Smash Drive Parts

[Pho]

Hey all, I'm about to build my first stompbox and having no previous electronics knowledge I want to check that I at least have the right parts to start with .
I've decided to build the Smash Drive first, I would of built the Obsidian but I can't find one of the parts (the 2N5089), if anyone knows where I can pick these up in the UK let me know.

Here is the schmatic for the Smash Drive- http://www.diystompboxes.com/cgi-bin/webbbs_scripts/webbbs_config.pl?read=329

I've attempted () to create a list of parts needed, using Arons diagram about what parts are what, can someone check it over and let me know if I've missed anything etc.


LM386

Resistors:
100ohm
33k
25k mid
250k Treble

Capacitors
5n (.005UF) Film
470pF
0.22uF Film
0.22uF Film

Electrolytic Capacitors
+47uF
+10uF

Potometers
5k Drive
1m Bass
25k Mid
250k Treble

Others:
Output jack
Input Jack


Thanks

[unrhythmic]

Pho,

I don't see any power input support...

Like a battery clip and/or a power jack.

Or knobs...

Or a bypass switch...

Or a box...

Or a board to put it on...

THT

Un

[petemoore]

I burned up a 386 in an early build, a Smash Drive.
 My first Opamp Build. Right after that I built another Smash Drive with a socket for the opamp, this one works !!!
 Gotta use sockets...

[Gringo]

I've decided to build the Smash Drive first, I would of built the Obsidian but I can't find one of the parts (the 2N5089), if anyone knows where I can pick these up in the UK let me know.

You could sub it with BC549's or try the mosfet version (BS250's, o the older with 2n7000's).

Good Luck.

[Pho]

Pho,

I don't see any power input support...

Like a battery clip and/or a power jack.

Or knobs...

Or a bypass switch...

Or a box...

Or a board to put it on...

THT

Un

Ahh missed those.

Battery clip goes to pin5, as for knobs arn't they the potentiometers which I listed? Also theres a 500k volume pot, and a 500k resistor? I can't quite work out that part of the diagram (which I swear wasn't there last night). The bypas switch goes to pin 7 doesn't it?

Thanks for pointing those out, other than these did I pretty much get the list right?

[Pho]

I've decided to build the Smash Drive first, I would of built the Obsidian but I can't find one of the parts (the 2N5089), if anyone knows where I can pick these up in the UK let me know.

You could sub it with BC549's or try the mosfet version (BS250's, o the older with 2n7000's).

Good Luck.

Thanks I'll have a check through the catalogue later to see if I can find them.

[Lupo]

hi,
first of all I recommend building the smash drive first, I think the obsidian is too hard for an beginner. second the bypass switch does NOT go to pin 7 and the battery (+) goes to pin 6. please check this diagramm for battery hookup and bypass switching:
http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/v2/diagrams/switch_lo_dpdt_std.gif
i also recommend reading all the beginner's instructions on the diy sites. I personally like the articles on generalguitargadgets, but surely you have to read this:
http://www.diystompboxes.com/cnews/FAQ.html

and of course you can build it without bypass switching first just to see if it works...

lupo

[Lupo]

ah, i just saw your question about the 500k resistor at the volume pot. I checked the schematic I used when I built it, and there isn't a volume control (and no 500k res.): terminal two of the treble pot goes straight to the output jack. as I am also an beginner I can't tell you what the 500k resistor could possibly be for. it's confusing because the schematic also says that terminal 2 of the treble pot goes to volume pot.
and I read your list again: there are no 25k and 250k resistors in the schematic, just the pots.
good luck...
lupo

[Ansil]

i belive that the orignal scheme was to put that in there  for th eno eq or simple eq as a load resistor.  but i havent seen the scheme in some time

[GuitarLord5000]

Here's what I see in the schem I have:
Chips:
1- LM386 Audio Chip
Caps:
1- .005 uf film cap (I used a .01 uf film cap for mine...worked great!)
1- 10 uf electrolytic cap
1- 47 uf electrolytic
1- 470 pf treble cap (works out to .00047 uf, I think.)
2- .022 uf caps
Pots:
1- 5k Drive
1- 250k Treble
1- 1M Bass
1- 25k Mid
Resistors:
1- 100 ohm
1- 33k
Other:
1- 1/4 inch mono jack
1- 1/4 inch stereo jack
Perfboard or PCB
DPDT or 3PDT stomp switch (Eventually.  Make sure the circuit works before you worry about that.)
Enclosure (Worry about that after making sure the circuit works also.)


I believe that's about everything.  Except for the possibility of a Millenium Bypass in the event that you get a DPDT instead of a 3PDT.  But thats too far in the future to worry about.  
As a side note, the Smash Drive I built didn't have the tone stack in it.  It had a terrific sound without it, and the parts are lessened by quite a bit
by its removal.  Its great if you want to put it in.  It'd probably make the smash drive more versatile for a few things.  I didnt see the need for it.  I also hardwired a 1k resistor between pins 1 and 5, instead of the 5k gain pot.  I didnt see the need to turn the distortion down.  :twisted:

[Pho]

hi,
first of all I recommend building the smash drive first, I think the obsidian is too hard for an beginner. second the bypass switch does NOT go to pin 7 and the battery (+) goes to pin 6. please check this diagramm for battery hookup and bypass switching:
http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/v2/diagrams/switch_lo_dpdt_std.gif
i also recommend reading all the beginner's instructions on the diy sites. I personally like the articles on generalguitargadgets, but surely you have to read this:
http://www.diystompboxes.com/cnews/FAQ.html

and of course you can build it without bypass switching first just to see if it works...

lupo

Oh right, thanks for the link I'll check that out later. I thought the smash drive looked a little easier than the others as you say, I do have someone I can ask if all else fails mind and I get extremely stuck .

ah, i just saw your question about the 500k resistor at the volume pot. I checked the schematic I used when I built it, and there isn't a volume control (and no 500k res.): terminal two of the treble pot goes straight to the output jack. as I am also an beginner I can't tell you what the 500k resistor could possibly be for. it's confusing because the schematic also says that terminal 2 of the treble pot goes to volume pot.
and I read your list again: there are no 25k and 250k resistors in the schematic, just the pots.
good luck...
lupo

Yea I think this is revision B, the original schem i had from months back was rev a. I forgot to edit my post here but I actually noted that down about the resistors, still, would of been better buying extra than too little I suppose.

[GuitarLord5000]

Hmmm.  I dont see a volume pot on my schem!  I used a 100k for volume on mine.  Must have just used that value by default.  Worked fine.  I also recommend the Big Daddy at runoffgroove.com for a simple beginner distortion project.  It's very similar to the smashdrive, but with a JFET gain stage.  Very Nice!

[Pho]

Here's what I see in the schem I have:
Chips:
1- LM386 Audio Chip
Caps:
1- .005 uf film cap (I used a .01 uf film cap for mine...worked great!)
1- 10 uf electrolytic cap
1- 47 uf electrolytic
1- 470 pf treble cap (works out to .00047 uf, I think.)
2- .022 uf caps
Pots:
1- 5k Drive
1- 250k Treble
1- 1M Bass
1- 25k Mid
Resistors:
1- 100 ohm
1- 33k
Other:
1- 1/4 inch mono jack
1- 1/4 inch stereo jack
Perfboard or PCB
DPDT or 3PDT stomp switch (Eventually.  Make sure the circuit works before you worry about that.)
Enclosure (Worry about that after making sure the circuit works also.)


I believe that's about everything.  Except for the possibility of a Millenium Bypass in the event that you get a DPDT instead of a 3PDT.  But thats too far in the future to worry about.  
As a side note, the Smash Drive I built didn't have the tone stack in it.  It had a terrific sound without it, and the parts are lessened by quite a bit
by its removal.  Its great if you want to put it in.  It'd probably make the smash drive more versatile for a few things.  I didnt see the need for it.  I also hardwired a 1k resistor between pins 1 and 5, instead of the 5k gain pot.  I didnt see the need to turn the distortion down.  :twisted:

Thanks for the list, I can be sure now when ordering that I have the right ones. I've heard a couple of sound files from this and it does sound good as you say.

I think I will put a distortion pot in there, I like to turn it down sometimes, plus I may be able to get a happy balance with my amps distortion and see what it ends up like. .

Oh and one more thing, when I was looking around http://www.maplin.co.uk for ordering the things I noticed that there are several different types of resistors / capacitors etc, and as some of the ones on the list don't state which one to use, which do I choose? By that I mean there are Ceramic, Mylar, Tantalum and several other capacitors, I know some are of higher quality etc, the same goes for pots, some are as much as £3 and some are only £1, does it really matter that much which ones you chose?

Thanks.

[Pho]

Hmmm.  I dont see a volume pot on my schem!  I used a 100k for volume on mine.  Must have just used that value by default.  Worked fine.  I also recommend the Big Daddy at runoffgroove.com for a simple beginner distortion project.  It's very similar to the smashdrive, but with a JFET gain stage.  Very Nice!

Cool I'll check that one out later on, theres just so many to choose from it gets hard

[GuitarLord5000]

I think I will put a distortion pot in there, I like to turn it down sometimes, plus I may be able to get a happy balance with my amps distortion and see what it ends up like. .

The cool thing about the Smash Drive is how well it responds to the guitar's volume knob and just the guitar in general.  Thats the real reason I left out the drive knob.  If I want to turn down my distortion, I just lower my guitar's volume knob a bit.  It works really well, and is especially good for gigging/practicing, etc.  It's MUCH easier to level out distortion that way than constantly going to the effect box to "dial it in".  But that's just my humble opinion.  

As for the resistors.  1/4 watt 5% tolerance carbon resistors are the most commonly used (s'far as I know).  If the last color band on a resistor is gold, then it's 5% tolerance.  Many people also swear by metal film resistors in distortion effects (also 5% tolerance I believe).  Personally, I'd just go for whatever is easiest to find.  Carbon resistors are easily found at Radio Shack and other electronic supply stores.

As for the capacitors, you can pretty much use any of the correct value.  But for the Smash Drive, this was my setup.
Polyester Metal Film:
.005 (or .01 if you like it better)
470 pf.  I didnt actually use this cap, but it would be a film cap if I did.
.022 uf.  You can also use Ceramic Disk capacitors in place of any of these Polyester film caps.  Ceramic Disks tend to be cheaper in most places and I find them to be quite nice in distortion effects.  Who says you get what you pay for.  

Electrolytics:
10 uf
47 uf.  Be aware that for electrolytic caps, it DOES matter how you orient them in your circuit.  Look at the schematic for the positive (+) side and orient your circuit accordingly.  Electrolytics for stompboxes should be no less than 16 volts in most cases.  I normally use 50 volt electro's because they are available at my local Radio Shack.  I wouldn't go too much higher than that because larger volt caps tend to be larger in size.  I like small layouts.  I'm not sure if this is what you needed, but I hope it helps.

[Pho]

I think I will put a distortion pot in there, I like to turn it down sometimes, plus I may be able to get a happy balance with my amps distortion and see what it ends up like. .

The cool thing about the Smash Drive is how well it responds to the guitar's volume knob and just the guitar in general.  Thats the real reason I left out the drive knob.  If I want to turn down my distortion, I just lower my guitar's volume knob a bit.  It works really well, and is especially good for gigging/practicing, etc.  It's MUCH easier to level out distortion that way than constantly going to the effect box to "dial it in".  But that's just my humble opinion.  

Yea I suppose you're right, though I'll probably mount it on my desk for easy access right next to my amp, also known as lazy .

As for the resistors.  1/4 watt 5% tolerance carbon resistors are the most commonly used (s'far as I know).  If the last color band on a resistor is gold, then it's 5% tolerance.  Many people also swear by metal film resistors in distortion effects (also 5% tolerance I believe).  Personally, I'd just go for whatever is easiest to find.  Carbon resistors are easily found at Radio Shack and other electronic supply stores.

As for the capacitors, you can pretty much use any of the correct value.  But for the Smash Drive, this was my setup.
Polyester Metal Film:
.005 (or .01 if you like it better)
470 pf.  I didnt actually use this cap, but it would be a film cap if I did.
.022 uf.  You can also use Ceramic Disk capacitors in place of any of these Polyester film caps.  Ceramic Disks tend to be cheaper in most places and I find them to be quite nice in distortion effects.  Who says you get what you pay for.  

Thanks for that, most of the schematics don't mention this (probably thinking you know it), I just didn't want to get the wrong parts and be put off .

Electrolytics:
10 uf
47 uf.  Be aware that for electrolytic caps, it DOES matter how you orient them in your circuit.  Look at the schematic for the positive (+) side and orient your circuit accordingly.  Electrolytics for stompboxes should be no less than 16 volts in most cases.  I normally use 50 volt electro's because they are available at my local Radio Shack.  I wouldn't go too much higher than that because larger volt caps tend to be larger in size.  I like small layouts.  I'm not sure if this is what you needed, but I hope it helps.

Oh right, at this rate it'll be a miricale if I even get a sound out of my first attempt , hopefully not the sound of the audiochip blowing up on my Marshall amp for the fourth time (using a different sound chip now, as apparently they konw the one in it was a bit dodgy), just leaving me with a nice little hum .

[GuitarLord5000]

I wouldnt worry too much about blowing chips on your amp by configuring your Smash Drive parts wrong.  I'm sure its possible, but I havent had any problems blowing up anything on my amp, and I can assure you, I ALWAYS have at least one component laid wrong.  Usually it's more like 4 or 5!  Just pay close attention to how you lay out your components and it'll be just fine.

[aron]

Good Luck on your Smash Drive. Send us pics when you are done!  

One tip, socket the input cap because .005uF might need to be .01uF depending on your equipment.

[Pho]

I wouldnt worry too much about blowing chips on your amp by configuring your Smash Drive parts wrong.  I'm sure its possible, but I havent had any problems blowing up anything on my amp, and I can assure you, I ALWAYS have at least one component laid wrong.  Usually it's more like 4 or 5!  Just pay close attention to how you lay out your components and it'll be just fine.

Hehe, I hope it doesn't anyway, it was from things in the audio in socket (not guitar in) port that caused it to go each time anyway .

[Pho]

Good Luck on your Smash Drive. Send us pics when you are done!  

One tip, socket the input cap because .005uF might need to be .01uF depending on your equipment.

I will do, and a few sound clips.

Forgive me for being stupid () but what do you mean by socketing it?