somebody needs to trace this one from the pics!

[pinkjimiphoton]

a fuzz i never seen before, fuzz AND treble booster

https://www.ebay.com/itm/134629608446?hash=item1f588ccbfe:g:xrkAAOSw7ulkmQfb&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8LVovLXn18IdTK9FtzIT4hltP7Auya5vtM7rD4KOkKUm2feVfSJGsyZwC3L3IXWQy31rplAt5IButMY5TjdGPOSKQ%2FgRLX%2BZrUW3akZ4HQwcQsQH1EPzbhICOHAsThGDCdVzUO8FyxS831R2L%2BZVzPoi9qJ8I4Arcu1D%2BakOPKfnZJEkLNbnWie8611W8F4zAGWSTaBSsssbTu%2FYjBAXbyWVveZh1o0rW5kW8PP%2F0fneN6i0fiecmPTJgWL4R%2Be2c8XoBqn2QmePvvDoa8edW1k1p2DCkDM%2FAYRdiFGMsgUhgp7HA1YgCsIEdDWSVw%2FVFQ%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR8rvuIufYg

https://www.effectsdatabase.com/model/vivant/fuzztreblebooster#

[Phend]

What, no bid yet on eeebay

[Ripthorn]

gnarly

[Rob Strand]

If you had to guess what was inside: Rangemaster and Fuzzface  ... and ... you wouldn't too far off.

These hand wired things are a pain to trace.  Different units have different part values and in some cases different wiring/layout.

I suspect the treble boost section might be silicon in some units and germanium in others.

[V1.0 Errors: The 270k (R8) should be 27k, R11 100k
V1.0 obsolete, SEE UPDATE BELOW]


You guys can fight over the part details.

[aron]

Wow you did that from the picture? I was going to take a look but then..... no way!

[Rob Strand]

Wow you did that from the picture? I was going to take a look but then..... no way!

With the help of a few other pics.

This one and a few others.
https://electricpartslibrary.hatenadiary.jp/entry/20091014/1255524930

It looks like this is similar to the Goya Panther (and others see Effects DB entries).





Plenty similarities and mismatches in the schematics.  At this point accuracy is like throwing the chicken bones in the air and watching where they land.

[Rob Strand]

I'm a bit happier about this one,

[V1.1 obsolete, SEE UPDATE BELOW]


It's going to be a case of collecting a large number of pics and trying to refine the areas that disagree between the schematics.

There's a gut shot pic for the Goya Panther here,
https://www.digimart.net/cat13/shop28/DS07953485/

I have some confidence the part of the circuit around Q3's emitter and RV2 are correct;  with the exception of yet another variant that R10 can be 1k5 or 1k8.

[mozz]

I've seen those ESSEX caps before, i knew they were made in Japan, makes me wonder if it's not US made. Resistors do look US though, Japanese resistors were usually different looking than those carbon comps. As to the first pic, those small metal transistor with numbers stamped on top, i have some here somewhere, will post a few part numbers, could be 2n706 2n904? Will search.

[imJonWain]

If bidding doesn't get stupid (much over $100) I'll buy it to verify the circuit just for fun. 

I wouldn't be shocked if it was actually built in Japan or here with sourced parts.  A friend had a 60's guitar amp with no branding that said Chicago on the back and it had the same power transformer as a teisco amp I had fwiw. 

[Rob Strand]

I've seen those ESSEX caps before, i knew they were made in Japan, makes me wonder if it's not US made. Resistors do look US though, Japanese resistors were usually different looking than those carbon comps. As to the first pic, those small metal transistor with numbers stamped on top, i have some here somewhere, will post a few part numbers, could be 2n706 2n904? Will search.

There's definitely 2N706's with that style of package.

The specific details that ring a bell to me are
- TO18 package
- top stamp in metal
- gold leads
- gold on underside.

I can't think of manufacturer.   At first I was thinking TI, but sure I'm getting confused with those old Tone Bender parts.  Motorola top stamped a few but I don't think the text was that style, and not sure if they had the gold.

FWIW, the pic in the Goya Panther link shows a 2N2614 (TO-5 - ish package) for the Treble boost.  These are high gain PNP germaniums.   The Fuzz part seems to use side-marked devices, perhaps different.   From a few other pics the Treble boost section often uses different transistors to the Fuzz.

[JustinFun]

In parallel! How odd. Wonder how it would sound with both on.

Surely ungrounded switching on the input would mean that fuzz was super-noisy when bypassed?

[Rob Strand]

In parallel! How odd. Wonder how it would sound with both on.

In practice probably either one or the other in use.  I haven't checked if the fuzz overwhelms the treble boost in terms of level.  However if you balanced the levels then clearly thus must blend (for good or bad).

While looking for a few more PCB pics I noticed there's a few YT videos but I haven't had a chance to look at them.  Maybe they demo both modes in parallel.  (You might find other videos under the many other pedal names this thing comes under.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBKVMP-Qrxk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnl2uuzwhyY

Surely ungrounded switching on the input would mean that fuzz was super-noisy when bypassed?

A lot of room for improvement that's for sure.  Most issues caused by the simple SPST switches.

[mozz]

Yes, those switches, they are for lamp circuits. Not really meant for hard foot use. As to the 2n2614, my book is showing the only maker is RCA, i have some here and it's the TO-1 package? They are high gain but crappy transistors, high leakage. I guess many parts variations on these pedals, which was the way to do it back then, use what you had.

[Rob Strand]

As to the 2n2614, my book is showing the only maker is RCA, i have some here and it's the TO-1 package? They are high gain but crappy transistors, high leakage. I guess many parts variations on these pedals, which was the way to do it back then, use what you had.

I've got an RCA datasheet which is a TO-1 package.  The weird thing is that goya panther pic sure looks like TO-5.   I'm thinking it's Motorola but I don't have Motorola data for that era which is easy to get to; got 1965 and 1984 and it's not in those.  So not sure what's going on there.

As for the schematic:

After some poking around at pics I found another goya panther with different wiring to my previous link.   In this case the region around the emitter of Q3 is wire like my V1.0 schematic except C8 is between RV2 and R8.  Or another way to say it is take my V1.1 schematic and move the emitter of Q3 to R10.

So I throw up my hands on this one.   I'm not even sure my V1.0 is wrong, I just can't quite make out the wiring from the pic.   Nonetheless that's three different possibilities in this area.   I can see how difficulties creep into the Mark Borrow and Chris Martin schematics - which are different to all three of the possibilities I can make out!   The Chris Martin schematic is closer but still not in agreement with what I see - I only see a single resistor around the emitter of Q3/RV2  either 1k5 or a 1k8 by not the two shown in Chris Martin's schematic.

[Phend]

Who's bidding ?

[pinkjimiphoton]

i @#$%ing love you guys 

[mozz]

Someone's bid already, don't want to drive the price too high.  Probably need a sniping program to win it. 

[Ben N]

That's a pretty cool enclosure, but not $70 worth of cool.

[mozz]

Since i like/collect transistors, here are some pictures. Still learning to use the new Motorola macro mode. Don't know if these are in order but....

2n718, Texas instruments 67 date code. Rounded edges on the top. Seems TI liked to print on the top. Probably not the style used in that pedal. Just took a pic of this because it has printing on top.

Fuzzy pic to read the codes but 2 lines of 3 digits each stamped on top 108 508. These are in a file cabinet marked 2n706, 2n708. Some have no markings at all, probably floor sweepings sold cheap. Only the ones with green sealant have stamped codes, not brown or semi clear sealant. Some marked 2n706 on the side are JAN Fairchild, same sharp cornered package. Gain on most of these is about 50.

Another, 2 liner, not so fuzzy pic. 102 498 Seems like the codes are all over the place.

Another, GI 1569? Could be military, my dad used to strip parts from circuit boards bought at a army surplus store.

Last, a 3 digit code D49, 4 legged transistor in the PNP variety, most likely RF. Date code is 66. 3n107

[PRR]

...2n2614, my book is showing the only maker is RCA, i have some here and it's the TO-1 package? They are high gain but crappy transistors, high leakage.

The '2614 was promoted in 1963 by Radiotronics Australia as a "high"-beta "low"-noise device. See last 4 pages of this 3MB PDF file:
https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Company-Publications/Radiotronics/60s/1963_02_AWV_Radiotronics_28_02.pdf