Tools, Tones and Toys for Guitarists
There is an old layout for this one in the library that looks like trash so I did a new one from scratch. The Depth control was pretty much useless (factory/design error?) so I rewired it for this layout. Also there was some complaints about the feel and taper for some of the controls. See … Read more
Per request. Another Meathead variant with some minor tweaks compared to the original. But it is added to the library for science (and another excuse to build another one knob fuzz😏).
Per request. Pretty close to a 3-knob Park Sound fuzz with some minor value changes. The additional “Gain” control like a second volume control? Schematic is avaiable HERE.
Something like this have probably been done before… Yes, Fuzzdog added a 3-band Marshall style tonestack to a Rat a while ago. Oh, and there is Idiotbox Blowerbox, a Rat tuned for bass with less gain with a James tonestack…. This one is quite similar to the latter but has more gain on tap and … Read more
I only came across the Hofner Preamp quite recently, despite seeing some other builders making point-to-point style germanium preamps based on this circuit – the prime example being the R2R Electric preamp. There’s a good write up here, but in summary: Back in the day before guitar amps were affordable, and TV was a thing, … Read more
Layout based on the old version from the 70s. Note that this one is really picky about op amp selection so be prepared for some socketing…
I admit that I did a layout for this soleily based on the name…😏 This is one those really cheap 80s distortions that sounds harsh, compressed and trebly. But it might be worth modding towards something decent? The clippers can be subbed for LEDs for some headroom, both 47pF caps can be inreased to shave … Read more
The El Diablo… A Dave Main creation, part Sola Sound MK1.5 Tone Bender / part Vox Tone Bender – hence the MK1.75 moniker. And why El Diablo? apart from the colour, this thing sounds mean as hell. They appeared to use a couple of different transistors for Q2, but the OC75 remains up front – … Read more
Another guest appearance by Sebastian who generously shares his interesting designs! Here is a snippet of his description for it: …hybrid of the F’Deck (series 3) and the Broughton high-pass filters. I wanted the steeper slope of the F’Deck (24db/octave below 35Hz) with the gain boost of the Broughton—so, here it is! … Read more
I dug out my breadboard to clear some thoughts and played around a bit. Well, I ended up with one of my top 3 fuzz circuits, Roland Double Beat. It is perfect as is, just added some minor filtering here and there. But the stock Double Beat rotary switch tonestack sucked IMO so I just … Read more