The D.I.Y. FX Pedal Building Thread

[DrNomis_44]

excellent tutorial Doc. You make it look much easier than I thought it would be. As long as you have all the correct parts and a decent wiring diagram I think I could tackle building one. Can't wait for the demo. A cool distortion pedal for about $50 is a bargain and would learn a fair bit building it

Cheers mate, building a pedal is actually easier than most people would think if they take their time and do it step by step, I really hope that this pedal build tutorial I've done is going to be of great help to those wishing to build some DIY pedals, it can be a lot of fun to do so, I can happily say that I have learnt a lot from building my own pedals myself, and I want to offer my encouragement to all those interested in doing likewise, yes you can do it.

[DrNomis_44]

looks wicked Doc, I'd think about a nice glossy coat of paint and maybe get some stickers made up - would look like a bought one then haha

Good idea Wokka, I will be giving my Axis Fuzz pedal a nice paint job at a later stage, that's for sure, I might see if I can make a sticker of Jimi Hendrix to put on it once it has been painted.

[DrNomis_44]

Here's another pic of the finished and working Axis Fuzz pedal, this time with it's Blue Indicator Led lit:






The Blue Indicator Led is wired up so that when it is on the pedal is activated, and when it is off the pedal is bypassed.

[DrNomis_44]

Okay, I'm just going to make myself another coffee and then I'll get cracking on an audio demo of my finished Axis fuzz pedal, so stay tuned.


I'll also include some audio from my Red Jim Dunlop JD-F2 Germanium Transistor Fuzz Face to show what the two Fuzz pedals sound like in comparison to each other.

[wokkaboy]

sounds good Doc, look forward to the demo, keen to see how it hears say distortion on about setting 3, 6 and 10 !

[DrNomis_44]

Just finished doing a take of the Axis Fuzz and the Fuzz Face, I recorded both pedals one after the other in the same take, I'm playing a riff using the Hendrix chord with both pedals, towards the end of each pedals demo I gradually bring the Strat's volume down so you can hear how each pedal cleans up, it's just a quick and dirty recording with both pedals recorded straight so you can hear what they sound like in comparison to each other.

[kimball492]

I used to have an original fuzz face and rat pedal both my nephew took a shine too. Lol

[DrNomis_44]

Talking about Hendrix I was given this by my Buddy as a 40th birthday present. I don't know if you guys can read the letter if not let me know. Interested to hear the sound of these pedals Doc

That's wicked Kimball, whatever you do keep that letter cause it's a piece of rock history mate.


I'm just in the process of uploading the quick and dirty demo I recorded of my Red JD-F2 Fuzz Face and my newly built Axis Fuzz to my dropbox folder, I'll be posting a link to it shortly.

[wokkaboy]

wow KB that is an awesome piece of rock history. Is it one of Hendrix's rings ? that should be worth heaps to a fan/collector

[DrNomis_44]

Okay, here's the link to the quick and dirty demo I recorded, you'll probably notice that half the recording sounds bassy, and the other half is more trebly, the bassy half is the Red JD-F2 Fuzz Face, and the trebly half is the Axis Fuzz, I started off each half with the fuzz/drive control at minimum and gradually increased the setting until it was maxed, towards the end of each pedal's half I turn down the guitar's volume so you can hear how each pedal cleans up....enjoy!!:


https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...als%20Demo.mp3


Here's a pic of the two Fuzz pedals: