I built this for my buddy Sean Michael Dargan. He's a singer/songwriter I used to play bass for back in the 90's. Been meaning to send him a pedal for the longest time so I was overdue.
Built totally stock in a 1550p enclosure (I did not have any 1590a). This build turned out to be rather costly and a pain in the ass. Costly because I accidentally broke my $60 Erem wire cutters while making it (I LOVE that cutter) and a PITA because I ended up having to file down part of the lip in the lid to fit a full sized 3pdt. But it sounds totally awesome! I stewed about the wire cutters for about 3 hours though.
The 3pdt uses a board I plan on releasing (I think next week). It uses a transistor with a resistor/cap combo for a soft turn on and off of the LED. So, rather than instant on, it comes up to full brightness over a second or two. It just looks cool when you see it. The 1550p is like less than a 1" high so I had to put the parts on the bottom. In a 1590B they will fit on top (low profile electrolytic required for that).
Artwork done on standard black PCB material. 2 layers of light clear coat then sanded back a bit to take off the shine. Sean has been sporting goddam bowties for 30 years on stage so I incorporated that in the artwork.
That's really awesome man. Sorry to hear about your cutters.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Looking good. And that's a clever idea. Does that use a 2n3904 and a cap to vary the on time for the LED?
That's cool, don't think I've seen that size enclosure.
I'm sure you friend will love it! Sometimes I think I like making pedals for friends more than I like making them for me.
Quote from: benny_profane on October 06, 2019, 04:58:43 PM
Looking good. And that's a clever idea. Does that use a 2n3904 and a cap to vary the on time for the LED?
Yeah it's a 68k/4u7. So the RC time constant is .4 sec which translates into about 1+ seconds of fade in to full brightness. You can slow it down more with a 10uF.
That's too funny! He is a local musician here in Madison, WI. He even said hi one time when I was eyeing his pedal board when his band was playing at the farmer's market here. Where is it that you two were in the same band together?
Yes, he still always wears the bow tie. He usually does an Elvis Costello tribute thing here around Halloween.
What's the point of the soft on/off other than being cool? Does it eliminate popping?
Quote from: sonnyboy27 on October 07, 2019, 01:37:21 PM
What's the point of the soft on/off other than being cool? Does it eliminate popping?
Hard to say. It's possible if you have a build where the led instant on causes a pop that this could prevent that. Mostly it's just a fun little thing to add.
Quote from: Bret608 on October 07, 2019, 01:22:11 AM
That's too funny! He is a local musician here in Madison, WI. He even said hi one time when I was eyeing his pedal board when his band was playing at the farmer's market here. Where is it that you two were in the same band together?
Yes, he still always wears the bow tie. He usually does an Elvis Costello tribute thing here around Halloween.
It's a really long story but the short version is that my band Radiophonic used to be his band in the late 90's. We played in Deep Ellum in Dallas. But the band wasn't gelling so we split off and did a three piece with me playing bass. We kinda did him a bit dirty but it had to happen. I think he eventually forgave us, haha.
Gorgeous
Couple of Qs...
What size PCB material are you using for faceplates? Regular thickness or the thinner stuff? I am asking because it is becoming increasingly difficult to procure the thinner material in anything other than 2oz.
What are you using for your transfer and etch method for faceplates? Your results are always spectacular and inquiring minds want to know ;D
Quote from: Govmnt_Lacky on October 17, 2019, 07:45:20 PM
Couple of Qs...
What size PCB material are you using for faceplates? Regular thickness or the thinner stuff? I am asking because it is becoming increasingly difficult to procure the thinner material in anything other than 2oz.
What are you using for your transfer and etch method for faceplates? Your results are always spectacular and inquiring minds want to know ;D
That is 1.6mm 1oz FR-4 in black. I've looked for some 1/2oz but it's hard to get. I'd also like 0.8mm or 1mm if I could get it.
I use PnP Blue for transfer and etching. Plus, a light sand with soft 220 grit then clean up with Acetone. Final step is a coat or two of gloss.
I have a question about the orientation of the bc182 transistor.
The way the pads are marked (E-C-B) seems atypical.
I am still learning, so my question is whether this is a typo or should I really force the center pin (base) over to the furthest right pad?
Thanks
Quote from: JimmyJimmy on December 06, 2019, 04:40:19 PM
I have a question about the orientation of the bc182 transistor.
The way the pads are marked (E-C-B) seems atypical.
I am still learning, so my question is whether this is a typo or should I really force the center pin (base) over to the furthest right pad?
Thanks
No need to force anything. The pinout of the BC182L is indeed ECB.
Quote from: madbean on October 17, 2019, 08:53:16 PM
I use PnP Blue for transfer and etching. Plus, a light sand with soft 220 grit then clean up with Acetone. Final step is a coat or two of gloss.
Not to beat a dead horse but....
What is your technique for the transfer? I use PnP Blue all the time and a regular iron and I get that type of quality maybe 2 out of 10 times. Secret??
Are you using ferric chloride and watering down or heating it. I'm sort of in the same boat as Govmnt_Lacky with my results. Sometimes stellar, other times total mess. I'm wondering if my FeCl is too strong and I should be using less strength and more time.