2015, 07:30 PM
oh my. That makes sense then. I actually de-constructed a DC jack (out of frustration and having never used a 2 pin one before) and saw that the centre was connected to the short lug. I just assumed that the centre would be the positive... don't ask me why!

welp. Will flip the DC tomorrow and see how that goes.

Would I lose bypass signal if the current isn't going through the pedal? OR is there still another problem do you think?

Nickosaurus
28-05-2015, 08:49 PM
Update:

so I flipped the DC and the LED has come to life (hooray!) but unfortunately I'm still not getting a bypass signal. Finding this hard to troubleshoot as I don't have a schematic only the diagram...

any ideas gents?

WeirdBits
28-05-2015, 09:27 PM
The footswitch's bypass is mechanical, so if wired correctly should work regardless of power (assuming the switch is ok).

3288

The blue and yellow contacts are the signal send and return, respectively, and the red contacts are the bypass. Use your multimeter to check the continuity between the red contacts and your in/out jack tips and see what's what.

(Oh, and buy some more damn colours!)

Nickosaurus
16-06-2015, 02:07 PM
Haha yes sorry weirdy. Will be buying some new wire soon.

I've got continuity between both jack tips and the red circled lugs.

WeirdBits
16-06-2015, 04:09 PM
OK, you've got continuity between the tips, good, but you're still not getting a bypass signal? Have you checked ground continuity between the jacks? Also check that you're not getting a short with any of the other lugs on the switch. In particular, check continuity between your jack tips and ground, in case there's a short killing your bypass. The centre 'yellow' lug on the switch goes to ground in bypass, so that bare 'hot' wire running past it would be a prime candiate etc.

Nickosaurus
17-06-2015, 09:47 AM
Ground continuity between jacks and no shorts across the switch as far as I can tell. All the continuity is correct straight off the switch.

I've found that I lose continuity between the input sleeve's resistor and the lug 1 of the pot. I removed the resistor to test it and it was fine. I then jumped the sleeve to lug 1 and got continuity. When I jumped the resistor across there I didn't get continuity though.

I'm getting confused

Rabbitz
17-06-2015, 10:38 AM
I've found that I lose continuity between the input sleeve's resistor and the lug 1 of the pot. I removed the resistor to test it and it was fine. I then jumped the sleeve to lug 1 and got continuity. When I jumped the resistor across there I didn't get continuity though.


Open circuit resistor?

Wrong value resistor?

Can you measure the resistor?

Nickosaurus
17-06-2015, 10:41 AM
Yeah it's measuring the same as requested in the diagram. That's why I'm confused... Everything seems correct

WeirdBits
17-06-2015, 04:01 PM
Did you check for non-continuity between the tip and sleeve of the jacks with the footswitch in bypass?

Can you post some pics of all your wiring, green as it may be, showing the DC jack connections, the pot, jacks and switches. The bypass should be working, so there must be something awry elsewhere.

Nickosaurus
17-06-2015, 05:47 PM
Yep no continuity. Will double check when im home again but 90% there wasn't.

Will take pics asap. Probably tomorrow some time

Swinging Beef
18-06-2015, 10:23 AM
Slow gear is emulated in the Line6 M5.
Pedal is true bypass until engaged.
Save youself the heart ache.

dave.king1
18-06-2015, 10:51 AM
Slow gear is emulated in the Line6 M5.
Pedal is true bypass until engaged.
Save youself the heart ache.
Then the only challenge is explaining all to the minister of war and finance.

Building is a major part of the fun isn't that why we are here

Swinging Beef
18-06-2015, 11:04 AM
Oh, I know. :)

But slow gear is really one of those pedals you think you want for 10 years, get, and then never use.
:*

Nickosaurus
18-06-2015, 11:23 AM
Ain't no heartache here mate. :) I love learning new things and this is just another journey.

Nickosaurus
19-06-2015, 01:39 PM
Okay here we go:

9V jack
http://i.imgur.com/HX9n0lv.jpg
Jack w/ resistor
http://i.imgur.com/ljXef5L.jpg?1
Connection to pot (the res isn't touching the housing)
http://i.imgur.com/qYZQe3S.jpg?1
Toggle
http://i.imgur.com/yf28JTl.jpg?1

(cont)

Nickosaurus
19-06-2015, 01:40 PM
Re-wired footswitch (routed row 3 lug 3 around the switch instead of through the other lugs)
http://i.imgur.com/YK8zmW5.jpg?1
The pot (tricky to solder)
http://i.imgur.com/5Vs1OJK.jpg?1
Everything together:
http://i.imgur.com/khyJMXn.jpg?1

Even after rewiring the majority of this pedal I'm still getting a (i'm assuming) grounding issue somewhere.

WeirdBits
20-06-2015, 09:11 PM
As far as I can see (it's tough with all the green), unless there's a cold joint somewhere then the bypass should work. The outboard wires shouldn't affect the bypass, so I don't know what's happening. Are you sure the footswitch isn't faulty?

If you still can't get it sorted... go back to basics. Just wire the in/out jacks and the footswitch, get that working with the bypass, then start adding the other sections etc.

Nickosaurus
20-06-2015, 09:22 PM
Yeah unless 2 switches in a row are faulty it should be ok.. this was a new switch I wired in. Any way to ID a cold joint?

I posted it somewhere else and they hadnt seen this bypass switching before.. the wiring makes sense to me but im pretty green (heh)

keloooe
20-06-2015, 09:32 PM
Needs more green wire...
Actually, what you should do is paint the inside of the enclosure black and use black wires, turning an easy build into an absolute nightmare!

Nickosaurus
22-06-2015, 10:41 AM
https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/457367432709935104/bypJ6lgO_400x400.jpeg

So I stripped the whole pedal back to just the switch and jacks and I'm still not getting a bypass signal. I've checked continuity following the hot wires and grounds and they all connect. There's no ground/tip continuity between either jack and I have ground continuity between both jacks.

This is the second footswich I've used. They're cheap but I've used in the past with no failure rate. Is 2 in a row probable?

Or is there something wrong with the diagram?

Is there an easier way to make a breakbox for a circuit testing rig?

Fretworn
22-06-2015, 11:14 AM
Are you on the message board at Aron Nelson's site? If not that's probably where you need to work through these issues. Mike Fuller, Zachary Vex and a whole bunch of other guys are members who know pedals inside and out.

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/

WeirdBits
22-06-2015, 03:57 PM
Double-check that the switch's contacts are working, as it's possible to cook it while soldering and be left with a non-conductive lug. From the image in a previous post:
http://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3288&d=1432819102

In one foot-switch position you should get continuity between the two lugs in the blue ring and continuity between the two lugs in the yellow ring, but not the red. In the other (bypass) position you should get continuity between the two lugs in the red ring, but not the blue or yellow. Check the other lugs if you want, but the above are the ones related to the bypass.

Nickosaurus
22-06-2015, 05:36 PM
Okay so the switch is behaving as it should. Red by itself in one position (let's call it Position 1), blue and yellow no red in the other (Position 2).

When I plug into my amp, position 1 lets the sound through however position 2 there is no sound coming through.

Does this narrow our troubleshooting?

WeirdBits
22-06-2015, 05:46 PM
Red, aka position 1, is your bypass position. Position 2, blue and yellow, is your 'external circuit' position... that's where the signal passes to your terminal strip to go through whatever circuit you want to test. You will only get sound from position 2 when a complete circuit loop is in place (or if you short in/out on the terminal strip). So, looks to me like it's working exactly as intended.

Nickosaurus
22-06-2015, 05:56 PM
I have a bad feeling that it has been correct the whole time then... Bloody hell haha

keloooe
22-06-2015, 06:00 PM
But then it's a good thing that it works!

gavinturner
22-06-2015, 07:45 PM
Hi Nick,

Finally got to read your thread start to finish. Looks like you are on track now. If you are interested, I found that the following youtube tutorial explained the footswitch bypass wiring pretty clearly. Once I realised that the bypass was just a simple electrical connection straight from input to output it all made sense. Hence *bypass*. Damn my brain. Anyway, might be of interest to any non EEs out there (of which I am one).


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IVt5ItB2HA

cheers,
Gav.

Nickosaurus
22-06-2015, 08:41 PM
Mate I just feel like an absolute idiot right now. I assumed a bypass signal meant I'd hear my amp on both the bypass and the engage. No idea why I thought that either because it's completely illogical but we do live and learn as they say. Seems I'm sort of not as hopeless as I thought at wiring... It worked first try!

Nickosaurus
22-06-2015, 10:56 PM
Finished with a 5 minute sketch.

I think the name is suitable

http://i.imgur.com/jNRmctc.jpg?1

keloooe
23-06-2015, 05:41 AM
Haha! Definitely a good way to remember this build Nicko! Maybe ask Andy (email is citysigns(at)internode(dot)on(dot)net, you know how to type it correctly) and see if he can get that done in a wicked awesome vinyl decal then throw on some clear afterwards (dunno if the vinyl works with ALL finishes, best to ask).

Nickosaurus
23-06-2015, 10:32 AM
Hey Pest, I've tried to get in touch with him the last 2 weeks for something else but he hasn't responded. Must be pretty busy.

I don't think I'll bother with this one since it's just to test circuits with. Once it wears off I'll just draw something new :)

when pedal production starts I'll definitely be doing some proper finishes though. Thinking acid etching or slides

keloooe
23-06-2015, 01:42 PM
I'll shoot him off a message through Facebook to see if he responds at all....

Nickosaurus
02-07-2015, 05:44 PM
http://i.imgur.com/pwTRZj5.jpg

The first pedal was a success! I put the Bazz Fuss schematic onto the breadboard and it worked first try!

Such an awesome feeling following a schematic and applying it. I really felt like I learnt a lot through that process.

Next up: a green ringer analogue octaver!

wokkaboy
02-07-2015, 06:43 PM
well done Nicko good work

pablopepper
02-07-2015, 07:16 PM
Cool! Looks like a lot of fun.

WeirdBits
02-07-2015, 07:56 PM
Awesome, great to see it up and running.

Nickosaurus
02-07-2015, 10:30 PM
thanks lads and especially you Weirdy. Such a great help.

gavinturner
08-08-2015, 01:50 PM
hey Nick,

Great work on the test box, and thanks heaps for the inspiration! I finished my own test box today based on the Offboard Wiring (http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com/2012/02/offboard-wiring.html) tutorial and the Test Box (http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com/2014/09/test-box-20.html) article on the Guitar FX Layouts blog (http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com/). I'm hoping my first successful pedal build will be a Schaller Tremolo (http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com/2012/03/schaller-tremolo.html). We'll see how it goes!

cheers,
Gav.

Nickosaurus
09-08-2015, 08:57 PM
Keep us updated mate!