Installation order

[comfortably_numb]

Do you pros wire up your jacks/switches/etc... before putting them in the enclosure, or do you fasten them all down and then wire them up?  I have found that they are far easier to solder while fastened and still, but the wires are harder to manage.  Any tips?

[choklitlove]

i'm not the pro you asked for...

but this is what i do:  first i tin the lugs of each jack, switch, etc.  then i cut each wire to length, tinning then soldering each to whatever.  i usually do all of that one wire at a time.  the lugs that will have more than one wire connected to them: i twist the wires together at the end, tin then solder.  i think that's it...

pretty standard operation though.  i'm curious to see how others do it.


oh yeah!  i have everything installed when i do this.

[LyleCaldwell]

Depends on the pedal and what's involved. 


On the Z2s I was using a 1590B, and it can be tricky to solder things inside.  I got the PCB this far outside the box:



Then I attached the audio jacks, power jack, and switch to the box and ran leads from them.  Then I attached the leads to the floating PCB and then secured the PCB in place:



On the Triad I connect the pots to the PCB outside the enclosure, then run leads from the LEDs, then put the board in place, solder the LED leads to the board, then run wires from the switches to the PCB.  You can see why: