Outside of the normal scope....

Hey! I’ve got the bug and have been building pedals for the last year or so. I’m still in wayyy over my head when it comes to understanding exactly what I am building half of the time, but it’s so much fun and I’m picking up bits and pieces along the way. this has been a great place to learn, and there are always questions that I often find the answer to on this forum.

I just bought a bunch of germanium transistors for a Simulcast build (and in anticipation of the dual switch version coming soon ?), and I’m in the process of learning how to measure their leakage and gains, and I got to thinking - what if there was a build that tested components?

i know there are devices out there that potentially do this, but I thought it would be cool and fun to construct a circuit that lets you plug and test components from jfets to germaniums and all other components typically used in these builds. Especially handy when you need to nail the value.

Is this a dumb idea? Do those devices actually work? Does anybody have something like this already? Throwing it out here and seeing if it sticks!

thanks and look forward to more!
 
I've just finished a Simulcast build and ran into a similar problem - no reliable way to test gain/leakage.

I ended up just socketing, trying out the transistors I had and leaving in the one that sounded best. Super hifi!
 
I've just finished a Simulcast build and ran into a similar problem - no reliable way to test gain/leakage.

I ended up just socketing, trying out the transistors I had and leaving in the one that sounded best. Super hifi!
Haha!
I haven't done this, so I can't speak from experience but seems fairly straight forward
Yep, that's the same schematic I found for testing transistors too.
 
Socketing transistors and auditioning them is good practice either way. It tunes your ears to what pedals sound like when you’ve got out of spec parts, great for future troubleshooting!
Good call! Yeah, I built a lot of those first batches of pedals without auditioning or testing any of the components, thinking they would all be to spec (perfect). Glad to know it now, so part of this idea would be to build an actual pedal that auditions each part - but maybe that's just a silly idea...haha.
I built a JFET tester and that kind of jumpstarted this idea - I wanted to have a permanent one (the one I built was breadboarded) and wanted to figure out how to have those more complicated component tests done. Y'know, like resistors? :) also to be able to hook it up to a wall wart instead of 9v battery, etc.
 
My Rule of Thumb - Test Twice, Fit Once! Test EVERY component, I Fit & Solder each component One at a time.
Shit, I even Solder twice, After I cut the excess leads Off, I re sweat the pads!
DMM for every Resistor, Capacitor, Electrolytic, Toggle, Potentiometers & Trimmers.
Peak DCA55 for every Transistor, Diode, Led.
JFET DIY Greatly Improved II Tester.
Op Amp Machined Pin Sockets.
If I forgot anything, Test it!!!

Why, I live in Australia & Au 64c to the US Dollar means Parts & Shipping are at Premium Prices!
 
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