How to Make the Dwarven Hammer More Like an Actual Nano Attack?

[Caldo71]

So I notice that the Dwarven Hammer is ACTUALLY a lot closer to the earlier “Attack Overdrive” made by ProTone pedals (also in partnership with Misha Mansoor). It has those full external pots for overdrive, volume, and treble.

Two questions:

1.) Is it possible to simply strap internal trim pots of the same values across the pads for the volume and treble to more closely emulate the more current Nano Attack version?

2.) More importantly (to me) is is possible—through jumpering and or component omissions—to get rid of the overdrive component completely? Thus also more like the current version?

I’ve built a “normal” Dwarven Hammer version but I don’t love all the bells and whistles as it doesn’t ever really 100% clean up compared to my actual Nano Attack I own. Would really like to try a second build where I emulate that!

 

[Robert]

The Nano Attack is just a Tube Screamer with fixed gain, a rotary switch on the RC filter, and trim pots instead of external potentiometers... The Tone pot is 5K instead of the usual 20K (and called Bright), but otherwise it's basically a stock TS aside from a couple component values.

It is an overdrive with the gain fixed at minimum (10K vs 51K in a stock TS), there's no added overdrive component that could be removed or bypassed.

Aside from the Drive pot there really aren't any added "bells and whistles"... The internal trim pots were just moved outside as normal pots.

You could omit the Drive pot (jump pads 1 and 2) and replace the Volume/Tone pots with internal trim pots.
The only other difference is the added positions 3 and 5 on the rotary switch.

The Dwarven Hammer should be exactly the same with the Drive control at minimum. I suppose you could remove the clipping diodes if it's still to gritty, but they're in the original as well.

 

[Caldo71]

The Nano Attack is just a Tube Screamer with fixed gain, a rotary switch on the RC filter, and trim pots instead of external potentiometers... The Tone pot is 5K instead of the usual 20K (and called Bright), but otherwise it's basically a stock TS aside from a couple component values.

It is an overdrive with the gain fixed at minimum (10K vs 51K in a stock TS), there's no added overdrive component that could be removed or bypassed.

Aside from the Drive pot there really aren't any added "bells and whistles"... The internal trim pots were just moved outside as normal pots.

You could omit the Drive pot (jump pads 1 and 2) and replace the Volume/Tone pots with internal trim pots.
The only other difference is the added positions 3 and 5 on the rotary switch.

The Dwarven Hammer should be exactly the same with the Drive control at minimum. I suppose you could remove the clipping diodes if it's still to gritty, but they're in the original as well.

Thank you @PedalPCB ! So, a trio of newbish follow up questions if you don’t mind:

1.) when you say “jump pads 1 and 2” on the drive pot, would that literally be—of the PCB’s drive pads—the first two pads from left to right?

2.) Regarding removing the “clipping diodes”, that would be the two 1N4148 diodes (D1 and D2 on the PCB) specifically? Is that right?

3.) upon removing those diodes, do I have to put a jumper from one pad to the next where they’ve been removed, or do I just leave ‘em open?

 

[Robert]

Pad 1 is the square pad, Pad 2 is the center pad.

Yep, D1 and D2 are the clipping diodes. You can just remove them and leave the pads open.

 

[Caldo71]

Pad 1 is the square pad, Pad 2 is the center pad.

Yep, D1 and D2 are the clipping diodes. You can just remove them and leave the pads open.

THANKS! Excited to try this!

 

[Caldo71]

Just circling back to mention that these recommendations for bypassing the overdrive section worked really well, and the pedal now sounds much more transparent and functions much more like the currently-on-the-market little blue nano-attacks. These things are little marvels for adding punch and clarity to just about any overdriven tones.

 

[Robert]

It's odd that you had to do that, the original did have clipping diodes.... but hey, all that matters is that you got it sounding the way you want.

(I'd sure be interested in seeing the PCB in your original if you ever open it up)

 

[Caldo71]

It's odd that you had to do that, the original did have clipping diodes.... but hey, all that matters is that you got it sounding the way you want.

(I'd sure be interested in seeing the PCB in your original if you ever open it up)

I'll pop it open for ya someday soon!