Messages

I'm still new to pedal building and I'm after some basic info on debugging, after a build issue.

I've built a Tonepad Small Clone chorus pedal. Then using Jacob's test rig, I rocked it before boxing it. Problem is, there's no chorusing sound at all. With the pedal on, all I hear is my clean, unaffected tone going through.

That makes me think of a couple of things. Is there a ground issue? Not sure, as the signal is getting through fine.
Next, it makes me think there's a parts issue? Probably, but if I have a dud part, will I still get full signal? I thought any dud part would kill the flow of signal? Maybe I'm wrong?

But am I also right in thinking that if you're getting signal, then there's probably not a soldering problem?

(For those familiar with this project, I've wound the trim pot up and down its range, with no joy).

So my question is, if I'm getting signal through the pedal when on, but no effect, what's likely to be the problem? I know it's cheeky asking for help on a non Madbean project, but I'm curious as to what's happened - I guess this problem could be applied to any pedal build.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated! And please correct me if any of the assumptions I've made above are wrong!

Cheers,
Jeremy

Super stuff, congratulations mate. Enjoy every minute of it - they grow up soooo fast!!

Can I have number 31 please?

All kinds of stuff for me, but what I really love is re-discovering an album I haven't heard for ages, sometimes years.

At the moment I can't get enough of Blizzard of Ozz, something I'd forgotten about for about 20 years!!. Randy Rhoads is the man!! It brings back some great memories, not only of the songs and the playing, but of what I was up to at the time. Happy days....!

Thanks for all the thoughts guys. I reckon my problem lies with toner quality. I got the PnP done on my brother-in-law's printer and he tells me he uses one of these refilled cartridges, rather than a branded one from the manufacturer. That's got to be a consideration given that I've done 4 boards and none has come out right.
My next step will be to find another laser printer and try again, then I'll really know if it's a matter of toner quality or technique on my part.
Cheers, Jeremy

Hi guys, I'm looking for some guidance on Press n Peel Blue as I'm not having much luck. My steps are as per instructions:
Cut copper clad to size. Sand edges and de-burr. Clean with Scotchpad then wipe clean with alcohol to remove any grey gunk.
Preheat iron, lay PnP on the copper, lay iron on top and press for a good while until the PnP has adhered. Then I go over the board gently so that the traces on the PnP come up black, suggesting they have adhered to the board. When I reckon I've covered everything, I cool the board and peel the PnP off to reveal the results. Time spent about 5 mins.
As you can see from the results below, I'm not having great success. The smudges could suggest the iron is too hot and the toner has melted, but then the centres seem to have set fairly well. Also some remnants of blue PnP top paper stuck to the copper might also suggest too hot. But then on the Sunking board, entire traces have not set properly. Gah! I've set my iron on 2 (it has 3 settings) which is the acrylic / wool setting (I can't gague temperature to get to the optimum 275-300F) which seems to be about right, having checked other forums. My copper clad is approx 1.8mm thick total. The printer is an HP mono set to normal.
Any tips or any suggestions most welcome. I've screwed up 4 boards already and would like to get this nailed!!
Cheers, Jeremy

[attachment deleted by admin]

BigMuff, Kaleb - you stars! I did the diode test on my DMM and found that the middle pin was the base. Following Kaleb's idea I measured a slight voltage difference between B-E and B-C which matched the layout BigMuff provided. Thanks so much guys!

One last question, if I had wired the transistor back-to-front, would it have damaged it or any other part of the circuit? Maybe I should get some sockets to make this process easier!
Cheers, Jeremy

Hi there! I'm getting ready to build the LaVache for my second build but have a query about how to orient the 2N3565 correctly. The one I've got has no flattened edge. I've attached a couple of pics if anyone can lend a helping hand? I'm not sure who the manufacturer is so I can get a data sheet - their logo is like two 'C' shapes intertwined to make what looks like an 'S' (see second pic).
I could go ahead and wire it up then reverse it if it doesn't work but I'm worried about blowing anything in the circuit.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Cheers, Jeremy

[attachment deleted by admin]

Cheers Oldhouse, glad to know the value's in the right area! Thanks for your thoughts!
Jeremy

Hi guys, I built myself an Egodriver this weekend from one of Brian's boards (v4) and I'm really pleased with the results. Worked first time and the sound is good to my ears.

Looking around the tech forum it seems the general voltages across the IC are 0v on pin 4, 9v on pin 8 and about 4.5v across the rest. Mine tally with this (I'm using a TL082CN on a 8.6v power input) but I've got 2.7v on pin 3. Is this an expected / acceptable voltage? As I say, I'm happy with the sound, but just curious as to this reading.

Cheers for any help or thoughts,
Jeremy