Genuine spring reverb build recommendations?

Zennmaster

Zennmaster

Well-known member
Hi All -

After staying up way too late watching YouTube reviews of the new White Whale v2, I now have the wild hare to build a real spring reverb.

I'm a little hesitant to start into the DeadEndFX Hooke because of the ultra-rare parts and well, the DeadEnd Effects (crazy expensive weird stuff, and feeling like I've got the biggest enclosure imaginable and I'm still cramming bits in, then mis-drilling something because there's no real template, etc).

Are there any other projects out there that I should be looking into?

Thanks!
 
Did you ever end up building it or something else?

I'm also interested, and the Moodysounds PCB would be pretty cheap for me. The parts don't seem too bad either, apart from the 2N1613 which I would have to get from Mouser or some other store which would be a bit more expensive - but not horribly bad.

It looks like a very simple build, although not too much in the way of controls. A short demo video here

Another option might be https://www.op-electronics.com/en/ambient-effects/670-916-spring-reverb-2-kit.html, which is cool since it has modulation, but again quite limited controls otherwise.

It has a BBD in it (for the modulation) which raises the price, but there's a separate kit or PCB (with SMD parts presoldered) options. ~40€ for me for the PCB + BBD + relay + microcontroller, 53€ without the reverb tank or enclosure or 69€ for the whole kit without enclosure.

It's not terribly expensive still (even while keeping in mind I would need to get the enclosure + drill + print from Tayda) for a genuine spring reverb, but there are no videos for that one that I could find, while there is one for the Moodysounds one.
 
Zennmaster said:
I'm a little hesitant to start into the DeadEndFX Hooke because of the ultra-rare parts and well, the DeadEnd Effects (crazy expensive weird stuff, and feeling like I've got the biggest enclosure imaginable and I'm still cramming bits in, then mis-drilling something because there's no real template, etc).
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it's not that bad.
i built a vero version and it works great.
in my build report there's a link to an active ebay listing that i sourced the critical TDA7052B. and for the other peculiar parts - all were available from banzaimusic (accutronics spring tank + TLE2426 + 1590J enclosure).

the bonus of going down the vero route was being able to use whatever switching method i want (simple relay circuit) - instead of being forced to use the fancy chip DEFX requires.
 
Thought about doing this as well, but there's such great (experimental) springs out there like (especially, really) the Vermona Retroverb, that I'd need to see something really well thought out on the DIY scrne instead of keeping an eye out in the second hand market where they're rather reasonable (300,-) considering the functionalities.

But then there's the Benidub spring amp pedal, to which you can hook up an external spring. I'd build something like that!
 
owlexifry said:
it's not that bad.
i built a vero version and it works great.
in my build report there's a link to an active ebay listing that i sourced the critical TDA7052B. and for the other peculiar parts - all were available from banzaimusic (accutronics spring tank + TLE2426 + 1590J enclosure).

the bonus of going down the vero route was being able to use whatever switching method i want (simple relay circuit) - instead of being forced to use the fancy chip DEFX requires.
Click to expand...
That's a good callout too! Looks like there's a v2 of Hooke which doesn't need that very weird chip anymore, so I might consider that too.

tegendemuur said:
Thought about doing this as well, but there's such great (experimental) springs out there like (especially, really) the Vermona Retroverb, that I'd need to see something really well thought out on the DIY scrne instead of keeping an eye out in the second hand market where they're rather reasonable (300,-) considering the functionalities.

But then there's the Benidub spring amp pedal, to which you can hook up an external spring. I'd build something like that!
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Yeah, something like that Benidub or the Anasounds Element would be really cool. AFAIK you need to impedance match the external spring tanks, but that could probably be arranged with some trimmers or DIP switches too.

The Retroverb looks cool but is definitely overkill for me, I'm moving more into the "less is more" camp (although I still like more bands on my EQ options), but something cool and interesting like that (or the modulation one) would be cool. Cheapest Retroverb I can find in the EU would be around 400€, but that's been on Reverb for 2 months so it's possible there could be cheaper ones that have been snagged up.

Edit: This also definitely looks worthwhile, maybe the simplest part acquisition wise? https://bentfishbowl.wixsite.com/electronics/post/22-standard-reverb Plus it's the "spring reverb amp" style, although you could of course put it in a big enclosure with the tank too.
 
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kristopher said:
A few months ago, I was looking into building a true spring reverb. This kit caught my eye.
I can’t vouch for it.
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@Locrian99 was beyond kind and sent me 2 Reverb boards with another item for a contest I won here. The DIY Riptide Reverb was one of those boards and is very similar to that one, may even be the exact same. Built it with the "Long" Accutronics blue plastic spring reverb "tank". The Spring reverb is not bad at all, but it's SUPER noisy. There are a few images around the net if you dig where someone mounted the tank with springs inside the enclosure. I've yet to box it up yet, which may or may not be a reason which there is also a high pitched whine.
 
I have built a clone of the Hooke as well, that I really enjoy! One of the things I like about it is it runs on 9V, so no need for charge pumps (I try to avoid them as much as I can). Mine was built on a single sided pcb, with no switching circuit on board
1722518363769.png
 
Does it need to be pedal format? Mod electronics makes a cool looking tube driven spring reverb kit for what I think is a very reasonable price. I haven't built the kit, but I'm using one of their tanks in my amp head as part of an ongoing quest to make the circuit sound better and less noisy.
 
I love how that 1590DD is portrait-oriented- an oversized guitar pedal.

I was also thinking about how it appears that a Belton BS2/BS3 without the outcase could fit in a 1032L.
 
DeadAirMD said:
@Locrian99 was beyond kind and sent me 2 Reverb boards with another item for a contest I won here. The DIY Riptide Reverb was one of those boards and is very similar to that one, may even be the exact same. Built it with the "Long" Accutronics blue plastic spring reverb "tank". The Spring reverb is not bad at all, but it's SUPER noisy. There are a few images around the net if you dig where someone mounted the tank with springs inside the enclosure. I've yet to box it up yet, which may or may not be a reason which there is also a high pitched whine.
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I still havent built one lol But theres a thread over on diystompboxes about making it less noisey
 
You eventually build a real spring box?

Saw that Anasound thing yesterday and my thoughts returned to this thread when I noted OP Electronics' new halfway populated SMD pcb today. Good price (18,- and in the EU) , and probably fun to box with a second effect, like an envelope?

"Together with R10, C5 makes a low pass filter, the higher the value the more hi freq will cut. Ideally you want it as flat as possible within the audio range BUT, the higher the frequency cut and more possibilities for undesired feedback. We suggest you experiment with different values and choose what you prefer." - Sounds like they dare me to mod! Also, the internal tank can be bypassed by hooking up an external one, which is lovely. "Drive stage is able to work with 150 ohm to 250 ohm coils for Type 1 & 4 and 190 ohm to 310 ohm coils for Type 8 & 9"

Not much info on these. One person mentions online that the through-hole version is somewhat noisy? But otherwise the populated pcb gives me the idea that these are popular pcbs / kits, so I will likely go for it. Have to dive into the IC to see if modulation waveforms can be changed as well.

www.op-electronics.com

Spring Reverb II PCBA

PCB with pre-assembled SMT parts
www.op-electronics.com www.op-electronics.com
 
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Visceri said:
Disappearing Act

Waiting on the materials for this to come in but what really set this one apart is the ducking capability. Uses an 800ohm tank if I’m not mistaken and the build documentation is VERY thorough

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That looks really cool! Thanks for linking it, I put in an order for the PCB's, will have to check what parts I need for it and figure out an enclosure.

I would note that build documentation is not that thorough in my opinion, since the drill template is missing from what I can see. There's the BOM, schematic, and a document which explains the pedals function thoroughly, which I'm sure is very helpful for troubleshooting (and understanding it in general), but no drill template or any other build notes are included.

If you get the PCB's before me, could I ask you measure the pot and led locations (for the comp indicator and footswitch LED) so I could maybe order the enclosure ahead of time? Or if you find a drill template somewhere, that would be good too (I will probably use Tayda, but any template should be ok).
 
Fama said:
That looks really cool! Thanks for linking it, I put in an order for the PCB's, will have to check what parts I need for it and figure out an enclosure.

I would note that build documentation is not that thorough in my opinion, since the drill template is missing from what I can see. There's the BOM, schematic, and a document which explains the pedals function thoroughly, which I'm sure is very helpful for troubleshooting (and understanding it in general), but no drill template or any other build notes are included.

If you get the PCB's before me, could I ask you measure the pot and led locations (for the comp indicator and footswitch LED) so I could maybe order the enclosure ahead of time? Or if you find a drill template somewhere, that would be good too (I will probably use Tayda, but any template should be ok).
Click to expand...

Where are the links for PCB orders on this site? 🙈
 
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Fama said:
That looks really cool! Thanks for linking it, I put in an order for the PCB's, will have to check what parts I need for it and figure out an enclosure.

I would note that build documentation is not that thorough in my opinion, since the drill template is missing from what I can see. There's the BOM, schematic, and a document which explains the pedals function thoroughly, which I'm sure is very helpful for troubleshooting (and understanding it in general), but no drill template or any other build notes are included.

If you get the PCB's before me, could I ask you measure the pot and led locations (for the comp indicator and footswitch LED) so I could maybe order the enclosure ahead of time? Or if you find a drill template somewhere, that would be good too (I will probably use Tayda, but any template should be ok).
Click to expand...
I think mine shipped earlier this week so I’ll see what I can do! You’re correct, no drill template, but I really like it when a circuit is described and explained at length via a blog post or documentation.

I’m considering adding a “key input” so I can place the reverb wherever I like in the chain, boxed up with a VFE old school as seen in Jjjimi84’s build report
 
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