First build weirdness. (Help me pretty please?)

[Lhoraxe]

 :'(Hi all! Seba here... I'm new.
Asked google my issue, searched the forum maybe I was trowing the wrong questions. But I need help an im getting fatigued to fix it so forgive me if I lack certain info...

I'm building a cranker from musikding

https://www.musikding.de/The-Cranker-Overdrive-kit

Some of my joints are obviously amateur status, but I feel that most compete admirably against many Chinese six year olds.
It works great! But at about 11 to noon the volume starts to drop off. At 1 it cuts out and then starts to return to full by 2.
With the transistor out I have sound through the full range, both sides of the pot taper with no issues using a multimeter.

I lifted the pot at a slight angle so the underside could be seen and accessed before reflowing everything. I used lead solder for the pot and GE diodes. I can't imagine minor cross contamination between solder types would be an issue.

The led is jacked, I think I overheated that on trying to pull an swap it out and some of the cooper track thing peeled out o the footswitch PCB.  The death cap Im building was easier when wiring direct, I'll never use a board like that again I think...

As far as testing anything else, I'm not sure what to test, or how/format to present it here.

Thank you so much!

[Lhoraxe]

Also, I decided to situate the knobs like so on the death cap... It looks like mushrooms.  Not related to my question but my ego wants to correct the original presentation.

Edit: also just found the modify post button, derp. Should also note that at 1 o'clock the sound does in fact come through when I strum really hard but it crackles in and out really bad, like the very edge of a hard gate. My best guess is a GE diode... Since there's three and the affected zone is roughly the middle third of the full sweep.
The GE's yes as follows in diode mode. With proper polarity first.

D4= .238 and 469
D3= .238 and 468
D2= .245 and a bunch of number including ol but most consisted in the 400 range... Was hard to make contact.
I think these are normal? I was under the impression switching polarity would read OL though.
Ah yes, and they are replacements from pedal hacker, slightly larger and clearer than what musikding sent. But they are still oa1182. So it should be okay?

Also the led lights up when I tested it. And I actually slid the lead under the copper strip that lifted an even then it still lit... So... Not jacked... But... Why isn't I lighting? Reflowed everything. And even flipped the led around... Still Nada... Related?

[eh la bas ma]

It works great! But at about 11 to noon the volume starts to drop off. At 1 it cuts out and then starts to return to full by 2.
With the transistor out I have sound through the full range, both sides of the pot taper with no issues using a multimeter.

Hello,

Diodes readings are ok, doesn't look like something wrong with them.

I'd say it's probably a soldering issue. Use a desoldering pump on the pads where there is too much solder and suck it out. Then reflow them quickly with fresh solder (iron set around 400°C). Take out the transistor during this process, in order to protect it from overheating.

You're lucky : this is a small circuit.

It could also be a mistake with your components values, double check that your pcb has been correctly populated.

Edit : I use Atlence Resistor Viewer (free) to check resistors colors rather than having to desolder them and check their values with a multimeter.

[iainpunk]

welcome to the forum,

i have a feeling its a bias issue. we'd like to know the DC voltage on the transistor pins with the pot at different positions, that might give the more experienced effect adicts here a clue about your problem here.
i also suggest you look at this link:debugging guide

cheers, Iain

[Lhoraxe]

I checked that page first and found not much that I both understood and could also seem applicable to my issue. Did all the basic troubleshooting... I will look it over again keeping this bias thing in mind. I'm terrified of getting the "oh clearly you didn't read the FAQ" response, lol. So I do all the stuff I can.

Despite having pride in my ability to attempt everything shy of a caesarian on the throbbing womb of ethereal creatures, my exceptionally good looks, or my truly terrifying cool factor. I have far mor "moments" than most should ever have to bear. And I am significantly lacking in absolutely everything else.
Please forgive me.

I could not get the transistor to show different values unless I clipped the black lead to the center post of the pot.
The values I got are pictured.

Cause I'm on a phone and this made more smarts.

It works great! But at about 11 to noon the volume starts to drop off. At 1 it cuts out and then starts to return to full by 2.
With the transistor out I have sound through the full range, both sides of the pot taper with no issues using a multimeter.

Hello,

Diodes readings are ok, doesn't look like something wrong with them.

I'd say it's probably a soldering issue. Use a desoldering pump on the pads where there is too much solder and suck it out. Then reflow them quickly with fresh solder (iron set around 400°C). Take out the transistor during this process, in order to protect it from overheating.

You're lucky : this is a small circuit.

It could also be a mistake with your components values, double check that your pcb has been correctly populated.

Edit : I use Atlence Resistor Viewer (free) to check resistors colors rather than having to desolder them and check their values with a multimeter.

I will work on this while awaiting further instructions...
Thanks so so super much guys.

[Lhoraxe]

Everything is in its place... No misplaced components.
I have a new switch and am going to just junk this silly board thing. Maybe I burned something up and its by far the goppiest part of my work as this is my first experience soldering. I want that stupid LED to work. And to get sound through the full sweep... After testing again, I noticed it had lower volume than when in bypass... Not much but notable, I suppose that's kinda normal?

[Lhoraxe]

welcome to the forum,

i have a feeling its a bias issue. we'd like to know the DC voltage on the transistor pins with the pot at different positions, that might give the more experienced effect adicts here a clue about your problem here.
i also suggest you look at this link:debugging guide

cheers, Iain

OK, I looked at that link and its title is similar to one I looked at but its not at all the same... Hope this photo is helpful in helping. If I did something wrong or need to do something else let me know and I'm on it like Scandinavian babes to tiger woods.




Edit: I'm stuck ish... I'm wiring the switch according to madbean... But there's an extra 9v wire. Wtf Ami supposed to do with this?





Ah ha! Okay I ripped the stupid old switch off the stupid PCB to see where it went and did this...




I'm gonna clean it up now that I have this.






I shorted the two LEDs I had but ripped some UV ones out of a glue curing flashlight doo dad.
Needed a 47k resistor.

Please please please can someone help me with the whole slightly quieter overall volume, and no sound unless I strum hard and get the hard gate crackling thing for the middle third / quarter range of the pot sweep?

[eh la bas ma]

Can you post  clear pictures of the soldering side, so that we can see if there is some suspicious solder joints, please ?

The one in your original post is out of focus.

[Lhoraxe]

Can you post  clear pictures of the soldering side, so that we can see if there is some suspicious solder joints, please ?

The one in your original post is out of focus.

Had to wait for the girl across the street to pass out so I could use her phone instead.

[eh la bas ma]

green : good soldering (perfect dome). They should all look like that

red : legs are bent on the side. Better contact and soldering if the legs are pointing straight up, toward the sky.

blue : Maybe too much solder.

purple : I can't see very precisely but suspicious nonetheless.


You might want to shorten your wiring as much as possible. This will avoid wires soldered to each other to short with the enclosure, and some extra resistance created by the wires's length.

[eh la bas ma]

I could not get the transistor to show different values unless I clipped the black lead to the center post of the pot.
The values I got are pictured.

To measure voltage on the transistor, black probe on GND (jack's ground or Dc power jack ground), and red probe on one transistor's leg. Multimeter set on DC voltage. The middle lug of the pot is connected to C4, so I doubt your readings are accurate.

Wait... you stole a phone to send these pictures ?

[Lhoraxe]

I could not get the transistor to show different values unless I clipped the black lead to the center post of the pot.
The values I got are pictured.

To measure voltage on the transistor, black probe on GND (jack's ground or Dc power jack ground), and red probe on one transistor's leg. Multimeter set on DC voltage. The middle lug of the pot is connected to C4, so I doubt your readings are accurate.

Wait... you stole a phone to send these pictures ?

Um. With power or no power?

And no, I BORROWED it... It was promptly returned to her nightstand with a thank you note before she woke up... Sometimes I come home and she's raiding my fridge. Or i wake up to her slamming the door on her way out and i have no flipping clue when she came in or what she was doing in my home... Its a thing.

[eh la bas ma]

With power plugged in (battery or 9v power supply), but the effect should be switched off.

[Lhoraxe]

Okay cool... This was unexciting... Taking measurements is less fun when the numbers don't change...

[eh la bas ma]

Your circuits has a problem when the P1 knob reaches 11'. Hypothetically, that's when your signal starts to get clipped by your 3 germanium diodes. These are quite fragile, they tend to break very easily when the legs are bent near the glass body. You already have tested them, but can you visually check their integrity ? The slightest crack could explain your issue.

Next, can you check that there is 9V coming to the pcb ?
Multimeter set on DC voltage, black on ground and red on pcb's +9V pad.

You can also take some more readings on the transistor with the effect switched on, to see if anything related to your issue shows on the multimeter .

[bamslam69]

My only tip is to add a bit more insulation around the back of the potentiometer, in case there's any odd connection between the metal and the solder points.

Maybe buy your neighbour some flowers too.

[Lhoraxe]

OK, so I just took out d1-4. And filled them all with sockets... Then I put flawless new diodes in all of them but I didnt have a replacement for D1 so I soldered 2 1n60's together and shoved those in its place... Its Doing the same thing. But it sounds better, lol...
Its more abrupt now though I get to about noon and the volume just sharply drops off and I get a hard gate where its pretty much silent unless I strum really really hard an it crackles through really bad. And it picks right up at 1. An slowly increases to full at about three... I don't have any spare  pots so I'll have to order them and try that unless someone can tell me this isn't a pot issue...

I would kill for a speaker cranker or something just like it... I'm hurtin bad to get this working.... Like losing sleep and fever dreams bad... Lol.

And flowers sound like a great idea.
But I'm terrified of getting in a thing thats more than a thing.
The mutual obsession, mystery, creeper on creeper thing is kinda something I want to savor for a moment.

Edit: oh yes! I have a scrappy epiphone SG... Can I use one of those pots? The pickups are wired direct. So they aren't being used. And a caline pedal with b50k a100k and a1m pots.but they are small and green.

[Lhoraxe]

OK so I threw the B50k in there... It was messy. But now I have much more usable range than before. Now it cuts out vey briefly at 4 O'Clock just before max... Can someone explain why it moves? I hear the tone changing a lot more too... Seems way more dramatic. Or something.

[duck_arse]

I'm not 100% sure, but I think you have a 2k2 resistor fitted at R2 when it really wants 2M2. attend to that, then flowers.

[Lhoraxe]

I'm not 100% sure, but I think you have a 2k2 resistor fitted at R2 when it really wants 2M2. attend to that, then flowers.

OH MY FLIPPING ACROBAT SAVIOR!
that's my the LED didn't work... I've made a @#$%ing mess over this... I just saw 2.2 an was like .... Yep that's it! And popped I in there. I'm gonna fix this rq and update.