ttruscott Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 I'm planning to build a foot pedal for my GCSE electronics. The problem is, neither my teacher or I have any idea where to start or how they work! I can only build a simple foot pedal that can switch distorition on and off, but I'm not sure how to make the electronics... I guess that it needs op-amps and it works by creating a sound like _¦¯¦_¦¯¦_¦¯¦_ rather than a smooth curve you would expect normally. I'm sorry if this has been started alreay or it isn't the place for it, but im a complete newbie! Could you send me some help with other sites or ANYTHING you know - coz it's guaranteed to be more than me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 I think a good place to start would be diystompboxes.com. There's a lot to getting a good distortion pedal though. Look into the intermodulation distortion vs. harmonic distortion issue if you really are looking for quality. There are also a couple of guys here that play around with this stuff a lot. Hopefully one of them will reply. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 I'm planning to build a foot pedal for my GCSE electronics. The problem is, neither my teacher or I have any idea where to start or how they work! I can only build a simple foot pedal that can switch distorition on and off, but I'm not sure how to make the electronics... I guess that it needs op-amps and it works by creating a sound like _¦¯¦_¦¯¦_¦¯¦_ rather than a smooth curve you would expect normally. I'm sorry if this has been started alreay or it isn't the place for it, but im a complete newbie! Could you send me some help with other sites or ANYTHING you know - coz it's guaranteed to be more than me! hey man email me and i will see if i can help you i got a dozen basic designs you could play with that use only one chip and ahandfull of parts.. can be working in less than half an hour. austenfantanio@yahoo.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovekraft Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 You might want to check out Justin Philpott's Beginners Page and RG Keen's Geofex site for info on distortion units and how to build one. Also check the beginner's forum on Aron's DIY Stompbox site (the site daveq mentioned). There are also some very cool ,if somewhat more complicated, designs available at Runoff Groove, including perfboard layouts and sound samples. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttruscott Posted June 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 Thanks for the help, I'll hav a look at these sites (and any more anyone has) and I'll keep you posted with my progress (I will begin construction in December though). I need to get some designs drawn up, starting with something ridiculously stupid (like a splitter) building up to the final design. No luck with the geocites link! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovekraft Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 No luck with the geocites link! Hmmm... works for me, I dunno. Try copying and pasting the link in a new winodw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyG Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Ok if your looking to make a distortion stomp box then the best site you can posablly read to start of with IMHO is this http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/v2/ric...tion/index.html explains everything you need to make a very simple box if i remember rightlly from doing my GCSE Electronics then you have to have a minimum of three different active components. so if you had a little booster circuit at the front of the box maybe something like a mosfet booster http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/mosboost/mosboost.htm and then an active tone control using an op amp then that should be your three components sorted. btw the hardest part of the whole thing is the write up. in my first draft of the write up i got 27 out of 100 lol, spent 2 days working on it and got myself 89/100 which was a bit better tho only got an A at results oh one more thing. if you have a chance to stay on and do AS or A level electronics then do it, it goes over a fair bit of stuff on op amp filter circuits and mosfet amplifiers, is quite interesting and is alot easier than GCSE in alot of ways. im fairlly confident of an A at AS lol nehu, hope all that helps and good luck with the GSCE, ifyouever need any help then feel free to email me G.John @t etoncollege.org.uk JG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biohazard Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Your doing AS level electronics JohnnyG? I'm doing systems and control at AS. Just had exams today and i don't think they went too well . Oh well, just have to wait till results day. Although we did nothing like what you've just described with op amps and sound stuff etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biohazard Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Your doing AS level electronics JohnnyG? I'm doing systems and control at AS. Just had exams today and i don't think they went too well . Oh well, just have to wait till results day. Although we did nothing like what you've just described with op amps and sound stuff etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biohazard Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Ahhh, sorry, didnt mean to post that twice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 i did my As Tech today - Electronics Pics Systems and Control and Product Analysis. did we do the same paper? whats your board? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyG Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 I think that my school is planning to do the systems and controls course next year. im gonna be one of the last guys to do the "proper" electronics course if you get what i mean lol. i dont really like the whole digital side of things, much prefer my analogue stuff. my AS project was a guitar amp however it wasnt anything special lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Just to get back on topic...pop into maplin and pick up a book called something like electronic projects for guitars, or something like that. It has a few good circuits and should help you out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 2 "something likes" I really was covering my ass for mistakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabidmoose171 Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 http://www.geofex.com/ http://www.muzique.com/schem/ http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/v2/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strange Fruit Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 If you can read schems, heres a gd site: Schems hope that helps ya! Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biohazard Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 My exam board was Edexcel. We did product analysis, electronics, and pics papers. Or something like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 we did the same papers then! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyG Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 lol, cue you two bitching about the questions that you got wrong now btw guys, remember that the guy who started this post has to know how the circuits work. pointing the schems is fine but there's no point giving someone a tube screamer circuit if they dunno how the hell it works lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovekraft Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 Yeah, wut 'e said! How 'bout The Technology of... Series at Geofex? It breaks things down into bite-sized chunks that are fairly easy to understand - the Tube Screamer article is one of the best analyses I have seen of that particular circuit - highly recommended! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biohazard Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 Yeah thats a point. You got to explain everything about the circuit and how and why it works . Good luck with it all anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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