Messages

Ive never had a problem with tayda caps. Greenies or box film. At least 95% (usually 100%) will be in spec. For values I use alot of like 100n, I get from mouser by the 100, but the rest ive been getting from tayda. Pots seem fine. The resistor leads are thin, but i havent had any issues, i order most of my metal film through them.

Their latching dpdt stomps are crap though. I just got 10 of them, and I will have to order from somewhere else. They have a rough action. Dont seem that sturdy. And the big solder lugs coming off the side take up alot of real estate. Does anyone have a good inexpensive source for these? Are "bitcheslovemyswitches.com" any better? Ive gotten 3pdt stomps from other places, but they look, and feel, like the same ones tayda sells. Are there better ones that arent hugely more expensive?

I have to also keep costs down, One because I dont have alot of money for the hobby, and two at some point if its costing me 40USD instead of 12-15USD to make a pedal, its probably not worth it. And im not going to experiment as much. Tayda is often the compromise of crappiness versus cost. 

is there a difference between the OSP tubescreamer in the extra projects and a green bean? Personally, Id like to see more single sided etchable delays, the only ones are the double cave dweller and the sea urchin. And not many ones elsewhere.

Thanks, so it looks like its operating as it should. The diode thing, is probably not a problem, for what i am mostly doing the absolute number doesnt matter, just relative to other diodes i have.   

Well i see jons post from a few topics down. So if the readings are legit, Rangemasters, and maybe a tonebender or buzzaround?

I just got a dca55, and was testing it out, and i have questions about its accuracy.

First off its showing all of my diodes with .05 to .1v higher voltage drop than my DMM. My DMM seems to be giving more consensus readings, eg oa126s around .6v where the dca55 reads .75v, or most germaniums around .25 on the dmm, and .33 on the dca55.

Second, i tested a batch of germanium transistors on brought on a whim  some months back, and they are all showing a leakage of 0.00 ma. The hfes seem reasonable (75, 70, 110, 67, 75, 69, 69, 81, 83, 80, 83, 89, 70, 85, 61, 69, 82, 86, 62, 60.) Now, i know they are IT308v s and i know they are low leakage, but all being 0 leakage is suspicious. And if that is legit, what can you recommend i can build with them. The only germanium transistor projects ive built are percolators and screwdrivers, and these seem appropriate for neither.

Thanks--

Sounds like you have a short from 9v to ground. triple check for solder bridges, especially in the area where 9v and ground connect to the board. If you cant find it post large photos of both sides of the board. I assume you are testing unboxed and with a battery?

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the advice. Luciferstrip did build one, http://www.luciferstrip.com/fuzz/buzzaround-final.jpg.

As the goal of the project is more to start using the russian germaniums I brought on impulse, Ill go the hard route instead of buying a tonebender set, the main problem it seems is going to be finding one with enough leakage, the first ten or so I tested all didnt have nearly enough.

Be careful harvesting electolytics, look up capacitor plague, there was a rash of that in computers from the late 90s to mid 2000s. I cant think of much else, its likely mostly smd, and I cant think of a useful IC. The powersupply might provide something, at minium some wiring. Irrelevant to pedal building but always take apart the hard drives for their magnets. 

Ive done double sided etches successfully, it helps to have a vertical etching tank so both sides etch evenly. You will also need some sort of registration system. I drilled four holes out of the pcb area, and then marked those on my pnp blue printouts so i ould line them up. Its hard to get perfect registration, dont use tiny traces. Remember sometimes you may need to solder both sides of a component.

Thanks that confirms what im finding, ill start there. (it depends, of course, or what my bag of 50 contains, i havent tested them yet.) Thanks!

Ok after a some research there seems to be alot of conflicting info. But the best at a consensus im seeing is q1,q2 low leakage around 60hfe q3 higher hfe and leaky. Does this seem right? (yes, ill breadboard and test a bunch, but its nice to have a starting point, and know if i need to buy some leakier trannys.)

Hey, search is failing me, so i was wondering if anyone knows off hand the answer. I have a bag of 50 IT308v ge trannies I brought on a whim, and never did anything with, so I figured i should build a ge fuzz pedal. I never built one (not counting harmonic percolators). I like the sounds I hear from videos of a buzzaround, would these trannies likely work there? and if so what hfes/leakages am I looking for for q1,q2,q3 etc?

I play the theremin classically, and have been playing it for 4 or 5 years. Im not familiar with the song in question, but i can answer some things in general, if you have questions.

It depends largely what you want to do with it. If you just want to make woo woo sounds occasionally or play ambiently you can get away with a cheaper theremin. A burns zep theremin is a pitch only theremin which is fine for what it is. A pitch only theremin doesnt have a volume rod, (In a typical theremin dynamics and articulation of the notes are done with the left hand, - the farther the left hand is away from the volume rod, the louder the note) so it will be more limited. 

If you want to be able to play on key, play scales, and actually play melodies, a better, more professional  theremin is in order. The theremin is one of the hardest instruments to learn, as there is no tactile feedback. Better theremins have a more stable and linear pitch field, that is the notes are more predictably and evenly spaced. The Moog etherwave is the standard model most people start with, but like any instrument it isnt cheap (around 350 usd). Cheaper, acceptable models would be the burns b3 pro, or the lost volts lv-1, they are by most reports not quite as good, but still good enough and a decent cheapish option.

There arent any kits im aware of that good enough for serious use, if you want a ambient noise maker, the jaycar kit is a value for the money, and there are alot of mods. Avoid the paia kit. Its overly complicated, and a crappy design. In general building a theremin is more difficult than building a pedal. There is a decent amount of information available on thereminworld.com, its the main forum, and theres info on all the kits, schematics, and pre-built models available.

Oh I know, I just often like the sound of the oa126s, and its is convient. And i have an itching to buy another pile of dubious diodes from eastern europe. I have an addiction to having a salad of weird diodes available when it comes to do the clipping section of a pedal, and was thinking of what to add to my options. 

Ok thanks for the info, I was confused, as well its confusing. I love the sound of the oa126s in alot of circuits, was looking similar options, maybe ill start watching ebay for other germanium zeners.