What's on the workbench?

[Cybercow]

On the bench this week till the Ultimatum arrives for tracing - Stereophonic Gizmotronic Symphonic Harmonic Perambulator

Working on a commission build for a client who want a one-off build of a stereo-dual chorus with a shimmer verb follower on each channel. It will be using 4 modified GuitarPCB "Mini-Me" chorus circuits and 2 PedalPCB 'Pythagoras' project boards with custom SpinCAD Designer/SpinASM rolled FX patches. Each stereo chorus pair will tied together at the LFO so they can be independent or synchronized with both 'depth' & 'rate' mods. Each chorus section will have independent controls. The two Pythagoras boards will be synchronized under a set of dual-gang pots & patch selection actuator. The L & R outputs will be pushed thru a pair of balanced XLR driver boards.

The fun part will be finishing the rack box faceplate.

 

[andare]

I have a Fuzzrite in the works. Trying to make it quieter. Here's a few observations:

It sounds thinner and buzzier into a clean amp, fatter into a tube amp at the edge of breakup. So much so that taking out the 22k resistor doesn't make that much of a difference whereas it's pretty big with a clean amp.

A 470pF cap from input to ground gets rid of the radio for the most part. Still noisy though.

Adding a 100r resistor in series with the input doesn't help. It does suck high end.

I went from 2N3904 with a hFE of 192 to 2x 2N3692s at 64. Slightly less gainy and trebly of course.
Adding 100r-200r resistors to the emitters to ground didn't make much of a difference.

Noise is part of the deal here. It isn't as loud as a fuzz face. It's also scooped in the mids so you have to crank the volume and live with hiss.

I tried adding the PW knob from the Fuzzolo but it didn't work. I added it to a Fuzz Face but it oscillates. I suppose the 2.2k to ground on Q2e must be there also.

More breadboarding to come.

 

[andare]

I was setting up my rig to play around with the breadboard. It and the Auditorium were on the floor. I stepped on the Volume pot and boom, the lugs just separated. There goes a pot...

 

[Robert]

 

[ICTRock]

View attachment 29928

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

YATS-eeeee

 

[ICTRock]

You have to respect the "I shopped at Radio Shack" knob choice though

 

[Robert]

YATS-eeeee

You're not trying to suggest this is a Tubescreamer are you?

 

[music6000]

You're not trying to suggest this is a Tubescreamer are you?

YATS now with built in CHUG CHUG mode by all the Videos available, No Thanks!!!!

 

[Robert]

Of course, it's the LGSM's cousin, the Mean Green Metal Machine.

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

You're not trying to suggest this is a Tubescreamer are you?

It seems unlikely, but for some reason I have a hunch

 

[Robert]

I guess the Schadenfreude is verified.... How can you really decide if a circuit like that is broken?

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

I guess the Schadenfreude is verified.... How can you really decide if a circuit like that is broken?

It’s pretty easy to make heads and tails of the different controls once you play around with it a bit. Volume and tone are self explanatory. Speed is essentially the envelope of the theremin-glissando pitch, and intensity acts sort of as a blend between the ragged fuzziness, and the random envelope-controlled pitch. It’s easily my favorite PLL style pedal, and as long as you keep either the speed or intensity below 50%, you can crank the other and still get pretty controllable effects. Hitting the front end with active pickups or a clean boost tightens up the tracking and completely changes the character of the pedal in my experience. Fun without; fun with.
One of my favorite ways to get monstrous bass tones is to track with the guitardammerung on guitar at double-speed, and then slow it down to half speed to drop it an octave.

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

I guess the Schadenfreude is verified.... How can you really decide if a circuit like that is broken?

Once I get the schadenfreude board I’ll make an extensive demo video to show y’all how to get some really rad tones out of it since the guitardammerung has been a mainstay of my board since like 2014 or 2015

 

[Robert]

Yeah I get the controls, but like all PLLs, it just sounds busted.

 

[music6000]

Of course, it's the LGSM's cousin, the Mean Green Metal Machine.

This is what you get at 2.00 am in the Morning, I'm off to Bed!!!

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

Yeah I get the controls, but like all PLLs, it just sounds busted.

If you turn everything down to 0 and then just adjust the volume to taste, it’s incredible as just a nicely aggressive fuzz. All controls to 10 is of course the fun and sensible choice with noisy synthy freaks like this, but this one actually has a lot more subtlety (as subtle as a big muff or Acapulco Gold, that is) than most other PLL pedals if you go mild on the controls. I think I may have just thought of the candidate for my first buff and blend builds

 

[cwsquared]

I guess the Schadenfreude is verified.... How can you really decide if a circuit like that is broken?

Send me the prototype, I'll let you know.

 

[Robert]

One more to go..... I'll be honest, I'm tired... It has been a long two days.

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

One more to go..... I'll be honest, I'm tired... It has been a long two days.

View attachment 30006

Which one did you save for last?