Since late 2009, we discovered that Brad Paisley was using Wampler Pedals. He started with the AnalogEcho, then got an Ego Compressor and then had the Underdog overdrive.
Everything was great until his tech at the time, Chad, mentioned to Brian that Brad still was not quite settled on the overdrive sound he was getting from his live rig… could Wampler maybe look at making a pedal …??
Brads requirements were quite “simple”… it needs to be clean but get crunchy with some “beef” to it. It needs to have a fluid tone when soloing. I needs to add a little hair to the tone but then but then has to be able to give flat out ball busting gain, oh… but please do not wreck the tonality. It needs to have everything, in a pedal format, but do not make it sound like a pedal...!
Over a period of months, Brian made some circuits and sent them off, there were a couple of “tweaks” here and there to be made and then finally, when official “proto #2” landed it went straight into the live rack and out on the H20 world tour.
That prototype has now been made into the Brad Paisley signature “Paisley Drive” and goes with Brad wherever he goes. When you see Brad live, or performing live on the TV, and you are blown away by his overdriven tone, it’s the Paisley Drive.
The truly great thing about this pedal is that it’s not only Telecaster style guitars that it works so well with, it brings the best out of your Strat or anything you may have loaded with humbuckers. You no longer need to have individual pedals for your guitars; the Paisley Drive will make each one sing.
The inbuilt tonal controls, the presence and mid contour switches, will make this pedal the single most versatile and complete overdrive pedal you have ever owned. In fact, we believe it might be the last one you ever buy...
Brad Paisley:-
“...we actually recorded this (pedal) in the studio, you know, trying it out. I turned up a Trainwreck Amp that I've got and compared the sound of the distortion and it was very, very similar. And that's a very good test because any time a pedal can mimic a great overdriven amp then you're on to something...”
And the bill of materials:
| Group | Name | Qty |
| Capacitors | 51p | 1 |
| Capacitors | 100p | 1 |
| Capacitors | 22n | 1 |
| Capacitors | 220n | 3 |
| Capacitors | 470n | 1 |
| Capacitors | 1u | 4 |
| Capacitors | 220u | 2 |
| Resistors | 100R | 3 |
| Resistors | 200R | 1 |
| Resistors | 220R | 1 |
| Resistors | 240R | 1 |
| Resistors | 300R | 1 |
| Resistors | 1K | 4 |
| Resistors | 2K2 | 1 |
| Resistors | 10K | 8 |
| Resistors | 511K | 2 |
| Resistors | 1M | 1 |
| IC | JRC4580 | 1 |
| Transistors | J201 | 2 |
| Diodes | 1N4148 | 2 |
Over six hours and no comments?! Usually layouts like this get flooded with thank-yous in the first hour..
ReplyDeleteAs it happens, i'm pretty happy with my decision of leaving the verification of the next (that's this one) for someone else. :) I think i should build up another Plexi-Drive as the first one got accidentally sold...
+m
The Brad Paisley fans aren't here yet :o)
DeleteWhat do the red squares and black lines mean? Anyone have pics of their boards? This will be my first vero...done other printed ones
DeleteClick at the top of this page on "Build Guide". Red squares are track cuts in the copper. There are 16 rows, but with all the track cuts, there are like 36 isolated copper pads Mark used to put it together. The black lines are simple wires connecting two rows. Connecting two rows like this then effectively reduces the number of pads back down to 32, in this case. (you don't need to know the numbers when you are building. You just need to make sure your cuts are completely across the copper, ie. NO continuity.) Click at the top of this page on "Build Guide".
DeleteBy the way, I have no clue how these guys manage to convert a schematic to vero. It seems like untangling a ball of 32 strings of Christmas lights without unplugging any of them. Crazy
DeleteCurious to how this thing sounds.. I always find out that it sounds different from what i hear in about all PGS demos.. Maybe its the fact I don`t have a Deluxe Reverb!! LOL. I may build it just to check and I agree with MIRO, I too have to build anothe Plexi_drive.
ReplyDeleteI've been waiting for this one. I don't expect to build it very soon (I've got several others to do first), but it's definitely on the list. I'm much more excited about building this one than a Klon, Timmy, OCD, King of Tone, etc...
ReplyDeleteSeems like i opened the gates :D
ReplyDelete+m
Just saw the post. Not a big Paisly fan but it sounds like an interesting build. I also have the Klon and the KoT on the list. I took the OCD out of the list and added the Paisly. Ended up doing the Landgraff Dynamic Overdrive instead of the Timmy and it's great.
ReplyDeleteI hope the Demo is not with a 65W Soho.
Thanks for the layout (do you have the schematic?)
Thanks for the BOM layout with the sorted values and amounts. It's just super great.
I can't post the schematics because they aren't mine to post without permission, but you can find the schematics for virtually all the layouts that I've done on freestompboxes. You'll have to sign up to get into the boutique section, and then you'll find a Paisley thread there with the schematic posted.
DeleteCool, been waiting for this one, but could be a couple of weeks before I get to try it. Thanks Mark.
ReplyDeletegreat layout! im tempted, but you all saying that the plexi-drive is a win? should i maybe do that one instead? currently building my second klon and damn it's a big build....
ReplyDeleteNooooo.. That Plexi Drive is completely unrelated to this. This is one of those "transparent overdrive" types while PD is a full blown distortion.
Delete+m
PD is a whole different animal indeed, we`re just saying it`s a worth build because it`s good ! :-)
DeleteOMG, I (for one, at least), requested this one. So eager to try it out!! Thanks a ton, IvIark!
ReplyDeletesince i love Brian's pedals, i'm going to have to build this one too.
ReplyDeleteBuilt it and I get a massive volume drop but I can hear the overdrive in the signal however faint it may be. It actually sounds good but its maybe 1/20th my regular volume. I went over the layout and everything looks good. Has anyone else built this one yet?
ReplyDeleteSounds like it could be a dodgy solder joint or similar. Can you measure the IC and JFET pins to see if anything stands out
Deletei'm building this one tonight, but it makes me think that something is definitely wrong somewhere on your build. I can't see anything wrong with mark's vero at this point, but i'll reply if mine's okay after it's completed.
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Deletei just finished mine and it works perfectly so you can VERIFY it. with the volume at 12:00 it's at approx unity gain. i'd prefer it to have a bit more like all of my other wampler pedals, but it does sound great.
ReplyDeletethe only thing that i can tell that's different from the original is the mid switch settings. the manual says this: "The bottom
ReplyDeleteposition emphasizes mids in a way that can really thicken up a
guitar tone and put it right out front. The middle position pulls
everything in the midrange back, and gives the overall sound a
glassy character, great for smooth rhythm playing with a touch of
chime. The top position is a sort of balance between the other two,
and o ers a fairly even sounding tone that doesn't push but also
doesn't pull the midrange."
on Mark's vero, the middle position is a mid boost (not pulled back) the top is a mid cut and the bottom position is between the other two.
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ReplyDeleteOkay, i just solved it. the mid contour switch is supposed to be an ON-ON-ON, and not and ON-OFF-ON. and SW2-1 should go to SW2-4 and SW2-6 should go to SW2-3. now mine sounds and works exactly like the original (and its mids sound much better now). with a center off switch, it's way too harsh in the middle position.
ReplyDeletewhat made me realize it is that i noticed that the way that the switch was wired on Mark's layout made no sense for it to be a DPDT if it was a center off type. with that type of wiring, it could have been a SPDT if it was a center off type.
Thanks for the info John. I saw in Harald's schematic that it should be an on/on/on, but he mentioned that in the middle position neither of the circuits were made, and so I thought you may as well just use an on/off/on which people are more likely to have. Thinking of the switch like this:
Delete1---4
2---5
3---6
In the up and down positions the same contacts are made as with the on/off/on (1&2 and 4&5 connected down, 2&3 and 5&6 connected up) and then in the centre position 4&5 and 2&3 are connected. So what it appears from what you say, rather than neither of the circuits connecting to ground, it looks like BOTH need to connect to ground in the centre position? I thought he'd used the opposite poles to those shown based on the description so that neither contact was made, and so meaning you could just use an on/off/on.
Anyway I'll get it changed, thanks for verifying mate.
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DeleteAny alternatives to the J201?
ReplyDeleteIMO, there are but not if you want it to sound and feel exactly like the original. J201's are plentiful and cheap so i'd recommend getting some, but you could also probably use/try 2n5458's or a BF245's.
DeleteBTW, here's a couple of pics of mine, mounted in a 125B:
ReplyDeletehttp://johnkvintageguitars.homestead.com/Effects/Fuzz-ODs/PaisleyDrive/PaisleyDrive-01.jpg
http://johnkvintageguitars.homestead.com/Effects/Fuzz-ODs/PaisleyDrive/PaisleyDrive-02.jpg
Very nice build John, how do you do the white graphics ?
Deletethanks. they're just stickers. i use a brother PT-2100 and use the software that comes with it.
DeleteThat looks great John. I really love the 125Bs, just that little bit extra room over the 1590B, and yet it's so much nicer to work with and can fit a lot of stuff in comfortably that would otherwise be a struggle
Deleteyeah, i could've also easily gotten it into a 1290, but the switches would have had to been up top with the tone knob in the center, and the volume an gain controls below them. the 125B's allow you to mount the switches anywhere since they're deeper. plus i think that the original paisley is mounted in 125B (like the black '65 & tweed '57 etc).
DeleteHey John,
DeleteGreat build. What diagram did you use for the 3DPDT switch? your wiring looks different from the "off board" section. I just finished soldering everything, but I don't get a signal when the switch is engaged, only a blue LED. When the pedal is off it will pass a clean signal. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Mike
I wire all of my switches like this:
Deletehttp://www.generalguitargadgets.com/pdf/ggg_dist_plus_lo.pdf?phpMyAdmin=78482479fd7e7fc3768044a841b3e85a
Thanks John, I'll give it a try... The only thing I'm confused about is were to wire the "output" from the stip board. I'm assuming that the the LED is connected to the "output" wire from the Paisley board. Is this a correct assumption?
DeleteThanks again,
Mike
I don't know what you mean by paisley board? the blue ouptu lead would go to pin 9 of the 3PDT footswitch if you're wiring it like I do. and pin 8 would go to the output jack.
Deletethe led - is connected to pin 6, and pin 5 is ground.
She's ALIVE!!! Turns out my main problem was that I was using NTE 453's instead of J201, the local electronics store only carries the 453's. Anyway, I guess the gate and the source are reversed on the 453's relative to the J201's. Once I figured that out everything worked great!
DeleteI have two last questions for you... if you don't mind.
1) where to you get the green strip board?
2) Are the square caps you use WIMA?
Thanks again for all your help,
Mike
glad to hear that you got it working. ;-)
DeleteI get my green vero locally. the box caps are either made by kemet (the blue ones) or epcos (the off white ones).
Mark
ReplyDeleteDo the J201s need to read 4.5 - 5 volts from drain to ground as in other builds? Is that pretty much a standard for J201s or does it depend on the build?
Thanks
I wouldn't worry about it too much with this. They are just input and output buffers which won't go above unity gain, and should work fine with the values shown.
DeleteCool. Thanks man
ReplyDeleteschematic?
ReplyDeleteFSB
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ReplyDeleteGot this build to work. Sounds awesome! Will replace my Fulltone Fulldrive II clone. Plimsoul up next! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI noticed on a gut shot of a Paisley Drive there are three electrolytics and there is only two on here. Why is that?
ReplyDeleteI just checked Sabro's traced schematic, and there is three 220µ electrolytics in there. The one that isn't included in the layout is the power filter, which isn't necessarily needed. Those are used to tame down the DC ripple effect from low quality wall wart adapters and thus not affect the sound of the circuit at all.
DeleteIf you want one, you could just stick 220µ cap between the 9V strip (after the 100R) and ground. There's not much room for it, but i think you can squeeze it in there...
+m
It already has the power filter cap, the right hand cap is between supply and ground. The original schematic has two separate 1/2 supply networks, one for the first opamp and Q1 and the other for the second opamp and Q2, like the Ecstasy Drive. I thought that was pretty unnecessary for something like this, and someone mentioned (I think on the FSB Ecstasy thread) that the second network made no difference to noise, so I just used a single vref for this one.
DeleteMakes sense..
DeleteJust curious. It wouldn't matter if I swapped the two bottom row wires around, would it ( No cuts in the bottom ground row )? For my enclosure, it would just work out better for the ground on the right and the switch wire on the left. I think it's all the same either way - just wanted to confirm.
ReplyDeleteThanks
No it wont matter, as long as its grounded somewhere along that row.
DeleteCool. Thanks!
DeleteFinishing this one up and noticed from the trace that resistor directly after the 9V is 100R on your layout where it looks to be a 10R on the Wampler. Any difference?
ReplyDeleteIt's just a current limiting resistor for the supply and either value will work fine.
DeleteI don't particularly know why i put the controls in the way i did, but hey it works for me.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah...... The toggle switches where sitting too high in the box !!!
http://ubuntuone.com/6NpnTGXcc2LY4TJNURzofJ
James
Correct please layout. The wire of "Vol1" has to be connected to capacitor plus, not to the ground!
ReplyDeleteI can't understand how Volume pot worked for those who already collected this scheme?
In the original effect the volume pedal voltage divider "grounds" to vbias. But I'm struggling to work out why you don't understand how it could work? The function of the volume pot it to attenuate the signal and so the pot dumps a portion of the signal to ground (or "ground"). There is no difference whether lug 1 connects to ground (as in most effects), or vbias (like a Tubescreamer).
DeleteSo if you really want it verbatim, you could always buy the original pedal. Or if you wanted to make a vero board up that connects lug 1 of the volume pot exactly like the original you could connect it to the positive lead of the 220u (which doesn't have a clear connection on the board because of the 1K resistor), rather than the negative. Or you could just accept that this functions exactly the same no matter which way you do it and enjoy your build.
Try both ways and tell me what difference you can hear.
Thanks! Before collecting, I decided to compare this Layout to the original scheme on freestompboxes and saw this difference. But if it doesn't influence character of the sound, then all OK! Good luck all that who at a stage of assembly of this "tasty" overdriver!
DeleteI built mine asp per Mark's vero. it works perfectly and sounds identical to a friend on mine's original one (2 cents).
ReplyDeleteBuilt this and had a chance to compare to the original. Sounds very good, and very close.
ReplyDeleteTwo differences noted:
1) scoop switch in center position caused a big jump in output. Traced this to on-off-on vs o-o-o, fixed it. I had missed the note regarding this in the comment history. All good now.
2) Presence switch in open position causes a large increase output, brightness, and renders the scoop switch ineffective. I've verified cuts, component placement, etc a few times but haven't been able to resolve. Anyone else with this issue? I am surely missing something simple!
you must have something wired incorrectly. mine certainly doesn't do that and it works exactly like the original.
Deleteas a matter of fact, the presence control is not drastic at all.
DeleteI'm having issues with the mid switch. First, note that on/on/on's come in two layouts. The first one I picked had both settings connected when wired as configured in this layout. That didn't work... gave me horrible fuzz. I found the schem, saw that Sabro said "no connection in middle setting" (which made me wonder why it wasn't an an/off/on too). I switched the pin configuration to make no connection in the middle--now it makes a horrible volume jump when I switch it to the middle--a pop--followed by a very ver quiet tone. I'm a little at a loss here as to how to configure the switch... should it connect both poles to ground in the middle, or nothing?
ReplyDeleteFigured this out... you've got it right, the switch should connect both switched circuits to ground in the middle position, from looking at the schematic. I've got a problem somewhere else in the circuit...
ReplyDeleteWhat voltages are you getting at the IC and JFET pins? That normally gives a good clue. Or an audio probe will show you exactly where the problem arises
DeleteCould i use an ON-ON Dpdt and forgo the middle position? In otherwords, just live with a 2 position contour, which just selects position up and position down, and not use the middle position at all?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAre there any alternatives to 25k reverse log? Can't seem to find a UK supplier without paying over the odds.Dr tweak do a 50k reverse or 10, would those be ok?
ReplyDeletejust use a 50K reverse log with a 25K resistor jumped to lugs 1 & 3.
DeleteShouldn't it be a 50K resistor on 1 and 3 to make it a 25K?
Deleteyeah. oops.
DeleteWow, thanks for that!
ReplyDeleteAny UK stockists of the JRC4580 or is there an equivalent ? Can't seem to find them anywhere .
ReplyDeleteJust use any dual opamp like TL072, JRC4558, NE5532 and it'll be fine!
Deletewhat if I will use DPDT on-on-on in the presence switch? what would be the wiring position?
ReplyDeleteTone1 goes to SW2 and SW5, the other two wires go to SW1/4 or SW3/6. Please report what happens in the mid position;-). Build this today and i´m stunned, what a great circuit! Thanks to Brian (and Mark of course:))!
DeleteHey All,
ReplyDeleteMy first post... And first build! What a great place. Anyway, I just finished soldering everything, but all is not well. In bypass mode I'm able to get a clean signal, but when I engage the pedal all I get is a nice bright blue LED and no sound. I have checked everything over, but obviously I'm missing something. I followed the first diagram in the off board section, should I have done this? At first glance the off board section doesn't seem to match up to http://johnkvintageguitars.homestead.com/Effects/Fuzz-ODs/PaisleyDrive/PaisleyDrive-02.jpg.
Should my pedal work if I follow diagram 1 of the off board section or should the 3DPDT be hooked differently?
Thanks,
Mike
Just built this , sounds awesome as a clean boost on top of the black 65
ReplyDeletehere is a photo on my board where it is staying http://imageshack.us/a/img197/9500/gkoi.jpg
Sounds nice! but the presence switch doesn't works at all, I used a DPDT on-on but on freestompboxes the pics of the original looks like a DPDT on-off http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn81/jaybeemusic/PAISLEYDRIVE-SMALLER-morevalues.jpg
ReplyDeleteMid Contour Switch issue:
ReplyDeleteI purchased a DPDT on/on/on switch from BLMS and it turns out in the center position lugs 1&2 are connected and lugs 5&6 are connected. (I was expecting lugs 2&3 and 4&5 to be connected)
To get the Mid Contour to sound like the demos, I had to move the wire from SW2-3 to SW2-6 and move the wire from SW2-4 to SW2-1.
If you have built one of these and the center position of the Mid Contour switch is louder and harsher than the other 2 positions, chances are the on/on/on switch may be wired incorrectly.
I believe in the center position, all the Mid Contour switch wires should be connected to ground.
Mike
Hi Mike,
DeleteThanks for this post. I did not check the orientation of my DPDT on/on/on switch before building, and after I finished I could tell the sound around the Mid Contour was not right. After reading this post I inspected my switch and found it was just like yours! Thanks for the heads up!
Richard
hi~ i copied this schem, and i used 4558 instead of 4580. but this makes no sounds
ReplyDeleteare these two opamps different seriously?
No that opamp should work fine. Check pin voltages to see if that gives a clue where the problem lies
Deletethankyou for your help. i'll check it now
Deleteoh, could you tell me bias values at each nodes? or as schematic form
DeleteHi! I accidentally bought polarized caps for the 1uF capacitors in this build. Do you think you could help me figure out which way to install them for them to work? I'd rather not have to order new ones because I want to get this build done ASAP and I'd have to order them and wait for shipping.
ReplyDeleteHey check this schematic http://www.sabrotone.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/PaisleyDrive_0_1_schematic.png
DeleteJust reference against that in the layout.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHello there, you can replace an on-on-on DPDT by two on-on SPDT switches side by side. The former will deal with position 1, 2 & 3, the latter will deal with position 4, 5 & 6. With the connection of lug 1 to 2 and lug 5 to 6, you'll even be granted a 4th option equating a center-off-switch which will make the pedal much clearer. It worked fine with me. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for that great layout!!! I've got so much fun with that pedal, man! :-))
ReplyDeleteMine seems to work fine but its not as loud as my other overdrives its low headroom like a ts9. Any way to make it any louder so it can hang with my other pedals?
ReplyDeleteI have the same issue.
DeleteWire in a linear power booster mini board and set it to desired level.
DeleteHello, sorry for my bad English
ReplyDeleteI've built it but it doesn't work, there is literally no sound coming from the pedal (when I say no sound I mean absolutely nothing, even not any noise) despite the fact that I triple check everything. I didn't put it in the box, because I wanted to test the board before.
I have no idea of the mistake I could have done
Hi Gabriel. We need more information. Please post hi res pics and voltages in the "Debugging" section of the Forum and someone will be able to assist you.
DeleteForgot to order a 51p cap. Can I use a 56p?
ReplyDeleteHi, you can even swap it for a 47pF cap. You'll never hear a difference!
DeleteNice pedal, but I like the Wampler Clarksdale much better. Still no schematic for that one... :-(
ReplyDeleteFinally built this. It's great. I played it into my 68' Bassman .. it's super glorious. Just build it, you'll love it.
ReplyDeletewow! thank y friend!
ReplyDeleteI have a question:
I can use a different Opamp??
thanks!!
I was asked if there is a way to increase the gain and sustain on a original Paisley Drive.
ReplyDeleteWould that be a simple as increasing the gain pot to 1M?
http://www.sabrotone.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/PaisleyDrive_0_1_schematic.png
Or by lowering value of R7. Either of those methods might cause oscillation though.
Delete+m
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ReplyDeleteJust finished this and i'm having some problems with the mid switch. No matter how I wire it I end up with the up with one position fat sounding and both other positions brighter, but exactly the same. The pedal works and sounds fabulous, but I can't figure out what's going on with the switch. Could something else be causing it?
ReplyDeleteBR
Ben