Author Topic: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals  (Read 6618 times)

GuitarStv

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DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« on: November 30, 2013, 10:04:03 AM »
The quality of information available on the internet these days is truly incredible.  I wanted an envelope filter for my electric guitar . . . but the store wants hundreds of dollars for them.  So, I headed to the internet and found an easy to follow wiring schematic for the one I wanted:

http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.ca/2013/04/mad-professor-snow-white-autowah.html

 . . . then bought some parts and solder online for cheap . . . then enhanced my badassity by learning to solder properly, rehashing all the information about capacitors/transistors and ICs I'd forgotten from my electrical theory class in university.  Voila, my true bypass, 4-knob envelope filter:

 


Works great, sounds exactly like the pedal that it's circuit is based on.  Total costs are around 40$.  Also, I got to put a really huge LED on it, which makes me happy deep down in my soul.  To hell with spending money on effects pedals any longer . . . I've actually contemplated building and selling them online to generate some extra cash.

jdoolin

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #1 on: November 30, 2013, 11:05:24 AM »
I built a clone of an ElectroHarmonix Big Muff Pi (Ram's Head version) using a kit for about $50.  With a little soldering skill (which is GREAT to have) you can save a lot on effects pedals.

But I've also built 2 of the 3 guitars I play regularly:



The third in the photo is the bass I built for my wife.  Now, I'll say that the Tele and Strat did not save me money.  I could have purchased a working guitar of either style for less than I paid to build those.   However, guitars with the same features and quality of parts would have cost well over $2500 each.  So in that sense I did save money.

I'll also note that I built these Pre-MMM lifestyle change.

GuitarStv

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #2 on: November 30, 2013, 01:30:24 PM »
Nice guitars . . . Warmoth?

Next on my agenda is learning to refret an instrument.  I've got a few very old guitars where there's almost nothing left from the 8th to 14th frets under the e B and G strings, and everything around the first four frets is gone.  Great sounding instruments that play like crap at the moment.  It costs an arm and a leg to have pros do a refret!

jdoolin

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #3 on: November 30, 2013, 01:51:13 PM »
Nice guitars . . . Warmoth?

Thanks!

The only Warmoth part is the strat neck.  The rest of the strat is a ???? alder body, Fender tuners, Callaham bridge, VintageVibe SP-90 pickups and Deaf Eddie's "Chromacaster" rotary switch in place of one of the tone pots.

The Tele is Mighty Mite neck and body (the neck had some work done by a luthier who did the work for free to test some new tools), Fender tuners, Callaham bridge with angled saddles, Vintage Vibe single coil Tele pickups overwound 10% and some push/pull pots for a few more pickup combinations.  It also has some bridge tweaks I picked up from Bill Crook.

Oh wait, I forgot.  The bass neck is Warmoth.  It's a Jazz neck with bloodwood fretboard.  A ???? precision body with a P/J configuration, VintageVibe P/J pickups, Gotoh bridge and an additional knob with a rotary switch for pickup combos.  Custom made pickguard.

So they're made of mostly hand selected parts.  The strat and P/J bodies were "let's wait until we find a deal on ebay" purchases.

I've got another project in the works that I put on hold once I started the MMM lifestyle.  I bought a cheap strat copy on craigslist that I'm going to use for a sustainer pickup.  Problem is, those pickups/electronics are like $250.  I'm going to finish it eventually, but I'm going to wait until I've hit a few more financial goals first.

GuitarStv

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #4 on: December 01, 2013, 08:15:41 AM »
Nice guitars . . . Warmoth?

Thanks!

The only Warmoth part is the strat neck.  The rest of the strat is a ???? alder body, Fender tuners, Callaham bridge, VintageVibe SP-90 pickups and Deaf Eddie's "Chromacaster" rotary switch in place of one of the tone pots.

The Tele is Mighty Mite neck and body (the neck had some work done by a luthier who did the work for free to test some new tools), Fender tuners, Callaham bridge with angled saddles, Vintage Vibe single coil Tele pickups overwound 10% and some push/pull pots for a few more pickup combinations.  It also has some bridge tweaks I picked up from Bill Crook.

Oh wait, I forgot.  The bass neck is Warmoth.  It's a Jazz neck with bloodwood fretboard.  A ???? precision body with a P/J configuration, VintageVibe P/J pickups, Gotoh bridge and an additional knob with a rotary switch for pickup combos.  Custom made pickguard.

So they're made of mostly hand selected parts.  The strat and P/J bodies were "let's wait until we find a deal on ebay" purchases.

I've got another project in the works that I put on hold once I started the MMM lifestyle.  I bought a cheap strat copy on craigslist that I'm going to use for a sustainer pickup.  Problem is, those pickups/electronics are like $250.  I'm going to finish it eventually, but I'm going to wait until I've hit a few more financial goals first.

Should only be about 20$ of parts for a sustainer pickup . . . If you wire it yourself . . .
http://theawesomepowerofrockets.blogspot.ca/2012/02/little-diy-how-to-make-your-own.html

jdoolin

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #5 on: December 01, 2013, 01:27:49 PM »
Should only be about 20$ of parts for a sustainer pickup . . . If you wire it yourself . . .
http://theawesomepowerofrockets.blogspot.ca/2012/02/little-diy-how-to-make-your-own.html

OK, first, that is awesome.  As much as a DIY person as I am, I can't believe I never thought to look into building one myself.

Second, I'm not sure if it's going to have the complete effect I'm looking for.  The Fernandes and Sustainiacs have a harmonic setting that switches to the 5th natural harmonic every several seconds.  If I can figure out a way to build that, I'm all over it.

FunkyStickman

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #6 on: December 01, 2013, 04:50:08 PM »
I'm looking at building my own MIDI pedal from www.kaom.com because nobody else makes a tap-tempo MIDI clock pedal... he sells them built, but at almost twice the cost.

keith

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #7 on: December 01, 2013, 05:53:29 PM »
Awesome job, looks like a great way to get pedals on the cheap. I may have to try this out next year.

_JT

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #8 on: December 01, 2013, 09:37:57 PM »
A classmate of mine in college built a DIY effects pedal for one of our electronics labs. It was bad ass then, and is still bad ass today.

(ps -- sweet Tele, jdoolin! I have a '75 Tele with single coils, and it is freaking awesome)

GuitarStv

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Re: DIY guitar/bass/keyboard effects pedals
« Reply #9 on: December 02, 2013, 07:44:13 AM »
Built an MXR Blue Box yesterday, modded it so there's a 1 / 2 octave down switch:


This is really fun!  I wonder if I could get some money for selling these.

I'm looking at building my own MIDI pedal from www.kaom.com because nobody else makes a tap-tempo MIDI clock pedal... he sells them built, but at almost twice the cost.

I've seen schematics for tap tempo circuits to add to delay pedals ( just replaces the time setting pot) you might want to google some of those.  I'd figure the midi clock controller wouldn't be too different.

Edit - Here it is:
http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.ca/2012/03/pt2399-tap-tempo-daughterboard.html
« Last Edit: December 02, 2013, 07:47:44 AM by GuitarStv »

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!