Xtra resistors/caps on Hornet schem=dim LED- what to change?

[KORGULL]

So I finished a PNP Hornet last night. When I tested it, everything was fine except the LED was extremely dim.

When I breadboarded it I used Aron's NPN schematic: http://www.diystompboxes.com/pedals/hornet.jpg
(I reversed the polarities for + Gnd) and didn't bother hooking up a switch or LED.

When It came time to solder everything together on perfboard in the enclosure I also referenced the schematic at Smallbear: http://www.smallbearelec.com/Projects/Hornet/Hornet.html (sorry I don't know how to post the images here yet)
It includes a 3PDT switch and 3 resistors and 2 electrolytic caps that are not on Aron's schematic.

I assumed the 2 caps(C1, C6) and 2 of the resistors(R1, R9) were a switch-pop/noise preventative, and the third resistor(R10) was for limiting current to the LED.
Even though it looked to me like there was too much resistance in series with the LED for it to light (mainly because of R9) I just went ahead and built it as shown. I assumed the circuit was tested with all of the parts and the values were correct and somehow it would all work out. My foolish mistake.
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I'm not 100% sure about the purpose of these extra parts. If C1, R1, R9, and C6 are not there to prevent popping - why then?
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If I were to eliminate R9(33K) I think the LED would be bright enough - but what effect would that have on the (rest of the) circuit?
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Exactly what are these parts doing and what is the best way to alter the circuit so the LED lights properly?
I would like to avoid messing around too much on an otherwise finished, working pedal - so if anybody could point me in the right direction I can formulate a plan of attack instead of going at it in trial and error fashion.
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It seems like there is a mistake/problem with the Smallbear schematic - or am I missing something? Does the schematic look wrong to you?
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Sorry if I've thrown in too many questions here or if the whole thing is a bit dis-jointed. The main question is directly above in bold and underlined.
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-3PDT switch is a hassle to breadboard - guess I should solder wires to one and keep it aside for breadboard use - could've (painlessly) sorted all this out before warming up the soldering iron. :oops:

[GreenEye]

Hey it's me from the other thread.  I was also confused with why Small Bear added components to what looked like a wonderfully simplistic design.  After not finding the NPN alternatives to the specified discontinued Ge tranny, and your probs with the PNP version, I think this one is on HOLD for me.  Please post if your LED issue gets resolved.

For what it's worth - I leave out the foot switch and LED when breadboarding.

P.S. Voivod rules.

[KORGULL]

I hope to get it straightened out this weekend or early next week (busy weekend coming up :x )
I'll post results on this thread.
One way or another this thing is going to get finished. Even if I have to live with some pops or extra noise.
I might just breadboard another one (with the extra parts) and do some experimenting to figure it out.

P.S. Voivod rules.

  -Can't wait for new album - great to have Snake back! With Jason Newstead onboard maybe they will finally get the recognition they deserve.

[GreenEye]

Good luck!

I've been on a big Nothingface album kick for the past few weeks.  It's genius.

[KORGULL]

Alright, I got everything straightened out. I went hunting for some clues at the Smallbear site. If you look at the project page for the "Three knob Tonebender" http://www.smallbearelec.com/Projects/3-KnobTB/3-Knob.html he uses the same setup with the extra caps/resistors for switching/LED. But he goes into more detail about it.

So what I did with the Hornet is lower the value of R9 from 33K to 15K. Everything is cool now. No pops/noise and the LED is now visible.

You can take the LED you want to use and the 4.7K R10 and try different values for R9 on your breadboard until the LED is visible enough. I guess you can lower the 4.7K to 1K or something too. I just kept it at 4.7K so I didn't have to desolder both R9 and R10.

This pedal sounds great I only tried it thru my little gorilla practice amp and it sounds better than most dist. pedals I have owned. I set the trimpots to the values that were stated on the bag the transistors came in for starters and it seems to be biased correctly. I will try out some other settings after enclosure is painted and everything is re-mounted.

The only thing I don't like is the fact that I can't run power to it from my pedal board due to the PNP pos. ground.
I am just going to use a battery. From what I've read, the drain on the battery is not very great and they last a long time in it - so I guess it's no big deal.

The first time I powered it up I had 2 generic PNP (3906) transistors in - so I wouldn't damage the ones I had bought for it if something was wired wrong.
It worked (not great) with the 3906's but I think with some fine tuning of the trimpots maybe it could sound good with different transistors. Maybe you could build one right away and get the good transistors later. -Just a thought.

Anyway - it gets my stamp of approval and recommendation!

Believe it or not there was actually a sheet music/tab book put out of the Nothingface album! A friend bought it used 10 yrs ago - impossible to find now.

[KORGULL]

In case anybody gives a damn (GreenEye?) here's an update to (hopefully) wrap up this mess:
I got a little worried about extra current consumption after lowering R9 to 15K, (I hate buying batteries) so I decided to try some higher values incrementally to see how far I really could go before the LED failed to light (I was kinda rushed the first time and settled on 15K quickly).
Well, I made it all the way up to...33K. Now the LED is bright enough at that value!!??...Same battery, same LED. Only thing different is the circuit is no longer in the enclosure.
I really need more sleep or something :?
-Learned some things along the way at least.