thunderpuss/rangemaster works but with a lot noise. problem solved!! Thx

[gtangas]

Hi guys

I start building my pedals a week ago...   noob

I´m etching my pcbs, reading some stuff and.... having a lot of fun on doing it! New challenge for the next days... find some oc44 for the rangemaster... hehe

At the moment I have 3 boards waiting for some parts that I order from ebay.

Yesterday I start building the thunderpuss and today wire it up just for test.. simple circuit compare to the blue delay (my first one and still waiting for the pt2399) but I dosent work!  

The led is the only think that works... hehhe

I check for bridges, none I can find...

check for the values of the components... everything seem to be ok!

I grounded the input jack to the output but not grounded the jacks to the pcb ground. Is that ok?

I have in parallel 2 resistor in order to achieve the 62k

So... any suggestions?

some photos (without the pot and far far way from my work area that is an authentic mess at this moment  )

[madbean]

You need to connect the sleeves of those jacks to ground 

[gtangas]

   Hehe nob stuff!!!  

I was reading the post "how to build and use a basic testing rig" and I saw that ground connection... tomorow before i go to work i will give it a try!

As an off topic:
On the my post "rangemaster oc44 vs af200" that you give some tips I post a question on the wiring of the 4 pin of the tran to ground (the circuit is positive negative and as the 4pin grounds the case of the transistor I don't know if its ok to solder it to ground of the pcb)

Many thanks madbean for sharing and for all the help that you give to all of us

Sergio

[madbean]

Yes, connect the extra pin to circuit ground. Ground is ground whether the supply is positive or negative.

[gtangas]

Hi

So I ground the jacks and it works.

Is boosting the sound of the guitar but with a lot of noise! something similar to hum
Any ideas?

[gtangas]

i think its the wiring!

I finish building the rangemaster and it happens the same noise!

the signal gets to the amp but with hum

this is the way i´m wiring just for testing


help please!

[jkokura]

That last image, from the post above, the picture of your actual unit, shows that you've got your DC jack connected wrong. You've got the ground going to the spot the red wire should go, and the red wire going to where the ground should go.

If that's the case, you may need to replace your power protection diode, and correct your wiring.

Jacob

[pryde]

See photo.

[gtangas]

i think i have the correct wiring, let me explain:
The 9v transformer that i have allow to switch the polarity of the plug
The wiring diagram on the madbean site explains the same way that you tell and for the use of a battery and dc jack it makes all the sense.
Just for testing I´m using the way the photos show:





i can swap the transformer plug so that the center pin becomes the negative/ground

I check it with the DMM and I have 9v (exactly 8,82v) entering the board and no -9v

I follow the wiring instructions for the rangemaster and in that case I have -9v

Am I thinking right?

can the transformer be the cause of the problem?

for the moment i´m using plastic pots... Until the metal ones arrives from ebay (here most of the shops just sells the plastics... )

and the other boards....

the rangemaster ( yesterday I found a shop with a fews ac128)


and the others...

[gtangas]

I m using a cheap transf.. I can choose several output voltages... I think range between 3v to 12v

If the pedals are affecting the signal maybe the transf is the source of the noise...

I Will test it with a 9v battery

[midwayfair]

There are several things going on here, and it's hard to tell from your descriptions exactly what kind of noise you're hearing.

First, a treble booster is a noisy effect. It boosts a frequency range that's full of noise, and it's pretty high gain. Second, Germanium transistors are often just noisy. They make a white noise/hiss sound, and this is worse when the transistor has a lot of leakage. Making a treble booster with a germanium transistor means you're amplifying a lot of noise.

Looking at the photos of your builds, you're adding another source of noise in the form of RF. Your wires are extremely long. A wire is an antenna. An antenna hooked up to an amplifier is a radio. Good lead/wire dressing and shielding is important in gain effects to ensure a quiet box. You want to keep wires as short as necessary, twist all off-board wiring, avoid 90o angles (it's less important to look pretty than to manage noise!), avoid ground loops, and ensure adequate power source filtering (those big 47-100uF caps and such). Getting the effect working outside the box is one step, putting it into a box with a proper ground scheme is the next step.

Another source of noise is a ground issue. You've checked the polarity of your power, which is good, but have you verified with a multimeter that everything -- power jack, both instrument jacks, and all components on the PCB -- that should be grounded are making contact?

[gtangas]

Ok problem solved!
It was the power transformer that I was using! Crap unit!
Any advice on a diy unit?
I wired it with a battery and... Woooo
Loving  the rangemaster!

just box the rangemaster and at the moment doing some testes with the thunderpuss

final results - rangemaster