Colorsound One Knob Fuzz + Tone Control - Recommends Please !!

[frequencycentral]

I'm planning to build a Colorsound One Knob Fuzz and would like to add a single tone control. I was thinking of a Big Muff tonestack plus recovery stage.

Any comments on this?

Or any better ideas?

[earthtonesaudio]

If it has enough volume, you might not need a recovery stage.

[Solidhex]

Yo

  I haven't tried it yet but the Orman big muff tone stack with the presence control looks rad. It will probably take you a couple minutes with a breadboard to figure out if you need a recovery stage. I think most of the time with any tone control scooping out the mids a recovery stage is a good idea.

--Brad

[frequencycentral]

OMG! I finally breadboarded this fuzz with a Big Muff tonestack and recovery stage.......

I used three BC182 that I salvaged from an old 70's disco console. 

I tweaked a few resistor values - just used what I had available.

I really like it! The tonestack is extreme! Really really tinny at one end of the pot and nicely muffled at the other end.

Sweeping the tone control while playing (I'm a three handed guy) sounds really synthy - I would love to make that tone control a wah type pedal - or make it voltage controlled.

[petemoore]

  Interesting, a 1k8 Q2C bias resistor, is that what was in teh COKF originally ?
  That and the 100ohm 'up top' resistor...makes me wonder what it sounds like compared to a regular' fuzzface.

[frequencycentral]

  Interesting, a 1k8 Q2C bias resistor, is that what was in teh COKF originally ?
  That and the 100ohm 'up top' resistor...makes me wonder what it sounds like compared to a regular' fuzzface.

Here's the original, I just used the closest match I had for the resistors.

[Slade]

Here's a Layout and PCB I just made for this beast...



Regards,
Fernando.-

[MartyMart]

I hope you mean "MM" and NOT "CM"  !!

[Slade]

Corrected and Fuzz pot added, sorry for the mistakes...

[Slade]

Okay, finally finished it. This is the verified layout, I didn't used the fuzz pot though, just a 1k resistor like in the original schem.



And here's my build:





Great sounding fuzz. Thanks again, Rick.

Regards,
Fernando.-

[frequencycentral]

Fernando forgot to add the knobs! Here's an artists impression:

[Slade]

I can see you're a Photoshop eminence, Rick.
Maybe you can use it now instead of MS Paint for your schematics

[Pigyboy]

Aargh!  I am always one step behind you guys. I just made some of the one knob boards. I want to pack it into a colorsound swell pedal with a wah circuit. I think I will try it with the additions.
Back to the kitchen...I smell something burnin'!
Oh and Yeah! too - power back on after a mere 20 hr outage. Wild storm last night.
Cheers,
Chris

[deadastronaut]

sorry slade.....couldnt resist it...ha ha ha...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQsjAbZDx-4&ob=av2n

[Pigyboy]

Whoa Shit! This thing works great I have a bunch of 9mm 1M pots so I put a 150k resistor between legs 1 & 3 and it dropped them to 130k. Works fine for the volume but made the middle setting of the tone knob lose a bunch of volume. I found a 50K 9mm in my stuff and it works normal now. I also subbed a 330k for the 390k as it was all I had.     I was able to acquire some cool wire and old BC107's from my friend who works for a guy that restores Hammond organs so it has a retro vibe along with the red pcb. I will post some pics once it is finished.
Now to shove it into a 1590A!
Thanks for the layout Slade.
Cheers,
Chris

[paulyy]

For the recovery stage, Do you have to use a BC182 or can you use any NPN transistor. I'm assuming your using NPN transistors 

[frequencycentral]

Just use whatever NPN you have to hand. It's fun to socket them though, and try a few different trannies.

[deadastronaut]

oh man, i have this on breadboard at the moment, thought i'd finally try it out before commiting to pcb etc...using ricks schemo!..

i just cant get this @#$%er to work...ive double /triple checked all the connections..

i get a very low clean signal...with a tiny bit of fizzle at the end when whacked hard...

@#$%  i sound like a million other threads..

i'm using 2n3904's...tried a bunch of em...

heres my numbers...i suspect its a tranny bias issue...

Q1
C  1.32
B  0.66
E  0.00

Q2
C  8.43
B  1.32
E  0.00

Q3
C  9.10
B  0.66
E  0.04

any ideas on what my numbers should look like?...cheers. @#$%ing fuzz @#$%

edit: tried a bunch of 2n2222's too...clean.. no fuzz..

edit 2. ive even tried timmers on the collectors...no joy..

edit 3. totally ripped it all out of my breadboard...and re laid it out...neatly....same thing though!...@#$%ing annoying!..

[deadastronaut]

bump!...

ahhhh i see in the other thread your running it at 12v....is this the problem then?..

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=71050.0

@pigyboy..yours is 9v isnt it..?

edit:
nevermind......spent a whole day on this @#$%...ive ripped it off the board now..

[Pigyboy]

Hi Rob,
I use the normal -9vdc power supply. The only problems I have had was not hooking the end of the 1K 'fuzz' resistor to the 220K resistor when built it on the pcb but if you are breadboarding it then this would not be your issue. I will look at my voltages and post them later today.
Chris