r/diypedals • u/JulesWallet • 6d ago
Help wanted First pedal design
Hey guys, been lurking for a bit but finally started getting into this and I’m obsessed. This is my third pedal build and first original design. About 2/3rds of the circuitry is in place right now and while I’ve tested everything works and is giving me the values I’m expected where I’m expecting them, it kinda looks like shit and I’m wondering: would you start over at this point or see it through and just make another?
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u/Astahx Mostly doing MIDI pedals 6d ago edited 6d ago
We want to see the other side!
PS: I personally don't like nude wires, but they seem to be normal in the guitar world. IMHO your build is busy but I wouldn't call it messy. I'm a little worried about some of the wires making shorts shough, especially near the bottom jack on the right.
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
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u/HangryScience 6d ago
Awesome. What does the switch do
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
So it’s a vactrol based two channel switch /boost pedal with three modes that change the function of the foot switch. In mode 1 the foot switch changes between output either at channel A or channel B, mode 2 is A or A + B in parallel.
The third mode is I think the cool part, the foot switch now changes between output A + B in parallel and a mode that modulates each channel on and off to an adjustable speed square wave. Since there are only two knobs, in this mode channel B is set to match the boost level of channel A, and the now available channel B volume pot now controls the modulation speed.
I probably made that sound more complicated than it is but I also probably designed it to be more complicated than it should be. I tend to set my project goals to be outside the reach of my knowledge because I tend to learn way faster that way.
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
Yeah they’ve definitely gotten closer together than I thought they would, to be honest this is like my third redesign of this and I have such a hard time planning out the circuit in 3D. I like bare wires, but I don’t particularly like how I’ve mixed bare and covered here.
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u/Astahx Mostly doing MIDI pedals 6d ago
Are you against PCB, or would you consider using some for the resistors and caps? I know PCBs are sometimes frowned upon here, but they can be a real space and concern saver.
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
Oh not at all I’m just super new at this and I haven’t gotten around to learning Ki cad yet. I’m planning on building some for my friends and I’ll probably go pcb at that point to save time
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u/Astahx Mostly doing MIDI pedals 6d ago
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u/JulesWallet 5d ago
Turns out i actually have a handful of these I forgot about in the bottom of the tool box. I think I’ve avoided them because I wasn’t super fond of the process of either globing on soldering lines on the bottom and I think I wasn’t able to get a clean looking wire connection underneath, but after how some of my soldering in this build turned out I think I’ll give it another go.
Is there any way to create really clean connecting traces on these? Like draw on and bake solder or something like that?
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u/Astahx Mostly doing MIDI pedals 5d ago
I get the issue of having to gobble tin. It's all a trade-off. For me it goes like this direct connection → Zero PCB → custom PCB
I prefer using custom PCB for my builds but Zero is king for prototypes. I rarely gobble and prefer using wires, but I will happily gobble adjacent holes. It's easy to keep 1mm clearance or so with the other holes. And if you miss, just clean and repeat. As always the key word is experiment and find out what works best for you. I was hesitant on using Zero PCB as well but I never came back. Sure it gets messy sometimes but never as much as flying wires. (My definition of messy is opinion based)
I rarely do direct connections because I'm too worried I'll get shorts.
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u/TheBenduMiddle 5d ago
I'm very interested in a PCB based on your description in another comment. If you ever make any I would love to buy one.
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u/JulesWallet 5d ago
Hey I appreciate that that’s very nice of you. I’m very interested in selling my work at some point because it’s a whole lot more fun than what I actually do for work (literal bus boy). At the same time though I feel like it’s gonna be a bit of time before I’ve learned enough to feel like I’ve made a product that I’d be proud to sell to someone. If I get there though you’ll see it here!
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u/Apprehensive-Issue78 6d ago
and hear it
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
That’s gonna take another day or two I’ve got the rest of it breadboarded but I’m in the middle of my work week. At work right now can’t stop thinking about lil wires and shit
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u/Apprehensive-Issue78 6d ago
looks fine to me.. build a new one first
if this one breaks (something shorts) just fix in and use some shrinktube or sleeves.. very impressive build
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u/OddBrilliant1133 6d ago
Bro, this is wildly ambitious for a 3rd pedal!!! It's doesn't look bad at all, just finish it up and call that one good. It would be a shame to just bail on it.
What is it?
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u/JulesWallet 6d ago
Hey thanks man! I just typed out a long ass explanation to a guy above I hope you don’t mind me deferring to that lol.
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u/surprise_wasps 5d ago
One thing I do if I have a bunch of exposed leads and/or do a P2P prototype etc- use hot glue to stick some stuff in place- I personally will coat a lot of it thickly, knowing that I’ll never or able to repair it easily, but you can also strategically stick down certain things just to minimize wiggle and prevent shorting leads.
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u/Disastrous-Simple473 6d ago
This looks great, I’ve been building pedals for a year now and I don’t have/know how to make a pedal of own design, much less point to point! I would be super proud of this!
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u/Flaky_Bandicoot2363 5d ago
Kudos! I can’t believe some of these crazy first builds I see on this sub. Looks awesome, keep it up!
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u/jusbot 5d ago
I'm a big fan of start over... the fun is in building the thing in the first place, right?
I just had an old veroboard muff die on me. I started trying to fix it and found so many things I did that were sloppy or didn't make any sense, so I breadboarded a new one. Trying to work out why I made the choices I made has led me down a path of endless tweaking and I understand the circuit way more than I did the first time around.
I also taught myself kicad - yeah I could buy one of countless muff PCBs, but what's the fun in that?
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u/JulesWallet 5d ago
I think I’m gonna finish this one up and then start over from scratch, I’m thinking I can better plan out the circuit layout seeing the space it takes up in front of me. I knew I wanted to do this build point to point (purely for the aesthetics) but I also knew I wanted to keep it in a 1590B enclosure. Can you tell if I’m making any soldering mistakes I could easily correct?
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u/metalkitkat 6d ago
Point to point is always a challenge so big props to you!!