The Skull Tone:booster and p.u. simulator

[sean k]

 I got the schematic for the single transistor here somewhere.Its a 2N5089 with a coupla interesting things going on between collector and base.Theres two diodes in parallel then a 100 nano cap and also two resistors in series with a small cap to ground between them.I'm sorry I can't remember where it came from and my hats off to the man what d-zined it.This then goes into a 10k primary half of an output transormer (42M019)with a switch for single coil or humbucker,which is single from centre tap and humbucker from far end,then into a 25k pot and a coupla pico range caps to ground.I reckon it should be a really nice way to set guitar output and tone in one little box.Hats off to the p.u. simulator designer as well.I'm just really glad were all better at different things.

[seanm]

Love the box design. Very nice work.

[Mark Hammer]

So, uh, that's like, for folkies, right? :wink: You need a decal on the side that reads "Takamine goes here"

[sean k]

Its kinda described as a pickup simulator but I think its better viewed as a tone control where your setting the resonance peak on the output I suppose like a wah as a tone control and because of the booster it should work really well right off the guitar or after a floor volume control on the end of a fx chain.Truthfully though I've just finished soldering the whole thing together and haven't tried the tone thingy at all but the booster,I have tried out,and its choice.I'll post a pic of the insides,its a tight squeeze, and the schematic as soon as I bolt the PCB to the back plate and record some mp3's.

[amz-fx]

For anyone who is interested...  the AMZ Pickup Simulator article is at:

http://www.muzique.com/lab/pickups.htm

-Jack

[sean k]

Hey thanks for that Jack!thanks for having it out there and also thanks to Joe Davisson for the booster which is his easyvibe.
http://www.diystompboxes.com/analogalchemy/pedals/easydrive.html
both of these together make a fine pedal though I shouldah put a stomp switch in to change placement from P.U.sim > easyvibe  to easyvibe > P.U.sim. Its kinda really basic but it does its job really well.An orange squeezer behind the easyvibe just behind it might make it into an all round tone setter for driving ...everything.

[sean k]

And this is what it sounds like
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/1/indigomono_music.htm
 excuse the bad playin' but I haven't done much for a while so I'm pretty rusty.Its just the volume knob on the guitar going up and down controlling the the amount of push into the easyvibe.

[spudulike]

Thats a few threads now that you called it an "Easyvibe". Its either an "Easydrive" or you have serious LDR problems.  :wink:  

[sean k]

Oops,my apologies,How could I be so dyslexic?,must have been the excitement at the beginning or my haste that made that mistake occur.Thanks Spudulike,I'll try to be more onto it in the future.
 Makes sense too because the mind numbing distirtion the "easydrive" creates,which I wholeheartedly enjoy,isn't adequately described with easyvibe at all.

[spudulike]

:wink:

[Processaurus]

Yeah!  In case anyone  didn't get the background on the skull knob, this topic, http://diystompboxes.com/sboxforum/viewtopic.php?t=33586&highlight=enclosure
explains it.  Excellent design work, Sean.

Its awsome as is, I wonder how it would look on some future box with your knobs to chemically etch it a little to pit it out and have a texture like the knob.  I've seen a guys box where he drew on the diecast box with a crayon or sharpie and then dipped it in diluted PCB etching acid, and it looked really cool, the drawn stuff was clean and flat, and the etched part was recessed and textured nicely.  Might be cool to experiment on a scrap piece of aluminum.

Oh yeah, it looks like you used a metal DC jack- did you have a good way to isolate it from the chassis?

[sean k]

Was it this one


 I used sharpies to do the above but your saying crayon has given me ideas.Thing is the pens to illustrate have to be water based for a laquer clearcoat but its hard to find one that will adhere.Under laquer sharpies run.I was going to get these boxes copper coated,and then etch them, but I was in a hurry to get them sold so just went for the drawings.I bought and used other pens for this...


 but the ink ran.Next lot I'll get coppered then etch,fill in some of the etch with rubbed paint or coloured pencil then fine black pens..then laquer.

 and the jacks are metal and aren't isolated but are used as the earths.Its an old Fred Nachbaur ,R.I.P.,trick to have earths only at the inputs and outputs.Inputs because they are the highest impedance and outputs..don't know why but it works.It may not work if the ins and outs are together,haven't tried it,but it certainly works with them farrish apart.

[Processaurus]

Found the guy who did the etched boxes, Eric Hensel, here's his page,
http://users.abac.com/ehensel/stompbox/pedals/pedals.htm

Says he painted  his art with laquer, then etched the boxes, then polished them up.

That Sharpied Dr Q is nice, bad news about laquer making the ink run, I've had similar problems with clearcoats and Testors model paint on hand painted pedals.  Aarrggh.

[sean k]

Thanks Bro,I like those,they're kinda rough but it works really well,I tried doing little badges ages ago with pure aluminium and ferro chloride and it is fun to watch it go off,but like he says,the zinc boxes aren't anywhere near as fast etching or exciting to watch.I wonder what he used to get the laquer on there.Whether he masked and sprayed or used the chinese method with a brush,which I don't know anything about other than they use some form of laquer with a brush.Yeah I really did like those.The way he's used the crudeness to good effect is quite brilliant.I don't mean crudeness in its normal form ,I'm not calling the guy crude, but its like how hes used an unrefined method in a refined way.Like blowing holes in thin metal with a gas set.Really crude but it can really look good!
 Yes we have to keep experimenting with cheap stuff readily available 'cause somewhere in there lies a mixture of possibles to create something completely unique.