Edit. Oops. I made a tiny error on the original layout. Lower electrolytic, the Q2 bypass cap, needs to be minus to ground.. Layout fixed. Should work fine, but the cap will probably die a lot sooner if it is in reverse. Now fixed...
Tuesday, 30 April 2013
1-Knob Fuzz Bonanza
Request. This is just to add the requested Black Arts Toneworks Ritual Fuzz to the library, but i just couldn't resist rewriting Dr. Tony Balls' "Universal One-Knob Silicon Fuzz Layout" and adding the Black Arts' version of this classic to it. So here are 5 currently known adaptations of the almighty 1-Knobber. Adventurous minds could swap the values and get theit own flavour in there.. Simple and small. I sense small box fuzzes coming... :P
Edit. Oops. I made a tiny error on the original layout. Lower electrolytic, the Q2 bypass cap, needs to be minus to ground.. Layout fixed. Should work fine, but the cap will probably die a lot sooner if it is in reverse. Now fixed...
Edit. Oops. I made a tiny error on the original layout. Lower electrolytic, the Q2 bypass cap, needs to be minus to ground.. Layout fixed. Should work fine, but the cap will probably die a lot sooner if it is in reverse. Now fixed...
Mirosol, you are incredible. I can't believe you did all this so quickly. You're the man.
ReplyDeleteCopy-Paste :) I just couldn't make it to 10x8, which really bugs me :P
Delete+m
This is super-awesome. I'm thinking a switchable cap thing and I'll be rocking a Sunmachine 0))))Fuzz. Dunno how to implement a low pass, but I don't think I care much.
ReplyDeleteYou should check out http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.fi/2012/01/dam-meathead-deluxe.html
Delete:)
+m
Awesome! Now where the heck do I find a tp2222a???
ReplyDeleteI think the 2N2222A or MPS2222A should be the same thing.
Delete+m
Verified! After a little tweaking I settled on a kind of DAM/Black Arts hybrid. Basically I used the resistor values from the DAM and the Electrolytic and output cap values from the Black Arts, for the input cap I used a 1uf polybox to try and get every last bit of bass out of my tele that I could (to be fair anything higher than 470nf only really made a difference to the extreme low end) also I used the ceramic cap values from the Meathead. I think I'm right in suggesting that anyone having issues with it being a bit to fizzy at the top end can increase the 47pf cap or add one if using one of the other layouts. It wasn't an issue for me so I haven't really experimented too much. For the trannies I used BC108Cs. If anyone's wondering if they should try this, the answer is unequivocally yes. Yes, yes, yes!
ReplyDeleteTagged! Cheers!
Delete+m
How different do circuits need to be before you can market and sell them as your own? Some of these look like they just changed a capacitor value and called it a day...
ReplyDeleteI think patents run out after 20 years, so a circuit like the Colorsound can be used by anyone without any problems. A lot of boutique companies work like this, find an out of patent circuit, mod it slightly to your liking, charge a lot of money. I don't have that much of a problem with it as there's skill involved in getting a circuit to sound even better than the original, what's worse is when someone rips off a current circuit and claims it's their original work or when people refuse to acknowledge what their designs are based on.
DeleteNone of them are patented anyway, in fact I can only think of a few things used in pedal building that are, things like the Belton bricks. It's all standard electronic principles and fortunately the patent office is unlikely to give anyone control over those.
DeleteArtwork is protected by copyright, names are protected by trademarks, but apart from that these things are basically fair game. It's how they then market it that makes the difference to me, and if someone just takes a Meathead, changes a cap and claims to have invented the next great thing, then he deserves to be seen as liar. And pretty stupid seeing as anything that makes the claim of "new unique design" is bound to be pulled apart within weeks.
Cool, I never realised that none of the circuits were patented. I kind of figured that the PCB design might be protected by copyright and just assumed that the actual circuit would get patented. Oh and I'm fully with you on calling people out who claim to have designed a new product only for it to be seen as a rip off of something else. When you posted the Vemuram Jan Ray layout I was reading up on it a little and read a TGP thread where everyone was harping on about how original it was and what a fantastic designer he must be, these people must have money to burn. I think the worst example of this is Freakish Blues who just bought a load of Joyo pedals, reapainted them and gooped the inside. Stealing a pedal from a company that's already stolen the design from another company has got to be some kind of new low, right?
DeleteOh yes it's a laugh a minute the pedal building industry. Especially the ones who get angry when they get found out :o)
DeleteOh, so when Monte Allums was blowing all that smoke about suing people for using his upgrade designs, he can only hold anyone accountable for replicating his actual instructional document, right? The information within it is public domain. Hmm.
DeleteHe was talking shit, with a caveat. If you sold the upgrade components AS the Monte Allums mod then you would be on potentially dodgy ground because that is more than likely a registered trademark for him. But there are laws outlining the rights of people or companies to mention rival trademarks in their own advertising for comparison purposes, which means you could sell a kit and say it is the same components changes as found in the Monte Allums SD1 mod for instance. That would be no worse legally than him using Boss's trademark when selling his kits by mentioning the pedals it is for. He holds absolutely no rights whatsoever in dictating who can or can't sell a kit of certain value components, and if there is a mod that I think is worth doing for any of the Boss layouts I've done, then I'll definitely be posting the layout on here.
DeleteThis is a good read on the subject.
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DeleteJon (in case you're curious) - "PCB design," depending on what you mean by that, could be protectable, in the US at least. For example, if a builder came up with a new and novel way to lay out components (I'm not as smart, so I can't think of an example), that's probably protectable because it's truly original. Or even the exact way a layout looks (say, for example, components were all placed on a PCB to look like a happy face once placed -- not patentable, but probably copyrightable). But, as far as just the order of electrical components, a builder hasn't created anything "novel," so he can't protect it.
DeleteIt helps me to think of why you can't protect a recipe in the US. If you invent a novel way of cooking (like a microwave), you've got something truly original and can patent it, but if all you're saying is "mix eggs, cream, and sugar and then put it in the oven," it's something that's been said a million times by a million different people and there's nothing "novel" about it, even if you have a little tip, like a drop of vanilla, or slight modification that you think makes your recipe better.
Sorry guys, probably way information than anyone wanted. My lawyer brain couldn't help by comment. And now I'm hungry for dessert.
This is a brilliant idea. I'm quite new to this blog but man, you guys are awesome. I'm going to socket everything and try different values for everything!
ReplyDeleteSocket all the caps, change all the resistors to trim pots (except the first 1k), use a 100u and 22u (since their values don't matter too much in this circuit) and go to town on this thing. Oh and get 10 of each 2n2222, 2n4123, bc108, 2n3904, measure hfe and test them out. This is a circuit I've done a ton of work with over the years...tons of fun!
ReplyDeleteIsn't the 1k the "gain" resistor?
DeleteI know the thing with these is tht they're always at full fuzz, but wouldn't reducing the 1k res also reduce the fuzz/distortion?
Using a pot for the 1k resistor will definitely act as a fuzz control, just like the Fuzz Face.
DeleteExactly, so if I wanted to keep it a one knobber I could replace 1k with -say- a 560R I'd get a one knob, lower gain Meathead or One Knob etc? I did't articulate the original post very well :)
DeleteI reckon so, nothing to stop you from increasing increasing it either :D I've heard some good fuzzes with 2k there. Not tried it in this circuit though.
DeleteIt's a 3 row span, so perfect to replace with a 2K trimmer, set a you like it and forget.
DeleteSilly question probably, but should the trimmer be adopted would it make any sense/difference to have the 10uF cap between row 6 and 7 (with a cut on row 7 to its right, under the link) instead of having it between rows 6 and 8 as per the 1k resistor version? The cap goes from lug 2 to ground in the classic FF circuit but to be fair I'm not sure whether there is a particular reason behind it..?!
DeleteOoh there's something amiss there. The 1K and cap should be at Q2 emitter not Q1?
DeleteBut in answer to your question you would ideally want trimmer lug 3 at Q2 emitter, lug 2 connected to the positive lead of the (whatever value) electrolytic cap is in parallel with the 1K, lug 1 to ground along with the negative lead of the cap.
Ha, no there isn't I've just noticed how he's done it, ignore me :o)
DeleteWanted to have fun with this tomorrow and just realized I ran out of snappable sockets! :(
DeleteLooking at the Ritual Fuzz as an example, remove the 1K and put a 2K trimmer at row 6 column 1, row 7 column 3 (or column 2 depending on which type of trimmer you're using), and row 8 column 1.
DeletePut a cut to the left hand side of the 820R resistor, then put the 10u cap from row 7 column 6, to row 6 column 6. It needs reversing though so that the negative side it at the top (that is true no matter whether you do this mod or not).
Yep, that's how I was looking at it. That and an input cap selector would probably make for my favourite configuration. Time to order those sockets and look forward to some play time :)
DeleteWent with the original Colorsound one here to start out, sounds great. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteAwesome, looks like endless possibilities here! I noticed that some values on the Meathead differs from your older layout, are there different schematics on the same circuit or have you made some changes? Not that it does matter, since it gives more options to play around with, but I'm a bit curious!
ReplyDeleteDon't really know where the values came from. I just used the ones on the layout/schematic/BOM file i found on FSB.
Delete+m
Did the colorsound
ReplyDeleteI kept all the stock values but put 2n2222a instead of BC108.
This little beast sounds amazing, a keeper !
my buid :
http://nsa33.casimages.com/img/2013/05/05/130505111344648141.jpg
http://nsa33.casimages.com/img/2013/05/05/13050511144944540.jpg
nice :)
DeleteJust did the standard Meathead with a 2n3904 in Q1 and a BC550 in Q2 and I had to change my pants after the first riff!
ReplyDeleteThis comment makes me want to do this one now...maybe make the circuits switchable with a DPDT, since they are quite tiny after all.
DeleteSo I did this tonight and can verify I almost shit my pants as well. Sick nasty stuff. I did notice the volume level across the range of the pot was MUCH lower on the Meathead compared to Colorsound. Probably going to try out the Dark version tonight too, using same transistor combo. Will report back.
DeleteThis is a noob question but what are the red and beige/mustard items on the layouts.. Am I correct to assume these are non polarized caps?
ReplyDeleteYes, non-polarized. The red are typically film caps and beige are ceramic, though you can use either or.
DeleteBuilt a middle of the road one knob Fuzz Face/Meathead with a gain trimpot using the layout and is a pretty good sounding unit, although I haven't fallen in love with it. It does seem to dampen the highs a fair bit and doesn't have a huge amount of volume.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I'm surprised at how well it cleans up when I roll the guitar volume back.
I used a BC107 as Q1 and a BC108 as Q2. Have omitted the ceramic caps but will put at least one on Q1 to see how it affects the sound, there is a bit of fizz going on I wouldn't mind smoothening. The volume pot is 1M as I ran out of 470Ks.
Couldn't play around too much as I ran out of sockets, might go grab some snappables tomorrow and do it all over again. I do like the sound of the original Meathead and should be fun to see what variations can be had!
Interesting that you say it doesn't have a whole lot of volume. I did the standard Meathead and I hit unity at about a quarter turn.
DeleteWhat's the best way to add a Fuzz Pot to this layout?
ReplyDeleteReplace the 1K resistor with a pot
DeletePerfect, thanks Ivlark!
DeleteDid the dark meathead with bc108s. There's some unpleasant note decay at times, which is what always kept me from boxing my old colorsound build.
ReplyDeleteI had the same issue with my Colorsound but kinda just liked the nastiness of it for what it was ( for me anyway ). If you look back at the comments for the colorsound, there are some suggestions for which resistors might help with biasing ( which I think the decay issue is ) that you could apply here. Not sure if it makes a difference, but in my original meathead build, I used a bc107/bc108 combo and there's not a ton of decay unpleasantness ( just a tad ).
DeleteI'm certainly no expert, but I spent a fair amount of time swapping out different transistors in with this circuit and it seemed like with lower gain transistors in Q2 I was getting less sustain and a sort of sputtering decay. I don't currently have a way to measure hfe so I just put a 2n3904 in Q1 and ended up with a BC109 in Q2. I'm assuming this is the point of the intentional gain mismatch in fuzz face type circuits.
DeleteI wish I understood how these work.
ReplyDeleteCheck this out, it may help...
Deletehttp://www.geofex.com/article_folders/fuzzface/fftech.htm
Yeah I had a look at that, I'm just not techy enough to understand what he's saying!
DeleteSo I'm coming along on a nice clean build of the Black Arts version of this circuit and I have some 2n2222 transistors I'd like to use.. Will I use both of them or are they just used in place of the BC108?
ReplyDeleteAm I to understand that the left most transistor is the BC107 and the one to the right is the BC108 on these circuits? I'm sorry if this is a dumb question. I ask so many. But, I am improving my skills thanks to this site.
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ReplyDeleteJust finished the 1966. It sounds like a forest of angry hornets are attacking your amp. Luckily, this is exactly what I was looking for.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHello, I am just slightly confused about the colorsound fuzz, I made the one in your original layout and it shows an 82R resistor instead of the 820R resistor on this new layout, i'm just wondering if i am misreading something or if this is not a critical value.
ReplyDeleteI did the meathead.
ReplyDeletehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/tomkogut/meathead_zps092910ee.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v355/tomkogut/meathead2_zpsb9a034a9.jpg
sounds great! classic fuzz sound.
i also did the black arts with a 1u for input and output and a 2k trim for a bit more fuzz and holy cow, playing bass through that thing is just freaking poop-your-pants brutal.
Nice man. I'm going to try what you did with the blackarts one. Just want to make sure I change the correct parts. The 2k trim replaces the 2k resistor, and the 1uF replaced the 680nF (input cap) and the 220nF (output cap).
Deletehow do you mount your led without a led holder?
DeleteHey John, those part changes are correct except the 2k trim replaces the 1k resistor in the bottom left corner. That's the fuzz control. Leave the 2k resistor alone.
DeleteKT the 3mm led I used has a little shoulder on it and I have a 3mm drill bit that makes a hole just big enough for top part of the led to pop through. Then I hot glue the back.
Daaaaaaaamn! I'm gonna be all over this!
ReplyDeleteOK, just socketed the board and built the Colorsound 1 knob Fuzz version. Sounds pretty tasty through my little 10w solid state but I think it may be a bit much for the poor thing haha. I badly need to get this onto my rig, pronto!
DeleteI had to sub Q1 and 2 for BC109s as I didn't have any 107s/8s, also had to sub some of the resistor values for slightly different ones made up of two resistors:
As a result the 820R is now 830R (470R+360R), and
150K is now 147K (100K+47K).
Just out of interest; I have the option to make it 153K instead with a 120K+33K, if I were to use this combination in place of the 147K combo, what would be the result?
One thing I noticed with this circuit was a bit of note decay/gating creeping in sooner than I'd like at times - I notice a few others on here have had the same thing. I'm guessing it's because not enough signal is there to keep the transistors open. If that is the case, how can I improve the signal level to stop this happening? Possibly different transistors?
I have a load of 5088, 5458, 5457, 2222 and some others (3902/4 i think) that I'd like to find a use for. Would any of these make decent subs for one or both of the 109s in my circuit?
Thanks again for these layouts, you guys do an amazing job and I'm learning a ton from this site!
Tested it out today at practice on my Matamp GT1. Damn that Colorsound is a beast.....loud and angry!! For what I need though it's a bit too bassy, I know a smaller input cap would clean up the sound a bit, but is there anything else I could do to it to make it cut through the mix a bit more?
DeleteWIDOWS you can also put a smaller cap on the output. Even a high pass filter combo (cap and resistor) might clean up the bottom end for you on the input. This will stop unwanted bass frequencies hitting the clipping circuit.
DeleteJack Orman has a great calculator here http://www.muzique.com/schem/filter.htm
Guitars get nice and full around 240Hz but anything under that will easily start to blend in with bass and kick drums giving some mud. You could use a 47nf cap with a 10K resistor and only let through frequencies above ~340Hz and in a band situation you should find this starts to clear the air a bit more. As it stands it's letting through frequencies down towards maybe 150Hz and this is a mud zone in a good mix.
Is it possible to add a fuzz and tone control to the Ritual fuzz? If so, how would I do it?(I'm a bit new to vero/stripboard building, sorry) I love the sound of it, but I want a bit more versatility. That, and I only have a 1590BB enclosure sitting around and I want it to take up a bit more space than just one knob. :)
ReplyDeleteFor a Fuzz control swap the 1K resistor for a 1K pot, and if you want to add a simple tone control look at Mark Hammer's stupidly wonderful tone control, or Jack Orman's take on it:
Deletehttp://www.muzique.com/lab/swtc.htm
or
http://www.muzique.com/lab/swtc3.htm
Build the DAM Meathead today as I had 30 mins spare after lunch. Didn't have any BC107/108s available, so experimented with what I had. The combination I have now is BC547 for the transistor on the left, and an old metal bodied 2N2369 for the one on the right.
ReplyDeleteThe sound; awesome! Sounds like a high gain amp with everything turned up full. Sustains for ever - play a chord and it takes about 30 seconds for the notes to fully fade out - with none of the nasty decay artifacts.
I've also added the 2k trim pot instead of the 1k resistor, which acts as a great fuzz control, so much so that I'm going to change it for an external pot when I box it up.
If anyone has these transistors lying around, give them a try! I''m surprised such a simple circuit can sound so great. Next job is to build it into the smallest enclosure possible ...
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DeleteBuilt this Meathead a while back. Just forgot to post it. I love it!
ReplyDeletehttp://instagram.com/p/V-n-G4h5Mo/
I tried two separate 22nf caps on the meathead and with both the sound went away, so I opted to go with the 220Nf of the colorsound. Does anyone have any idea why this is happening?
ReplyDeleteI am thinking about building this using DIP switches for all the components. For the transistors, would I be able to just change the path of the emitters or will reverse flow through the base--> collector be an issue and affect the tone?
ReplyDeletehere is my try on the meathead http://youtu.be/OaWwL5uf0eg
ReplyDeleteI used couple of bc108/s
also gave the colorsound one a try... sounds great to my ears, this may even get a box. here is the test run http://youtu.be/CO4KSlvPOXY
DeleteDumb question, what does the ceramic disk capacitors do/change tone wise on these circuits?
ReplyDeleteIt's used to tame the high pitch oscillation that may occur. Bigger the value, more highs it will cut.
Delete+m
i see a Meathead version with BC 108 and 109 on you tube, sounds awesome. Need to find that link again. Any changes on circuit with BC108 and 109?
ReplyDeleteAlmost all silicon transistors are interchangeble, so any NPN type can be used. Just mind the pinout.
Delete+m
my build of the DAM Meathead Dark:
ReplyDeletehttp://imageshack.us/a/img12/5985/uk9j.jpg
Ritual Fuzz: i have one 680nf tantalum, what is the positive and negative orientation i can use on this layout?
ReplyDelete- to input and + to base.
Delete+m
I like these small enclosures! :D
ReplyDeletehttp://imageshack.us/a/img31/9775/0675.JPG
Are these the types of trim pots that you are using in the Ritual Fuzz?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-x-2K-OHM-Trimpot-Trimmer-Pot-Variable-Resistor-6mm-/250881839553?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a69b911c1
I ordered a few but was sent these which will work but I've had to wire them off board as they are a bit too big.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/X-5-pcs-potentiometer-2-2k-2k2-horizontal-preset-trim-pot-variable-resistor-/261265130887?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item3cd49d8587
Cannae wait to get it finished off!
The first link are the ones you are after, pal.
Deletehi, i tried to build a meathead as first pedal project ever. but i always have this HIGH OSCILLATION if i do not strum a chord. i already built it twice, checked components, wiring... anyone had the same problem & fixed it? stuck with it for four days now.
ReplyDeletesame here. with humbucker, no oscillation. when i switch to a single coil, it oscillates like mad. did you happen to figure it out? i used bc108's. i'm going to swap them out for other transistor types and see if that does the trick.
DeleteOkay this one made me feel like an utter idiot. It's such a small board, how hard could it be? Well, really hard if you accidentally swap the 820 ohm resistor for an 820 KILO ohm! Took me a while to catch that one.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it's working now. Sounds great. Some nice snappy fuzz.
I've done the same thing!!
DeleteTried (first build) 3 times and I can't figure out why I get nothing.
Now I have to wait till tomorrow to get the right resistors :(
I finally got round to building one of these today. I used the transistors from the ritual and the cap and resistor values from the dark meathead. I ended up swapping the 120k resistor for a 100k one just because I didn't have any 120k lying around. It sounds awesome! Really good for sludgy, disgusting riffage.
ReplyDeleteNoob question, where does the 'output' from the offboard wiring go to on the circuit?
ReplyDeleteVolume 2
DeleteThought so, thanks!
DeleteI just finished building a second Ritual Fuzz for a friend of mine but while using the same components I ended up getting a very muffled sound. Troubleshooting with an audio probe indicated towards the 10 uF emitter bypass cap. Reversing or lower the value didn't help a bit but leaving it out gave better results.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering what the typical effects are leaving this cap out and if there are any other options to get closer to the original Ritual sound because right now it lacks some volume and gain...
Meathead Dark, first ever stripboard build, is a success!
ReplyDeleteHowever, in all schems I've seen (and another clone of mine) the input cap as 47, not 470nf. It still manages to be bassy.
Is the Ritual's input cap REALLY 680nf then?
It will be 680n, it's just they've used something unnecessarily high
DeleteHey. Excellent resource with clear and concise instructions and images. I have built the Ritual and both meatheads and along with other posters i have a keen interest in the note decay and lack of sustain on the one knob fuzzes. There have been some great thoughts on this but I am wondering is there is a specific mod the the Meathead where the sustain can be increased. To keep it simple, if somebody was to build the meathead to the exact spec above what can be changed to increase the sustain, decay time? I think a lot of people new to this like myself would really benefit from a specific mod to increase the sustain on one of the above builds. Cheers!
ReplyDeleteHave you tried different transistors? I would definitely recommend with the vast majority of these builds to use headers so you can socket the transistors and try a few out. I've build quite a few Meatheads now, some have sounded a bit splatty and gated but a few, and one in particular, sounded immense with bags of sustain. It's just a case of getting the perfect match of components IMO, and the thing that will have the biggest impact considering the close tolerances on most common passive components, is the transistors.
DeleteTry a few different types. Lower gain, higher gain, try lower gain for Q1, higher gain for Q2 etc etc. I bet with your build now you will get very different results if you experiment with a few things and see what works with your gear and your ears.
Brilliant mark thanks. Just what I needed! A definitive nudge in the right direction. So the hfe of a tran is what I need to be concerned with at this stage. Thanks for the quick response.
ReplyDeletejust built 2 more Meats following the advice Mark and the sustain is a vast improvement, Used 547c and 108c and 2 2n3904's. Great stuff
ReplyDeleteHi, I just discover this page and I'm in love with it.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know the veroboard and you fantastic way to layout it.
I'll make some bass effects as soon as I learn to play the bass.
In the minetime and just for playing with the DIYLC I copy this layout and could make ti in 10x8 (as you say in the first comment).
You can see it here: http://www.tochi.com.ar/OneKnobFuzz.png
I add 2 cuts and move some components near de Vol 3 connection.
Thank,
Tochi.//
A PBC layout can be protected as original "artwork" but s circuit is up for grabs.
ReplyDeleteGreat work on these, thanks!
hi, i am trying to build a no-knob fuzz like the bat oath. could you make a layout or give me some more info to get started? thanks!
ReplyDeleteNot sure. If it's a ritual, just without the volume know, you can replace the pot with a resistor that will give you unity volume when engaged. If need be I can draw up a layout and post if under the contributions for you later.
Deletethank you very much, that would be great! from what i found on the web it's based on another bat pedal, the revelation super bass. i have several photos of the inside of the pedal with the resistors,capacitors etc showing, but not the connections' side. perhaps that could help drawing a layout?
ReplyDeleteYea. Post that over under the request section and I'll take a look. Hopefully Either I or someone else can figure it out and get a layout build.
ReplyDeletethank you so much.
ReplyDeletei built the colorsound fuzz using bc 547b & 548b and replaced the volume pot with a 470k resistor.
it sounds great!
hi there!πολλούς κοινούς φίλους έχουμε!από που είσαι?
Deletehey! (sorry for the OT)
Deleteαπό θεσσαλονίκη.
good!me too. we could talk through mail if you want. medericma@yahoo.gr
Deletemy name is Savvas.
i was wondering, if i was to add another transistor to the ritual to give it even more gain and boost how would the schematic change? should i add more components to it?
ReplyDeleteSo I've made a couple of the Meatheads (standard and dark) and I've just noticed as I make another that I'm using a 120R resister instead of the 120K!!
ReplyDeleteStill sounds great, will it make a huge difference?
I built the ritual, and it sounds decent, but the volume is nowhere near unity.
ReplyDeleteI double checked my components and tracks.
The only change I made was a 2.2k resistor in place of a 2k. Could that be causing the volume issue?
I decided to try my hand at the Ritual circuit, but I did it on perf board because that's all I had on hand. The pedal works for the most part, but when I roll off the guitar volume (to say 7 or less) I lose a lot of low end and at higher gain I even get what sounds like a bit of a ring mod (if not screechingly bright). I'm playing through a strat with passive pups. I used ceramic capacitors instead of the metal films, and I had to use 470 nF for the Miller cap instead of 680 nF.
ReplyDeleteWould anyone be willing to comment on why I might be losing so much high end when reducing the input voltage? Thanks in advance.
I've tried building the Ritual three times and it works but when I use the guitar's volume Tom lean it up, I just get noise and occasionally it picks up the radio. I've got short connections, everything is grounded, any help would be appreciated.
ReplyDeletesmallish cap from the input wire to ground, I've gone as high as 10n with little effect on the sound
DeleteI tried between 1n and 10n, neither helped. I think I'll try a Meathead instead. Thanks for the tip though.
ReplyDeleteNo problem, good luck!
DeleteI finally got the Ritual working but I swapped out the 1k resistor for a 1k pot. Only half of the pot works and the other kills all signal. I have lug 1 wired tone Q1 emitter and lug 2 to the bottom row. Did I wire it up wrong?
ReplyDeleteI don't think so. I swapped the same 1k resistor for a 2k linear trim pot and the first 5th of the sweep kills the signal too. Any further though and you go from nothing to trouser ripping fuzz doom. I am using the Ritual Fuzz parts values and 2N2222A transistors with hfe of about 200.
DeleteAnyone know if the nothing/everything sweep of this trim pot is also normal? Or do you get more gradation when using a low gain Q1 (e.g., HFE of 75 or so)?
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Deleteconnect 1k pot:
Deletelug 3 to Q2 emiter and 120k or 150k point
lug 2 to positive side of 10mf capacitor
lug 1 to ground
I've finished a ritual fuzz but with BC108 as Q1 and 2n2222 as Q2 but it's very loud - unity gain at 9 o'clock or less. It's also pretty noisy, although my guitar is poorly grounded. Any ideas or is that how it should sound? Any ways of lowering the noise floor?
ReplyDeleteHave you put it in an enclosure? Often when they are not shielded by being surrounded by metal they are a lot noisier than they would be otherwise. Maybe just try with another guitar/set up. If you have a particularly unflattering set up it might be less than ideal.
Deletei built a ritual and it is unbelievably loud, like big muff loud, so i don't see an issue there. as far as the noise, it can be a little noisey depending on the instrument i have it plugged into. i would think the poor grounding of the guitar is part of the issue with obsessive noise, that is if you don't have it boxed.
DeleteYeah if you're having issues with noise when boxed, you can try grounding the input and output jacks with shielded wire? Google that, I can't remember exactly how to do it heh.
DeleteThanks guys. The effect is boxed but I wondered whether strongly mismatched transistors (Q1 is 75 hfe; Q2 is 207) could have been the reason but you say it's supposed to be loud anyway. Is there a way to reduce the gain on the circuit? I will work on the guitar grounding in the meantime.
DeleteYeah make sure that the input and output wires between the 3PDT, jacks and PCB are as short as possible. Maybe just experiment with transistors to bring the gain down? I'm not too sure.
Deleteto lower the overall gain change the 820ohm resistor. the lower the value the less raunchy it will be. you will also lose some volume, which really isn't a problem as this has massive output.
Deleteside note, i think the stock value for the original one knob fuzz varied between 82ohm and 1k.
DeleteHi there, where is the output
ReplyDeletehi,
Deletelug2 of the volume pot is the output.
thank you
DeleteI built the Ritual, using 2n2222a transistors. I also tried 2n4401 and 2n3904 and settled on the 3904. The 2222a had a little more highend and wasn't as round, they were too edgy.
ReplyDeleteCircuit is very loud.
Hi there ! I've done the Ritual fuzz, but When I plug the guitar I have a big buzz and no sound comming from the guitar, when the switch is engaged or not. The effect is not boxed and when I reverse the input and output jack cable I've got a tiny sound when the effect is off but nothing when it's on. Even when I don't connect the switch :/ (I moded the 1K resistor with a On-ON-ON switch) I don't understand.. Somebody to help me ?
ReplyDeleteI redo the effect, and now I have a kind of oscillation (like a helicopter) when I plug the 9V. I have a little sound from the guitar and when the 9V was unplugged, the circuit breaker has tripped ! I really don't understand the problem. Here's somes pics;
Deletehttp://www.hiboox.fr/go/images/divers/p1000969,e2a3df3d331f8b5cd54f2061ab02261b.jpg.html
http://www.hiboox.fr/go/images/divers/p1000973,c4b6301e395e364ebb0650fad4184fad.jpg.html
Thank's guys !
by looking at it, I think the problem is cold solder joints
Deletehi, you could check for unwanted bridges, do a couple of passes with a sharp knife on the back side of the veoroboard and you could also check for cold solder joints, or since it's a small circuit relfow everything. prior to that, test the hfe values of the transistors and make sure it's not a faulty one.
ReplyDeletehope it helps.
Built the ritual and just getting farty fuzz that crackles off into static.have tried the usual suspects(bridges,cold joints,etc.)and no changes
ReplyDeleteAny thoughts?
So frustrated!can build a big build off of parasite site with no problem and can't even get a one knob fuzz to work! :/
Oh dammit!I had used 820k instead of 820!
DeleteFeel silly,but hey,easy fix.sounds great now!
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DeleteHi,I am little confused due to comments..so bat ritual circuit works fine and it is final,right? Sounds what it supposed
ReplyDeleteThese are positive center 9v right? Anyone know where i can find out how to convert pedals to -9v center?
ReplyDeleteNot quite sure what you mean.
DeleteHave a read:
http://tagboardeffects.blogspot.fi/2014/08/negative-and-positive-ground-effects.html
+m
Hey mirosol thanks for all your recent help and advice I really appreciate it and im a big fan of your work ;)
DeleteI was wondering if you could do a quick layout for the effector 13 test pattern.
Hhttp://i.imgur.com/nb5TBal.pngre is a link for the schematic.
Looks easy enough. I'll draw it in a few days..
Delete+m
Just built the Ritual Fuzz. Damn. Such a perfect tone for Doom and Stoner. Tons of lows and low-mids. Looking forward to running a bass through it. Thank you, mirosol!
ReplyDeleteHere's a demo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BioDC-oHF4&list=PLQe4mkX6q4Yu8-sa39STJz6eaIClo5Lzs&index=11
Hey I built the tony balls pedal, and it works, but it is really quiet even at full volume. Any ideas what's wrong?
ReplyDeleteThere is also a hiss when turned up
DeleteJust finished the Ritual fuzz. Love the sound. Thick and creamy fuzz. Not too much noise and no problem with lack of sustain. Only downside is the LED is not working. I fear I used a 2m2 instead of a 2k2 on the led.
ReplyDeleteI just build the Ritual but have some issues with power source. Using a 9V batteri the effect is perfectly quiet and great sounding. However, using a power supply (from a TC pedal) there is a huge amount of noise, both hiss, hum and what not (strangely, the noise stops when i start playing). What can I be doing wrong?
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking about putting the 1966 into the body of a Teardrop replica, but am a bit confused about the connexions. I'm using a push/pull, post volume... Am I right to think both blue wires go to the top part of the pot (on 1 & 3) and that the 2 goes to the bottom part of the pot, upper-right lug?
ReplyDeleteNice quick and fun layout. Just used this layout to make quite the unorthodox fuzz face thing. I found a calculator online (http://www.diystompboxes.com/analogalchemy/emh/emh.html fuzz face on the left side)
ReplyDeleteand I used it to put in some pretty weird values. I used a pair of 327 Hfe BC337-25s. http://puu.sh/yI9dY/1f9b2e4f85.png was the final version.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PDyD0jXwWM Here is an embarrassing video of how it sounds, but I didn't want to push it as its quite late here, so one take, no warm up through a 5C1 fender champ clone.
As always thanks for the layout Mirosol.
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ReplyDeletei built a the ritual fuzz and it sounds good but after some time the fuzz deceases and disappears in a unpleasant way like a fart when it should sustain more. i think its some kind of a biasing problem. i try to change the 10k resistor to a 20k pot to play with the voltage that gets to the collector of the transistor and im getting more and more interesting and usable sounds, but i keep having the deceising fart sound instead of sustain. what is going wrong? help please
ReplyDeleteSame for me... when playing is fine but the release has wet fart sound to it
DeleteI've built the ritual, and it sounds badass! That is however, when it's not screeching high pitched and horrible when i'm not playing, what's wrong with it? No cold solder or anything, surely this couldn't be just from not being encased? Ground connection is unresponsive to anything else.
ReplyDeleteI built the Meathead and the Colorsound. My first attempt was the Meathead on vero. It worked first go around but the volume is very low, even at full, and it sounds like the high frequencies are completely rolled off. In fact, so much that my guitar tone knob has virtually no effect on the tone. On the bright side, I get a very thick and long sustaining fuzz. I decided to try it on breadboard so I could swap values of components and try the other versions. First on the BB was the original Colorsound vs. It fired up on the first go but has the same exact issues as the Meathead on vero - low volume and no highs.
ReplyDeleteIt was late and I didn't get a chance to swap out transistors and component values, but I thought I would see if anyone here has experienced this or similar, and if so, what was their solution.
So far both builds have been to the letter on the components and the transistors Ive tried so far are bc108 with hfe between 216 and 265. Swapping trannies in Q1 and Q2 didn't seem to make any difference in the way the fuzz sounds or how long it sustains.
If I can get this to be way less dark and the volume issue fixed, it will be one great sounding fuzz.
Thanks in advance for any help!
Hi mate. Double check transistor orientation and make sure those pf caps aren't nf. Good luck!
DeleteI’ll double check everything tonight. I’m 100% sure the caps are correct but I’ll check em anyways. As for the Transistors, I’m not aware that they would even pass signal if they were reversed. I’ll check those too, but I remember taking time to make sure they are properly oriented. I’ll report back later once I’ve tried a few more options. Anyways, thanks for the help!
ReplyDeleteNo worries. Yeah a reversed transistor can lower the volume. If you've breadboarded it won't be a solder bridge or something so it's probably an incorrect component. I've had that volume problem that turned out to be a pinout issue. Take care.
DeleteSo I checked the pin out and all values. I tried a few variations of values. A few changes gave me a slight improvement on the tone, but the volume issue continues to illude me. At full volume on the 500k pot I’m still about 8db lower than my clean amp signal. It figures that one of the most basic fuzz circuits is the one to mess with me.
ReplyDeleteReally odd mate are you using the same 500k pot for all the builds? Maybe faulty. You should be getting a ton of volume. Can you post your transistor voltages?
ReplyDeleteI think I’ve figured out the problem. I think I neglected to cut the trace where the 220nf connects to lug 3 on the volume pot. I’m not home so I can’t yet confirm this, but after taking another look at the layout it dawned on me that I probably didn’t drill out the copper at this point on my vero build. I’ll check it tonight and report back.
ReplyDeleteYep! I forgot to cut the trace. Holy cow, this is one great sounding fuzz!!!! Gain and sustain for daaaaaasssays! Thanks for the help guys.
DeleteMade up for ya man! Love those light bulb moments that payoff
ReplyDeleteI built the Meathead Dark using a BC550 and a 2N2222. This thing sounds sweet..
ReplyDeleteThanks Mirosol! Made a Black Arts and it sounds amazing. My first build ever. Thanks again from Brazil!
ReplyDeletemade the DAM meathead and it sounds awesome. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteHere's my demo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd7IOF5xkYM
Settled with BC549C for Q1 ( 430 hFE ) and for Q2 BC239C ( 392 hFE ) 1K turned 4.4K. The trick that allows you to use a wide range of transistors and hFE combination and adjust gain/fuzz is to have a 5K trimmer in the place of the 1k resistor and 10K trimmer for 82R. With that you can adjust gain and fuzz for a wide range of transistors and hFE combinations. Mine sounds very, very dark and still cleans very well.
ReplyDeleteBuilt the ritual! It's bad ass! Messed around with different transistors, 2n5088 and mpsa18, both sound gnarly!
ReplyDeleteI do get am radio though when I turn my guitar volume off when the pedal is engaged, weird!
insert a resistor (anything from 3K to 10K will do) between your guitar signal and the input cap. experiment with different values cause it will remove some if the gnarlyness :)
Deleteif it's boxed already you can install it near by the 3d3p switch.
I have the exact same issue with mine, that I just built. I will try the resistor and report later
DeleteTried a few different combo's with the Meathead layout. Had a 5k pot on the 1k resistor and a 5k pot on the 4.7k resistor. I'll be adding a 5k pot for the 820R resistor later. Socketed the transistors and the 47pF.
ReplyDeleteI tried various combo's of BC547-550, 2n3904, 2n5088, MPSA18, PN2222A, 2SK30, and "J201s". My eBay "J201s" didn't work (flipped the G & S pins), but I expected that.
The only combo's that didn't work were placing a BC548 or 2SK30 in the left transistor, but they work fine in the other one. The 2SK30 has a real dark sound to it when used and dialed in. Didn't have any other N-channel FETs to throw at it currently.
Using the BC550 and the PN2222A is a nice, full sounding fuzz for me and my setup. I might come back to experiment later with it.
This is amazing. Thank you! I have been messing with caps and transistors for the last few evenings. My ears aren't great so sometimes I don't spot much of a difference! But messing with the input cap definitely effects bass. I'd like to experiment by adding a trim pot and eventually a pot in place of the 1K resistor as mentioned in a few comments above but I have never used one before. I have one here and see it has three legs - can anyone suggest exactly how I would wire this into my existing vero in place of the 1K please?
ReplyDeleteI have both of these to hand:
https://www.bitsbox.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=94_95_319&products_id=2222
https://www.bitsbox.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=94_95_96&products_id=695
Appreciate the help!
I'm having an issue with the ritual fuzz. It works fine when it has some sort of buffer infront (boss GE7), but when plugging my single-coil directly, the fuzz level really drops.
ReplyDeleteAny one have an idea of what could be the problem?