CryBaby Acting Like A Volume Pedal? Here's One Reason Why

[Paul Marossy]

I've been doing some guitar pedal repair work for the local Guitar Center. One thing they recently gave me to fix was a brand new Dunlop CryBaby that was acting like a volume pedal. My first thought as the guy was handing it to me is that either the 4.7uF cap was bad or it was the inductor.

I first tried replacing the 4.7uF cap, but it was still acting the same way. Then I noticed that the red Fasel inductor was kind of leaning over. I desoldered it to check it for continuity and it was fine. What I couldn't easily see was that the track on the PCB to one leg on the inductor was broken. Once I figured that out, it was working like it should be again.

Just thought I'd post this as a wah pedal acting like a volume pedal isn't necessarily always due to a bad cap. Maybe in the older wah pedals that are 30 years old, but in newer ones, it could be something to do with the inductor.

[R.G.]

Yep. Anything that opens the resonant path through the inductor will do that.

[richon]

and it was brand new??


excellent revision Dunlop!!!

[DougH]

You should have added a switch between the two parts of the broken trace. Then you would have a "wah/volume" pedal. You could charge a lot of money for that mod. 

[Paul Marossy]

Yep. Anything that opens the resonant path through the inductor will do that.

Yes, I have discovered this. The funny thing is that the first Maestro Boomerang that I bought had a bad inductor in it. But it didn't act like a volume pedal, it just didn't really change the sound much at all, and there was really no volume pedal effect either. Perhaps that is because it's a wah/volume pedal? It is a little different circuitwise than the schematic shown at GEO. 

and it was brand new??


excellent revision Dunlop!!!

Yes, brand new. It still had all the protective plastic on it and everything. I think it must have gotten damaged at the factory. I guess they don't test them before they send them out. That would cost them too much in labor.  

You should have added a switch between the two parts of the broken trace. Then you would have a "wah/volume" pedal. You could charge a lot of money for that mod.  

Yes, but they only pay me to fix these things, not mod them.  

[R.G.]

You should have added a switch between the two parts of the broken trace. Then you would have a "wah/volume" pedal. You could charge a lot of money for that mod. 

Yeah. The old Maestro Boomerang had exactly such a switch.

[Paul Marossy]

You should have added a switch between the two parts of the broken trace. Then you would have a "wah/volume" pedal. You could charge a lot of money for that mod. 

Yeah. The old Maestro Boomerang had exactly such a switch.

Yes, but it was a little more involved than just simply adding a switch. If you compare schematics, you'll see the differences.

[R.G.]

You should have added a switch between the two parts of the broken trace. Then you would have a "wah/volume" pedal. You could charge a lot of money for that mod. 

Yeah. The old Maestro Boomerang had exactly such a switch.

Yes, but it was a little more involved than just simply adding a switch. If you compare schematics, you'll see the differences.

Yep. I have seen them, and compared. The rest of the stuff was to cope with the differences that the switch caused and make it "polite" to the user.

[Paul Marossy]

I see, that makes sense. But a bad inductor in the BG-2 Boomerang circuit has much different symptoms than in the typical CryBaby circuit. I've experienced both firsthand. The CryBaby turns into a volume pedal and the BG-2 doesn't, it just slightly changes the sound depending on the position of the 25K pot. I am just wondering why that is. I assume it's due to the stuff done to make it "polite"?

A few years ago I did some work on a project for the guy who says he designed the BG-2 for Maestro-Gibson (Richard Mintz). Ever hear of him?

[R.G.]

A few years ago I did some work on a project for the guy who says he designed the BG-2 for Maestro-Gibson (Richard Mintz). Ever hear of him?

No, I've never run into that name.

[Paul Marossy]

He was the owner of All-Test Devices Corporation in New York. He says that he was the designer and manufacturer of many of the Maestro products in the late 1960's and the 1970's. He apparently still has the molds for the Boomerang enclosure. He was going to build some re-issue Boomerangs, but I don't know if he dropped the idea or not.

He also manufactured a preamp (I believe under a different company name) that was made for piezo transducers which matched impedance and provided some gain.

Anyway, back in 2008 I worked on a volume pedal project for him called the "Power Volume", which he gave Eric Clapton's guitar tech for Clapton to try out. I don't know if he ever got it or if he ever tried it out.