Early Builds: Tweaked Executive & Vero Fig Buster

[Ginsly]

These are my 3rd and 4th pedal builds ever. Please excuse the bare enclosures and grey knobs. Or maybe I'll be the Silver (Mica) Surfer or something...

Started learning about this stuff late last year and still have a long way to go. This forum and its members have been absolutely invaluable.

Maybe I'll add a couple sound clips later. What are people liking for that? Soundcloud? I doubt I can upload audio directly on the Forum...

I did the Vero Fig Buster first, big thanks to @music6000 for the tips. Sounds incredible, I LOVE the Clusterfuzz, especially LED mode. 125B enclosure.

My first PedalPCB project was the Executive, and I wanted to add a Voltage knob a la Mythos Hephaestus. Labeling its box as "Starved Suit". Ha.

Thanks to @Harry Klippton @PedalBuilder @Robert @Big Monk and others for helping with the Starve knob. I tried a 50k knob, but found that 100k gave me a little more sub-octave weirdness. It works! It can be dialed in for normal Bosstone sounds, but has all sorts of glitchy sub-octave variations, depending on how the Starve and Gain knobs are set. Lots of fun.

And... since I'm a wise-ass and wanted to use up a 1590B enclosure for this (AND shove a battery in), I installed the board-mounted pots (Vol and Gain) upside down so that the board could sit on top of them. I made sure it wouldn't short. Those controls now work backwards, but I'm ok with that - it's just an early build, time to mess around!

 

[Ginsly]

I’ve found that the Executive is a bit hissy. My experience with other Bosstones tells me this is fairly normal for the circuit, plus I’ve monkeyed with it by adding the voltage control. It doesn’t seem like a grounding buzz.

In this situation, what would be wise to look at? Transistors and diodes are socketed, so I can try some different things.

 

[eh là bas ma]

the Executive is a bit hissy (...) In this situation, what would be wise to look at?

Did you use shielded wires for the IN and OUT jacks ?

I had a similar issue, Feral Feline told me to use shielded wires and to keep them away from the pcb, taped along the enclosure sides. I salvaged the cable from a broken power supply, and it worked.

A buffer in front of this effect could help too, you can use a boss pedal, or any other stompbox with a buffered bypass. Sometimes buffers can help.

Some circuits can get noisy, depending on their location in the signal chain. A fuzz should probably feel more confortable in the first position, directly connected to the guitar cable.

In most cases, using a daisy chain to feed several circuits with a single power supply, won't help with noises. In a few cases, it can even create some noise.

 

[Ginsly]

@eh là bas ma I inquired about shielded wire, but it seemed like it wouldn’t likely make much difference… maybe it would!

I’m not sure what kind I would use, where to get it, and how to ground the shield… any ideas?

I primarily use batteries in fuzz, so that elimimates a LOT of noise variables, thankfully!

 

[eh là bas ma]

I’m not sure what kind I would use, where to get it, and how to ground the shield… any ideas?

I salvaged it from an other device. You can use some old power cable for computers or some broken patch cable for guitar effects, etc.
Any thick cable is potentially shielded, and can be interesting for your application. If you can access a big pile of electronic junk somewhere, cut some cables and look inside to check if they are shielded.

If you cut it, you should notice some sort of shielding around the wires. I don't think you need to ground the shield, i never saw it done in build reports with shielded wires.

To salvage some piece of shielded cable would be my first move, but i guess you can buy it. You can ask to your local electronic shop, or look for insulated wires online. Unfortunately, i can't suggest any product online, because i never bought it.

Hopefuly, another forum member could recommend some online shop where it is available ?

 

[Giorfida]

I salvaged it from an other device. You can use some old power cable for computers or some broken patch cable for guitar effects, etc.
Any thick cable is potentially shielded, and can be interesting for your application. If you can access a big pile of electronic junk somewhere, cut some cables and look inside to check if they are shielded.

If you cut it, you should notice some sort of shielding around the wires. I don't think you need to ground the shield, i never saw it done in build reports with shielded wires.

To salvage some piece of shielded cable would be my first move, but i guess you can buy it. You can ask to your local electronic shop, or look for insulated wires online. Unfortunately, i can't suggest any product online, because i never bought it.

Hopefuly, another forum member could recommend some online shop where it is available ?

I’d reach out to folks in the Soldano SLO clone forums and ask they use nothing but the best.
One thing I found by cheaping out the one time I bought it, is that cheap shielded cable is worse than unshielded as it can actually be microphonic

 

[Ginsly]

I’d reach out to folks in the Soldano SLO clone forums and ask they use nothing but the best.
One thing I found by cheaping out the one time I bought it, is that cheap shielded cable is worse than unshielded as it can actually be microphonic

So... very odd coincidence in talking about things being microphonic...

I revisited my vero Fig Buster (first attempt at a pcb version had a little hiccup! ) and realized that it was oddly microphonic - tapping on the enclosure resulted in crackly tapping sounds coming from the amp. In opening it up, it seems that the Input wire leading from the Vero to the footswitch pcb might be the culprit. I can't say I've seen this before, although I'm pretty new to this!

Do I really need to delve into shielded wire to avoid this? I can't see that there is anything shorting out against the enclosure, etc, so I'm wondering if this just kinda happens in certain circuits and you have to secure the Input wire well so it doesn't move maybe..?

It's being powered by a battery, fyi. Any usual suspects when it comes to a microphonic Input wire (if that is indeed where the problem lies)?

 

[chris.knudson]

Started learning about this stuff late last year and still have a long way to go.

I'm right there with you brother. I built my first pedal almost exactly 6 months ago, and this forum has been gold mine for me. I have learned so much by just reading this forum and interacting with its members -- it's awesome. There are a lot of really great people on here.

 

[eh là bas ma]

Do I really need to delve into shielded wire to avoid this? I can't see that there is anything shorting out against the enclosure, etc, so I'm wondering if this just kinda happens in certain circuits and you have to secure the Input wire well so it doesn't move maybe..?

Enclosures shouldn't be microphonic, never. I would start by checking the wiring.
Sometimes a tiny piece of wire missed the hole and is shorting the next pad.

Also check that the pots terminals aren't touching each other or the enclosure.

If touching the aluminium enclosure affects the signal, it means that somehow something in the circuit is touching the enclosure and it shouldn't.
The only thing that should touch the enclosure is Ground, through the jacks's ring.

It could be some short somewhere, or an issue with the ground network. Check that all ground points are connected together with your DMM (digital multimeter), and perform a visual inspection to make sure there isn't any short with a stray wire. Don't forget the 3PDT board.

You can also look for the issue by moving all your wires a bit, while the microphonic problem is active, to see if it affects the issue, and narrow it down.

These transistors have long legs, it can't help with background noises, you should shorten them as much as possible.

I never used these green connectors, isn't it possible that there is a short between these wires inside the connector ?

Looks like you put some piece of cardboard, or plastic, to insulate the soldering side of the veroboard from the pots, the toggles, and from the enclosure. Is it thick enough to be effective ? Sometimes tiny holes can appear, made by sharp soldering joints.

And yes, on some circuits, shielded In and Out wires can make a noticeable improvement on the background noises. Usualy high-gain circuits, but also modulation circuits, sometimes.

All these sockets are suspicious, there are more chances for a weak or bad connection with sockets. I would solder every parts directly on the veroboard, except the transistors.

The plastic washer on the outside is a nice touch (+1000 experience points), but you didn't do any artwork (-3500 exp. pts).
Let's remember that the building process is the easiest part, the artwork is the real challenge, showing and expressing your soul to the outside world, and creating a singular bond between the player and the audio effect.
It doesn't have to be expensive, a simple faceplate made from a piece of plastic is fine. Acrylic paint and varnish are cheap and effective.

 

[Ginsly]

@eh là bas ma this all makes total sense, I really appreciate your input. I plan on simply re-doing this one. There are just too many variables here - the screw terminals, the sockets, plus wire that was supposed to be "pre-bond" but seems to fray at the end anyways...

I did indeed cover the bottom of the board with electrical tape, but like you said, that's not foolproof...

I'll have to figure out this shielded wire situation. Not really sure where to start...

When it comes to the outside - I'll get there! Ha... I'm actually a Printmaker/Instructor, so I should be able to work that out eventually...

Again, thanks for the insight. I had the feeling this wasn't normal in the least!