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A couple customer builds.

Cardinal with all four pots external and one of the tiny 2P4T switches to do all four modes -- those switches are the same size as a potentiometer, so it was pretty easy to fit. I just bent the pins down. Works great because you only really need one side of the switch, so if you wanted to get really fancy and change something else, the other pole could probably have been used. I could probably use them in a 1590A build, even, as they're about the same height as a pot with a dust cover once I put 3M tape on them.

Other things: This has my current biasing preference (6V on all FETs, rather than the attenuated Q1) and 2N5457s in all three, and the customer uses british style amps, so I just removed the bypass cap on Q2. Using real FETs makes a big difference in the gain structure ... still kicking myself over those Tayda FETs.



And another Blue Warbler version 2 -- this has my final preference for the depth pot from the build document, and the super slow speed pot (100K), which sounds SUPER smooth at the lowest setting. Maybe someday I'll get to build myself one. I don't have any in the house anymore, not even my version ones.

Ah. Sometimes JFETs actually do take a while to settle. They start high and drop. Did you try rebiasing AFTER it goes fizzy?

you making pedals for the Amish?

Yeah. Truly analog.

The first thing that comes to mind are fake J201s.

I think FAKES are rare, but out of spec is pretty common from somewhere like Tayda.

My bet's on a bad power filter cap, C20 or C21. The cap charges up, works fine for a while, then craps out and shorts the power.

I love this enclosure. You really do the best paint sharpie pen work.

It almost became a DEAL BREAKER!  He told me he really didn't care for the paint. His exact words were "I didn't want it painted. I don't care what it looks like! I only care about how it makes me sound!" This was after I told him that I wasn't going to charge him for the paint at all! 

This is why I said "when I think it's appropriate" ... every once in a while, you just KNOW that the customer actually cares about something. I hate to be cynical, but what it sounds like was actually going on here is that he DID care what it looked like -- he wanted it to look like he didn't care what it looked like. I might even go so far as to say he wanted it to look like something that would make people go, "What's in that?" and he gets to tell them "Oh it's just something this really little known builder made for me. It's like a Distortion+ but its sounds sooooo much better."

You know. The gearhound version of

9 out of those 10 didn't give a rat fart about how the pedal looked when I built it for them (outer appearance)

I've had a disturbing number of customers ask me for essentially a plain box with labels because they don't care what it looks like.

I have to really fight my gut reaction to this, which is, "Why on earth would you have me do it, then?" because there are lots of people out there who have better soldering and building skills than me, and the only thing I have going for me is the handpainted.

Sometimes (when I get the sense it's appropriate), I paint something fun on it anyway and they're even happier because of it. (The exception is that someone specifically said that they really, really, really didn't want anything on it, not even labels.)

Which just goes to show that even many of the people who SAY that they're not interested in aesthetics actually care about them. They just don't give it as much consideration or ... they're just saying they don't because they don't want to come across as the kind of person who listens with their eyes.

Basically, you can't take anyone's word for what they say they want or don't want, because human beings are visual animals. Everyone listens with their eyes whether they want to or not. It's subconscious. Psychoacoustics are one hell of a drug.

Anyone have 2 or 3 of these they would like to sell me?

Cody

I can send you a couple, Cody.

BTW, I just used one today where space was a real concern. If you bend the pins down -- or obviously board mount them -- they're exactly the same size as a 16mm potentiometer.

I really like these; about the only thing not great about them is that the number of throws isn't variable.

Typo in the Mangler: "It doesn't matter with type you use" > "It doesn't matter which type you use."

-The guy who just always has to be That Guy.

Hey! Sorry I took so long to get back. I'm working on the Sharkfin. I finally got around to getting the PCB and am about to order parts. Thanks again!

In that case, definitely get the J201s. They'll have a wider switching range than other JFETs, probably the reason Bean liked them the best.

If I particularly like how something sounds, I often spend more time on the box.

Thanks so much for this!

Or......buy a square and a metal ruler and sharpen a pencil 

I do that even with a template. I need both.

Cosmopolitan PDF, and put the 6th in the clear space between 4 and 5 on the second row of pots?

Is that a 125? Works for me!

3 x 3

Only 125B template I could find was only two pots.

Could also use a 3 pot and extrapolate, but I'd rather not.