The Fur Face - Breadboard-To-Box

[smallbearelec]

A while back, one of the new members had a hard time breadboarding a silicon Fuzz Face:

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=116638.0

The residents here helped him get it working, and I promised that I would offer a perf layout and build that starts where the breadboard tutorial leaves off. That's now done:

http://diy.smallbearelec.com/Projects/FurFace/FurFace.htm

and I hope it's helpful to many first-time builders. I apologize for the long wait; these articles take a lot of design time and photographing, which I squeeze in between making sure that the Cave is running smoothly.

Regards
SD

[jwfields1980]

thanks for the updated article. I recently purchased your fuzz face breadboard kit and my son and I loved putting it together. It was our first attempt building a circuit and thanks to you it went great. I just put in an order for everything to put it in a box, plus some stuff to try to build a buffer, and was worried about getting it from breadboard to working pedal. Im sure with the article, we will be able to get it right.

Thanks again for the time and work you put in to helping people get started in this hobby,
Jason

[smallbearelec]

I just put in an order for everything to put it in a box, plus some stuff to try to build a buffer

You're welcome. Actually, designing is the fun part of the biz. Suggestion: If you add an input stage, the additional parts are likely to make the layout on the small board very tight. I would plan on using a medium perf:

http://smallbear-electronics.mybigcommerce.com/pad-per-hole-medium-single-side/

trimmed to fit. When you have what you want working on the breadboard, Learn To Use DIY Layout Creator And Plan The Build Before You Solder!

Happy Construction!

SD

[jwfields1980]

I just put in an order for everything to put it in a box, plus some stuff to try to build a buffer

If you add an input stage, the additional parts are likely to make the layout on the small board very tight. I would plan on using a medium perf:

Thanks for the info. I was planning on putting the buffer in its own box to be in the front of my chain. For the fur face, I plan on following your build to the letter.

[antonis]

I was planning on putting the buffer in its own box to be in the front of my chain.

You can place a buffer in front of a Fuzz Face at your own risk..!! 

[bonzoboi]

Hi there! I'm unfamiliar with diodes, so my question is, how important is it that I have the same diode as the one you recommend in the article (the 1N5818)? The only one I can find in my shop that looks similar is the 1N4001 diode, so I'm wondering if I need to make an order to get the diode you recommend instead. Thanks!

[PRR]

> similar is the 1N4001

That will be fine here.

[smallbearelec]

Hi there! I'm unfamiliar with diodes

We put a diode in series with the power circuit to block current flow in case a battery or power supply is connected in reverse.

The 1N4001 is a standard silicon power diode. It will drop the input voltage by 600 to 700 millivolts. The 1N5818 is a Schottky diode, which is often used for power protection because it has a lower forward voltage drop...more like 200 millivolts. Of course, Paul is telling you correctly; you won't hear any difference between the two.

[pinkjimiphoton]

I was planning on putting the buffer in its own box to be in the front of my chain.

You can place a buffer in front of a Fuzz Face at your own risk..!! 

hah hahahahahahahh.... yeah, don't!!!

if ya need a "buffer" stick a 50 k pot in series with the input of the board. that will work better than all the buffer circuits i personally have tried. no buffers in front of a fuzz face work right. the fuzz has to be first in line with the effects, the guitar itself is part of the circuit. a buffer will prevent that from happening, and will change the fuzzface from being useable to just a crappy ripping velcro sound. fine, if you like that, but all the nuances that make a fuzzface a fuzzface will disappear.

[pinkjimiphoton]

steve,
just a heads up, on your schematic you have c 1 drawn upside down. the polarity is correct, but the cap as drawn is backwards.

no big deal, but may be confusing for the newbes to figure out.

[PRR]

Lot of schematics there.

This one? (On FurFace.htm)

Yes, the curve line should be Neg.

I was not aware anybody today knew/cared.

If we insist on that, the non-electro caps should not have curved line.

There's not really global agreement on these symbols. Euro usage may not favor any curved line. Some US use does use curved for non-polar.

https://s18.postimg.org/f0rry7bk9/Bear-_Fig6.gif

[pinkjimiphoton]

true to all, BUT in a case like mine with the glaucoma i tend to look at the symbol for the cap to determine what it is.
i don't really see little detail like the + very well to begin with, and someone may get confused.

there's various ways to draw it, but in this case the curved side should be negative.

that way you can tell what's what.  in some cases it looks like a little box with one side bigger than the other, or --- l II--- or whatever
instead of being marked with a +

just pointing it out, that's all.

yeah, i meant the main fuzz schematic, the first one he had on the fur face page.

[smallbearelec]

just a heads up, on your schematic you have c 1 drawn upside down. the polarity is correct, but the cap as drawn is backwards.

Fixed.

[pinkjimiphoton]

awesome. i printed it to a pdf to add to my archive. really well done sir

[jwfields1980]

Thanks for the heads up about the buffer in front of the fuzz.

[pinkjimiphoton]

n/p. silicon or germanium, the fuzz and guitar need to connect together to get all the magic to happen.

the guitar becomes part of the fuzzface circuit. if you put a buffer there,  you will lose most of the interaction between your axe and the effect.

almost everyone likes their wah first, but into a fuzzface, it can just result in shrieks of noise, almost like a tuned feedback. while this can be hip if you're hendrix, most of the time it's just annoying.

if you put a buffer between the wah and fuzz, the wah and fuzz will play together without the oscillations, but you lose the dynamics and touch sensitivity of the fuzz itself. a small resistsance can help... i usually reccomend just a 50k pot in line with the output from the wah board, and then you can dial in whatever works best. it's quicker cheaper and easier than a traditional buffer, and works better cuz ya still get a good amount of the guitar/fuzz interaction.

personally with me it's guitar >>> fuzz>>> everything else. i have overdrive both pre and post wah cuz i'm kinda anal about distortion tone.

the guitar into fuzz into wah, ya can get all the nuances of the fuzztone and wah them. the other way, you're just putting a wah into fuzz... and it's not often very pretty. wah'd fuzz sounds much better than fuzzed wah does usually.

jmo's... ymmv. sorry to hijack the thread

[jwfields1980]

just finished building this. Thanks to smallbear. Having both the breadboarding and finishing articles plus a kit with matched parts in it made this a total success for me. It was a good first step into building pedals.
Thanks again
Jason