McCoy Clone w/pics

[Skreddy]

Wow!  Incredible attention to detail.  Not looks-wise, but electronics-wise and no doubt tone-wise the most accurate reproduction of a vintage wah I've ever seen anyone build.

[tungngruv]

Thanks Skreddy!!

[Skreddy]

I'd still true bypass it though. 

[tungngruv]

I'd still true bypass it though.

I can't, Jimi said "no".

[zombiwoof]

How do you know Jimi said "no"?  His pedals were heavily modified.  I got my first wah when I was 14 years old, and even then I could tell my tone went to Hell when it was bypassed.  That is the one pedal that it is mandatory to true bypass or use a buffer, unless you don't care about your sound.

Al

[tungngruv]

How do you know Jimi said "no"?  His pedals were heavily modified.  I got my first wah when I was 14 years old, and even then I could tell my tone went to Hell when it was bypassed.  That is the one pedal that it is mandatory to true bypass or use a buffer, unless you don't care about your sound.

Al

Ok Al, Jimi really didn't say no, I made that up as a joke. So you are saying that all the older classic rock albums that had a really good wah sound (Hendrix, Trower, Page, etc...) either sucked or must have had their pedals secretly true bypassed. Thanks, I did not know that. I have an old DOD OD 250 that's not true bypass either. It kill's, period.

Honestly, I'm not hearing that much of a difference not using true bypass on this particular wah. Sometimes I am running a Boss TR-2 in the front of all the other pedals, so that may help when I'm gigging, but I also goof around with it with just a Fuzz or straight into the amp at practice and it's not making me cringe at the tone. I don't want to get in an argument about bypassing effects, I just wanted to make a clone of an older wah wah as close as possible using a switch I already had anyway. Besides, can any one person say that this tone is good and that tone is not good? In the end, each persons ear is the final judge of good and bad tone. Sounds good to me so I must not care for my tone. Thanks for your input.

[tehfunk]

so, when are the sound clips comin? 

[zombiwoof]

How do you know Jimi said "no"?  His pedals were heavily modified.  I got my first wah when I was 14 years old, and even then I could tell my tone went to Hell when it was bypassed.  That is the one pedal that it is mandatory to true bypass or use a buffer, unless you don't care about your sound.

Al

Ok Al, Jimi really didn't say no, I made that up as a joke. So you are saying that all the older classic rock albums that had a really good wah sound (Hendrix, Trower, Page, etc...) either sucked or must have had their pedals secretly true bypassed. Thanks, I did not know that. I have an old DOD OD 250 that's not true bypass either. It kill's, period.

Honestly, I'm not hearing that much of a difference not using true bypass on this particular wah. Sometimes I am running a Boss TR-2 in the front of all the other pedals, so that may help when I'm gigging, but I also goof around with it with just a Fuzz or straight into the amp at practice and it's not making me cringe at the tone. I don't want to get in an argument about bypassing effects, I just wanted to make a clone of an older wah wah as close as possible using a switch I already had anyway. Besides, can any one person say that this tone is good and that tone is not good? In the end, each persons ear is the final judge of good and bad tone. Sounds good to me so I must not care for my tone. Thanks for your input.

Wasn't trying to get into an argument, and I don't believe that all pedals have to be true bypassed.  It's just that I'm not the only one that has noticed that vintage wahs are horrible tone suckers in bypass.  If you use one with a buffered pedal in front of it, you may not notice any difference, but if you compare the bypassed sound on a vintage wah to the sound going straight through the same amount of cable, with no buffering in either case, it's hard to not hear the loss of highs and lows and the signal degradation.  If it doesn't bother you, that's fine, but it always bothered me.  With all the work that Roger Mayer did on Jimi's effects, I'd have to guess that he might have done something to Jimi's wahs, though I've never read anything to that effect.  Mayer has been famous for not spilling all his secrets.  The wah you've made is beautiful, good luck with it.

Al

[zombiwoof]

By the way, I've got a DOD 250, and I agree it doesn't suck tone in bypass, Analog Mike states on his site that it's because it's such a simple circuit, although he does offer true bypass for it if someone wants it.  IMO, not so with a vintage type wah, that's why most people change the switch.

Al

[MovingInSloMo]

If you were recording 70's funk and wanted an authentic vibe would you use analog or digital? Computer plug-ins or old tube effects? Put it on CD or press some LP's? Sometimes you want old-skool

[zombiwoof]

If you were recording 70's funk and wanted an authentic vibe would you use analog or digital? Computer plug-ins or old tube effects? Put it on CD or press some LP's? Sometimes you want old-skool

What we're talking about has nothing to do with the sound of the effect, only what it does to your tone when the effect is bypassed.

Al

[tungngruv]

Getting much too serious here guys. I like old school and I also see the point of true bypass. I have a lot of pedals that are true bypass and I have a few that aren't. Let's not forget that the most important reason we are here is to get along and play music with the pedals we make.  Everything else is to each his own, no wrong, no right, just different!

[joegagan]

the first rule of fight club is


you don't talk about fight club

[mistercoffee1]

I have a couple wah shells and decided to try a McCoy wah wah clone. Lohn Lyons made the PCB for me. These PCB's are awesome, he's a master!!. Nice color, excellent traces (when you feel the traces with your finger, they almost feel like "flat wire"). Got a few extra parts from Dragonfly and I also bought an Icar taper pot and the Whipple inductor.

Quite a nice looking build.  Some real attention to detail.  Just from the pics alone, even the solder joints look gorgeous.

What brand of resistors are those?
I agree, I've built one with 1/4w Carbon Comps, and no real difference in sound or noise (thankfully).

Also, did you go with a 4.0uF or 4.7uF electrolytic value?  I see that's is labeled a 4.7, but wondering if you tried to go fully authentic on the Clyde values.

[kurtlives]

The original had 4mF NP.

[Paul Marossy]

I don't believe that all pedals have to be true bypassed.  It's just that I'm not the only one that has noticed that vintage wahs are horrible tone suckers in bypass. 

I agree. Especially the new manufacture CryBaby wah pedals. The input buffer does a fine job of presenting a high impedance to the guitar pickups. But, I HAD to true bypass my vintage Vox wah - it was unbelievable how much it drained the life out of my guitar's sound. 

[notam]

The odd looking caps and BC109's are from eBay

okay..........I've been to the end of eBay and back - doing every search for capacitor that I can think of - and still can't come up with these caps...got a link ?



Thanks !

Dan

Never mind - got it.

Thanks ! Dan

Where did you find the info for the caps?
and Where did you get the wah housing?
Thanks

[Exactopposite]

whatever happened with the clips?

I'm ordering parts from the bear today to build a clyde clone. I'm using the whipple also.  I'll make a post about it when i get it all together. I'm interested in hearing how yours sounds though.