5.20.2011
5.04.2011
My recent day off
Finally got a day off after a couple weeks, so it was time to build something!
A long time friend, Paul, painted an enclosure for me many months ago. I had it sitting around forever waiting for the right circuit to match it with. Decided on the AMZ Jfet Splitter, by Jack Orman. Takes your input signal and splits it into 2 (or more) equal outputs.
Something like this can be very useful with some planning. For instance, I've been using it to run modulation to the effect channel (trem & verb) on my silvertone, while the other out runs dirt to my "clean" channel. Makes it easy to set things in the mix. With both channels running together, you can EQ them slightly different, which makes for some great, full tone. Of course you could also make any effect stereo...think of the possibilities with things like delays that are already stereo...
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This here is an Electra type circuit designed by Renegadrian. Gives more gain to the original. The Lovepedal Woodrow can be built with the same layout. I have everything socketed (good thing too), so I'm still tweaking to my liking. As it was, way too loud and trebly. The toggle switch will be for swapping clipping diodes most likely, or maybe cap values for treb/bass.
The enclosure is from a walco boost type pedal, that I actually had a diff boost built into for a while. There was an extra hole on the bottom front from the orig layout, so I decided to make this a "window" for the LED. I glued in some foggy vinyl material to diffuse it and seal the opening.
A long time friend, Paul, painted an enclosure for me many months ago. I had it sitting around forever waiting for the right circuit to match it with. Decided on the AMZ Jfet Splitter, by Jack Orman. Takes your input signal and splits it into 2 (or more) equal outputs.
This here is an Electra type circuit designed by Renegadrian. Gives more gain to the original. The Lovepedal Woodrow can be built with the same layout. I have everything socketed (good thing too), so I'm still tweaking to my liking. As it was, way too loud and trebly. The toggle switch will be for swapping clipping diodes most likely, or maybe cap values for treb/bass.
The enclosure is from a walco boost type pedal, that I actually had a diff boost built into for a while. There was an extra hole on the bottom front from the orig layout, so I decided to make this a "window" for the LED. I glued in some foggy vinyl material to diffuse it and seal the opening.
Filler
While I'm in between projects I figure I could fill some space with more earlier builds, that were forgotten about. Just random stuff from the past year or two.
Here's a modified Crybaby Wah (JH-1).
Don't remember exactly all that I did...obviously painted the top. Removed it entirely, along with the rubber grip prior to. Changed the tone voicing slightly for a better match with bass. The jh1 is set stock in between the normal crybaby and bass version. There's a wah voice control now, that really makes the pedal much more musical. The toggle switch removes a cap to change from wah to volume. Pretty neat, but not the greatest sweep for a volume pedal.
I believe some/most of the mods can be found at Stinkfoot's page.
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Next up, a custom job for CBA713 of ILoveFuzz that I apparently did in August. It's a voltage starve, a la Beavis Audio's Devolt, that C' dubbed, "Jervolt."
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Some of you may recognize this one. It's a Melx2 from Mellowtone. Similar to the Electra Distortion of yesteryear, it's a great dirt box that I will always have. Mine is only slightly different from the ones you'd normally see. I added a switch to change between clipping diode pairs...1n914?(stock, silicon) & some germanium ones I got out of an old busted walco pedal.
4.16.2011
Spray paint and space
Ever seen guys downtown, or at exhibits doing super colorful spray paint art? Usually they make land/spacescapes. Actually, if you've seen my ABsynth post, you might know what I mean. I have a pedal painted by Ben Nerisen in the same fashion. Anyways, I gave it a shot on my day off, and here's a couple of the 25+ that have been made over the past 4 days by my roommate and I.
4.03.2011
A Big Muff on the Horizon
My latest project, a work-a-like of the famed the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi. A fuzz/distortion unit used and abused by guitarist and bassist alike. I got the circuit board from capsnsuch, a nice one man electronic supply operation. The same guy also runs a great effects/diy forum called circuitworkshop.
For those who may not be familiar, here's a little backstory on, IMO, one of the most widely used dirt box's to date...
"The first Big Muff π was released to the world by Electro-Harmonix in 1969, though variations of it appeared earlier than that. Electro-Harmonix referred to the pedal as “The finest harmonic distortion-sustain device developed to date,” and it was. Fuzz pedals like the Fuzz Face were very popular in the late 1960's and the Big Muff was a very different and fresh take on the fuzz territory."
"The Muff had an independant four stage silicon-based circuit that did not have the limitations of the typical guitar-into-fuzz circuits around at the time. It could go anywhere in a pedal chain, and the tone was not at the mercy of the temperature of the tranistors like a Fuzz Face. The Muff had monstrous loads of gain and sustain, and a monstrous sound to go along with it, from thunderous mud to hammering treble. It was the first fuzz pedal with such a huge bottom end, and it stepped on just about any typical fuzz pedal out there. There is a characteristic underlying harmonically doubled octave mixed into the Muff tone, sometimes described as the Muffs "buzz" or "fizz". It was quite different from what was a common "fuzz" tone at the time. The tone sweep ranged from huge, dark, bassy sludge to thick, piercing, buzz saw treble, all with a deep mids scoop. Somewhere in the middle was a "sweet" spot that just about anyone could dial in for the signature Big Muff tone."
"There are four primary eras of the Big Muff, each with their own unique tones, and each model having several variants, along with some other odd related models. They were first manufactured in the USA, then jumped over to Russia, then back to the USA again."
I went with what they call the "Civil War" version. Due to primarily playing bass, I figured, "why not?" This is actually the first Big Muff I've ever built, & I'm quite fond of the sound. Sustain for days, and deep fuzz fuzz fuzzz!
"THE SOUND - Identical to the first edition Red Army Overdrive, just different graphics and colors. Sort of a mix between the V1 and V3 Muffs, but with a fatter bottom end, brighter and less scooped mids, and less gain. All of the 1990s Sovtek Muffs (Civil Wars, Green Russians, Black Russians) had very similar component values, and had very similar sounds to each other; but the Civil War tone was special. It was very dark and bassy, but with a smooth and clear mid range, and a very musical clarity. Those mids were still scooped out like a typical Big Muff, but the Sovteks had more than vintage USA models, so they stand out in a live band mix better. They are noticeably smoother and have less grit than the later Green Russian and Black Russian Big Muffs, which is probably why they are the most favored and desirable of all the Sovtek Big Muffs. They are a favorite of bass players due to the low gain and huge, bass friendly bottom end they produce. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit. Listen to Pink Floyd's Pulse live album for some great examples of lead tones using this pedal. The Black Keys and Sonic Youth have other examples of this sound."
-from The Big Muff Page
Photos of original EHX effects are from TBMP
You may have noticed the sockets in a few choice areas, such as the diode and transistor sections, as well as a few capacitors. This allows a bit of experimentation with various versions, fuzz/gain characteristics, etc.
For those who may not be familiar, here's a little backstory on, IMO, one of the most widely used dirt box's to date...
"The Muff had an independant four stage silicon-based circuit that did not have the limitations of the typical guitar-into-fuzz circuits around at the time. It could go anywhere in a pedal chain, and the tone was not at the mercy of the temperature of the tranistors like a Fuzz Face. The Muff had monstrous loads of gain and sustain, and a monstrous sound to go along with it, from thunderous mud to hammering treble. It was the first fuzz pedal with such a huge bottom end, and it stepped on just about any typical fuzz pedal out there. There is a characteristic underlying harmonically doubled octave mixed into the Muff tone, sometimes described as the Muffs "buzz" or "fizz". It was quite different from what was a common "fuzz" tone at the time. The tone sweep ranged from huge, dark, bassy sludge to thick, piercing, buzz saw treble, all with a deep mids scoop. Somewhere in the middle was a "sweet" spot that just about anyone could dial in for the signature Big Muff tone."
"There are four primary eras of the Big Muff, each with their own unique tones, and each model having several variants, along with some other odd related models. They were first manufactured in the USA, then jumped over to Russia, then back to the USA again."
I went with what they call the "Civil War" version. Due to primarily playing bass, I figured, "why not?" This is actually the first Big Muff I've ever built, & I'm quite fond of the sound. Sustain for days, and deep fuzz fuzz fuzzz!
"THE SOUND - Identical to the first edition Red Army Overdrive, just different graphics and colors. Sort of a mix between the V1 and V3 Muffs, but with a fatter bottom end, brighter and less scooped mids, and less gain. All of the 1990s Sovtek Muffs (Civil Wars, Green Russians, Black Russians) had very similar component values, and had very similar sounds to each other; but the Civil War tone was special. It was very dark and bassy, but with a smooth and clear mid range, and a very musical clarity. Those mids were still scooped out like a typical Big Muff, but the Sovteks had more than vintage USA models, so they stand out in a live band mix better. They are noticeably smoother and have less grit than the later Green Russian and Black Russian Big Muffs, which is probably why they are the most favored and desirable of all the Sovtek Big Muffs. They are a favorite of bass players due to the low gain and huge, bass friendly bottom end they produce. The bass and treble of the tone varies slightly from unit to unit. Listen to Pink Floyd's Pulse live album for some great examples of lead tones using this pedal. The Black Keys and Sonic Youth have other examples of this sound."
-from The Big Muff Page
Photos of original EHX effects are from TBMP
You may have noticed the sockets in a few choice areas, such as the diode and transistor sections, as well as a few capacitors. This allows a bit of experimentation with various versions, fuzz/gain characteristics, etc.
3.24.2011
Check these out!
A couple of music blogs worthy of mentioning...
Scream From a Blank Mind
Great demos and reviews of some cool pedals
Effectswire
Cool interviews with builders, reviews, etc
Scream From a Blank Mind
Great demos and reviews of some cool pedals
Effectswire
Cool interviews with builders, reviews, etc
3.21.2011
FuzzHugger ABsynth
*Will be edited/updated occasionally*
"I will free you first from burning thirst
That is born of a night of the bowl,
Like a sun ’twill rise through the inky skies
That so heavily hang o’er your souls.
At the first cool sip on your fevered lip, you determine to live through the day;
Life’s again worth while, as with a dawining smile,
You imbibe your absinthe frappé. "
-Glenn MacDonoughThe FH ABsynth, is much like the drink in Glenn's poem. It's one of those pedals I just can't get enough of. You go trying different fuzz's, or other effects, looking for something specific...something special. One day, there it is...
The FuzzHugger ABsynth
A harmonic-blasting, liquidy, light-sabery, layered fuzz--with tone-shaping Fuzz and
Texture controls that take you from smooth and searing to splattery!From there, add a mind-altering second mode with wild oscillation, whale calls, blips, self-arpeggiation, more synth tones, and fat octave down!
The AB-SYNTH.
• Dual silicon diode fuzz!
• Fuzz, Texture, Level, Trip, and Mode controls.
• Professionally printed circuit board.
• Green gem button LEDs.
• Black ABS synth knobs
• True-bypass switching.
• 9v negative tip adapter power. (No batteries.)
• Rugged aluminum enclosure (4.7" x 3.7")
• Lifetime warranty!
Texture controls that take you from smooth and searing to splattery!From there, add a mind-altering second mode with wild oscillation, whale calls, blips, self-arpeggiation, more synth tones, and fat octave down!
The AB-SYNTH.
• Dual silicon diode fuzz!
• Fuzz, Texture, Level, Trip, and Mode controls.
• Professionally printed circuit board.
• Green gem button LEDs.
• Black ABS synth knobs
• True-bypass switching.
• 9v negative tip adapter power. (No batteries.)
• Rugged aluminum enclosure (4.7" x 3.7")
• Lifetime warranty!
Mine, before and after Tom added the 5th knob (gain) and toggle switch (bass/guit voicing). Eventually he started making the ABsynth 5k, which has the 5 knob standard. This particular enclosure was painted by Ben Nerison.
Personally, I can use this pedal for anything. I was still figuring out different things MONTHS after owning it. Hell, I'm not sure I have found all the sounds yet. No one trick pony as for instruments either. Being primarily a bass player, trust me it's no slouch. You will get tons of various characteristics, whether you're using a bass or guitar. A little tip: Roll your volume back, or adjust your pick attack, and you can play the oscillations. Also makes for some very synthy bass tone.
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