Please suggest me a ring modulator, clone or diy

[JebemMajke]

Please, anyone, suggest me a ring modulator, of any kind.

I was eyeballing electro harmonix frequency analyzer, but I can't seem to find all the parts.

The weirder it is the better

[Govmnt_Lacky]

Ring Stinger! (String Ringer)

You wont find a better, weirder Ring mod out there! 

[Mark Hammer]

Have you ever experimented with nudging the LFO of a modulation effect up into the audio range?  Most modulation effects (tremolo, phaser, chorus, flanger, etc.) will generally have LFOs that go up to maybe 8hz or so.  If you reduce the value of the cap that sets the speed range of that LFO, you can move it into the audio range.  For example.  The result is not absolutely identical to a true ring modulator, but comes awfully close.

For example, the Boss CE-2 chorus uses a standard 2-op-amp LFO, whose frequency range is set by a 100nf cap in the feedback loop of an op-amp.  Drop that to 50nf and you double the maximum frequency.  Drop it to 25nf, and you double it again.  A value of 10nf gets you 10x whatever the maximum frequency originally was, and 1nf gets you 100x.  So, if the max freq was originally 8hz, a change to 1nf gets you up to 800hz.

If you have not used a ring modulator before, keep in mind that the lower the modulation frequency, the more "pitched" the result will sound.  So, a note of A-440, modulated at 40hz, will sound more like A (with sideband products of 400hz and 480hz) than if you modulate it at 200hz (where the sideband products will be 240hz and 640hz).

I mention all of this because ring modulation can get tiresome VERY quickly.  So, it's good to find out how much you're going to like and use it via the smallest/fastest/cheapest investment you can make.  And if you find you DO have a use for it, then consider investing the time and money to make a real one.

[blackieNYC]

Using Mark's suggestion, you may already have the makings of one.  If you have a delay/chorus you can drill another hole in (hmm), or are considering (another?)one.  I put an additional stomp switch in one which: changes the cap to an audio range LFO, kills the dry signal  (sounds better), and lights an LED of course. If I was to do it again I would also have the switch max out the LFO depth and/or minimize the delay time all in one shot., maybe with the unused  contact on the LED pole.   But definitely breadboard or give yourself a means of playing around with the cap value.   
The Jenny Greenteeth will go up to 50Hz as is - Merlin's chorus. 
There is a vactrol response time issue in some designs that needs exploration.  Should vactrols be avoided in a ring mod LFO?  Someone has posted on this before.

[digi2t]

Very low parts count, and capable of creating ring mod like noise, the Logan 5.

[peterg]

Tim E's Thing Modulator is an easy build and kind of wacky.

[nocentelli]

Jen HF modulator/Gretch playboy is a tremolo with modulation frequency up in the audio range like mark h suggested: http://experimentalistsanonymous.com/diy/Schematics/Phasers/Jen%20HF%20Modulator.gif

[blackieNYC]

+1 on the thing modulator.  If I've scared you away from the delay LFO.
See this thing modulator silencer BTW:
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=96501.msg985701#msg985701

[JebemMajke]

Ring Stinger! (String Ringer)

You wont find a better, weirder Ring mod out there! 

I am checking it, and it seems crazy enough

@Mark, great advice, to modify an existing modulation pedal into a ring modulator. I'll consider that one as well.

[JebemMajke]

PS

How about Schumann Pll?

How would you classify this pedal?

[digi2t]

PS

How about Schumann Pll?

How would you classify this pedal?

Harmonizer.

[Eddododo]

Ray rings ring Modulator is pretty easy,  awesome,  and whacky

[Eddododo]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0koBySpdYw&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[Mark Hammer]

@Mark, great advice, to modify an existing modulation pedal into a ring modulator. I'll consider that one as well.

Thanks.  I just figure that if a person has never really used one for any length of time, it may be a useful idea to "preview" it by changing one component on something you already own, before investing the time.  Life's too short to spend a week of free evenings getting to complete a pedal that, when done, makes you go "Oh...well THAT's not the sort of thing I'd use very often."

[JebemMajke]

PS

How about Schumann Pll?

How would you classify this pedal?

Harmonizer.

Ahhh

Not a "normal" harmonizer?

PS i know jack about harmonizer pedals

[Digital Larry]

It may not be exactly what you had in mind, but I have made some pretty strange ring mod type patches using the Spin FV-1 DSP chip (see the thread over in the DSP forum regarding the FV-1 project).

I've done the following sorts of things:

1) Run the input signal through a state-variable filter (low, band and high pass outputs) and put the low pass to a ring modulator, with the mid to a distortion/overdrive and high to a chorus or maybe some type of ambience.  In this situation the ring modulator is a more subtle grind/weirdness on the low end and does not dominate the overall sound.

2) Get two ring modulators and use the input envelope to control the carrier frequency in different ways for each one.  That one sounded hilarious.

I almost never use a ring modulator block unless I run the input through a low pass filter first.  This really reduces the noisy hash you get otherwise.

Nice thing about doing this on the FV-1 is that if you don't like it as a ring modulator, you can use it for a number of other things instead.  Bad thing is that I sense that some/many people get more satisfaction out of building analog effects even with their limitations.  And I can understand that even though I'm not much of a builder any more.

[JebemMajke]

Thing is ... I think I know more about harmonizers than about making/programming digital pedals

If there is a such a thing as a newbie digital project I am all ears. :

[Digital Larry]

I wouldn't recommend the FV-1 project for a total newbie as there is SMT involved and a fairly high parts count.  Check the link in my signature below for info about software I've written that goes a long way towards making the programming easier for many types of algorithms.  I'm continuing to work on it as time permits to improve it.

[Eddododo]

I'm tellin ya, google circuit salad ring modulator.