Six String Stinger (Vertex Steel String)

[MichaelW]

Build Rating

5.00 star(s)

Last one....

Despite my general abhorrence of anything related to Vertex and Mason Doucheralla I decided since I went down the rabbit hole of building all the various pedals with "Steel String" in it's name (Comprehensive Drive, NUX-SSS, etc) that I may as well round out the collection and build this one.

Even though I threw up a little in my mouth when I built it, I was expecting good things once plugged in.
I remember hearing early demos of this pedal and liking how it sounded.

As I recall this was SUPPOSED to be an SRV in a Box type pedal.

Ok, I very rarely have anything bad to say about a pedal. But this thing sounds like ass.
To the point that I'm wondering if I did something wrong. It's improbable but not impossible.

The gain and breakup is harsh even at low settings and there's this really honky mid-bass that's annoying as hell.
Now I KNOW I am biased against Vertex but I was really surprised how bad this pedal sounds.

I know a lot of people like it, but it's not for me. I'm probably going to gut it and re-purpose the enclosure.

5 stars for the build, which was typical @Robert, beautifully laid out.

 

[giovanni]

No demo?!?

 

[Mentaltossflycoon]

Yeah better repurpose that one, i's too pretty a box to house a circuit you don't enjoy.

 

[tcpoint]

I don't like the sound of that pedal, either. I modded it and got alright sounds out of it.

 

[juice886]

Looks good.
I modded mine as I didn't like its tone too. At the time I built a clone for myself I had an original Vertex MK2 and I can admit the original one sounded nice. I don't know either Mk2 is different from the MK1 version which I believe the schematic is reverse engineered from...or JFETs are not J201, you know those chinese J201 are not really J201, though I used smt J201 that shouldn't be fake... Anyway I swapped C11 and C12 as someone mentioned that somewhere and the tone control became much closer to the original (but still not 100% there). I'd say this mod is must.

 

[Diynot]

Nope, ass is the appropriate tone from this POS circuit. Built it with high hopes annd was sorely disappointed. Another vertex hype show. That is a fantastic box though

 

[music6000]

Last one....

Despite my general abhorrence of anything related to Vertex and Mason Doucheralla I decided since I went down the rabbit hole of building all the various pedals with "Steel String" in it's name (Comprehensive Drive, NUX-SSS, etc) that I may as well round out the collection and build this one.

Even though I threw up a little in my mouth when I built it, I was expecting good things once plugged in.
I remember hearing early demos of this pedal and liking how it sounded.

As I recall this was SUPPOSED to be an SRV in a Box type pedal.

Ok, I very rarely have anything bad to say about a pedal. But this thing sounds like ass.
To the point that I'm wondering if I did something wrong. It's improbable but not impossible.

The gain and breakup is harsh even at low settings and there's this really honky mid-bass that's annoying as hell.
Now I KNOW I am biased against Vertex but I was really surprised how bad this pedal sounds.

I know a lot of people like it, but it's not for me. I'm probably going to gut it and re-purpose the enclosure.

5 stars for the build, which was typical @Robert, beautifully laid out.

View attachment 60705

View attachment 60706

Mine did too when I built it but there is some confusion regarding Cap values in the bottom right hand corner that causes this issue!
I think that 2n2 is suppose to be 22nf???

 

[Route14]

I think that 2n2 is suppose to be 22nf???

Unless it's a mod, it looks like you are right. Should be 2n2.

I've always been a little put off by the "Rig Doctor" and Vertex. But I'll admit to learning a few things from some of his board build out videos years back. Same with JHS, he can sometimes be very knowledgeable and genuinely enthusiastic about the subject matter in his videos, but I don't enjoy the manufactured hype to sell people crap they don't need.

 

[MichaelW]

Hmmm....interesting, my board and the build docs say 22n. Is that a mistake? The PCB image in the store now says 2n2. I'll swap it out tomorrow and see if it makes it better. Thanks!

 

[juice886]

With stock values (Mid tone pot is in the middle position):

WIth modded (swapped) values:

 

[MichaelW]

ok I'm confused, apparently there's been a couple versions of this PCB. The image on the webstore says 2n2 where the board and build doc on mine say 22n.

So according to @juice886 I built it with the mod?

 

[Robert]

I think I've posted this somewhere else on the forum, but it went something like this...

A member here traced their Six String a few years ago and sent me the schematic. (C11 - 2n2, C12 - 22n)

The Six String Stinger PCB was born.

The Aion project was released and listed 2n2 in both positions. Folks asked me which was correct, and since I didn't personally trace it I couldn't say with any confidence. I contacted the member who did trace it, he said he felt confident about the value but could have been mistaken. I figured since Aion had traced the pedal more recently, maybe that value was correct, so it was changed to 2n2.

Some time later I traced the Steel String Supreme and found that C12 was indeed 22n as originally traced. This pushed me to personally trace a Steel String to put an end to the confusion. The value was in fact 22n.

So yep, C11 = 2n2, C12 = 22n.

I see that Aion has since updated their Delta build docs to match that.


Use what sounds best to you, it's Vertex, after all....

 

[juice886]

So according to @juice886 I built it with the mod?

If you followed the build docs then you built it with the stock values, C11 = 2n2, C12 = 22n. Swapping out C11 and C12 would give more mids and output volume.

 

[swelchy]

I love it when builds get a brutal honesty! As always looks tight tho!

 

[tcpoint]

I swapped the transistors to J113(s) and that sounded somewhat better. It's, basically, a couple of mu-amps into a big muff tonestack. AMZ had a similar circuit. Also, similar to a MIAB.

 

[jessenator]

This is dope. The minimal execution is a mojo pump. Something about that green/turquoise and numbered chrome dials got me like

 

[bhcarpenter]

I remember hating mine too. It sold pretty quickly at the local shop where I consign stuff though.

 

[fig]

But this thing sounds like ass.

So does the Fart Pedal....but itsa posed to.

 

[geoffrey]

Yea, I remembering liking it when I first built it and the more I played it, the more pedestrian it became. I remember my build report for this thing praised it BUT I also remember it never played well with my Rat to begin with, which is a bad sign for a pedal of this ilk.

It was actually this pedal that taught me the lesson of waiting awhile before posting a build report. Sometimes things sound better because I'm buzzed after building the damn thing

 

[Feral Feline]

...Mason Doucheralla...

... It's, basically, a couple of mu-amps into a big muff tonestack. AMZ had a similar circuit. ...

That's where Maison Margerinesalad got the circuit in the first place; he owes Orman a cut but he doesn't "know" Jack.