birthcontrolblues
New member
pretty self explanatory, I'm pretty new to pedal building so idk if this is a common problem.
Bellum Fuzz MK1 light stuck on
- Thread starter birthcontrolblues
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mybud
Well-known member
Ok, try it out by turning the pots CCW (IOW with all the way left as maximum).
birthcontrolblues
New member
didn't see this until I got 2 of them unsoldered, but I'll try this when they're reattached
mybud
Well-known member
Ok. If you manage to get them unsoldered without damaging traces, well and good. But go slowly on the desoldering (IOW, wait a minute or two between attempts) so as to minimise damage to the board or the pots.
swelchy
Well-known member
desoldering pots is pretty tough for a first timer... you really need a good solder sucker,,, the "engineering" type... I recommend just cutting the pins and pulling one pin at a time and either replacing the pot with new or potentially offboard connect them with individual wires if you really want to salvage the pots... You risk trashing the whole build over a $.70 part when trying to desolder them
birthcontrolblues
New member
I managed to get them removed with relatively little board damage (as far as I know)
mybud
Well-known member
That’s good
You’d see damage in the form of lifted traces or damaged eyelets on the board, so if there are none that’s great.Let us know how you get on with the new version.
Nostradoomus
Well-known member
where did you get those pots? They look like they have a switch built in to them.
birthcontrolblues
New member
no, it's just a really weird connection
Gonna need to insulate the back of that lower pot. Not sure if using switched pots is a bug or a feature but guessing that it's going to be a challenge to insulate it and get it board mounted
As per your led always on. You either have a solder bridge between the led and power connections or the portion of your footswitch is melted/deformed internally or there's something shorting in your footswitch wiring. I think it may be the latter as I see some melted insulation at some solder points.
As per your led always on. You either have a solder bridge between the led and power connections or the portion of your footswitch is melted/deformed internally or there's something shorting in your footswitch wiring. I think it may be the latter as I see some melted insulation at some solder points.
birthcontrolblues
New member
update: I rewired the pots and the LED, and ordered a new footswitch because it was really melted.
it may not look like it but this is progress
it may not look like it but this is progress
birthcontrolblues
New member
update: everything wired together, I'm testing it with a loose patch cable and it's putting out some sound, mostly really quiet hissing and buzzing
mybud
Well-known member
Bravo for sticking with it. A couple of suggestions:
Not sure it’s a good idea to wire the offboard pots as you’ve done. Problem is that soldering them directly to the holes may damage the inner tracks if not so already. Remove them carefully and try soldering them to the legs.
Trim all excess wire lengths on the switches and elsewhere so that there are no potential shorts.
Last: try to find a physical ground of some kind to earth the whole assembly, maybe to the original enclosure.
Some transistor circuits need this to function correctly. I base this on your ‘hissing and buzzing’ comment, which in my experience indicates the absence of a physical ground. I’ve come across this in breadboarding before FWIW. Keep at it.
Not sure it’s a good idea to wire the offboard pots as you’ve done. Problem is that soldering them directly to the holes may damage the inner tracks if not so already. Remove them carefully and try soldering them to the legs.
Trim all excess wire lengths on the switches and elsewhere so that there are no potential shorts.
Last: try to find a physical ground of some kind to earth the whole assembly, maybe to the original enclosure.
Some transistor circuits need this to function correctly. I base this on your ‘hissing and buzzing’ comment, which in my experience indicates the absence of a physical ground. I’ve come across this in breadboarding before FWIW. Keep at it.
Erik S
Well-known member
I built one of these with all the transistors in sockets like that and mine will cut out if they’re not all seated perfectly.
If I flip the enclosure over and bang the knob side on the ground a couple times that seems to help, but it’s not a great system.
If I flip the enclosure over and bang the knob side on the ground a couple times that seems to help, but it’s not a great system.
mybud
Well-known member
If you manage to do all this, the next step is to make an audio probe. Try searching for this on this forum. This provides a way to trace the audio signal from where it comes in to the board and its travels to the output. If we can get this working, well and good
Let’s deal with it not working later.
I also suggest (with no offence intended) that practising your soldering will vastly improve your chances of success. You want clean shiny joints (like little volcanoes) and the solder to reach the undersides of each eyelet. It may be worth decreasing your iron’s temperature if possible and taking a mite more time on each connection to ensure this.
Let’s deal with it not working later.
I also suggest (with no offence intended) that practising your soldering will vastly improve your chances of success. You want clean shiny joints (like little volcanoes) and the solder to reach the undersides of each eyelet. It may be worth decreasing your iron’s temperature if possible and taking a mite more time on each connection to ensure this.
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