Build Your Own Clone Message Board

Hi all,

This is the fourth pedal I’ve built, and I can’t seem to figure out the problem here.

I get a bypass signal (although noisy), but when I engage the switch the signal totally drops. I tried another wall wart, same thing. I thought maybe I wired the led in wrong, so I checked it and it was fine. Same as diodes and aluminum cap.

Any idea what might be going on? I have attached a photo.
https://imgur.com/a/YgXECOm

A couple of comments:

• I don't see anything out of place or obviously wrong, so that's to the good.
• A photo of the solder side of the PCB would be helpful. I'd also like to see the solder connections for the jacks.
• A complete solder reflow often solves problems like yours: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=52188
• Does the LED light when you engage the footswitch? If not, check the DC voltage level on the square pad of the LED connection.
• You could also try checking the DC voltage on the collectors of each of the transistors and report your results here.

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

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

Thanks for the reply!

First off, I'm glad nothing is out of place--I'm colorblind so I have to have my wife help me sort everything before a build HAHA.

No, the LED does not turn on when I have the pedal plugged-in and click the switch.

I'll go do a reflow in a bit, thanks for the resource.

QUESTION: How do I test the things you suggested? I'm multimeter and electricity illiterate.... For what it's worth, I did figure out to measure and bias JFETs on a previous build (that had built-in pots), but it took me forever to figure out.

To measure DC voltage levels, set your multimeter to the DC voltage mode, indicated by a straight line above a dotted line; use the 20VDC range setting if it's not an auto-ranging meter. Of course, your power source needs to be connected and there needs to be a cable in the input jack. If the pedal is assembled into the metal enclosure, put the black probe into one of the corner screw bosses of the enclosure--this is your ground connection. If the "guts" are out of the enclosure, use the sleeve tab of the input jack for the ground connection. Then touch the red probe to the test point that you want to measure and hold it there until the reading is stable within a couple of hundredths of a volt. Repeat the process for each point you wish to measure.

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

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

Here are the photos you requested.
https://imgur.com/a/8LWfxsy

I did a reflow and still no light. I’ll check voltages next, thanks for the write up.

Ok, I followed the instructions to test voltage, but nothing changed. I clicked the switch, plugged into power, plugged into both in and out jacks too. Same thing…lots of noise in bypass, dead once the switch is engaged.

I tested the LED for continuity and the meter didn’t beep…should the LED show for continuity?

OK, I think I see a problem in the build from the new photos. Looks to me like you made this common wiring error on the DC jack: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=52139

Switch the two + connections and retest.

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

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

Nice catch, I had miswired a bit ago when I was troubleshooting. I fixed the wiring, but still no light, same problem. I just tried another input Jack for the heck of it, still no light.

Just to make it clear, when I tested for voltage earlier, everything said "0". I alligator clamped the black ground lead to the ground of the pedal, and pressed the red lead to each transistor leg.

Are you getting DC voltage at the righthand + pad of the PCB? Make sure that you're on the DC voltage setting of your meter, not AC.

Have you tried powering with a 9V battery to see if that makes a difference?

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

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

I’ve been wasting your time…it was the LED. I thought I had it wired in correctly, and then I realized the outline with the flat spot matches the outline of the LED…I was treating the flat side as positive, but it’s negative…

The pedal lights now, and seems to work fine.

Sorry! I’m really grateful for the help you gave me though. I learned a lot about testing and troubleshooting.

Not a problem. Glad to hear it's working. ENJOY!

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

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

Ugh, I assembled the box, but now the light pops on a fades off when I insert the input plug. It only stays on if it’s halfway in. I’ll take a look when I get back home…running a few errands.

Sure sounds like a bad solder joint somewhere. Also check to make sure that none of the backs of the pots are contacting the PCB when the guts are torqued down in the enclosure.

EDIT: Just noticed that you said that the LED stays on with the power plug halfway in. Try a different power supply to see if the plug on the current one doesn't fit tightly. By the same token, it could be a problem with the DC jack.

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

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

It was the TRS cable I was using…apparently it these jacks don’t like TRS cables.

Yes, that's true, but it's not the jack's fault--it's how this and many other guitar pedals are designed. It's because the ground connection for the power is made through the ring of the input jack, so that finger of the jack needs to contact the sleeve of your cable. With a normal instrument cable it does so, but with a TRS cable it doesn't. It's designed this way so that when you pull the cable out of the input, power is cut off. Very handy feature if you power your pedals with a battery, as this saves battery life.

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

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

Makes perfect sense. Thanks for the education today.

BTW, I checked out your pedals page--very cool! What software and materials are you using for your graphics, and how are you lining up the holes with logos? I always wondered how people did that...