Lizard Queef debugging - Help

[stratmaster32]

Hi all,

I built a lizard queef following https://www.freestompboxes.org/download/file.php?id=43727&mode=view this guide and need some help debugging.

I didn't have all components to hand so I used 2n3904s instead of the 2n2222s and used a 2n4401 instead of the 2n5088. I also didn't have a 1k pot so instead used a 10k at first and then just rigged up a 1k resistor and a 510R resistor to fix the balance at half.

I haven't been able to get the pedal to work. The led illuminates when the switch is pressed but there is no sound. The pedal also works in true bypass mode.
I have tried everything: reflowing the solder joints, running a knife down the strips of the tagboard to clean any shorts, used a multimeter to test continuity between the strips, reseated the transistors in multiple orientations.

I just cant get it to make a sound when the pedal is engaged. Oddly enough - I can hear sweeping through the amp when the volume pot is turned but there's no signal from the guitar.
Any help would be greatly appreciated and I've probably just made a rookie, idiotic error.
https://imgur.com/a/oUO0T0Q Here are some photos of the build.

Thanks,
SM

[JustinFun]

https://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=29816.0

[stratmaster32]

Here is the checklist to fill out:
1.What does it do, not do, and sound like? Octave distortion
2.Name of the circuit = Lizard Queen
3.Source of the circuit (URL of schematic or project) = https://www.freestompboxes.org/download/file.php?id=43727&mode=view
4.Any modifications to the circuit? N
5.Any parts substitutions? 2n222as substituted for 2n3904s, 2n5088 substituted for 2n4401
6.Positive ground to negative ground conversion? N
7.Turn your meter on, set it to the 10V or 20V scale. Remove the battery from the battery clip. Probe the battery terminals with the meter leads before putting it in the clip. What is the out of circuit battery voltage? => 0.28V
Now insert the battery into the clip. If your effect is wired so that a plug must be in the input or output jack to turn the battery power on, insert one end of a cord into that jack. Connect the negative/black meter lead to signal ground by clipping the negative/black lead to the outer sleeve of the input or output jack, whichever does not have a plug in it. With the negative lead on signal ground, measure the following:
Voltage at the circuit board end of the red battery lead =9.4V
Voltage at the circuit board end of the black battery lead =0V

Q1
C = 0V
B = 0.551V
E = 1.039V

Q2
C= 3.393V
B= 0.928V
E= 5.95V

Q3
C = 0.804V
B = 1.311V
E = 8.58V

Q4
C= 5.90V
B= 5.26V
E= 0.816V

D1
A (anode, the non-band end) = 1.029V
K (cathode, the banded end) = 0.547V

D2
A = 0V
K = 9.40V

[antonis]

I think you've messed up transistor pinouts..

[Mark Hammer]

I built one using the toner-transfer layout here:  http://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2023/04/ehxjhs-lizard-queen.html

I used a 2N5088 for Q1 (against advice), and a 2N2222/BC560 pair for Q3/Q4.  I also omitted the collector/base feedback cap in Q2

Makes for a very woolly fuzz.  All controls work, and do something interesting, but with probably too much gain in that first stage (the bazz fuss front end).  If one sustains a note with finger vibrato, the octave starts to come out, but overall this build does not have a strong octave.  I think I'm going to have to play with the gain of Q1.  I may also need to reduce the valuer of C2, the mystery cap.  I'm using 22uf at the moment, which probably accounts for the "woolly" quality.

But yeah, pay attention to pinouts.

[Steben]

I built one using the toner-transfer layout here:  http://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2023/04/ehxjhs-lizard-queen.html

I used a 2N5088 for Q1 (against advice), and a 2N2222/BC560 pair for Q3/Q4.  I also omitted the collector/base feedback cap in Q2

Makes for a very woolly fuzz.  All controls work, and do something interesting, but with probably too much gain in that first stage (the bazz fuss front end).  If one sustains a note with finger vibrato, the octave starts to come out, but overall this build does not have a strong octave.  I think I'm going to have to play with the gain of Q1.  I may also need to reduce the valuer of C2, the mystery cap.  I'm using 22uf at the moment, which probably accounts for the "woolly" quality.

But yeah, pay attention to pinouts.

So you still prefer the green ringer Mark?

[Mark Hammer]

I built one using the toner-transfer layout here:  http://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2023/04/ehxjhs-lizard-queen.html

I used a 2N5088 for Q1 (against advice), and a 2N2222/BC560 pair for Q3/Q4.  I also omitted the collector/base feedback cap in Q2

Makes for a very woolly fuzz.  All controls work, and do something interesting, but with probably too much gain in that first stage (the bazz fuss front end).  If one sustains a note with finger vibrato, the octave starts to come out, but overall this build does not have a strong octave.  I think I'm going to have to play with the gain of Q1.  I may also need to reduce the valuer of C2, the mystery cap.  I'm using 22uf at the moment, which probably accounts for the "woolly" quality.

But yeah, pay attention to pinouts.

So you still prefer the green ringer Mark?

Depends if one is aiming for fuzz or for octave.  I'm going to try a few different transistors for Q1 and maybe Q4, and see if the octave can be coaxed out of hiding.
But, apart from the lack of a more obvious octave, it's a decent-sounding fuzz, with enough variation for my tastes.  I may experiment with varying Q1's gain and possibly varying the clipping of Q1.

Has anybody ever experimented with sticking a variable resistance in series with the collector-base diode in a bazz fuss?

[amz-fx]

I used a 2N5088 for Q1 (against advice), and a 2N2222/BC560 pair for Q3/Q4.  I also omitted the collector/base feedback cap in Q2

If you want it to be more fuzzy, try an MPSA13 for Q1, otherwise go with something with lower gain. A 2N4401 is going to be easy to find and is in a similar gain range as the 2N2222 for Q1, so it could work there if you have one.

Best regards, Jack

[Mark Hammer]

I'll give it a whirl.  I have both 4401s and 2222s (meta can) in my parts drawers.  I did try a 2222 at first, with an hfe of 150-ish, but wasn't impressed.  Couldn't get much variation in tone.  The 5088 never lets me get anything subtle, even with guitar volume turned down, but it does yield a wider range of tones, using the Balance and Octave pots, than the 2222 did.

Busy with other stuff today, but I'm wondering if stick a 500R-1k trimmer between Q1 emitter and ground might be useful.

[LaceSensor]

Well thats my vero layout and its verified working so check your pinouts, trace cuts, connections, and for solder bridges.