some photos and a few questions.

[sean k]

Howdy chaps,
                    So its been about a week back into this stuff and I've managed to get a few things going and hunted down some missing schematics. Below are some effects I've just got finished to take to an experimental music thing tonight. Far right is a tremolo using half a LM13600 and a LM358 by That english fellow, Robert Penfold, and it's one of the first thing I made. Next to that is a twelve inch speaker sitting in part of an old Tellus vacuum cleaner. In front of the speaker is Tim Escobedo's Too Many Knobs and is front of that is Happy Bobs, can't remember who Happy Bob is though, Rangemaster and Fuzz Face. At the back is the first amp I built which I got from the London Power guys book and its a Transistor SE with a coupla vintage RCA output transistors.

Though I'm hoping to do some cast enclosures for sale purposes when I build stuff for me I definitely prefer using old kitchen and housewares aluminium... and sharpy pens with some black scratched away.


And next we have all the stuff I stopped doing a few years ago hunted out of hiding and brought into the light of day. Over the last day or two I've been figuring what each thing is then going through my papers to identify what it is, what I've done in the way of mods, and then noting it down.

So now we get down to the questions. What is this thing below? I suppose it's an octave effect but I've no idea who designed it and where it comes from. Can anyone identify this or give me any idea what outboard stuff might be involved. Something goes between the two stages and seems to involve 22k to ground.

The only other thing I need to know is about a jfet thingy I have with four stages set up just like a garden variety tube preamp stage. The first stage is followed by a classic fender type tone configuration and the three following stages are followed by voltage divider high pass networks. All the drains are on 100k trims and the sources sit on 1.5k's with a 4.7uf electro. I know its a published thing from two or three years ago but I've got nothing on paper. Hope you've enjoyed my little show and tell now I'm off to build an instrument for tonights gaggle. Two bass strings on a bit of wood with some pickups to create a signal! Seeing I've got the TMK thats all I'll need to get some sounds going during the knob twiddling workshop.

[John Lyons]

I don't have any answers for you but your stuff looks neat!

JOHN

[frank_p]

Yes indeed, pretty cool enclosures !

[sean k]

Hey John, those DC ins you got on your pedals are exactly the type I want. I have problems with my pedals 'cause I want to ground them at the input only and have to use DC in that ground to the enclosure. Yours look cute too. I see you've also got a love of the old stove enamel paint. That stuff mixes between colours and you can use it just like regular paint...whats it called? Hammerite, yeah I love that stuff. Used to paint my sculptures with it and leave lotsa steel uncoloured and then clear over the lot of it.
Thanks guys!
Go now and raid yer Mums kitchen cupboards and its amazing what can be used as an enclosure.

[sean k]

I found it!


It's Tim Escobedo's Pushme Pullyou, at least stage one is, and setup to run on a negative PS, why did I do that?

I suppose I put the preamp stage after it to charge up any octave I get. I'm just thinking that a pot as a divider coming off the first collector and dividing between the two 100 nanos might help to balance the octaver transistors. Maybe 1kb or would I need to put in a 5k? Would it even do the job and is it required? Wonder what the 22k to ground was for? Another way might be to cut the trace between the two 100 nanos and put a 1-5k resistor on each end then a 500 ohm pot between them.

Col - 100nf - 1k - 500 trim - 1k - 100nf - Col
  [----------------------------------------------]

Well at least thats that conumdrum on it's way to being sorted. I like Tims stuff. It definitely appeals to my Lofi mentality while not actually being Lofi. Low parts count and simple boards to etch.

[John Lyons]

Sean
Yes, I have done quite a few Hammerite boxes.
I like the metal aesthetic and the 3D-texture of those finishes.
Here are a few more somewhat different box coverings.
These are all somewhat common as they fit within the "stompbox" shape and size but they are a little different none the less.

john

[frank_p]

I think the link don't work anymore John.

[darron]

i hope that John doesn't mind if i correct the link first. I'd hate to see anyone miss out on these... :
link

[sean k]

Wow John, those are some neat boxes. I love the quilted maple and the bubinga. Yah hah!

The tweed reminds me of carbon fibre...
I've got a moog etherwave loaded circuit board and I'm gonna do a carved box for that. I do love wood!

Tonight I got my Tim Escopedo synth stick up and running. I tried getting it going years ago with all the extra gizmos and it didn't go so today I bread boarded, my second ever go at this method of starting a build, and I got the oscillator going real good. I was still somewhat challenged by the PWM and LFO mods but I've just figured them out.
http://www.geocities.com/tpe123/folkurban/synthstick/synthstick.html

The thing is that point A on the page above ain't the same point A on the mods page... though it is when you sketch all the schematics on one piece of paper ...

[John Lyons]

Darron
Thanks for the link fix! Not sure what went wrong there.

Sean
Yeah, that synth stick looks really fun.
I've got too much on my plate right now but I'd love to fool with that thing!

john

[frank_p]

Oh! I am trying to do something like this (worned down patina) to the enclosure of a ROG Princeton.
Kind of a used Fender blonde cab with pale and big pot. knobs.
I'll post some pictures soon.
Only I am making it with acrylic paint (I find it a bit too soft for stomping purpose) ...
F.H.P.