Internal LEDs outside?

Dali

Dali

Well-known member
Newbie question:

In few Fuzz and Modulation pedals I often see "blinking LEDs" as part of the pedal and I was wondering except for the additional build complexity, if there are technical issues in putting them outside/on top of the enclosure.

For exemple the LED and LDRs for The Abyss (https://www.pedalpcb.com/product/abyss/) , does the LED+LDRs needs to be in the dark of the enclosure? Or it's really just more convenient to have it directly on the PCB?

Same for the Chela/Talons (just a red LED inside the enclosure).

Thanks in advance for a better understanding of what I'm doing. ;)

Dali
 
LEDs used for clipping may or may not light up when being used, and when they light up it is usually just a little. Probably more trouble than it is worth to mount them outside of the case.

LEDs used with LDRs need the dark because the LDRs use the amount of light to vary the resistance in the circuit and you want the only light doing that to be what is coming from the LEDs.
 
The only pedals I know of that put enough current through the LEDs to make them visible in a lighted room are the ones that use LEDs for hard clipping like the Angry Charles, Angry Andy or a Keeley mod DS-1. Dirt pedals based on the LM386 could have LEDs added without affecting the pedal's tone.
 
The Spaceman Spacerocket fuzz has a well-done visible clipping LED, and one of the LEDs in the Frantone Cream Puff would work too.
 
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