Sonicake VOLWah teardown

[Alex5908]

Hello everybody,
Recently I've received a Sonicake VolWah pedal and it's too noisy. I wanted to make a Faraday cage but can't remove the PCB from the pedal. Could any give a piece of an advice how to do it?

 

[gonzo]

The foot switch is mounted, so you'll have to unscrew that. Not sure if there is a pot mounted too.

 

[Alex5908]

It's not a screw but a nut. And there's a retaining clip which I can't remove. I would try harder but there's an option that it's not that nut but something else.

 

[Feral Feline]

Start full disassembly, take lotsa pics.

Working on cars (I'm no mechanic) I always think that's easy that's obvious I know how it comes apart/goes together... then reassembly time comes... Taking pics even when I think it unnecessary has saved my butt a few [lotta] times



SO... the only thing to be seen that's obvious is the footswitch (as already noted) and the treadle. Of course there's the risk that you may not need to take the treadle off to pull it apart, and then putting the treadle back together is a RPITA — such as when I was ripping apart a console and part of the dash out of a truck just so I could take the seat out and recover it. Removed things I didn't need to, but at the time saw no other way to do it. All worked out in the end, just added a bit more work/time to the project.


I think no matter what, you'll have to get some C-clip pliers or something to remove that retaining clip and thus remove the footswitch, as per Gonzo's post. The footswitch is soldered into the PCB, and seems to be fastened to the main housing, albeit recessed, and not some sub-housing within the pedal.


More pics, please — faskinatin' project.

 

[tegendemuur]

There's a hex screw on the side that might need to be removed?

Also, you might need to press the pcb mounted power connector inwards. Gotta be careful with that though, as you can break it off with too much pressure. Had to do this with some EHX pedals, and what worked best for me is to put a piece of wood (or whatever) that's only slightly larger than the gap, place it inside and turn it until it snaps straight... 1 or 2 mm will do the trick.

 

[swelchy]

This is like putting a new shiny valve cover on a 1988 Yugo....

 

[tegendemuur]

This is like putting a new shiny valve cover on a 1988 Yugo....

 

[Alex5908]

Guys, I am new here and not allowed to send PMs to members (only to staff). Could anybody invite Chris420 to this thread? Of course if he is still in the forum. I asked him a question but the thread is 5 years old and did not get a respond so far.
He had definitely disassembled this Sonicake pedal.

Thread 'Would it be possible to turn a Sonicake Volwah into just a Wah pedal?'

Sep 8, 2021

I have this Volwah pedal and actually like it a lot but only the wah part lol. The volume part is anoying because i accidentally use it when i don't want to and would rather just make it a wah that turns on and off when the switch is clicked like my old crybaby. Has anyone ever done this sort of thing before?

• Chris420
• Replies: 7
• Forum: General Questions

 

[Alex5908]

There's a hex screw on the side that might need to be removed?

Also, you might need to press the pcb mounted power connector inwards. Gotta be careful with that though, as you can break it off with too much pressure. Had to do this with some EHX pedals, and what worked best for me is to put a piece of wood (or whatever) that's only slightly larger than the gap, place it inside and turn it until it snaps straight... 1 or 2 mm will do the trick.

View attachment 119534

Do you mean for removal of the power supply socket?

 

[tegendemuur]

Do you mean for removal of the power supply socket?

Yeah, you need to push the connector inwards, out of the square gap of the enclosure. It's part of what keeps the pcb in place. That, and the removal of the nut on the footswitch, should get you started with getting the pcb loose. Go from there! Don't use any force on the pcb. Think of it as a puzzle; to use force is to cheat!

 

[Feral Feline]

...Think of it as a puzzle; to use force is to cheat!

Not to mention cheating will break a trace or solder joint or worse... Then you'll have a nice paperweight for your home-office.