What was your first PedalPCB build?

[Feral Feline]

I bought a Defouler Distortion PCB when it was sold for $4 with a silkscreen error; couldn't pass up on that deal! This was also my first time buying a PCB. I had done one or two vero builds before, plus a wah pedal with etched PCBs for a high school project.

Anyways, its a great pedal. Made some noob mistakes, like melting the big 470uF WIMA cap when soldering the pots. The electrolytic cap hides it perfectly tho . Also, the transistor socket doesn't really hold on to the leads well, so I kept them long and put a little felt furniture foot on the back to push the transistor down.

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Knobs from an old Squier practice amp, really nice Switchcraft jacks from an old mixer. I really love this pedal, but I do wish it had more output. Ripe for modding...

I've since bought three more PPCB's: A Musket, Breakstreet, and Caesar. And I ain't stopping there!

There's something about this build that I can't get out of my mind...

I just love it ... I'm going to have to sand down a primered enclosure, stick some masking tape labels on it and then I'm going to clear-coat over top that.

 

[wintercept]

There's something about this build that I can't get out of my mind...

I just love it ... I'm going to have to sand down a primered enclosure, stick some masking tape labels on it and then I'm going to clear-coat over top that.

Thank you! It’s my lazy way of doing things that is not as lazy as the usual sharpie...

I sprayed some primer, then some testers aircraft color paint, then I sanded it pretty hard after other labeling attempts failed. Thus the masking tape. I ended up pretty happy with it. Would recommend for some grungier builds!

 

[JetFixxxer]

Mine was Octagon MultiFX or could have been the Van Pelt which I ordered/built at the same time (2018).

During my build on the Octagon I was thought it should have had a rotary switch instead of the pot. Of course the updated version did, but being lazy I haven't updated my build with the new board.

 

[HamishR]

Thermionic Distortion was my first I think. I lose track because I have so many bloody pedals! It's funny but I've made a gazillion pedals and only ever play the same (very) few.

 

[TSReppe]

Jiminy, listening to Norwegian is mesmerizing enough, then you break out the delay

must....change the page......losing consciou

Great build and demo!

Haha cheers man!

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

The only Norwegian I know is a drinking song I learned from a Foreign Exchange student in High School. It's not very complimentary of the "Svenske Faen."

 

[VWBug5000]

The Spirit Box was my first pedal from PedalPCB. I modded it with an infinite dwell momentary footswitch as per DanBieranowski’s post which definitely made it more spacey sounding. So I decided it was now known as a “Space Ghost Echo”. This was also my first etching attempt, which turned out far better than I expected.

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

Nice!

 

[VWBug5000]

Nice!

Thanks! The board was populated in a day or two, but the pedal art took a few weeks and several attempts to dial in

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

I really need to learn how to do that.

 

[VWBug5000]

I really need to learn how to do that.

There is definitely a learning curve! Try it on some scrap boxes first if you have any available. I tried going cheap on the toner transfer paper and it failed every time. Use the blue stuff, its worth the extra $. Also, it sticks to the aluminum better when it has been sanded semi smooth and level. Preheating the enclosure is important too

 

[VWBug5000]

Oh yeah - definitely drill AFTER etching. The one in the pic ended up getting thrown away. I had originally planned to powder coat the enclosures and changed my mind after I drilled. Bad idea.

 

[Popnfreshbass]

I bought the kliche, paragon mini, pal800 and OC2 clone. Can’t remember which I finished first, but the kliche and paragon had to wait because I mis-ordered some parts. All 4 of those pedals are now sold, which funded another batch. And so on and so on lol.

 

[brokenwizard]

Picked up the Muroidea and Amentum. Having soldered em yet but pretty excited. They seemed like good starter circuits. Ended up using an LM308 alternative though.

 

[ncarmona]

Vintage RAT with 4 clipping options. Ricardo from tone.electronix helped me with the enclosure.

 

[bitzie]

Parentheses Mini was my first. (Not first built pedal though, I had built 2 others previously.) Then a full size Parentheses. Just waiting for another Parentheses board and about 6 or 7 others to arrive so I can dive into those. Even though I'm 100% happy with my board as it stands right now, I can't stop; building pedals is just so much fun!

 

[Grubb]

Muroidea​

Yep, I picked this one for its low parts count, but also because they sound so aggressive and gnarly. It's not a permanent resident on my pedalboard but it's definitely fun to play with.

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

Have you tried the Expandora? It's basically a Rat with a built-in noise gate.

 

[Idlebeach]

My first order comes Monday I think... I had to place another order before this birthday deal was over as well! Glad I follow them on Insta. I think my first build will probably end up being the CIrculator. Can't wait to try some nice PCBS. I've been doing pretty much all DIY/stripboard/perf until now.

 

[BPFuzz]

Arkaim fuzz kit bought through Musikding since I’d never ordered parts before. Not my first build, but still had that beginner tingly feeling when it started back up!

It’s still the heaviest fuzz I’ve built and I’ve built quite a few now. Highly recommend it to anyone who plays heavy music.