Help. I want ALL the choruses!

coltonius

coltonius

Well-known member
I don't know about you guys, but my gear obsessions (including DIY endeavors) seem to vacillate from one manic pursuit to another. So far this year: rounding out my hoard of power tubes with some Soviet EL84s (6P14Ps), VFE pedals, and now semi-obscure modulation effects. I blame you guys for my renewed obsession with building pedals, so.. Thanks for that.

Lately, Sauron's evil eye has turned upon semi-obscure modulation / time-based effects. I'm looking at the EHX Clone Theory, Boss CE-1, Deluxe Electric Mistress, and Deluxe Memory Man projects at the moment. I already have a CE-2 clone and a VFE Choral Reef / Tractor Beam project in progress. There's probably a ton of overlap in between all of these choruses, but who cares!

Here's what I want to know: For those with experience building the following projects, what are your thoughts on the build process and final sound? OR just share your gear obsession du jour...
  • Lectric-FX Karaoke Chorus (Boss CE-1)
  • Lectric-FX Celeste Chorus (EHX Clone Theory)
  • Lectric-FX Old Chap (EHX Deluxe / Electric Mistress)
  • Madbean Total Recall (EHX Deluxe Memory Man)
Thanks for fueling my obsession!

____________
7.10.23 EDIT: Here are the two I’ve finished so far.

VFE Choral Reef / Tractor Beam
IMG_7036.jpeg

Skidmark Purple:
IMG_7996.jpeg
 
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I've built the Karaoke Chorus... I really like it in chorus mode, don't really have any need for the vibrato / hybrid modes. Be ready to deal with lots of tiny resistors...

I haven't built the Celeste - the Old Chap is on my list of "things to build" - but I have recently finished up the first Madbean Current Lover 2023 board (non-Deluxe Electric Mistress), and it sounds amazeballs... waiting on the enclosure...

I've got a Total Recall about 90% populated, but not done yet.

... I've also built the AionFX Dimension C clone, and that lives on my board.

... I've also built the PCB Mania Zombie Chorus - don't bother...

I'll have to dig through the rest of the stack, but there are others in there (PCB Mania Electric Mistress that actually works, but I prefer the Madbean... Univibe... Sea Machine clone... etc.).
 
Happy to oblige the obsession:

Chorus with a delay twist:
www.pedalpcb.com

Sea Horse - PedalPCB.com

Compare to EQD Sea Machine
www.pedalpcb.com www.pedalpcb.com

Chorus with a price tag:
aionfx.com

Blueshift Spatial Chorus / BOSS® DC-2 Dimension C

Build a clone of the legendary BOSS DC-2 Dimension C spatial chorus pedal that fits in a box the same size as the original.
aionfx.com aionfx.com

Chorus from another mother (in other words, not a true chorus, but can pretend):
www.pedalpcb.com

ElectroVibe - PedalPCB.com

Compare to Shin-Ei Uni-Vibe
www.pedalpcb.com www.pedalpcb.com

Make sure you do some build reports!
 
Synchrony Pedalworks said:
Happy to oblige the obsession:

Chorus with a delay twist:
www.pedalpcb.com

Sea Horse - PedalPCB.com

Compare to EQD Sea Machine
www.pedalpcb.com www.pedalpcb.com

Chorus with a price tag:
aionfx.com

Blueshift Spatial Chorus / BOSS® DC-2 Dimension C

Build a clone of the legendary BOSS DC-2 Dimension C spatial chorus pedal that fits in a box the same size as the original.
aionfx.com aionfx.com

Chorus from another mother (in other words, not a true chorus, but can pretend):
www.pedalpcb.com

ElectroVibe - PedalPCB.com

Compare to Shin-Ei Uni-Vibe
www.pedalpcb.com www.pedalpcb.com

Make sure you do some build reports!
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I've built the Uni and the CE-2! I'll look at the others. :cool:
 
I’ve built everything mentioned above. The Celeste is my favorite chorus. It is fat and chewy and the flange mode is unique and one of my favorite pedal sounds. The caveat is that it is by far the noisiest chorus I’ve ever tried. The 9v electric mistress would be my second choice.
 
Done the Karaoke and the Old Chap, best sounding chorus and flanger I’ve built to date. Heads up, the Old Chap runs on 18v PSU and may be prone to picking up clock noise from pedals up stream ymmv. Also, all 1/8w resistors so a little bit of a pain there, but otherwise not terrible. Old Chap has a fairly intense biasing/calibration procedure. Real BBD chips=$$ I have also done the Tour Bus from MBP. It’s a pretty fun stacked board project and sounds fantastic. Not a terribly hard build, but $$ for the chips and runs on 18v as well. Sounds fantastic although I would build it with the “true-ish” bypass if you do. The Blue Shift is a bitch and truly shines in stereo. Better for if you like chorus but not a ton of it in mono. If you’re looking for a good chorus with easy build try the Touch Stone at MBP, gives the karaoke a run for it’s money and is easier and smaller format
 
Thanks for all the suggestions! It's good to hear affirmation on some of the projects I was looking at and some suggestions on a few others.

I built a Current Lover several years ago and remember it was a ton of fun. I'd like to revisit the newest version at some point.

dan.schumaker said:
Check out the Purple Chorus from Skidmark Effects. He sells on Facebook, but its an awesome sounding (and full-featured) chorus.
Click to expand...

That looks like a party! He's out of stock on Reverb (couldn't access the facebook page because I don't have an account), but I sent a message through Reverb to ask when he's restocking.
 
I got the chorus bug a couple years ago and went on chorus spree. Three GuitarPCB circuits, (one having two independent chorus circuits with sync), one from MadBean and one from PedalPCB.

ChorusQuintet_01.jpg


I wanted to try out two separate chorus circuits in a single box and somehow sync them to have a dual/stereo chorus. I started with a pair of GuitarPCB "Mini-Me" chorus PCBs and went about modifying the schematic to accommodate the dual builds with depth and sync mods. I came up with this . . . .
Duo-Chorus_Done_01.jpg Duo-Chorus_Guts_Done.jpg

After that, I wanted to recreate the same dual-chorus with a better "appearance" and added Rate range selectors and LEDs. (The LEDs are subterranean - the LEDs are beneath the waterslide decal - on under the "Rate" dials.)
Dual-Chorus_2_Done_01.jpg Dual-Chorus_2_Gutshot_Done_00.jpg

And just when I thought I was done, a client made a very special request for a rack-mount, full stereo dual chorus, each followed by independent reverb circuits. That's how this monstrosity was conceived. (No rate LEDs on this one.) There are 4 (four) GuitarPCB "Mini-Me" circuits, 2 (two) PedalPCB "Arachnid" circuits (with custom made reverb patches for the FV-1), a 120VAC to +9V converter supply, and a custom configured pair of BC modules to provide ±6V dual-rail supply for a pair of active baluns for direct to desk outputs.
Rack_Dual_Case_Done_Front.jpg

Rack_Dual_Case_Done_Guts.jpg

Here's a shot of all the built-out PCBs and associated parts & bits (except the AC socket) . . .
Rack_Dual-Chorus_Bits_01.jpg

Needless to say, I'm done with choruses for a bit. ;)
 
Cybercow said:
I got the chorus bug a couple years ago and went on chorus spree. Three GuitarPCB circuits, (one having two independent chorus circuits with sync), one from MadBean and one from PedalPCB.

View attachment 52172


I wanted to try out two separate chorus circuits in a single box and somehow sync them to have a dual/stereo chorus. I started with a pair of GuitarPCB "Mini-Me" chorus PCBs and went about modifying the schematic to accommodate the dual builds with depth and sync mods. I came up with this . . . .
View attachment 52166 View attachment 52168

After that, I wanted to recreate the same dual-chorus with a better "appearance" and added Rate range selectors and LEDs. (The LEDs are subterranean - the LEDs are beneath the waterslide decal - on under the "Rate" dials.)
View attachment 52170 View attachment 52171

And just when I thought I was done, a client made a very special request for a rack-mount, full stereo dual chorus, each followed by independent reverb circuits. That's how this monstrosity was conceived. (No rate LEDs on this one.) There are 4 (four) GuitarPCB "Mini-Me" circuits, 2 (two) PedalPCB "Arachnid" circuits (with custom made reverb patches for the FV-1), a 120VAC to +9V converter supply, and a custom configured pair of BC modules to provide ±6V dual-rail supply for a pair of active baluns for direct to desk outputs.
View attachment 52174

View attachment 52175

Here's a shot of all the built-out PCBs and associated parts & bits (except the AC socket) . . .
View attachment 52176

Needless to say, I'm done with choruses for a bit. ;)
Click to expand...
Whoa, nice haul! Those builds are awesome. (Where did you get those blue Choral Reef knobs, by the way?)

I’m now working on a Madbean Touchstone and a 2017(?) Pork Barrel that will be tricked out like a smaller version of the Purple. Can’t wait to wrap those up so I can tackle Aion’s Blueshift.
 
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Harry Klippton said:
That rack unit rules @Cybercow can you tell me about fabbing the faceplate?
Click to expand...
The 2U rack case is stainless and a PITA to work with. Had the faceplate graphics done by Spencer at AmplifyFun in Portland, Oregon. Drew it up in Photoshop and sent the file to Spencer. I did the case with a cordless hand drill and a Dremel. Here are some shots of the case drilling/fabbing process . . . .

Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Outs_01.jpg Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Outs_02.jpg Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Pwr_01.jpg Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Pwr_02.jpg Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Rear_01.jpg Rack_Dual_Case_Drills_Front_01.jpg
 
UtilityBeltFX said:
EXCUSE ME. WHAT magnificent font is this you're using all over these? Please, thank you, bless.
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I don't remember the specific font names without opening the artwork in Photoshop on my PC. (I think "Mirosa".) But I do know the fonts used for all of those chorus pedals in the pics above are paid for and licensed from Heritage Type. I got the big bundle. (I'm a font fanatic. I have literally thousands of 'em.)
 
coltonius said:
Whoa, nice haul! Those builds are awesome. (Where did you get those blue Choral Reef knobs, by the way?)
Click to expand...
I got them a few years ago from a fellow in one of the FB DIY groups who had a bulk sale. I got a dozen of each color he had. Don't even remember what I paid for 'em.
 
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