Tube boost + overdrive running off a 9 volt battery

[brett25]

thanks tony, thats very encouraging to hear since im getting a good tone through this thing along with the hum. I willl try with a 12VDC regulated power suply and if that doesnt do it, will use a 7812 regulator. thanks for your help

[brett25]

the humming was the power supply, you must get a regulated power supply i would now advise others. there is absolutely no noise now and the sound is great.

[esdiezy28]

Most welcome! And congrats on your success!

[nexekho]

I recently built a lo-fi Arduino DSP.  It uses a PWM square wave to approximate an analogue output. (which it doesn't have) Obviously this needs some degree of filtering to not destroy whatever you plug it into and soften the harsh digital tone.  I find the Valvecaster (stock as in first page wiring diagram) 's tone dial to be perfect for this.  At about 50% you get a harsh digital tone (which is great for some things) and then as you roll it around to 90% you get something about right and beyond that it's so dampened it sounds like lo-fi analogue.  If I just lifted the entire back end of the schematic, tone dial and volume dial, and put it after the Arduino, would produce the same filtering?  I realise it's just a normal low-pass, but there's probably other factors involved I don't know about or understand.  Also, if I only find the ~50% least trebly side useful, would swapping the 100k tone pot out for a 47k (can't get 50 easily here) map that range to the whole pot?

Thanks!

[BarnyardBill]

good to see people still reading the thread.  Unfortunately, I haven't been inspired to make my valvecaster yet.  I am thinking about getting some veroboard and doing Renegadrian's layout very soon.  Recently moved apartments and had a chance to re organize all my parts, so it should be a little more orderly this go 'round.  Thanks eveyone.  ALso, does anyone sell homemade boxes on Ebay?  I was wondering what the 'normal price' for tube and tubeless pedals would be with a blank aluminum case?  I sold one fuzz for around 50USD and the customer was suprisingly happy with it.  Just a thought, or if you could point me to a thread about it.  Thanks.

-Bill

[runmikeyrun]

i sold a twincaster on ebay for $50.  It wasnt worth my time after the cost of parts.  I only sold it because I wasn't using it.

[juansolo]

2nd Boobtube. We're now sending 40v to the plates (still 12v to the heaters and 15v to the Klon buffer on the output). It's given it a noticable and worthwhile increase in headroom and taughtness from 23v. Well worth it. As was snagging a RCA 12AU7A cleartop. It's the closest tube we've found so far to the Brimar 12BH7 in mine.

[tasos]

The perfboard layout is really nice!
Good job!

[thereminator]

I've found on web similiar project:
http://kocickamia.rajce.idnes.cz/Tiny_Blue/# 

[iccaros]

I've found on web similiar project:
http://kocickamia.rajce.idnes.cz/Tiny_Blue/#  

That looks like a full voltage device, not a starved plate.. So its not really the same..

Edit

Sorry, at 30volts, your right, but I would not put the transformer in the case..

[Tacoboy]

NEVER put a transformer in a stompbox! Very dangerous, especialliy on stage!

[thereminator]

Why?

[iccaros]

if something goes wrong you can have 120v/240v at 15 amps at your feet. Its is never recommended that home builders, more so that most DIY's know little about electronics, interface with wall power directly.
Its safer to use a wall wart.

you know your own skill level, so do what you want, but I like to separate my wall power from something drunk fans with beer in hand can spill all over me and my stuff.

[thereminator]

Uh...
Safety is most important. I agree. 

[jimmybjj]

Valvecaster variant (Boob Tube)

This project  came out pretty good, but next time i will locate the jacks closer to the switch. Still don't have a proper tube (anyone know a decent source for 12bh7's?) On board charge pump upto 35v with a 12v supply

[Renegadrian]

why did you mount the switch that high?! that's the main problem I believe...There's lots of room if you put the switch right noxt to the lower side of the enclosure...you wasted a lot of room that way!!!

[jimmybjj]

true. I used my standard drilling template, i also don't like the aesthetics of the switch being that low. I will probably move the switch down a little on my next one instead of moving the jacks. Thanks for the observation

[S-tomas]

Hello,
I am going to build dual valvecaster with TL071. Here are some drawings of my next project could you please check it? I need know orientation of pots there are some links I used:

http://www.jer00n.nl/2010/07/28/clean-boost-for-guitar-or-bass/                                                TL071 Preamp
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=63479.msg544289#msg544289           Tonestack

full schematic,PCB,Wiring are here:
I drew pots but some of them are incorrectly connected so let me know about that.

http://www.mediafire.com/?9dgpy9uvc3ybqaj

Is there any chance that it will work?
Thanks a lot.  //greetings from Slovakia//

[S-tomas]

Ok I found one mistake it was on PCB the end of power supply that last condenser
There is it fixed and it contains Adobe Illustrator file too.
http://www.mediafire.com/?85xqxm4h5v7584l
Is there somebody who can tell me what is orientation of pots? And how to find out that, when i will do something like that in future?

I am waiting for response I will appreciate it.

[seedlings]

Howdy friends.  I'm benching this circuit with an 18.5V notebook PSU and a 12AX7 (sounds better to me than the 12AU7), with .022uF caps.  R2 of 220K up to 1M sounds about the same.  Is V1B grid-leak biased?  I played in the wee lower left-hand corner of the characteristics chart and think a 5600R cathode resistor would just about center bias all .084mA.  Then can use Ck for a mid+treble boost.

Anyone try Ck Rk for V1b instead of ground?  I've only read about 100 pages off and on for the last few days, so I may have missed this.

Thx for a cool site!
CHAD