Tools, Tones and Toys for Guitarists
I was looking at the Diamond Compressor schematic the other day and thought it looked interesting and possibly something that could be simplified – it turns out it can be simplified. Of course, someone had already done this. Jump over to the La Revolution Deux for details, AKA Fred Briggs’ blog. I used a TL074 instead … Read more
I know one could make the three different effects and box them together, but I thought I might do a layout with them all on one board. EARTHQUAKER DEVICES HOOF REAPER – VERO LAYOUT REAPER VIDEO DEMO
I’ve not tried any BFE circuits, so perhaps it’s time… The link to the schematic is here. Transistors can be germanium or silicon, and the two acting as hard clipping diodes can probably be replaced with regular silicon diodes to taste (the blue ones). BJFE FOLK FUZZ 3.5% – VERO LAYOUT
This is the standard Disaster Transport Jr, with the tails mod, and another that I just found that adds a kind of chorus effect to the delay, with just an additional resistor. A Disaster Transport layout seems fitting, as there’s been widespread flooding where I live, so kind of appropriate for the weather. Here’s the link to … Read more
Another day, another compressor layout… This is a Dan Coggins design, the Dinosaural OCT-201 Opticompressor, and the predecessor to the Thorpy Fat General, which was also designed by Dan. Not many of these are around, as it was only made in a short run. Schematic and tracing journal on Aion FX. DINOSAURAL OCT-201 OPTICOMPRESSOR – VERO … Read more
While on a run of compressors, I thought this one looked interesting. ThorpyFX Fat General is an optical compressor with a treble control and a blend function. Schematic can be found on PedalPcb here. It’s said to be a progression of the Dan Coggins designed Lovetone OCT-201 – based on the trace at Aion FX, … Read more
Another compressor for the day – have not built this one yet, but I have tried the Baja LA2A that’s heavily based on this, and it sounds pretty good. Suggest testing the DIY vactrol off-board first to find something that works with the available parts. 5mm yellow LED worked well for me with the Baja version. … Read more
After building a few fuzzes lately, I thought it was time to change. I’ve built a later revision of the Reckless Diode Compressor, and I really liked it. This is the first version, somewhat subtler than the last revision. It has similar characteristics but is a more complicated design with a dual rail power supply. This … Read more
Another Tone Bender MKIII / MKIV variant – is the Park Fuzz Sound. I’d already done a P2P layout, so I thought I should also do a standard vero layout. As maybe one other person and I have used the P2P layout… I guess the most obvious difference is the lack of Fuzz pot – apart from … Read more
This is an interesting one – the Zvex Machine uses Mosfet boosters into a pair of transistors in a push-pull configuration designed to generate cross-over distortion. Apparently, it doesn’t do much on its own but likes to be paired after a fuzz to shine. ZVEX MACHINE – VERO LAYOUT MACHINE VIDEO DEMO