My First Build - Noob Advice Required about components.

Started by steveyraff, January 16, 2014, 05:42:22 PM

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steveyraff

Quote from: mth5044 on February 21, 2014, 05:25:23 PM
You're right, there is no pad marked ground, which is just another aspect that makes this project more confusing.

The ground point on your PCB is S9. You will not run a wire from there to the output jack as you said. As bluebunny said, a star ground will connect all the ground points together. So, if you use your input jack, connected to the sleeve will be the power supply ground, the PCB ground, the output jack ground and if there is a ground on the bypass switch, that as well.

Ok - glad you are agreeing with me that it makes this a more confusing first build, and its not entirely my stupidity.

I hear what you are saying, but I have wired it as it shows it in the diagram: Input sleeve to power supply ground, PCB ground is going to the same power supply ground so isn't that the same as connecting it to the input sleeve ground as its connected to the same power supply ground lug? In that case, the only thing I'd have left to do is connect the output jack ground to S9 (The PCB ground).

Please, correct me if I am wrong here - I am trying desperately to work this all out.

On a side note, I thought this wasn't necessary once its in its enclosure as the jacks would be then grounded to the enclosure itself?
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

Jdansti

As long as all of the grounds are connected and you can take your meter and show continuity between any two grounds, you should be fine. What the guys are trying to help you do is avoid ground loops (Google it) which can cause your pedal to be noisy. You can avoid ground loops by using a star ground technique.

Regarding the metal enclosure providing ground, you're correct that it can, but it could be a problem if you don't have a good connection to the enclosure due to a loose jack or paint. Using a wire also allows you to test the circuit outside of the enclosure.
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steveyraff

Finally getting around to finishing this. A friend wants me to make him one now too. But I think once I iron out all these mods and finer details, the second one will be much quicker to build.

Since this circuit is already quite large, I noticed it is going to take up most of the room in a 1590BB - so I removed the battery snap and just put in a 2.1mm 9v power socket.

The octave issue I have doesn't seem to be as prominent now that I have both moved to 9v mains power, and replaced my temporary pots the Alpha Pots. It seems to only happen if my pedal volume pots are all up MAX and then I roll my guitar back. If I even just put the pedals volume pot back a touch, its gone.

I have done MOST of the mods Mad bean suggests to rid the pedal of its inherent bassiness. Its still a little too bassy for me. Well, thats the wrong word - I don't mind if some settings are dark, its a different issue. When I switch to neck pickup, and roll back the pedals tone at all, it sounds very ... 'farty'. Like a breaking up, dying amplifier kind of muddiness. Still, that might be just the way it is.

I'm going to do all the mods - the only one I haven't done is replacing the 47kA Sustain pot with a 500kB pot, and adding a 470pF cap between lugs 3 and 2.

I'll try it. By the way, I can't find a 470pF cap on my usual online stores. I tried to work it out in uF but it tells me its something like 0.000047uF. Would the cap I am looking for be a 0.47uF by any chance?
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

italianguy63

I used to really be with it!  That is, until they changed what "it" is.  Now, I can't find it.  And, I'm scared!  --  Homer Simpson's dad

steveyraff

Quote from: italianguy63 on February 27, 2014, 03:03:44 PM
I use a reference like this all the time.

http://www.justradios.com/uFnFpF.html

470pF = .00047uF

MC

I was afraid you'd say that. Obviously, the shop I use dont not list a ".00047uf". And there is no signs of a 470pf any where on this shop either. Darn it. Shopping somewhere else for one component isn't maximising combined shipping savings...
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk


steveyraff

Thanks Kipper.

I actually found some on the site I use anyway (Doctor Tweek). I had already accumulated a substantial checkout basket and really wanted to get them on the same postage. I just had been looking in the wrong area.

Sorry for that - I am guilty of thinking out loud on this board before doing my research correctly.

Speaking of thinking out loud before doing my research... can anyone advise me on somewhere to go that specifies which drill bit sizes are used for particular roles, ie Alpha pot, 1/4 jack, 5mm LED etc holes  ???

Thank you all again!
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

Kipper4

Thinking aloud seems to be one of my problems here too.
It's like I've got typing Tourette's.:)
Ma throats as dry as an overcooked kipper.


Smoke me a Kipper. I'll be back for breakfast.

Grey Paper.
http://www.aronnelson.com/DIYFiles/up/

Jdansti

#128
Check here for component hole sizes.
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=30945.msg211925#msg211925

There are probably other references on the forum.

Edit:

Btw, the cleanest way to drill holes is with a drill press, but you can use a hand held drill. My hand held drill holes are never round. Also, beware that the bit will probably grab the enclosure and spin it, whacking you hard on the hand unless you anchor it with a vise or a strong clamp.
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PRR

> I can't find a 470pF cap on my usual online stores ... (Doctor Tweek).

Search? "Your search for 470pFd yielded no results". Gee, thanks, Doctor.

Caps?
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/page/13?shop_param

Uhh,, so you gotta know what kind of stuff a 470pFd is made of.

I happen to know that a 470pFd "ceramic" will be an excellent cap at a good price. But how would _you_ know that??

OK, suppose you guessed right. First: the site's navigation URL is a huge ugly SessionID string which probably will not work for somebody else (like people helping you). From some URL insight I did get this URL:
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/category_35/Capacitors-Ceramic.html

They got 100pFd, so we may be in the right aisle. But also 100nFd and 1pFd(!!), but no 470pFd. And no real sorting, except most of the stuff starts with "1". Maybe there is another page? Ah, the teeny numbers at bottom. No clue which one hides "470pFd". And when I found it (on page 3-of-4, at least today) it has another ugly SessionID URL. The base URL seems to be:
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/catalog/browse?shop_param=shop_overview_pager%3D3%26cid%3D56%26

Right column second entry is 470pFd.

http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/article_334/470pF.html?shop_param=cid%3D56%26aid%3D334%26

Five pennies and zero weight.
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Jdansti

>Five pennies and zero weight.

Must be made of ceramic photons.  At least the shipping should be free.
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steveyraff

Thanks PRR. Indeed, I searched for it and it yielded no results. Embarrassingly, I ended up emailing him to which he immediately replied and told me it was there and where to look for it. Doh. So, in the end up, it was my own lack of patience in not finding it. I think during a build, the more over excited I get about finishing it, the more I get ahead of myself.

John - thank you for the advice. A friend recently told me he just through out a good drill press from the university he works in. AAARGH! So yea, the hand held and vice clamp will just have to do, unfortunately.

Oh well!

Quote from: PRR on February 27, 2014, 10:39:48 PM
> I can't find a 470pF cap on my usual online stores ... (Doctor Tweek).

Search? "Your search for 470pFd yielded no results". Gee, thanks, Doctor.

Caps?
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/page/13?shop_param

Uhh,, so you gotta know what kind of stuff a 470pFd is made of.

I happen to know that a 470pFd "ceramic" will be an excellent cap at a good price. But how would _you_ know that??

OK, suppose you guessed right. First: the site's navigation URL is a huge ugly SessionID string which probably will not work for somebody else (like people helping you). From some URL insight I did get this URL:
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/category_35/Capacitors-Ceramic.html

They got 100pFd, so we may be in the right aisle. But also 100nFd and 1pFd(!!), but no 470pFd. And no real sorting, except most of the stuff starts with "1". Maybe there is another page? Ah, the teeny numbers at bottom. No clue which one hides "470pFd". And when I found it (on page 3-of-4, at least today) it has another ugly SessionID URL. The base URL seems to be:
http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/catalog/browse?shop_param=shop_overview_pager%3D3%26cid%3D56%26

Right column second entry is 470pFd.

http://doctortweek.co.uk/shop/article_334/470pF.html?shop_param=cid%3D56%26aid%3D334%26

Five pennies and zero weight.
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

PRR

> it was my own lack of patience in not finding it.

Perhaps so; but how many hours (minutes even!) should we spend looking for a 5-cent part? ("We" being both you and DrTweek's helpful staff.)

I shouldn't tell Doctor Tweak how to run his store. BUT I think a simple one-column list would work. Instead of ten to a page with your eyes jerking left-right to scan for the value, then clicking "Next" to do it some more, IMHO this would be more shop-able:

QuoteCapacitors Ceramic -
they may be fug ugly...but you got to love 'em.

100nF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
100pF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
10nF   Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
10pF   Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
120pF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
150pF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
15pF   Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
180pF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
1nF    Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
1pF    Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
470pF  Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD
blah.. Detailed view  0.05 GBP  ADD

You can *find* the 470pF in two seconds of single vertical eye-scan.
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bluebunny

Re. drilling: I don't think anyone's mentioned it yet, but get a step drill - something like this:

   (clickable)

Should cover you for everything from LEDs and pots to stomp switches.  (But not XLRs.)  BTW, also get a plain ol' 3mm HSS drill bit for naked 3mm LEDs.
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steveyraff

Do you guys normally use Single Core cable for hooking up footswitches and potentiometers etc ? ?

A friend of mine who works with electronics reckons stranded multicore is better as it wont break as easily when moved around.

Thoughts?

P.S
Bought a step drill bit. Cheers.
Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

duck_arse

I get printer/scsi cables. cut/chuck the plugs (computers, who needs em?), split the sheath, and there you have 37 or more colours of 7/00 something stranded hookup wire, complete with thinner than normal insulation, which helps keep bundle sizes down.

you'll probably need to practise on this stuff, so's you don't melt the insulation when soldering.

my method, others vary.
" I will say no more "

Jdansti

I prefer 22AWG stranded over solid. If you're a pro and can slip everything into the enclosure without moving the wiring around much, then solid is ok. But if you're like me, the wiring gets flexed a lot and I end up with broken wire when using solid.
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bluebunny

Quote from: steveyraff on March 04, 2014, 07:45:01 AM
Do you guys normally use Single Core cable for hooking up footswitches and potentiometers etc ? ?

A friend of mine who works with electronics reckons stranded multicore is better as it wont break as easily when moved around.

Do what your friend suggests.   ;)

Quote
P.S
Bought a step drill bit. Cheers.

Cool.   8)
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steveyraff

Quote from: duck_arse on March 04, 2014, 09:16:29 AM
I get printer/scsi cables. cut/chuck the plugs (computers, who needs em?), split the sheath, and there you have 37 or more colours of 7/00 something stranded hookup wire, complete with thinner than normal insulation, which helps keep bundle sizes down.

you'll probably need to practise on this stuff, so's you don't melt the insulation when soldering.

my method, others vary.

Thats a brilliant idea actually!

Still, I might take John's advice and try stranded this time. I never used it on my first build, but I did have problems with a few wire ends breaking free of their solder joint when moving them around. Maybe I'll try stranded for my latest build and see its easier.

Thanks again all.

Steve.

www.outlandstudios.co.uk

bluebunny

Quote from: steveyraff on March 04, 2014, 10:23:23 AM
Still, I might take John's advice and try stranded this time. I never used it on my first build, but I did have problems with a few wire ends breaking free of their solder joint when moving them around. Maybe I'll try stranded for my latest build and see its easier.

Told ya so!  ;)   Yeah, use stranded for off-board wiring and keep the single core for jumpers on your board.  Keep at it, Steve - you'll crack it!   :)
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