I also posted this on DIYSB, but wanted to share it here as well (got some great help from some people here).
This is the Clone Theory in a 1590B that I built for a friend who owns a vintage 70s one. I was disgusted by how much pedal board space was wasted by that one giant pedal, so I told him I could probably make him one much smaller.
(https://s29.postimg.org/ax5qh1tgn/IMG_20170613_115015.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/etj2d1eg3/)
(https://s15.postimg.org/pkii006nf/IMG_20170613_111622.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/6ff8q8rzb/)
(https://s1.postimg.org/4e4lfqs67/IMG_20170613_100144.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/u9obyxtzv/)
It's based mostly on this layout:
http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.com/2014/05/electro-harmonix-clone-theory.html?m=1
But, I had to move a bunch of stuff around to make it all fit, and I had to substitute some parallel combinations of resistors and caps to make up for shortcomings of my inventory. Also had to file down portions of the lid and jacks. I'm happy to report that it works after all that. ;D
It was a very tight squeeze, and I fully expected something to short out disastrously upon closing it up (not shown in the pics is the gaffers tape I added as insulation on the boards and pots), but it worked perfectly when I powered it up.
Special thanks to Antoy, juansolo, and Kartoffelkopf for sharing graphics from their Clone Theory builds with me. 8)
And, of course, thanks to IvIark at tagboardeffects for doing the heavy lifting on the Vero layout!
That is TIGHT! Bloody nice work!
Thanks!
I probably wouldn't have attempted this if it weren't for this line on the tagboardeffects site: "It will fit in a 1590B if you want the aggravation, but a 125B would probably be a better choice." Being in a spiteful mood, of course I accepted that challenge.
Geeezzz how did you get all that in there. That's a bunch. Great job.
Bravo sir. Bravo.
Wow!!! That's a tight fit
Good work. Can't believe you it that.
Insanity, Pure Insanity!
Cody
It's hard to see how you even imagined that fitting!!
There are friends, then there are those who will help you bury a body, if needed ---- very clear which one applies to you; great work, sir!
Thanks, everyone!
To be honest, I didn't know if this would fit before I started building it.
Here's a bit more info, for those interested.
I drilled out the enclosure, setting the pots as high as I could (no pun intended) and the switches and jacks as low as I could (almost, anyway -- you can probably see that I could have slid the input/output jacks a tiny bit lower). I figured I could always put something else in this enclosure if the Clone Theory didn't fit.
Once I got the two boards mostly populated, I started checking the fit to see which way I would have to orient the main board (determined mainly by the position of that large 470uF cap) and what parts would have to be moved. That cap soldered to the back of the board was interfering with the plugs going into the jacks, for instance.
I also knew from past builds that there is plenty of aluminum that can be carved out of these boxes to give a bit more room, if needed. Because that board takes up the whole width and is solder-side-up, I filed off the lap joint flange on the lid along about 75% of the length of the box.
I assumed that if the boards fit comfortably then the wires would too. Once I could get both boards in and still have them rattle around with the lid on, I was fairly confident it would fit. It was at that point that I worked on the graphics.
Tagboardeffects: You probably can't do this.
EBK: Hold my beer.... ;D
See the attached file. (Humanity, in scifi, as Team "Hold My Beer I Got This")
Outstanding work -- amazing what you could fit in that box and great aesthetics on top of it. Man, I would love something like this for my board.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170614/e3947f4e1e0cb2a843559ef33e49f46d.gif)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Quote from: dan.schumaker on June 14, 2017, 02:33:46 PM
Tagboardeffects: You probably can't do this.
EBK: Hold my beer.... ;D
Exactly! ;D
He's mad!
That's very impressive. I think the original Clone Theory graphics are some of the best on a pedal, and great job on those as well.
Quote from: reddesert on June 14, 2017, 05:48:10 PM
He's mad!
That's very impressive. I think the original Clone Theory graphics are some of the best on a pedal, and great job on those as well.
Thanks! I'm happy with how the graphics turned out as well. But, thanks to the hard work and generosity of others I've already mentioned, I mainly just had to scale and move stuff. I am pretty proud of changing an upside-down 'G' into a '9' though. ;D
Quote from: mrclean77 on June 14, 2017, 04:35:54 PM
Quote from: dan.schumaker on June 14, 2017, 02:33:46 PM
Tagboardeffects: You probably can't do this.
EBK: Hold my beer.... ;D
Exactly! ;D
That does capture it quite well.
Wow. Just wow. I wasn't sure if you'd be able to pull it off, but you pulled it off and then some. Super awesome!
That is crazy! I just honestly can't believe it! Amazing work.
Impressive, didn't expect you to get it into such a small box! :o
8)
vero ninja! most excellent build
Thanks again, everyone!
Believe it or not, I'm actually thinking about making another one of these. As I mentioned before, this one is going to my friend, but it does sound pretty good, and I don't currently have a chorus pedal of my own.
If I do end up building another, I'll try to document the process more, including providing an updated Vero layout with the necessary changes to squeeze this in (along with any component size measurements where it might make a difference (electrolytic caps, mainly, I'd imagine). I'll make a drill template too (already have that for everything but the jacks from when I made the label).
Don't expect it too soon though....
Also in the works, I'll record a video demo of this (after I figure out how best to do that).
That's awesome! Congrats!
I've been working on building a second one of these. This time, I've squeezed the jacks a little more toward the switches, so I had to modify the boards less.
(http://i.imgur.com/pt3lE7m.jpg)
I've widened the charge pump board slightly to make it lower in profile. On the main board, the red cap at top center is the same as the one mounted to the back of the board in my first build. I've slid the top lead down a row here to increase jack clearance, but now it is on the correct side of the board. Other than that, the only real changes from the tagboardeffects layout are the corner cutaways and the shifting of the large electrolytic caps to allow them to lay on their sides (the large 1uF film caps are also moved so they can lay on their sides, but their leads still go to same holes as before). The +15V and ground connections to the main board will still be made directly to the leads of the large cap, as in my previous build.
I'll need to adjust my graphics to match the slight shift in jack positions.
Those 680pF caps should be 412pF by the way, Tagboard used an outdated schematic of mine, parallel a 390pF & 22pF.
Quote from: Scruffie on July 21, 2017, 12:20:06 PM
Those 680pF caps should be 412pF by the way, Tagboard used an outdated schematic of mine, parallel a 390pF & 22pF.
Good to know, and a simple fix. Thanks!
I'll have to issue a recall of my first build. ;)
Don't know if this would be of any interest to you but Arrow has 1590BS enclosures which would give you 15mm of extra height. I know you boxed one up in a "B" but just thought I would pass this to you. I myself would go nuts trying to measure it out for fit lol.
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/1590bs/hammond-manufacturing
Thanks. I've used a 1590BS for a couple of builds in the past where I didn't want to go to a 125B. The BS size is nice in that it allows you to have a board over top of the stomp switch without interfering. I've also used the 1590BBS before (same depth in a BB footprint). There is also a 1590B2, which is in between the depth of the B and BS sizes. Haven't tried that one. It's nice to have so many options available.
But, this one goes in a 1590B purely out of principle. ;)
(https://s14.postimg.org/f2yu5udm9/IMG_20170713_235019.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/ffq8c0vvx/) (That's the first build, not the current build.)
Quote from: BrianS on July 21, 2017, 01:49:24 PM
Don't know if this would be of any interest to you but Arrow has 1590BS enclosures which would give you 15mm of extra height. I know you boxed one up in a "B" but just thought I would pass this to you. I myself would go nuts trying to measure it out for fit lol.
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/1590bs/hammond-manufacturing
I knew VFE was using these on his newer pedals, I didn't know that they were available for us common folk yet. I want to try a few, let me top mount my jacks in a 1590B size.
Mouser sells the BS sizes too, but not the B2.
I top mounted some jacks in a 1590BS, but I had to carve away some of the box. I'll dig up a pic....
(http://i.imgur.com/hZXCYzUl.jpg)
(Circuit is the 4316-based One Knob Squeezer on THAT Corp.'s pedal page:
http://www.thatcorp.com/pedals/index.html)
The carving of the box may have been necessitated by poor planning (can't remember), and it might be possible to fit the jacks with the box intact....
No idea why I used a stereo input jack on a box that can't fit a battery. ::)
There are 5 circuit boards in that one pedal, by the way (if you count that SMD adapter as one).
Quote from: dan.schumaker on July 21, 2017, 02:18:47 PM
I knew VFE was using these on his newer pedals, I didn't know that they were available for us common folk yet. I want to try a few, let me top mount my jacks in a 1590B size.
After my debacle with the Pale Horse and soldering the $4 relay upside down I am going to use the BS on anymore VFE boards I build just so I can socket the chips on the switching board and not worry about interference. That was a really bonehead mistake I made.
The only thing with the boxes at Arrow is they never have a large stock on hand, i.e., 1 1590BS in stock now. I'm sure they would back order them for you though.
Mouser has them also.
http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Hammond-Manufacturing/1590BS/?qs=XJfXErqHgA44uLtDf%2FoQjw%3D%3D
Didn't mean to hijack your thread.
Quote from: BrianS on July 21, 2017, 03:36:34 PM
Didn't mean to hijack your thread.
Seems useful and relevant, so not a problem. More people should be made aware of the existence of these enclosure sizes so they have options to more efficiently use pedalboard space, especially if you see them as "like a 1590B, except the jacks can be end-mounted."
Fixed the cap values. Thanks again, Scruffie!
(http://i.imgur.com/pCvUlr9m.jpg)
Here are a couple pics of the switches and jacks. The switches were placed with the same drill template from the first build. The jacks were placed by careful measurement and calculation aided by digital calipers.
(http://i.imgur.com/jgpvTUHl.jpg)(http://i.imgur.com/PMhcoi0l.jpg)
The main board will still overlap the jacks a bit, but much less than in my first build. The output jack had to be filed on one side to accommodate the DC jack, which is right against the corner post boss. I'll post a pic of this later.
Not sure yet whether I will still need to file down the lap joint flange on the lid (probably).
Once I get to editing my graphics file, I'll create a drill template for the jacks in case there is eventually another build of this (by me or anyone else).
Thanks for sharing, I don't think I'll build one anytime soon but it's so great to look at your work!! Amazing.
Quote from: Boba7 on July 22, 2017, 03:28:17 PM
Thanks for sharing, I don't think I'll build one anytime soon but it's so great to look at your work!! Amazing.
Glad you're enjoying! :D
As promised, here are some pics of the filed down output jack:
(http://i.imgur.com/S8A8vaMm.jpg) (http://imgur.com/S8A8vaM)(http://i.imgur.com/xx3MV1em.jpg) (http://imgur.com/xx3MV1e)
And here is some more detail of the fit with the DC jack:
(http://i.imgur.com/9AONiXUm.jpg) (http://imgur.com/9AONiXU)(http://i.imgur.com/005aNxSm.jpg) (http://imgur.com/005aNxS)
Finally, one more hole had to be drilled for the LED after the switch and jack placement was squared away. I just eyeballed its placement, allowing for some working room all the way around it:
(http://i.imgur.com/7QczyCvm.jpg)(http://i.imgur.com/KXn1pjcm.jpg)
Adjusted the graphics. I don't remember consciously deciding to increase the size of my brand logo, but I'll just go with it:
(http://i.imgur.com/p4GqGPvm.jpg)
For the sake of completeness, here is my second build, all done:
(http://i.imgur.com/E5aJ1F9l.jpg)(http://i.imgur.com/cysQIVgl.jpg)
A rather uneventful gutshot (you've already seen the guts in a previous post) showing that the main board, with gaffers tape insulator, is pretty much flush with the walls of the enclosure...
(http://i.imgur.com/Tec5fJBl.jpg)
...which is why the lid looks like this:
(http://i.imgur.com/pAN7Vczl.jpg)
I feel that this build turned out much better than the first one did. To return to the original story a bit, the guitarist who received my first build will eventually get this one as a replacement, and I will fix up the first build for myself.