Mimir's Well

[bcalla]

I finally finished my first pedal in about 2 years.  I didn't go back and check my last build report, so it might actually be a little longer.  I did build a couple electronic projects - a clock & a drum machine.   But the 3 or 4 pedals I worked on since my last build were fairly complex, and unfortunately epic fails.  So they wound up on a shelf that is optimistically labeled "Needs Troubleshooting."  Maybe I'll actually try to get them working some day...

A few months ago someone posted a build report for Mimir's Well by MAS Effects.  It looked amazing, so I decided to ignore my fails and give it a shot.

It's all digital and comes with 7 built in patches in one bank, plus it includes another 16 that you can select yourself (2 additional banks of eight).  Since I play both bass & guitar I got 8 additional guitar effects plus 8 bass effects.  And I ordered an extra bank of 8 strange guitar effects that I can swap in if I want to use them.

Cutting the rectangle for the display screen was a PITA, but it came out pretty neat.  However, I now know that I could do it again if I needed to.

[matmosphere]

Very cool build. I have been thinking about this one. What do you think of the patches? How does it sound?

[cooder]

Very tidy and excellent! Great way to store the extra patches...
How do you like the sounds and options?

[bcalla]

In general, the patches sound good.  I especially like the delays.  The reverse reverb & reverse delay are cool.  Some of the others are pretty wild, the extra chip set I bought were some of the more extreme ones.  Most (but not all) can be tamed by adjusting the parameters.  But at $1 per patch I figured it would be fun to have them.  Also, as of this writing the Slow Gear doesn't work, so skip that.

[gordo]

Keeping the extra banks on foam blocks is quite clever, I have to steal that idea.  On mine I added relay bypass but wish I'd had room to add a tails switch.  I like the graphics, that looks very sharp.  I agree, the rectangle cutout is a pain but it's cool having the display.

[jimilee]

That is amazing. I'm trying to work up the courage to build one. The enclosure is my main hold back. Cutting big square holes seem more tedious than anything.

[Bio77]

Wow, that looks great! Graphics are really cool  How did you cut the square?  Makes me wish I still had access to a mill. 

[bcalla]

Wow, that looks great! Graphics are really cool  How did you cut the square?  Makes me wish I still had access to a mill.

I marked the rectangle very carefully with a felt-tip.  1/8" in from each corner I drilled a 1/4" hole that abutted the lines I marked.  Then I used a metal cutting disk on my Dremel to very slowly & carefully cut into the line, making a rut that outlined the perimeter.  I was going to use the cutting disk to finish, but I realized that it would be easier to use a step-drill in my drill press to remove as much of the aluminum as I could.  Then back with the cutting disk to remove a few larger pieces that jutted into the open area.  Finally, a combination of a Dremel grinding attachment and hand filing made the edges pretty even.

My favorite part of the finishing process was covering it with Envirotex.  I taped a piece of smooth clear plastic behind the open rectangle so that when I poured the ET it formed a "window" that will protect the LCD screen.  Unfortunately I used thin flexible plastic (like some produce packaging in a grocery store) and when I tried to remove it from the inside after the ET cured, it de-laminated so there's still a thin layer behind the window.  It makes the window a little hazy, but that's not very noticeable when the screen is lit.  I think if I did it again I would use heavier plastic - maybe cut out a piece of a CD case - so that I could remove it in one piece.

[TGP39]

Phenomenal build and execution!