Build Your Own Clone Message Board

First off, thank you to anyone who provides help. I appreciate it.

The tremolito is my first build, but I do have soldering experience. I am not able to read the schematic, but am willing to learn. I have a multimeter and can follow instructions. I have a basic understanding of most of the components.

I will describe the issue first and then upload photos.

1. Effect works with two issues. #1 certain power supplies induce an audible oscillation in a very high frequency (this oscillation changes with depth and speed knobs). #2 The signal is very distorted.
2. LED works
3. Bypass works
4. Bypass set to unity gain
5. Running effect into front of amp
6. Depth and Speed knobs work

Troubleshooting so far
1. Have re-flowed all solder joints.
2. Have swapped 5457 transistors for new ones, no difference.
3. Tested lugs of transistors and have a 37.5ohm reading across middle and outside lug of both 5457 transistors Not sure if that's significant.
4. Double checked all component values and placement.
5. Tested outside enclosure for shorts on enclosure same issues.

Pictures to follow.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/171386793@N02/40853722753/in/dateposted-public/\

Browse through the album for more close ups and the reverse side of the board.

Hey man welcome aboard. I'm not one of the experts here, but i can give you some hard learned advice. Your soldering needs a bit of work. Some joints aren't shiny and others look rounded. Those are cold joints and can absolutely cause the issues you're having.

As silly as it sounds, a good clean iron tip for every joint and quality solder make a huge difference. Also, clean the leftover flux off the board with a qtip and some alcohol. That may not be causing your issue, but it can lead to other problems.

This applies to your other thread as well. Take your time and try the joints one by one again.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

That's pretty good advice, especially this part:

Even if you have some soldering experience, this kind of work can be a less forgiving of any sloppiness. Reflow the joints again, making sure to clean your tip often. Then let us know where you're at. If it doesn't do the trick, we will be glad to keep working with you!

_________________
Scott

My band, Austin Hollow

Thanks for the advice. I was using leadfree solder . These joints have all been reflowed since the picture was taken.

Not sure that this would cause your issue, but it appears to me that the resistor just above the footswitch connections is a 47K (purple-yellow-black-red-brown) rather than the 470K (purple-yellow-black-orange-brown) indicated in the instructions.

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2

Thanks for looking at this. I do believe its a 470K. If you compare the color band to the red one right next to it the contested band does appear more orange.

Even if it was indeed a 47k, it really wouldn't make much of a difference. It's just the pull down resistor.

What power supply are you using?

_________________
*patience is a virtue*

Please do not PM me. email is prefered. keith@buildyourownclone.com