Tools, Tones and Toys for Guitarists
Here’s Jimi’s (second) take on the Harmonic Percolator circuit. Like the original, Jimi’s circuit uses germanium and silicon transistors, but with much more attainable components. Here’s a link to his schematic, and be sure to read his notes on changing transistors. The 47µ cap he references is located between the 2 transistors directly in the … Read more
Here’s another circuit from Xotic. Simple JFET boost with an output buffer borrowed from the Tube Screamer. Originals have 2SP1815 transistors with BCE pinout, but I’ve laid this out for the more common 2N5088 with CBE pinout. The originals also have the Bright and Fat switches internally as DIP switches. Having these externally should be … Read more
I got to see the Rolling Stones a couple days ago and when they kicked into (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction as their second encore, I realized I hadn’t laid out the effect responsible for one of the greatest songs of all time. The FZ-1 used 2, AA batteries to run off 3v, and the … Read more
Here’s a great sounding Fuzz Face variant from FSB forum member Hozone (Davide Gironi). If you’re feeling adventurous, you might be able to fit it in a 1590a. He originally used a 2N5088 for Q1 and a BC547 for Q2, but I would socket and experiment with what you have on hand. Here’s what he … Read more
Got a request for the RC. The AC is just a few value changes, so I drew them up to be built on the same board. Seems like a Tube Screamer with a 2-band EQ section to me.
Here’s a pretty unique fuzz from Mid-Fi. Built around a dual opamp, the Demo Tape Fuzz recreates the sound of a guitar being played directly into an old 4-track cassette deck. It features a 2-band EQ in addition to the Volume and Trim (gain) controls. I’ve laid it out for board mounted right angle PCB … Read more
The Fuzzolo is one of the newer Zvex designs in a 1590a box. It’s a stripped down Woolly Mammoth with a SHO added to the end, so it’s got a huge fuzz sound. In production versions, there’s a moveable jumper internally to go between active and passive pickups. You could use a SPDT switch to … Read more
Here’s another quicky for your weekend. This is based on Tim Escobedo’s LoFoMoFo, but tweaked for more bass frequencies. This circuit was actually my first build and it sounds great. Although, I made the n00b mistake of using a 10n cap on the input instead of the 100n because I misread the capacitor code. So … Read more
The Crowther Prunes & Custard is a unique distortion box good for both guitar and bass. It’s a two-stage circuit, built around a TL072 dual-opamp. The first stage acts as a preamp, and the second stage generates the distortion, with harmonic overtones. I’ve laid this out for on board pots (long leg PCB-mount pots will … Read more
The Devi Ever Torn’s Peaker is a versatile dirt box, ranging from smooth and crunchy at low gain settings, to thick distortion/fuzz tones as the texture control is increased. The Torn’s Peaker is very close to a couple other Devi circuits (Aenima, US, and Never Drive) and it only takes a few modifications to get … Read more