Anyone who built the Wrecking Ball from C2C Electronics ?

rectifier

rectifier

Member
Hey fellow pedal enthusiasts!

I recently came across an interesting PCB project that recreates the red channel of a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Solo preamp, and I'm wondering if anyone here has built it already? The project looks pretty serious - it's running three 12AX7 tubes and includes a full 3-band EQ with presence control.

IMG_6122.jpeg

https://c2celectronics.com/product/wrecking-ball-pcb-set/

What really interests me is how it performs compared to a real rectifier.

Also if C2C continues to build these I wonder if we could have something like a Synergy type preamp stompboxes that we can combine with poweramps
 
Looks very cool. I want one! A while back, I built the Aion FX Draco, which is based on the Dr. Boogey circuit, which in turn is also based on the red modern channel of the Dual Rectifier but with JFETs instead of tubes. PedalPCB also has a Dr. Boogey variant, the Boogie Monster.
Anyway, while I did like the way it sounded, especially at 18V, I just wasn't a fan of the JFET distortion. In this particular circuit it sounded very compressed and cold, regardless of the bias. Playing it into the FX return of a Peavey 6505 still worked quite well to get a Recto vibe going though. I imagine with real tubes it's going to sound much more convincing. Just be aware, part of the Recto sound is also in the power amp but that's not part of this board.
 
rectifier said:
Hey fellow pedal enthusiasts!

I recently came across an interesting PCB project that recreates the red channel of a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Solo preamp, and I'm wondering if anyone here has built it already? The project looks pretty serious - it's running three 12AX7 tubes and includes a full 3-band EQ with presence control.

View attachment 88846

https://c2celectronics.com/product/wrecking-ball-pcb-set/

What really interests me is how it performs compared to a real rectifier.

Also if C2C continues to build these I wonder if we could have something like a Synergy type preamp stompboxes that we can combine with poweramps
Click to expand...
Well I've definitely built it already ;)

I don't have an actual dual rectifier to compare this to, but frankly the intention of this is to be for someone who wants the dual rec sound and doesn't want to buy a dual rec. The schematic I got seems to be pretty accurate so I assume it's close to the Mesa preamp, but obviously there is something to be said about the tone impact of the power section, so this pedal all by itself isn't going to sound exactly like the amp.

I do not currently have a power amp project nor do I anticipate releasing one in the near future. There are however quite a few options these days for power amps of various shapes, sizes, and power ratings that any of my projects can be paired with.
 
vigilante398 said:
Well I've definitely built it already ;)

I don't have an actual dual rectifier to compare this to, but frankly the intention of this is to be for someone who wants the dual rec sound and doesn't want to buy a dual rec. The schematic I got seems to be pretty accurate so I assume it's close to the Mesa preamp, but obviously there is something to be said about the tone impact of the power section, so this pedal all by itself isn't going to sound exactly like the amp.

I do not currently have a power amp project nor do I anticipate releasing one in the near future. There are however quite a few options these days for power amps of various shapes, sizes, and power ratings that any of my projects can be paired with.
Click to expand...

Hi there first of all a big respect and appreciation for you creating these projects

I think there are enough options for power amps as well and I also think an IR with a Mesa Cab would probably also simulate the power amp section as well. There are also enough affordable IR cab loaders in pedal form already

I know you also had a soldono or Bogner preamp back then, any future ideas to rerelease it again? And also what about other amp projects, maybe a dumble style etc. I think there is a real demand for those preamps, I see it more like those Synergy Preamp modules with the difference that they are in a stompbox rather than a module
 
rectifier said:
Hi there first of all a big respect and appreciation for you creating these projects

I think there are enough options for power amps as well and I also think an IR with a Mesa Cab would probably also simulate the power amp section as well. There are also enough affordable IR cab loaders in pedal form already

I know you also had a soldono or Bogner preamp back then, any future ideas to rerelease it again? And also what about other amp projects, maybe a dumble style etc. I think there is a real demand for those preamps, I see it more like those Synergy Preamp modules with the difference that they are in a stompbox rather than a module
Click to expand...
I did the Bogner Uberschall, I don't have any current plans to re-release it though. I still offer Black Eye, which is the Soldano Supercharger GTO. I have a couple ideas that I've been tossing around, I've certainly considered a Dumble preamp project.
 
vigilante398 said:
I did the Bogner Uberschall, I don't have any current plans to re-release it though. I still offer Black Eye, which is the Soldano Supercharger GTO. I have a couple ideas that I've been tossing around, I've certainly considered a Dumble preamp project.
Click to expand...
If you do decide to rerelease the Supersonic (Uberschall) there are a a couple of things I would like to see revised and worth a revisit IMO, I get it’s probably a niche market though, it is an amazingly rich sounding circuit once you learn how to tame it (it’s not for everyone but I really like it.) The wrecking ball definitely looks pretty cool and I would have jumped on that one in a hot second if I didn’t already own a Recto. Keep on killing it!
 
vigilante398 said:
I've certainly considered a Dumble preamp project.
Click to expand...
I'd be all over that in an instant!

@vigilante398 have you looked at any of the Tubesteader pedals? I have their "Beekeeper" a 2 channel Dumble-style pre-amp. It's excellent and tonally compares very well to my Dumble clone's pre-amp. Their Lightkeeper pedal is just the clean channel but has a slight bit more gain than the clean channel of the BeeKeeper.
 
MichaelW said:
I'd be all over that in an instant!

@vigilante398 have you looked at any of the Tubesteader pedals? I have their "Beekeeper" a 2 channel Dumble-style pre-amp. It's excellent and tonally compares very well to my Dumble clone's pre-amp. Their Lightkeeper pedal is just the clean channel but has a slight bit more gain than the clean channel of the BeeKeeper.
Click to expand...
I haven't played one or checked out guts or anything, but I've seen them around and met Olly from Tubesteader at NAMM last year, super nice dude with great looking pedals.
 
I have a Kingsley Maiden D and Page DS which are the two halves of the Juggler 2 channel D-style preamp. I run them into a power amp and it’s actually my most frequently used rig. Takes pedals incredibly well and sounds amazing on its own too. The Dumble thing, when dialed in, is really great!
 
Oh and also I have the Wrecking Ball pcb and all the parts but I’ve been busy for the last few weeks and haven’t had time to get a build in!
 
Done!
But I need to troubleshoot in the next days. No mid, bass and presence control. My one spot 9V/1700mA is getting really warm!
I accidentally soldered the treble pot not completely straight so I had to solder like a maniac to fix it. There is some screatching in higher gain settings after a few minutes. Hopefully nothing is burnt... It sounds amazing though! :LOL:
I bought the kit from musikding. The foil caps are a bit large but I bent the leads and soldered them higher than the resistors to fit them in.
Instead of the six pin header I used cut off leads from resistors because the hole for the switch is 1 or 2 mm off.... This was easier than to use a file.
Yes on the second picture the IC and transistor are missing.


IMG_6734.JPG IMG_6733.JPG IMG_6732.JPG
 
Last edited:
I ordered the board a couple of days ago and I'm very much looking forward to the build! Will definitely do a demo but I haven't even started sourcing parts yet, so it'll be a while. Already thinking of doing a couple of mods though. C6/R11 in the build doc are the raw mode values. Add a 2.2n cap and 680k resistor in parallel on a switch for vintage/modern mode to increase gain and tighten up the low end response. Can probably downsize the slope resistor R10 in the tone stack to the original 47k then as well to smooth out the high end response. C5 could be switched between 680p (modern) and 500p (vintage/raw) tone stack voicing. Ideas, ideas, ideas o_O
 
fontoponto said:
Done!
But I need to troubleshoot in the next days. No mid, bass and presence control. My one spot 9V/1700mA is getting really warm!
I accidentally soldered the treble pot not completely straight so I had to solder like a maniac to fix it. There is some screatching in higher gain settings after a few minutes. Hopefully nothing is burnt... It sounds amazing though! :LOL:
I bought the kit from musikding. The foil caps are a bit large but I bent the leads and soldered them higher than the resistors to fit them in.
Instead of the six pin header I used cut off leads from resistors because the hole for the switch is 1 or 2 mm off.... This was easier than to use a file.
Yes on the second picture the IC and transistor are missing.


View attachment 92517View attachment 92518View attachment 92519
Click to expand...
Just looking through the build doc and I don't think the presence control will be doing much of anything with that large 220K series resistor (R15) and the tiny 25K pot. R15 should really be 22-33K. Presence pot could also be upped to B100K for a wider range of control.
 
lowpitch said:
Just looking through the build doc and I don't think the presence control will be doing much of anything with that large 220K series resistor (R15) and the tiny 25K pot. R15 should really be 22-33K. Presence pot could also be upped to B100K for a wider range of control.
Click to expand...
Yes that's it, thanks. 33k does not make it the most variable presence but it is audible and usefull.
I will likely not desolder and replace the pot as it is a pain...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top