George Dennis Wah issues

[Cardboard Tube Samurai]

I'm attempting to repair a George Dennis wah with optical control for a friend. He says it cuts in and out intermittently so I figure it's probably the solder joints on the jacks ( fairly common in wahs). However, with this particular model

I am having a hell of a time getting the PCB out to inspect it. The input/output jacks protrude too far out the sides of the enclosure to just flex them out. I just can not figure out a way to get at the PCB, which doesn't make sense because the jacks HAD to be soldered in there somehow.

Has anyone had any experience with working on these pedals? If so, how the hell did you get to the copper trace side of the PCB?

[Cardboard Tube Samurai]

No?

[CGDARK]

An pic of the inside could help us to visualize the problem.

CG

[Paul Marossy]

Huh, that does sound like a conundrum. Maybe it's not soldered at all... perhaps it's some kind of mechanical joint where the jacks connect to the PCB? Like maybe the body is two pieces and snaps together after the PCB is inserted into the enclosure?

Or maybe tiny nanobots solder the jacks onto the PCB after it is put into the enclosure?! 

[tcobretti]

I have another George Dennis pedal.  To get to the top of the PCB, I pulled the pots and the power jack.  Then there was a nut at the top of the PCB holding it in that I removed.  Then you loosen the jacks and rotate the PCB down to get to the underside.  Then, if you want to remove it, desolder the jacks.

This is the inside of my pedal - the Wizard Blues.
http://www.aronnelson.com/gallery/v/TCobrettis-Stuff/album169/

[Paul Marossy]

I have another George Dennis pedal.  To get to the top of the PCB, I pulled the pots and the power jack.  Then there was a nut at the top of the PCB holding it in that I removed.  Then you loosen the jacks and rotate the PCB down to get to the underside.  Then, if you want to remove it, desolder the jacks.

I guess a picture is worth a thousand words, huh? I was assuming that it was something like the GCB-95s, but with a different type of jack...

[Cardboard Tube Samurai]

I have another George Dennis pedal.  To get to the top of the PCB, I pulled the pots and the power jack.  Then there was a nut at the top of the PCB holding it in that I removed.  Then you loosen the jacks and rotate the PCB down to get to the underside.  Then, if you want to remove it, desolder the jacks.

This is the inside of my pedal - the Wizard Blues.
http://www.aronnelson.com/gallery/v/TCobrettis-Stuff/album169/

That's exactly how this pedal is setup. Cheers for the advice. I didn't want to try that because that nut/bolt just seems too long to get the PCB off of.

[Paul Marossy]

Well, at least the mystery of getting out the PCB has been solved. 

[tcobretti]

CTS, when you get it apart I'd be curious to know the rough details of the wah - is it just the standard wah circuit?

My Wizard Blues is pretty much a straight up Turbo Rat with a volume pedal after it.  The Rat sounds good, but the volume pedal is useless to me.

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

I've seen a number of optical wahs (not the Geo Dennis) that have the LDR misaligned badly, and came good with a bit of manipulation.
please keep us posted on what was wrong with this one!