FIRST TIMER

[Cory]

First timer here, going big. Got a few PCBs recently, and am going to start with the Harbinger One Univibe. Some questions about the BOM... if a component is referenced as 4k7, that is 4.7k? and similarly 22R is just 22? For capacitors, 15n=what exactly??

Thanks!

Cory

[rullywowr]

Hi Cory,

Welcome to the MadBean forum!  Since you are just getting started I will help you out although you can find a bunch of information by using the "search" function.

A 4K7 resistor is a 4.7K resistor.  The "K" is put in the place of the decimal so its harder to "eff" up by moving the decimal in the wrong place.  If it was 4.7K it could be written 4.700K or you may mistake it as 47K or worse.

A 22R is simply a 22 ohm resistor.  Again, the "R" makes it easy to recognize as an 22 ohm and you are less likely to put a 22K or 2.2K or another incorrect value.

Capacitors:  While you can convert from pico farads (pF), to nanofarads (n), to microfarads (uF) typically here is how it goes.

pF - most pF values are going to be very small and will use ceramic type caps (no polarity so you can put them in either way)

n - most nanofarad values will be using film type caps.  While you can get the green or red "chicklet" looking ones most everybody around these parts will tell you to get the "box" variety as they are typically more compact and keep your board shorter.  These are also not polarized you can put them in either way.

uF - these are mostly going to be electrolytic (can) style (with exceptions for around the 1uF mark which may be a film capacitor) and are polarized.  The stripe on the can points to the negative lead and the positive lead is going to be longer.  You can tell if it is an electrolytic by looking at the board layout...look for a round spot where it should go and it will be electrolytic.

If you are just getting started and can wait about 5-7 days, I would recommend buying from taydaelectronics.com and try to buy more than you need (especially since the components at tayda are very cheap).  This way you will get a surplus to have on hand to build more projects.  As you build more and more you will find you have the majority of the components on hand (kind of like stocking a kitchen...you just need the board and "recipes").   Also good are the eBay film capacitor "kits" and metal film resistor "kits" which will allow you to get stocked up cheaply and have a good assortment.

I would also recommend you grab some teflon coated wire (22awg or around that) it will be great because it doesn't melt the insulation if you get it too hot with the iron.  Ebay is good for that too.

[DutchMF]

Hey dude, welcome to a very intoxicating hobby! Now I can't tell from your post if you have any experience in electronics, soldering or both, but you are certainly going big for your first build! You might want to try something simpler for a first time build. The Harbinger is a complex build, which might require a whole load of de-bugging to get it to work. If you want some recommendations for a good first-time build you're more than welcome, but if you decide to start with the Harbinger, we're here for you as well, keep us posted. Good luck, and don't forget: Enjoy!!!

Paul

[midwayfair]

hi, Cory. First, welcome to the forum.

Next: Don't take this the wrong way, because I don't know what your background is, but a Univibe is not a first-time project unless you have other experience in electronics (e.g. repair and modding at the very least). I'm not trying to discourage you from building what you like, but the number of things that can go wrong with such a project are legion. I've built almost 100 pedals, with quite a bit of experience in similar effects, and even I have reservations about actually building one of those.

If you do decide to go forward with it, make sure you have all the tools for debugging. You should make your self an audio probe; you'll need a good multimeter at least. Practice your soldering beforehand on something that *isn't* a $14 PCB with $50 worth of components. (One good way to do that is to take a bunch of bare stranded wire and make a net, then solder each net.)

If you want to back up a little and gain some understanding of the underlying parts of a Univibe (which will come in handy if something goes wrong), there are two projects that you can use as stepping stones for building a univibe, all of which can be built very easily on a breadboard, which is an important learning tool (and one that doesn't rely on your soldering skill or cost component and money for PCBs). One is a simple transistor gain stage. These form the audio path. Another is the EA Tremolo. This uses similar transistor-based audio stages and a similar, but not identical, transistor-based low-frequency oscillator (LFO). The third is the Magnavibe, which uses a light dependent resistor and LED, again with transistors for the audio stage and LFO. You can build these projects easily on a breadboard and from them you can learn how all the constituent parts work in the Univibe.

[TNblueshawk]

I'd like to echo some others. First welcome. Second, yeah, a vibe can be a bitch for a seasoned vet. The issue again is not so much building it but troubleshooting if it doesn't fire.

Having said that I've seen some cats bust out with some impressive first and second builds.

I only wanted to mention this as if it doesn't fire and you never get it fixed or find it so frustrating, you might quit before you get addicted...and we are here to help you get addicted 

Anyway, don't take all this wrong but only as people trying to help you be successful. Good luck and again welcome.

[wstimson]

Again, not to scare you off... but these guys are right, a univibe is an ambitious project and typically not intended for beginners.

You mentioned that you got a few PCBs recently... what else did you get?
Almost anything would be a better starting point than a harbinger.
An overdrive/distortion or tremolo are much more straightforward and would afford you some practice/experience before diving into a the complex and costly univibe clone.

I'll also echo the lack of offense intended.  Seriously, none at all. If you know what you're doing with a soldering iron and have an electronics background, by all means, disregard.  In fact, feel free to tell us all to eff off and do whatever you want... we just don't want to see anyone get discouraged right off the bat. 

[GermanCdn]

I always thought the "Confidence Boost" tongue in cheek build at BYOC was quite a good play on words, as it was an easy build and taught the basics.

What does this have to do with this post - start small and get that wonderful feeling of accomplishment of a circuit firing up the first time.  It's a good one.  I think Brian's done a pretty good job in identifying build complexities.  It might not be any harder to solder in 70 resistors as it is 7, but it's a whole lot more likely to work right the first time.

But by all means, if you feel like swinging for the fences, have at 'er.  I think the underlying tone here is that we want to see you succeed, and small steps is the fastest way to get there.

Welcome to the addiction, it's a fun place to be.

[octa805]

just do a vibe and dirtbag combo as your first build brosquat! no probs!

haters gonna hate!


(this made me laugh at least)

[TNblueshawk]

Hey Octa, throw in a Current Lover while you are at it 

Hey Cory, when they don't fire Octa is going to bail you out too on the troubleshoot  

[octa805]

I've made eh.......maybe 15 builds including a dirtbag at this point over the course of like 3 years. I still forget and don't understand plenty of basic crap and I'm scared of the vibe

I opened the guts of my boxed BYOC confidence boost the other day. What a mess and that took me forever too. I can't imagine doing a vibe straight out. It'd never happen for me.

Then again, I'm dense.

[DutchMF]

.......and I'm scared of the vibe

I'm still scared of my vibe as well..... Got it vibin' real good, but after the rocking before the boxing I a) messed up the finish on my box (polished clear-coated job) and b) messed up the wiring. So I know I have a fully working vibe board layin' around (Thanks again for that dual-gang pot, TNblueshawk!) but to get it into a usable pedal is going to take so much work!. Especially re-polishing the enclosure....

And I'm dense as well.....

Paul

[soldersqueeze]

I wasn't scared of the univibe until I read this thread...

Maybe you should start with a Ring Stinger, I read somewhere they only take six hours... 

[TNblueshawk]

I've built 3 vibes and they still scare me 

The Warhead was a joy though. It fired up first time. The others not so much but I still dig em'.

[DutchMF]

Lets start a separate "I'm scared of my Vibe and not afraid to admit it" thread, so this one can stay focused on helping a new forum member........

Paul

[billstein]

just do a vibe and dirtbag combo as your first build brosquat! no probs!

haters gonna hate!


(this made me laugh at least)

Made me laugh too! "Brosquat" good stuff.