Introduction and first question about the Sproing (or similar reverb)

S

slackdogsound

New member
First post here, so please bear with me!

I've built quite a few guitars and tube amps over the years, so I'm comfortable with a soldering iron and can read a schematic. However, I've never built a pedal before, and I don't really know my way around ICs, transistors, etc. Most of my experience has been with tube-based circuits.

The reason I'm interested in building a pedal is that I haven't been able to find a reverb that really works for what I want.

I've tried a J. Rockett Boing, Wampler Faux Spring, Mosky Spring, and a few other spring/plate-style reverbs. The problem I keep running into is that there's either too little reverb or too much. The useful range seems to be a VERY small sweet spot, and it's pretty easy to bump the knob just enough to move it out of that range.

What I'm really looking for is something very simple. I don't need long trails, modulation, drip, or a bunch of other features. I basically want just a hair of ambience to give the guitar a little space, while otherwise getting out of the way completely.

Of the pedals I've tried, I generally like the Boing. My thought was that the PedalPCB Sproing might be a good starting point, possibly with some modification to make the range of the Mix control much more useful for what I'm after. Unfortunately, I'm not sure what modifications would accomplish that.

So I'm wondering:

1. Would the Sproing be a good starting point for this?
2. Is there a relatively simple modification that would compress the useful range of the Mix control toward the low end?
3. Or is there another PedalPCB project that might be a better fit for this particular goal?

Again, I'm very comfortable building and troubleshooting tube amps, but I'm definitely a beginner when it comes to solid-state pedal circuits. I'd appreciate any suggestions or guidance.

Thanks!
 
GAStan said:
@jubal81 has the Bodhizafa he designed and I  think still has kits for. Perhaps he can help you dial this in to your needs?
Click to expand...
I do have some available, but it sounds like it'd be overkill for what the OP is looking for.

If you just need a very subtle reverb and you're OK with digital you could build one based on the Belton brick or FV-1 and possible do a few mods to make the blend very fine-tunable.

The Sproing is the absolutely most basic circuit you'd need to get a Belton brick reverb to work. I'd recommend the Gravitation. It's also a brick reverb, so it's a simple build, but it's a lot more capable.

Alternatively, a cheap digital reverb might do the trick and save you some money.

Honestly, I think the Biyang Tri-Reverb is pretty good and you can get them for $60-ish.
 
The Bodhizafa definitely seems overkill for my rig but that doesn't mean one won't be in my future. The Levitation/Gravitation videos sound good but I'm really a set a forget kind of player with minimal needs for my live rig. I don't think I would use half of the features or sounds, that's why I'm leaning towards building a Sproing that I can tailor to my needs.

The Biyang Tri-Reverb demos sound really good. It would certainly be simpler and cheaper to just buy one but I enjoy a project and learning new stuff.

By the way... are there any demos on youtube of the Bodhizafa? I did a google search but came up with nothing.
 
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