Reading Material

[soupbone]

I've been on here for about 3 1/2 years,and have learned a lot.I've only been doing pedal mods,and a little bit of amp mods.There's a guy that lives about 15 miles from me that runs Emerson Guitars.They have the "EM Drive" and the "Paramount Overdrive",and is making a killing on these pedals!I'm at the point now,where I want to come up with my circuits.I'm not really sure where to start?I've also bread boarded an E.H. LPB-1 Circuit from Beavis Audio,but I'm clueless on building my own pedals.Does anybody have any ideas(reading material,etc.),on how I can start?

[GibsonGM]

Well, Soup, good question!!  Start by reading as much as you can, and building as many pedals as possible!  Even just breadboarding.  R.G. has GREAT resources at GEOFEX (link above), and the AMZ articles are awesome!   

Learn about basic gain stages...transistor, FET (see runoffgroove for that!), opamp.  Then how they're used for clipping....learn about tone stacks and how you need to recover your lost signal after they do their job (by CUTTING your signal, lowering it).   Big Muff's last transistor stage is like this - just a modified LPB.

There is not an infinite, insane amount you need to know to get started!  Just some basics.   Understanding a little about transistor/tube load lines, even if you can't really do a lot with them other than copy existing gain structures, is pretty important.    Knowing what impedance is, how it interacts between stages, is pretty important (R.G. has info on that to get you going!). 

It's not a black art, it's just that there really isn't one text you can go to and get it all (altho, oddly enough, most old beginner electronics texts DO cover this stuff, just not in a form we pick up on as useful to audio/effect design!!).    An audio stage for a radio receiver...a tone stack for an amp, do the same basic things in pedals as in those devices!    You'd have to modify them a little, of course, but the CONCEPTS are the same.

Try searching "transistor gain stage"  or "opamp tutorial", see what you get!  Look at common effect schematics while you learn - you'll see those building blocks in action with just a few minor changes!

Learn and know Ohm's law in and out, and be able to calculate power dissipation - that will serve you time and time and time again, it's key....

[Mark Hammer]

The Stompboxology stuff, some of which is posted at Charlie Barth's site (http://moosapotamus.net/stompboxology.html) is also pretty good.  And I will still recommend the back issues of DEVICE I have posted at my site here - http://hammer.ampage.org/?cmd=lt&xid=&fid=&ex=&pg=10  and here - http://hammer.ampage.org/?cmd=lt&xid=&fid=&ex=&pg=11 - covers a lot of useful stuff.

Now and then people will post lovely annotated schematic drawings that show what is happening at various critical junctures or in different subcircuits.  Here's a nice one: http://www.beavisaudio.com/projects/FKR/images/MightierMouse.gif 

Comparisons of different versions of a common circuit can be useful too, like this historical stroll through issues of the BMP: http://www.bigmuffpage.com/Big_Muff_Pi_versions_schematics_part1.html

[karbomusic]

Pretty much kudos on everything above. Start breaking down existing well known designs down into their individual modules; learn how those function individually and you can start combining them again to create your own thing. RG has a great diagram demonstrating breaking down into modules in his Technology of the Tube Screamer article.

There is going to be a point when doing such where you aren't really copying anyone else's circuit. IOW, all wheels are round and most nails are pointy so once you get down to a simple op amp+gain circuit (or transistor equivalent) you're just manipulating the same electrons everyone else is.

[karul]

You can find analysis of some classic pedals (Tube Screamer, RAT, Muff etc.) broken down to stages - you may find it helpful.

http://www.electrosmash.com/

[soupbone]

Thanks folks!

[Blitz Krieg]

I want to come up with my circuits.

to make money? or to hear something nobody has heard before?