Mulltiple build reports in audio form (String ringer, rocktave divider etc)

[RaceDriver205]

lol, it was a good clip, so you get to do a big post. 

The lead sound you are using in the clip sounds so synthy it sounds like a keyboard. What are you using to get that sound?
It sounds very much like a sawtooth wave.
Oh, and Im definately building that ring mod now.

[Gripp]

I'll quote myself,

McMeat with the Simple Square Wave Shaper Made Simpler set for a sawish wave in the McMeat loop. McMeat was set to envelope follower, lowpass, with little resonance.

The McMeat loop is nice because the send is after the envelope follower, so the original dynamics is what's controlling the filter.
Tim Escobedos circuit snippets are great, I have the PWM on breadboard right now. Those that have some synthy sounding name actually sound pretty synthy in my experience. Try with neck pu tone rolled down. I just wish for a pic based Harry Bisell like envelope follower, or something along the lines of Stephen Giles EH envelope generator coupled to a more extreme filter...and to a nice vca in order to restore or distort some dynamics if wanted

[RaceDriver205]

Cool, I have to make that simple square wave.
How does this McMeat loop work? I understand it acts as an envelope filter, but how does the feedback loop work?
Cheers

[Gripp]

It's not a feedback loop actually but a regular effects loop but in an effect! If you're really new to envelope controlled filters/auto wahs, such as the McMeat, Mutron, Doctor Quack, Nurse Quacky and a bunch of others, this is essential reading: http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/ECFtech/ecftech.htm , from GEOFEX technology of series by one of my true heroes, Mark Hammer. He has a pedagogical gift above others.

On to the explanation. The signal enters the effect and hits an opamp buffer stage, after the buffer stage the signal is split and goes to three places: 1) The envelope follower, 2) one side of the blend pot and 3), the actual filter. The loop, which is send and return, sits on the line going to the filter only, it has nothing to do with the envelope follower. The loop is normalled in a clever way so when nothing is inserted in the loop, the signal goes straigth to the filter, but if you insert something in the return jack only, the line coming from the buffer gets cut off and whatever comes in through the return jack goes to the filter, but the filter is still controlled by the envelope of what is coming through the ordinary input jack. This means that you can for example have a drum loop going to the input jack, run your guitar into the return jack (put some buffer on there if you try this) and the result is that the guitar is wha'ing with the dynamics of the drumloop. Fun! It also means that if you put a fuzzbox in the loop, (both send and return) the output will be fuzzed but the filter will be controlled the natural dynamics of your clean guitar, as it was before it hit the fuzzbox. Just remember that there is a buffer before the send so some fuzzes may not like this.

[slacker]

That clip's amazing, it's nice to be reminded that there's more to effects than fuzzfaces and TS9s 

[Gripp]

Then my mission is accomplished
Jokes aside, there's some truth in that. I mean take Jimi as an example, he was always moving forward, exploring the electric side of the electric guitar with his use of effects. Its a bit sad that we just want to repeat that instead of moving forward in his spirit. On the other hand I make myself guilty of this all the time, you know "Thats the sound, I just gotta have it exactly like this. Must build exactly the boxes used on insert favorite sounding record here".
Best!
Pelle G

[Processaurus]

Too bad your rythm section dissipating, its hard finding the right people to play with, and bummer when the right people have to move away.  Well, if you do start making records, you should tell the us about it.
Thanks for the report on the Rocktave divider, I'm still trying to decide between that and attempting a clone of the more complex EH deluxe octave multiplexer, which would definately be as difficult as 20 easy fuzzes.

Tim Escobedos circuit snippets are great, I have the PWM on breadboard right now.

Heres a hint, try the schmitt trigger section of the PWM in your roctave divider, running either the fundamental square wave thats feeding the flip flop, or the octave down coming out of the flip flop, into it (pin 1).  Very synthy.  It sounds cool to have a thin mosquito sounding fundamental and a big bottomed sub octave.  It worked great on a blue box project I did recently.

"the electric side of electric guitar", I like that.

[Gripp]

Re: PWM. I've actually started doing experiments like this. My main objective was making the 2 octave down having that radical flangy pwm sweep. Tim's ez lfo don't cut it for me however, more thinking to do, probably external cv. Can anyone say S&H PWM?

Another thing is that the rocktave with the CD4017 (for different divisors including two octaves) doesn't give a square wave out, the pw is different. And yet another thing is that the RC that makes the magic with the schmitt in the pwm needs fine tuning for bass frequencies. It's a pity that those wave altering circuits that relies on RC combinations have that amplitude/frequency interaction. Again physics rears its ugly head

I'm heading in a modular way towards combining these things. Making the mother of all "make the guitar properly square interface" is a tricky thing though, I've been looking at some of Gez's suggestions.
Best!
Pelle G

[RaceDriver205]

How did you get that growling bass sound? It sounds like a divider into some kind of modulation but i cant tell.

[nelson]

Too bad your rythm section dissipating, its hard finding the right people to play with, and bummer when the right people have to move away.  Well, if you do start making records, you should tell the us about it.
Thanks for the report on the Rocktave divider, I'm still trying to decide between that and attempting a clone of the more complex EH deluxe octave multiplexer, which would definately be as difficult as 20 easy fuzzes.

Tim Escobedos circuit snippets are great, I have the PWM on breadboard right now.

Heres a hint, try the schmitt trigger section of the PWM in your roctave divider, running either the fundamental square wave thats feeding the flip flop, or the octave down coming out of the flip flop, into it (pin 1).  Very synthy.  It sounds cool to have a thin mosquito sounding fundamental and a big bottomed sub octave.  It worked great on a blue box project I did recently.

"the electric side of electric guitar", I like that.

I am getting someone I know to give me board pictures of the DOM.

I will post them when I get them.

[Processaurus]

I am getting someone I know to give me board pictures of the DOM.

I will post them when I get them.

Thats hot! 

[Gripp]

The growling bass sound at "part 2" (beginning with a drum break) is indeed divider into modulation. It's the rocktave set to two octaves down with the treble maxed into the ARP Quadra phaser. This phaser is a gem. Here it was run in mono (difference output) with a lot of feedback and tuned to sweep those vowelly frequencies.

Yep, the DOM is very interesting. I've only tried the octave multiplexer (non deluxe) briefly and wasn't that impressed. But the deluxe seem to be a different beast.

[Floyd Pepper]

Looking at the photos of the Sting Ringer here http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=35398.0 I see 3 IC's with their part number scraped off? 

The layout looks very close to the photos but the layout also has an NE5532.  The schematic has the ICs as TL071.  The layout has the IC's as TL074.  The schematic shows the NE5532. 

Is the NE5532 wired off the board on the String Ringer?  I'm trying to make sure I understand it before I jump in and attempt a build.

[Gripp]

The NE5532 is integrated on Markusw's PCB. He added that to the original schematic and pcb for a volume control opamp gain stage.One more knob...

[markusw]

Hey Pelle,

really cool clip!!!!

The schematic has the ICs as TL071.  The layout has the IC's as TL074. 

The TL071 labelling in the schemo is derived from LTSpice. It doesn't have a TL074. Forgot to change it in the schemo. But I suppose from the layout it's clear. Re the NE5532: as Pelle already mentioned.

Good luck with your build Floyd 

Regards,

Markus

[RaceDriver205]

Where would I find this ARP Quadra Phaser?

[Doug_H]

That's a fantastic clip!! You really put a lot of work into that and it shows! Very imaginative!

I've thought of doing clips demoing a number of different builds but in my case it would just be a bunch of boring distortions and fuzzes... 

That was really cool.

Doug

[Gripp]

Thanks guys!
Markusw, thanks again for the work on the string ringer.
Actually, the dogma rules I applied when doing the clip really helped to make the clip more or less write itself. The rules were just: Only use guitar. Only use DIY effects and of the more uncommon kind (not obeyed 100%). Try to use guitar and effects in a musical way.
And Doug, I'm thinking of doing a Foxx Tone Machine in parallell to all Circuit Snippets experiments. Can't have enough of boring distortion options

RaceDriver205, have a look here: http://home.debitel.net/user/jhaible/additional_schemos.html , there's also the original manual, service manual and schematics out there somewhere, can't remember where.
It's kind of a big build and it isn't really adapted for guitar so there will be decisions one have to make (bypass, buffering etc). The layout needs some cleanup and I think there was an error in there too. Having said that, go a head and build one, it sure sounds good.
Best!
Pelle G

[RaceDriver205]

lol, The word 'error' is not good. Ill stick with my other phase shifters. 

[Floyd Pepper]

The TL071 labelling in the schemo is derived from LTSpice. It doesn't have a TL074. Forgot to change it in the schemo. But I suppose from the layout it's clear.

I can't understand you fully.  Does it have an TL071 or TL074?

I plan on building a Sting Ringer when I get my McMeat finished but I've just started looking at analogue synths too http://www.musicfromouterspace.com/analogsynth/SOUNDLABMINISYNTH/soundlab.html#BUYBOARDS

The Music From Outer Space site has layouts for various synth modules and other noise making devices. 

If only there was more hours in a day.