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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 2, 2008 5:09:43 GMT -5
Nephew Andre (Rosie Ledet Band) needed a way to quickly switch from rhythm to lead without resorting to twiddling the guitar's volume knob. Hmm, a bit of sketching and I came up with a simple passive switching circuit utilizing a pair of 500k pots, two jacks, a special 3PDT stomp switch, a battery clip and a pair of LED's (green and red) and the appropriate LED voltage resistors. A small cast pedal box competed the deal. The circuit itself is passive and the extra poles on the switch allowed the use of LED's to show which vol pot is selected. I layed out the components into the case for proper fit, drilled out the holes, and used some handy rattle can color spray on the box followed by a few spritzings of clear. Everything fit into the case nicely and wiring was easy ...  Plugging a guitar in kicks on the battery to show what pot gets selected, run the box to any FX and on to the amp, preset each vol pots to the desired level, hit the footswitch for instant volume selection. Fun stuff. :cool:  Pots. jacks and 9V battery clip can be sourced from most anywhere, the resistors, LED's and LED holders are from Radio Shack, the special 3PDT switch and the case came from www.effectsconnection.com Hooking up LED's is really easy. The longer lead is positive (hot) and the shorter lead negative (ground). In order to supply the proper voltage to each LED when using a 9v battery, apply the following formula to determine the proper resistor for each LED ... battery voltage minus LED voltage divided by LED milliamp draw 2.6v 28ma LED example ... 9v - 2.6v = 6.4v / .028ma = 228.6 ohms (or the closest higher value)  |
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Post by bloodrose on May 2, 2008 15:05:32 GMT -5
Looks like a new BOO tick pedal maker on the horizon!! I want one!! Very kool Rob! Dude, you are the Bob Villa of guitardom!
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Post by gmello on May 16, 2008 12:15:48 GMT -5
This is cool.
For a lead/rhythm switch, I normally use an eq pedal with a volume control like the Boss GE-7 or even the Dano Fish n Chips. You can leave the eq flat and just use the volume for a lead volume bump or you can also shape your lead tone with the eq. It works great.
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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 16, 2008 12:24:21 GMT -5
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Post by Ray M. on May 16, 2008 12:49:42 GMT -5
Looks nicely done, but for the life of me...I can't grasp this concept.
First off, the stereo input. Splain please?
Second...for me, you said your nephew "needed a way to quickly switch from rhythm to lead without resorting to twiddling the guitar's volume knob."
I guess I'm a little dense, but what does that mean? Does it mean that when he switches pickups, he needs to tinker with the levels? If so, how does having the pots on a box on the floor make that easier? Preset....ok, but why not preset the knobs on the guitar?
Oh, wait....Fender guitar maybe. Ok. (seriously, that just clicked while I was typing the sentence before.)
But still, wouldn't a volume pedal be another option? I just know, I'd be having to tweak those knobs.
But if it works for him....cool idea, i reckon.
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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 16, 2008 13:35:42 GMT -5
The stereo input turns on the 9v battery that lights up the LEDs - the signal part of the circuit is totally passive and requires no battery.
What Andre required was to be able switch from a preset rhythm volume/tone to a preset lead volume/tone, without having to fiddle with the guitar's volume pot or use an active pedal (boost, volume, overdrive, etc) that altered tone. That's all the pedal does - instant non-fiddling switching from one volume to another volume.
Two of the N&N pedals I built used pots and wiring that worked in conjunction with a specific type of guitar or a special individual guitar.
For a Tele/Strat player, the tone pots were replaced with 250KA push-pulls, and the p-p switch was wired to accept the signal from the pickup selector. The normal down position of the p-p switch left the guitar wired as normal, and the up position routed the pickup signal directly to the output jack, and "true" bypassed the guitar's volume pot. The guitar's tone pot is directly wired to the pickup switch, so that it will function in both "normal" and "pedal" modes.
With the guitar set to "pedal" mode, the volume is directly manipulated via the N&N pedal, and one of two different volume settings is available via the footswitch. In this scenario, the least amount of signal degradation and tone alteration is achieved, and you essentially get a dual volume pot that's instantly switchable.
Which is the whole idea behind the pedal - moving the guitar's volume to a preset, adjustable pedal switcher, instead of fiddling with the guitar's volume pot and not using any active boost pedal that can alter tone (and require a battery). The N&N uses a battery only to power the LED and it works just fine without one.
Again, the requirements for the N&N pedal were dictated by a pro gigging guitarist. Not everyone has or needs those requirements.
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Post by gmello on May 16, 2008 14:40:17 GMT -5
I personally use an eq because I need the volume change to occur after the preamp (through the loop) since I use preamp distortion and this pedal in front of the amp would affect the gain level more than the volume, so yeah I agree different requirements...
But there are tons of passive volume pedals in the market that would accomplish the exact same thing with the advantage of giving you the whole volume range to sweep through instead of just 2 preset settings although the idea of the presets is more precise (it is hard to back off the volume pedal to the same exact point every time).
Are you planning to sell these pedals? How much?
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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 16, 2008 14:57:10 GMT -5
Yeah, the problem with dialing in a volume level via twiddling either a guitar's vol pot or pushing a vol pedal's pot is the same - guess work. The N&N pedal nails two volume presets perfectly because you get to dial in those settings before the gig or tune.
Nah, not looking to sell the N&N pedals, but I'll work with anyone needing a custom one.
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Post by gmello on May 16, 2008 16:48:56 GMT -5
one more question: are you adding a treble-bleed on these pots? is there any high-end loss??
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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 16, 2008 17:35:45 GMT -5
one more question: are you adding a treble-bleed on these pots? is there any high-end loss?? These are custom pedals for specific guitarists with specific requirements, and if bleeder caps are needed they're added. The last one I built used a pair of 250KA pots and a treble bleed cap only on the "Nasty" pot. That's also a mod I'm thinking of introducing to the pedal as an option - switchable on/off bleeders. |
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Post by gmello on May 16, 2008 20:30:47 GMT -5
man the more I think about this .. I more I realize I really need one... not so much for volume changes but I could go from a light crunch to my lead tone just by driving the preamp at different levels ... hmmm
so the "nasty" pot fully open would equal the guitar pot wide open right? it doesn't add any extra volume, being a passive unit... and the "nice" pot cuts the gain like the guitar pot would...
man that's just GENIUS!!!!! it would be like having a 3-channel amp!!!
just wait til the economy stimulus check gets here
;D
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Post by Rob DiStefano on May 17, 2008 4:51:54 GMT -5
... so the "nasty" pot fully open would equal the guitar pot wide open right? ... Yeah - think of it as two independent guitar volume controls. Again, you don't need to modify a guitar to use this pedal, BUT ... adding a guitar volume bypass switch and tailoring the pedal pots to match the guitar(s) in question really make for the perfect gigging match of Nice 'n' Nasty.  |
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Post by Ray M. on May 17, 2008 9:21:34 GMT -5
Thanks for the further explanation, Rob.
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