LED’s Always Staaaaay On HELP PLEASE!

[WLS]

Hello Everyone:

Let me start off by saying that I am new to the forum, this is my first post and I just built my first box. I decided on building a Fox Tone Machine. The board assembled well and obtained effects within an hour of installing the board and playing with a few solder joints. But I am having a problem with the wiring of my LED's. When I plug the Input Jack in wither the effect is turned on or off the LED's light up.

When testing the box did not do this until I installed the board. And I've been banging my head trying to figure out where the ground connection is taking place when the switches are in off mode.

If someone could review the wiring and tell me what I am doing wrong I would deeply appreciated.

Below is a picture and description of the wiring,








Enclosure:
Die cast aluminum box

Grounding:
Negative Ground with center positive pin on DC input jack

Switch 1:

• 1 to Board to bridge Octave Circuit
• 4 to Board to bridge Octave Circuit
• 2 to Negative side of Green LED
• 5 to ¼ inch Stereo Jack Input Ring

Switch 2:

• 1 to Board sound input
• 1 to 8 to ground board on bypass
• 2 to Negative side of Red LED
• 3 to #2 on Volume Pot
• 4 to ¼ inch Stereo Jack Tip
• 5 to ¼ inch Stereo Jack Input Ring
• 6 ¼ inch Mono Jack Tip
• 7 to 9 for true bypass

DC Input Jack
Metal Ring type and conducts on enclosure:

Positive Pin

• Positive pin on jack to positive side of 9v battery
• Bridges to 150 K Resistor then to positive side of Green LED
• Bridges to 150 K Resistor then to positive side of Red LED
• Bridges to Positive Input on board

Negative Pin

• Pin to ¼ inch Stereo Jack Stereo Tip

Negative Pin Contact Switch

• Pin to negative side of 9v battery

Pots

Volume Pot

• 3 To Board sound output
• 2 to Switch two pin #3
• 1 to ¼ inch Mono Jack Ring
• 1 to Ground on board

Sustain and Tone pots all go to board


¼ inch Stereo Jack

Ring

• Ring to Ground on board
• Ring to Ground #5 on Switch 1
• Ring to Ground #5 on Switch 2

Stereo Tip

• Stereo tip to negative pin on DC Input Jack

Tip

• Tip to #4 pin on Switch 2

¼ inch Mono Jack

• Ring to #1 on Volume Pot
• Tip to #6 on Switch 2

Thank You!

[The French connection]

Hi! I think your Dc jack is not wire properly...should have the positive of battery and board and one ground...like that:

http://www.beavisaudio.com/techpages/StompboxWiring/StompboxWiring.gif

Welcome by the way!

Dan

[WLS]

The problem is I have to use the two common contacts as a negative ground due to the fact that the housing of the jack is metal and in a metal case it shows continuity. Thus creating the problem of mixed polarities. If I was to reverse them. And I checked on mouser's site they are no longer carrying the 163-4302. Any other Idea's would be appreciated.

Thank You! 

[The French connection]

Haaaa ok! You have those dc jack:

http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=92

I've use them once with a metal enclosure, i've got so much trouble...i've finish by isolated them with o-ring and rubber.

Both Leds light on? Wich one? If your switch 1 in not in bypass mode, i think that it will light on anyway cause it take is power directly from the dc jack and it's just a ground switching, so even if the circuit is'nt powered up (switch 2), this led should lit up i think...For the moment that's all i can see.

sorry if that does'nt help!

Dan

[WLS]

I just got done switching the dc jacks wiring and with it outside of the enclosure I rechecked it for continuity on all the pins and found that it is isolated. So the last time I checked it must have been late and the leads must have touched rrrrrr something. 

Any ways I wired the DC jack to the way it is on the link http://www.beavisaudio.com/techpages/StompboxWiring/StompboxWiring.gif hoping that it would correct the problem with the LED's but still no good. 

Dan, yes they are on a simple grounding connection and I see what you are saying that if the circuit is in bypass the wire on switch two from #1 pin to #8 grounds the board and the LED will light and then with the effect turned on the the light will also stay on it just has less Resistance and comes on a little brighter. Good place for one of those dual color LED's.   

But the LED on Switch one has no bypass to it and it stays on all the time and back to switch two the LED stayed on when I removed the wire on switch two from #1 pin to #8 for grounding the board.

It makes no sense to me so I removed all the guts from the enclosure except for the LED's looking for a short in the wiring but did not find any so then I stuck a Phillips head screw driver into the input jack while it was still out of the enclosure and both lights still come on and stayed on no matter what mode it is was in.

Switch 1's LED should defiantly go out!

Still racking my brain and thanks for the input!

[Mike Burgundy]

Just take it step-by-step and think logically.
Start by disconnecting the wires to both pin2 switch terminals (LED to switch). Now the LEDs cathode is not connected to anything, they will not light, right? If they still light, you *must* have a short somewhere, probably cathode to case.

Check resistance between pin 5 and 2 on both switches. Should be almost 0Ohms in one setting, 20MOhms+ in the other.
If it's not, the switch is bad. Doubtful, to me, though, that they're both faulty.
If the switch is okay, *carefully* resolder one LED lead to it's corresponding terminal2. Make absolutely sure there is no stray wires, and everything is as neat as you can get it. Also, with switches like these, t's best to use a *hot* iron (450C) and work fast. Less heat means longer heating time for everything to flow, too long will absolutely damage the switch (plastic will melt).


Measure terminal 2 for any kind of conductivity to ground (should be none on one setting, and 0 Ohms on the other)

Just keep at it and don't be afraid to unsolder stuff and apply a DMM a lot. You'll get it.

[WLS]

After a couple of days of banging my head against the wall I finally resolved the issue with the LED's.


Problem: The switches had melted flux residue laying around the indentations at the base of the pins on the switches. Conducting current and completing the circuit, thus LED's remaining on in all states.

Solution: Using contact cleaner and a piece of cotton (from a cotton ball) saturated with the contact cleaner. I used my scraper tool or a very small flat head screw driver will do the trick. I worked the saturated cotton into all the groves and surface on the switch.  Then allowing it enough time to thoroughly dry. The LED's behaved in the proper manner.

Hats off to Dan, for pointing out that when switch 2 is in bypass mode the board also completes the circuit to the LED. So the way the box is wired this LED will stay on in both modes.  I did not think of this during the planning and construction of the box.


Thanks to everyone for their assistance for taking the time to assist me in rectifying the problem. 

[The French connection]

Cool! Sometimes it's less complicated than we tought and this is a part of the learning process...If it happen to me i will know what to do now.

Cheers!
Dan