Has anyone built the Blues Breaker by Tonepad?

[xorophone]

Hello! I'm planning on building the Blues Breaker as my first 1590a project, but I want to know how it sounds first. If someone here has built it, I'd love to hear it. If not, what's your favorite mild overdrive/distortion that'll fit in a 1590a?

[GibsonGM]

Hi...I liked it for...blues (ha ha)....it does not get as distorted as the Guv'nor, which I use pretty often.   It sounds good, to my ear...Les Paul and Tele into a Fender amp.  It's not a shred pedal, but has a really nice break-up and lots of boost.

IMO, the BB is a worthy build, and playing with the clipping diodes (I used greed LEDs!) and tone control values was worthwhile! If you like blues, you'll probably like the pedal to drive a tube amp harder....can't say what it would sound like into a transistor amp tho.

[xorophone]

Hi...I liked it for...blues (ha ha)....it does not get as distorted as the Guv'nor, which I use pretty often.   It sounds good, to my ear...Les Paul and Tele into a Fender amp.  It's not a shred pedal, but has a really nice break-up and lots of boost.

IMO, the BB is a worthy build, and playing with the clipping diodes (I used greed LEDs!) and tone control values was worthwhile! If you like blues, you'll probably like the pedal to drive a tube amp harder....can't say what it would sound like into a transistor amp tho.

Thank you! I'm planning on building two of them and giving one away to a freelance jazz/blues musician who gave me a really good education. I'll breadboard it as soon as possible and play around with the diodes and pot values. I don't have a tube amplifier to try it with, but I know the guy I'm giving it to uses tube amps.

Do you think it'll fit in a 1590a? The circuitboard might be slightly too big, but I think it's pretty easy to scale it down a bit. I'll exclude a DIP socket for the TL072, use alpha pots, a miniature DC jack and enclosed 1/4" jacks. Even using SMD components might be a possibility, but I think I'll be fine with  through-hole components. Ok, now I'm just rambling. Sorry. But thank you for the reply!

[GGBB]

I've build a couple but not the Tonepad version. Fantastic overdrive in my opinion. Does the amp starting to break up sound extremely well. It is my main dirt pedal.

There are two main variations going around that are notably different in sound. The differences are in the two resistors to ground (through caps) off the first op-amp's inverting input which create the tone shaping high pass filter. I get a corrupt file error when I try to load the Tonepad file so I don't know which version they follow (http://www.tonepad.com/project.asp?id=34). Some versions (e.g. King of Tone) use a 27k and a 33k. Other versions (e.g. Morning Glory) use 4k7 and 3k3 respectively. In the Bluesbreaker I use, I have those two variations on a switch. The 4k7-3k3 version is a fair bit brighter (has less bass really) and has more gain. Switching that version in is like a bright boost switch. I prefer the 27k-33k sound but it really depends on the guitar and amp. I also recommend playing with the two 10n caps in that filter as well - increase the one in series with the 3k3/33k resistor to 15n or 22n and the other one to 33n or higher to add fullness to the bottom end. The presence mod is useful too I find (but maybe not possible on a 1590A).

[Plexi]

I didn't..
I love the Red Llama..! Huge boost and a tiny bit od.

[xorophone]

I've build a couple but not the Tonepad version. Fantastic overdrive in my opinion. Does the amp starting to break up sound extremely well. It is my main dirt pedal.

There are two main variations going around that are notably different in sound. The differences are in the two resistors to ground (through caps) off the first op-amp's inverting input which create the tone shaping high pass filter. I get a corrupt file error when I try to load the Tonepad file so I don't know which version they follow (http://www.tonepad.com/project.asp?id=34). Some versions (e.g. King of Tone) use a 27k and a 33k. Other versions (e.g. Morning Glory) use 4k7 and 3k3 respectively. In the Bluesbreaker I use, I have those two variations on a switch. The 4k7-3k3 version is a fair bit brighter (has less bass really) and has more gain. Switching that version in is like a bright boost switch. I prefer the 27k-33k sound but it really depends on the guitar and amp. I also recommend playing with the two 10n caps in that filter as well - increase the one in series with the 3k3/33k resistor to 15n or 22n and the other one to 33n or higher to add fullness to the bottom end. The presence mod is useful too I find (but maybe not possible on a 1590A).

I didn't..
I love the Red Llama..! Huge boost and a tiny bit od.

Thank you! I'll breadboard it soon and play around with the values.

[thermionix]

I don't know which version they follow

Tonepad and GGG both show 3K3/4K7.  GGG has it all going to ground, Tonepad has it going to Vref.

[GGBB]

Tonepad and GGG both show 3K3/4K7.  GGG has it all going to ground, Tonepad has it going to Vref.

The Vref / ground variation is another one that's prevalent. I simmed it and couldn't see any notable difference in frequency response, but I don't know if other things might be affected. The only thing I do know is the obvious (apparent) brightness increase with the 4k7/3k3 version - of course the math would tell you that too.

I don't know where the Vref variation comes from - the original schematic shows that net as ground (actually -VS" - it is drawn showing a dual supply).

[thermionix]

Do you have a link to the original schematic?  I've been thinking about breadboarding this one too.  Put a BB on the BB, you see.

[GGBB]

Sorry - I don't have a link to the original - don't remember where I got it. It is identical to this except for: values in rectangles (27k, 33k, 10p), "Vcc" was labeled "+VS", "1/2 Vcc" was labeled "REF", ground was labeled "-VS", and the part number for the TL072 opamp was NMJ072BD. Also, it appeared to allow for either +9v single supply or +/-9V dual supply via the ring of the switching stereo input jack in addition to the DC jack.



EDIT: Also - the unlabeled electrolytic cap between Vcc and 1/2Vcc was not included.

[thermionix]

Thanks Gord.  Both Tonepad and GGG have the 47p also.

[PRR]

> The Vref / ground variation ... I simmed it and couldn't see any notable difference in frequency response

If the Vref cap is very-large relative to the things connected to it, then Vref is "audio ground" for practical purpose.

The plan in Reply #9 shows all 10nF caps and high/infinite resistances to Vref, with Vref cap as 100uFd. 100u is 10,000 times bigger than 10n. It is "very-large enough" to be solid audio ground. (The second cap in that picture wasn't and probably shouldn't be there.)

It mostly makes no difference unless you have DC-sensitive parts to audio-ground. If you need a 10ufd audio cap to ground, that will want to be electrolytic, and should probably "feel" a steady DC bias. Tying one end to a 4.5V node and the other to zero V DC maintains such a bias.

[BJF]

Hi there,



The 1/2V point is AC ground and a voltage potential, while chassi ground is both AC ground and DC ground so reasons for using one or the other AC ground can be purely layout concerns.

If you look at the circuit from AC point of view only these two are the same point and B+ is also AC ground.


Someone sent me a Baby Boom OD alledgely a clone and asked if I would possibly have a look at it to make it sound better-good question really but once in a blue moon perhaps

That is why I found this thread anyway

Have fun
BJ
BJF Electronics
Analog engineer at One Control