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I've been using 60/40 solder. What brand of 63/37 do you all use? What's the benefit of 63/37? I'm guessing it has a lower melting point?

60/40 is fine, 63/37 just has a slightly slower melting point but is made of the same stuff.

I made a mistake actually, my reel is 60/40 too, workin' fine.

you have no idea how bad i wanna see the DirtBag docs..

btw, i mean to ask, why components should be so tight in values?
why this pedal needs particular components?
i read stuff about the caps, what's wrong with standard caps?

http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=3113.0

Brian, think it'd be worth the difference to use TLC2272s in the DirtBag?

Some people like changing all the 4558s to TL072 and claim a noticeable difference, so I don't see why not.

Aaaaaaaand the post just delivered the boards. Wow that is sooo freaking fast, thanks Brian.

By the way do I see pads for an effects loop on the current lover?!?!

Send & Return pads, they'd be used to add a short delay in to the audio path to produce through zero flanging.

Ya could stick other stuff in there... dunno what it'll be like though.

Tollerances to worry about are notated in the original schematic - http://sites.google.com/site/electroconducive/EHXDMM-Factory.jpg

(Quick glance says all the 0.27uF caps in the audio path should be within 5% Tollerance, all 1uF by the Compander should be 10%, 4.7uFs in the LFO should be 10% and the 24.3ks should be 1%).

Include the value of the Delay pot with that.

Most important component values are the Delay time pot, 5k6 resistor & 240pF Cap next to it. They will dictate getting the correct amount of delay out the pedal.

Otherwise, go nuts with your components. Carbon film, Metal film, Ceramic Caps, Mylar caps, they'll be fine.

but to tell you the truth I want a SWAW more!! 

...Quiet you! 

The SWAW is pretty good I hear, but there are already projects for that one, plus I have a bit of a thing for old EHX effects 

I almost had one of these from CL for $100 but the guy ever responded..so I second this as a DIY project request!

He probably realised it was worth a bit more, I was reading how rare these things are earlier and how much they can fetch (Some people claimed up to $400!).

Lets not forget that Zipper too  Saw an awesome demo of it on Youtube - http://youtu.be/zG-uLVxuxSU

Well... we've got the EHX Flanger & Delay, why not go for the whole collection!

I hear the new production polyphases just don't cut it compared to originals, there are some hard to find parts in the original but they can be replaced.

The Xicon 334-NTC104 (On Mouser) Should make a suitable Thermistor replacement (although it can be left out entirely)

And the VTL5C/3 should substitute the CLM8200 Vactrol quite happily.

Add an onboard LT1054 charge pump and cram it in a 1590BB (with on board pots of course) could be a nice project? I'm not even a big phase guy and the demos of this do sound great.

As an additional... i've always been interested by the original 70s EHX Zipper (FET not Tube Based) I hear very good things.

Hey Brian, Did you get anywhere with this idea in the end?

don't do like I did and rummage through your dear old Dad's ancient tool chest for a pair, you'll only make everything twice as difficult as it needs to be.

That's exactly what I did but my pair have been going strong for years 
I don't think they'd really been used prior tough.

another vote for 63/37 solder.

I think this'll be a recurring theme in this thread 

and also for a halfway decent solder sucker/pump, especially since I can't use braid to save my life.  I paid $8 for my pump- and it's still going strong- so don't feel like you need to rush out and spend $30 on a Soldapult.  not at first anyway. 

Very good point, I think my solder sucker was £4, it's lasted me all the builds i've done over the past 2 years, the tips a little melted but it's still working, they really are quick and easy and can be a life saver... if for some reason your life hangs in the balance regarding solder being where it shouldn't be...

i've got a suction vise that i use to hold circuits, pots, etc on a regular basis but I've built things without it too. I'm glad I have one for sure, but at the end of the day it may be more of a luxury than a need.

I just put all my boards on a flat surface, I have an old wooden table matt, makes stuffing boards quick, fill all the resistors, put it on the board, flip it, solder them all and cut the leads off, do so for the jumpers etc. occasionally a resistor or something isn't completely flush but good enough.

get a set cheap set of step bits (at Harbor Freight for example) if you are planning to drill your own enclosures.

This i've been meaning to do for a long time, drilling is my most hated part and due to my poor drills selection, I usually have to file the holes out by hand with a circular file (a useful tool actually, you can use it to 'correct' misdrilled holes by moving them slightly in whatever direction necessary, the hardwares nut will usually cover the hole if you're careful).



get a set cheap set of step bits (at Harbor Freight for example) if you are planning to drill your own enclosures.

for the clr, use the 4k7 called for in most of the documents if you're using diffused LEDs, but do yourself a big favor: plan on using a 10k-12k if using superbright LED's.  using a 4k7 with a blue superbright can actually be painful to your eyes.  my first pedal was like that and I could barely stand looking at it.
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I'd ammend the list a little... some things we disagree on/ i'd alter/ have more to them/

* GROUND THE SLEEVES
Yes they should probably both ground, try and ground them to the same point though rather than eachother, i.e star grounding, it's just good practice.

* SOCKET
Double edged, socketed transistors (not so much ICs in my experience, but it can happen) can fall out, so you do make your builds more susceptable to faliure. Checking a datasheet vs schematic and using proper anti-static precuation in the case of certain parts (MOSFETs, BBDs etc.) is better to get orientation correct and not destroying it, i've yet to burn out a silicon transistor and I tortured some hard (melted plastic)

* LED RESISTOR
As long as it has a resistor somewhere to limit current it should be fine.

*USE A PSU FOR TESTING
Actually a battery can be a fair better tool for testing, it wont introduce noise, it will be regulated to some extent (an unregulated 9V supply could be 14V, a 9V battery wont be more than 10 most likely) some builds are picky about particular power supplies etc.

*RIGHT TOOLS FOR THE JOB
A high enough temperature iron is a given, 'decent solder' is a broad term, what does it mean? Personally I like the usual 63/37 but some people are more comfortable with unleaded, i've never found one brand to work better over another. Wire cutters are necessary, you can also use nail clippers. I've never used a PCB holder in my life and my pedals have turned out fine, it's not crucial at all, just handy.

Scruffie, if you wanna make a list I can email her again and at least they will know its in demand and hopefully work towards stocking it. I'm pretty sure she is the one who runs the FB page, which does take suggestions! I want them to add 9mm pots and DPDT switches but they are probably already on it..

Hmm...
Well definitley the board mounty pots, that's a big thing. Oh with solid shafts that is, not split shafts.
Like these - http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=692

More knobs would be nice if they get those pots, but they're probably already on that.

The smaller 3PDTs as I said... although i'm not sure if they'll be able to get those.

Hard Plastic/Standard T-Style Battery Snaps.

And a minor thing would be some LT1054 charge pumps, not that important though.

Is anyone in contact with there purchasing division/ the company in general and could possibly make a suggestion to them regards stock?

If we could get them to stack Alpha Right Angle Board Mounted pots such as many of the new Bean boards are using they'd almost be a one stop shop.

Those smaller black 3PDTs from Mammoth electronics would be sweet too but i'm not sure if Tayda have any connection to 4site.

I'm betting 3007/3101 too, your readings seem a little off on them.

Pin 8 on the 3007 is too low and Pin 2 should not vary like that, should be the same as the 3101s clock outputs.

On that note, I'm actually quite close to placing the next order. The past three weeks have been absolutely frustrating as hell. Every single build, prototype, idea has had problems (none of which are important enough to go into). It's a bit discouraging...yesterday I found myself saying "okay, let's build the next failure", ha ha. But, I've slogged through the issues one by one and passed a tipping point, so to speak. I'm quite energized to keep things moving at a fast pace.

Anything I can leand a hand with? Drop me a PM 

I would like to get at least ONE sub-mini tube project in there.

If you need any help with these Sub-minis too, I might be able to help out as coincidentally i'm working on some projects for them as we speak... I might have a circuit idea that could be of interest...

Yeah those voltages look wrong, your 4558 should have approximatley 1/2 Supply on there pins and both  halfs are different and quite high.

I assume you're using a battery? Otherwise you should have more than 7.8V on your supply pins...

Somethings going on, I know you've triple checked but quadruple check for wrongly orientated electrolytics and wrong valued components.

I also notice there's an issue between your clock and bbd, pins 2 & 6 on the 3007 should both be getting 4V such as the 3101 is putting out but one pin is off...

As Jacob said, have a look over the board.