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Stutr help! (FIXED)

Started by trailer, March 04, 2018, 10:49:30 PM

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trailer

Hi all,

Still a novice at best here but have a few fuzzes and drives under my belt. Tried my hand at a Stutr tremolo and I'm having trouble. It works fine in bypass but when the effect is engaged I get no tremolo at all. It sounds the exact same as it does in bypass. Also, the led to signify the effect is engaged goes on and off as it should.

The solder joints look "good", the pots have been turned in all directions and the trimmer has been turned all the way in both directions with no change.

Anything you guys spot or know I maybe screwing up?




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trailer

I know, I boxed it...

I have double checked all parts and the wiring is the exact same as the diagram here on madbeans for bypass.




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somnif

#2
Grab your DMM and check the resistance on the LDR, see if it varies with the LED flashing. You'll want the rate quite slow so you don't outpace your meter. If it isn't changing, is the resistance high (~500k) or low.

trailer

Quote from: somnif on March 04, 2018, 11:10:30 PM
Grab your DMM and check the resistance on the LDR, see if it varies with the LED flashing. You'll want the rate quite slow so you don't outpace your meter. If it isn't changing, is the resistance high (~500k) or low.

This will be my first time troubleshooting. I have a voltmeter on the way so I'll get back on it in a few days and report back. Right now the LEDs inside and and outside don't flash. They stay lit till the foot switch is clucked. 


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somnif

Quote from: trailer on March 05, 2018, 11:04:08 AM
This will be my first time troubleshooting. I have a voltmeter on the way so I'll get back on it in a few days and report back. Right now the LEDs inside and and outside don't flash. They stay lit till the foot switch is clucked. 

Ok, that's a start, means the problem is on the TL062's side of the circuit. If you have a spare chip, try another one in there, just to check. If you have a TL072 you can try that as well. It may make the circuit "click" so you don't want to keep it in there forever, but it will tell you if your '62 is a bad chip. Easy first step.

Also, gotta ask.... why is that one capacitor so high up?

somnif

Ok, actually think I may have just spotted the problem. It looks like you have used 220 ohm resistors in place of 220K ohm resistors for R7, R9, and R10.

They should be Red Red Black Orange Brown, and I see two black bars instead.

trailer

Quote from: somnif on March 05, 2018, 11:29:01 AM
Also, gotta ask.... why is that one capacitor so high up?

Ok, actually think I may have just spotted the problem. It looks like you have used 220 ohm resistors in place of 220K ohm resistors for R7, R9, and R10.

They should be Red Red Black Orange Brown, and I see two black bars instead.

I will double check those resistors when I get home. As for that cap... My GF decided she was interested in the guts of these things after a few months of me working on them and asked me a million questions while I was populating this board. I put the cap in backwards and realized it immediately. I just need to slide it all the way down. That's probably why these resistors ended up wrong as well. Poor excuse but that's all I got.

I will report back with my findings/repairs tonight.

Thanks for the help!

trailer

The resistors are definitely wrong, and packaged wrong. I'll get some more coming and update what happens next.


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somnif

Quote from: trailer on March 05, 2018, 09:25:36 PM
The resistors are definitely wrong, and packaged wrong. I'll get some more coming and update what happens next.

Groovy. Yeah looking at the schematic, having those resistors super low means your tremolo is basically trem'ing at a super fast rate, such that it basically looks Always-On.

Its a rite of passage putting in a wrong component value, we have all done it, some of us several times..... cough, anyway. Hopefully you can swap them without too much issue and get the thing happily stuttering away.

As for incorrect packaging, I've actually gotten to the point where I check every resistor with my meter before I put it in. I've become paranoid, and it hasn't even happened to me yet!

trailer

Quote from: somnif on March 05, 2018, 09:30:37 PM
Quote from: trailer on March 05, 2018, 09:25:36 PM
The resistors are definitely wrong, and packaged wrong. I'll get some more coming and update what happens next.

Groovy. Yeah looking at the schematic, having those resistors super low means your tremolo is basically trem'ing at a super fast rate, such that it basically looks Always-On.

Its a rite of passage putting in a wrong component value, we have all done it, some of us several times..... cough, anyway. Hopefully you can swap them without too much issue and get the thing happily stuttering away.

As for incorrect packaging, I've actually gotten to the point where I check every resistor with my meter before I put it in. I've become paranoid, and it hasn't even happened to me yet!

You were correct. It's all corrected now and works better than I imagined.

This thing is up and running and ffffuuuuuunnnnnnnnn!




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