First timer interested in a spring reverb build like a Sole Mate Jr. Ideas?

[Brocken Spectre]

Hi there, I'm a first timer to this forum, have never built a pedal before and I'm interested in the idea of making a spring reverb unit and pedal for my pedalboard like a VanAmps Sole Mate Jr. Has anyone here done anything like this before?

I see the Mod tanks are readily available but I have no idea about the pedal component, so I figured I'd ask you guys.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated and I look forward to learning some stuff as I read through this site.

Many thanks in advance!

[mth5044]

As far as I know, there are unfortunately (for you, anyway) no easy spring reverb kits that you could use. Making a spring reverb pedal with a real tank is going to be difficult because you'll need to isolate the tank from things that make it go spronggg, such as stomping on the switch, engaging other pedals, other people on stage that may be jumping or frequencies in the floor (maybe?).

Another problem is getting an enclosure big enough or at a tank small enough. Most of the DIY circuits are for accutronics tanks that are longer than 1'.

Some alternatives: build the circuit, which will consist of a driver, recovery stage and some tone shaping bits, in one enclosure. Add RCA outs to a reverb pan that you have isolated beneath your pedal board. That way you don't need a giant enclosure taking up pedal board real-estate or the cost of said enclosure.

Build one of the many circuits that use the Belton reverb chip. Not true spring reverb, but it sounds pretty good and is used in some of the *boutique* pedals. That will easily fit into a small pedal and there are kits ready for people who have no experience (BYOC, GGG, etc). There are also tons of schematics on this site and others for it.

Do a search on this forum - people have been using spring reverbs in projects for a while. One project is the stage center reverb.

[jubal81]

Check out SurfyBear. I've got one of the boards on the way now.
http://surfybear.weebly.com/new-pcb-and-kit.html