Info about the original:
The Hummingbird is, at heart, a hard and choppy tremolo. What comes out is more akin to vintage synth style oscillations. It's core is based on the old Vox Repeat Percussion with several updates to reduce noise, enhance the "chop" and add more control. It can create ring mod-like octaves, slow pulses, ping pong delay-like stutters, light blipping through machine gun stutter tremolo and many more wacky sounds!
Controls:
Depth- Controls amount of modulation from barely there to full signal chop.
Rate- Controls the speed of the LFO
Level- controls the input/output level
Mode- fast/slow switch for LFO rate
I can't remember if I ever got around to ordering the 2n2646s, if I haven't I'm definitely going to now. This looks a lot more versatile than the Repeat Percussion.
ReplyDeleteI ordered 14 for some bizarre reason! :o)
Delete£3?!! £3 for a single f***ing transistor?!
DeleteDamn you ebay! *shakes fist*
DeleteI hope you got them cheaper than I can find them for Mark.
DeleteSend me your address on FB and I'll send you one
DeleteCheers! I can't imagine I've got much that you'd need, but if you think I might just say the word.
DeleteHoly Moly! I bought fifty 2N2546 from The States last year to do a Repeat Percussion for ten dollars! If anyone wants any please ask.
DeleteHate to name drop but there is a certain Spacemen 3 guitarist friend of mine who's going to love this!
Could i have one of those 2N2546 from you IvIark? im just sayin. Greetings from Mexico
DeleteSend your address to guitarfx at hotmail dot co dot uk and I'll send you one, but only because I love Javier Hernandez (sorry Rick) and thought Mexico and Mexicans were awesome on my honeymoon! :o)
DeleteThe free shop is now closed though or I can see this going on :o)
hey beaker, can i get one of those?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI'd love some of those trannys, if it's no trouble at all to you Beaker.
DeleteEmail my your address Christian, and I'll sent you a few.
DeleteSorry guys but sent out quite a few trannys now so can't afford any more requests for more.
DeleteIvIark thank you for the transistor finally the one that you send me arrived this week, maybe the postal service is not as good as in your country, i will be working on this and i will let you know how its going thanks man
DeleteHoly shit! A whole nyear???? Sheer madness!
DeletePor lo que veo, los servicios de correos funcionan igual en todo el mundo :P
Wow, I could have rowed there myself in that time! :)
DeleteMore EQD stuff please! Hoof would be awesome!!!!
ReplyDeleteOk, built this up this afternoon, works as it should but not as quiet as my vox repeater, i`m getting a pulsing whistle from it, a j201 made it slightly quieter and a mpf102 made it really quiet but highest level was below unity. I`ll see what it`s like when boxed. Is it better than the Vox? IMHO, no. It`s basically the Vox with a level control but without the tone switch. Build the Vox, experiment with caps for the rate switch and use your guitar volume for the level control.
ReplyDeleteThe problem I have with the VOX is that it is really loud. As soon as it's engaged, the volume jumps significantly. I took it out again last night after the Hummingbird was posted and it sounds fantastic, but the volume thing bugs me. Any cure you know of for that?
DeleteAdd a little volume daughterboard addon, set the level you want and forget. As per the bottom of the Offboard page.
DeleteHoly crap, how simple is that? Simple and elegant. I never noticed it before. I need to pay more attention. Thanks.
DeleteHave to agree with Dexxyy.
DeleteExtremely disgusting pulse whistle on all settings, at high rate & depth you can notice it even louder than the guitar sound, and on high speed mode is just unbearable.
Don't know what can be wrong, but this pulse sounnd can't be heard on demos.
BR
Ooh, Q2 is the wrong way round, did you both correct that?
DeleteAnd 4u7 needs reversing. Jeez I was having a bad day here! :o)
DeleteSo Q2 is not a DBA influence? :P
DeleteWhich 4,7 cap you mean? I suppose the one at the lower left, but just to be sure :P
Yes I've corrected the layout now
DeleteYeah! Now it works great and as it should! Great job again Mark!
DeleteYay!
DeleteBy the way, 2N2646, 1.25€/piece in Madrid, if someone's interested, just mesage me!
ReplyDeleteMan, I was happy with the "Shoot The Moon" tremolo but this is tempting. I might be interested in this offer. They're so expensive on eBay!
DeleteThis sounds really cool, im gonna have a go at it.
ReplyDeleteJust a comment. This effect is EXTREMELY sensitive to power source. With battery is dead silent, but with power supply (I use a Spot 1, really good PS) you get a f*cking hum.
ReplyDeleteHave to try with a bigger power filtering caps to see what happens, maybe a 470uf.
BR
Did the usual trick: 220R + 220uf cap on +9 and now is dead silent with power supply too :).
DeleteI tried before the trick a not very good PS that I have just to feed an external dvd recorder, and there was no sound, just a incredible hum, so it seems to confirm that this pedal is extremely sensitive to rectified DC. Take this in mind!
BR
Do you put them in parallel before the +9v? What is this magical trick of which you speak?
DeleteJust run the power through a 100R or 200R resistor and then have a 100uF to 1000uF cap to ground.
Deletedraw power from just before the cap and you will get clean DC that won't buzz/hum.
Here, http://www.beavisaudio.com/projects/Huminator/index.htm Omit D2(The LED), C2, R2. Put that in the front of any circuit that doesn't play well with bad power supplies and you have reverse voltage protection and filtering.
Please can You elaborate that a bit. What do you mean by "run power trough" and "cap to ground"? You mean outside of the board or on board? Please can You be a bit more accurate? Mine is very noisy on PS on batt is silent...I know that huminator but I would like to do it in pedal it self...
DeleteTake the red wire from the dc jack and solder it to one leg of 100R or 220R resistor. Solder a piece of red wire to the other leg and use the remaining end of wire as +9V for the board.
DeleteSwap the 100µ electrolytic on board for 220µ.
That's it.
+m
Hey Beaker, or anyone else,
DeleteAnyone willing to send a few 2N2546's to Canada?
Is there any way to use this with an expression pedal?
ReplyDeleteor a function something like the pigtronix tremvelope that makes your speed increase or decrease after pick attack.
Deleteso an envelope controlled depth or speed.
DeleteI've been wondering about that for a long time, I've wanted to make an envelope controlled tremolo for a while.
Deleteor a tap tempo mod would be nice. I don't know how I'd ever get it in sync without having to bend over and fiddle with it after the song has already started.
DeleteBuilt this, can't get it working. The signal goes through fine but there's no tremolo happening. The only two things that aren't exactly as the layout are the 2N5089 and 330K. I used 2N5088 and 340K but that should still work.
ReplyDeleteYes, me too Geiri. Got the same problem here. No tremolo happening. Only bypass signal. The only thing that work is the level control. Any issue with the layout Ivlark? Mind sharing the schematic? Many thanks. :)
DeleteDon't know guys, but mine works like a dream
DeleteJust take a close look to the 2646 trannie:
Deletehttps://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=a4ePcVPOXorosM&tbnid=WBLScDZtXdfg2M:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sentex.ca%2F~mec1995%2Fgadgets%2Fujttest.htm&ei=eEa7Ua-3AaSW0AWKyIGICw&bvm=bv.47883778,d.ZGU&psig=AFQjCNEyHgjduPQ-2CwDsYgxG7jJfdGpEg&ust=1371314071084386
Hmmm... is it normal for 2n2646 to go bad just like that? How to test this kind of transistor? May I know what brand of 2n2646 did you use, JaviCAP? Mine seems to have no other markings except 2n2646. Many thanks.
DeleteThanks for the link. Will do the testing later. :)
DeleteI'm opening a topic on the forum with the pics.
DeleteBR
Built this today, and i'm having the same problem, no tremolo at all, just a clean sound. Everything looks fine to me, no solder bridges, and components are in correct places. Can someone help me? Thanks
DeleteI just built this... and for a second I though i'd gotten really good at guitar... but then I started wondering how I was making the drum sounds... and realized that this pedal is just the best radio I've ever heard...
ReplyDeleteWait, it wasn't suppose to be a radio? Oh... well crap... let me just... oh oh I get it... don't @#%$ up and swap Q2 with Q3. Unless you want a kick ass radio...
Another verified build, sounds wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI bought some NOS metal-can Motorola 2N2646 transistors from ebay, worked flawlessly. The only trouble I ran into was because I forgot to solder the diode, without it there's no tremolo. I used a 1N914 diode and that worked just fine too.
Build this one right away, fast mode gives you a kinda psuedo ring mod and octave down effect.
Built it, works as a charm. Thanks, this is the tremolo that goes into my board!
ReplyDeleteHi guys, only just got round to finishing this. Works as it should, but has a pronounced "ticking", more noticeable at fast rate. Anyone got any ideas what's up?
ReplyDeleteNeed new glasses - completely forgot the 22n cap.
Deleteanyone have any 2n2646s? i'll gift you some paypal money for your troubles!!
ReplyDeleteSent you an email Matthew.
DeleteFrom my point of view, I have no tremolo but only some dry signal with the volume all the way up
ReplyDeleteIs it possible that the type of 2n2646 affects the circuit?I bought two, but if there are not suppose to work with the first build, then why should they work with an other build..?
Also could someone mention the voltages on the 2n5089 please.
I have a very similar problem with a Repeat Percussion with depth pot that I made with the layout here. Not sure what I did wrong, but I subbed two resistors for slightly different values that I had on hand
ReplyDeleteIf I figure it out I'll let you know, but I'm thinking of just scrapping it and starting it over
HI,
ReplyDeleteI have a ticking problem. When switch is in fast mode ticking is present and on slow mode it does nothing just passes dry signal...can someone help me with this one? I have done humm free mode from above but it is same with or with out it....
Mine works great but the dry sound is slightly darker than my bypassed sound. Does anyone know how I would go about making it a tad brighter? Thanks.
ReplyDeletefirst of all thanks very much for the layouts and for this site it's been really helpful.
ReplyDeletei 've built it but there is no tremolo. only the original signal. the volume pot works. the depth pot does nothing. the rate pot seems to to amplify the signal when turned all the way up. used the exact components as specified. please help.
built it but it has a pretty pronounced ticking which bothers me, and the proguitarshop demo video of it doesn't seem to have any ticking. any fixes for that?
ReplyDeleteI already tried star grounding but to no avail.
I experimented with mine a lot today, since the way that it was with the ticking, it was so bad that i'd never use it.
ReplyDeleteI finally got the ticking 90-95% quieter and is barely noticeable at all. IMO, it's probably as quiet as the demos of the original posted online now.
What was wrong with it? Mine had no problems at all, was a smooth build for the first try.
Deletemine worked on the first try too, but the UJT's ticking really bothered me.
Deletei am experiencing the same ticking problem. how did you fix it?
DeleteHi, i have the same problem, no hum, the effect works good but when it's ON there is a continuous and annoying tick. How to fix it?
DeleteI used a MPSA18 instead the 2n5089, with de 2n5089 ticks are more noticeable.
Thanks
Hi John, how did you reduce the ticking problem?
Deletejooooooooohn!!! help us!!! :D
Deletei have 2n2646s a lot
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@John Kallas can you share your experiment...I had a problem with this project, sounds termolo appear without being connected to guitar,like shadow...sorry for my english :)
ReplyDeletehttps://sites.google.com/site/flofxdiy/deticking-lfo
ReplyDeletei think this site might help.
i didn't have the time to test the fixes myself yet, but i shall do it soon enough.
Hey there. I've built this and it works, but i get the feeling that the chopping effect is not that extreme... is there any easy change to improve the chopiness of the effect? Cheers
ReplyDeletefrom the looks of all these comments it seems that most people are getting dry bleed through on their repeat percussion effects. I built the simplest board of the original repeat percussion and I am definitely not getting that full chop, no dry signal, percussive effect. I was disappointed to find people are having the same problem with this layout. I wouldnt call a repeat percussion with dry bleed through verified. Maybe it just has something to do with these old transistors? anyone order a bunch and fix the problem by swapping transistors?
ReplyDeleteI got my build working like I've wanted by lowering the 330k resistor from emiter of the 2446, I've tried diferent values and sticked with 220K witch gave me a lot of chop on the effect! Don't know if this will solve some of the problems here... but it did for me!
ReplyDeleteHi, the demo sounds very nice to me, so I want to build this pedal. I want to add a flashing LED as a speed indicator. But where do i have to add this LED? Do I need a voltage follower to isolate it from the LFO circuit? Could anybody help me with a schematic of this board?
ReplyDeleteThanks :)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLike Max, I am interested to the flashing led too...does anyone knows how add it?
ReplyDeleteMax do you solve?
Built this tonight. Works great!
ReplyDeleteQ1 and Q3 need to be switch on the layout. Mine didn't work at first and it was because I followed the layout and had the 2n2646 in the bottom socket and the 2n5457 in the socket above that. Switch them and it works!
Aaah I just noticed the numbering at the bottom doesn't match the transistors shown in the layout. I assume your build matches the layout then and ignores the notes?
Deleteright, transistors position is ok for me!
DeleteAlso, Mark do you know how I can add a pulsing led on this one?
When you add a rate LED to a tremolo or similar you need to take the feed for the LED off the LFO. I'm not an familiar with the 2N2646, but it looks as though you'd need to take the feed from B2. Best way to check is to get out your multimeter and measure between each pin and ground to see which one has the rising and falling voltage in sync with the tremolo. Add a current limiting resistor to that pin's row, and feed the LED from that. The CLR value is dependant on how bright you want it, what type of LED you're using etc.
DeleteI did everything as in the layout, all I did was have to swap Q1 and Q3. I saw some of the notes/comments but I figured the layout had been revised by the time I built it.
DeleteI took a multimeter to Q1 and found it was B1 that had the rising and falling voltage. Taking a wire from this row to the LED, I found that it worked as a rate LED albeit very dim even with no current limiting resistor (I'm using waterclear LEDs). Worse than this, I now have ticking even in bypass.
DeleteHow would I go about raising the brightness of this LED and stopping the ticking?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteOk, i`ll try it, thanks ALWAYS for your kindness :)
ReplyDeleteBuilt and sounding great. Thank you for the layouts and all of the info
ReplyDeletequestion: When in the higher rate speed mode, is there supposed to be a kind of pitter-patter sound to it, almost like a sample and hold?
ReplyDeleteyes. that's exactly what it does.
Deletewhen there is not an input hole in the board, the input goes to the footswitch or to the jack in ?
ReplyDeleteas per the notes under the layout, input to level 3. input goes to lug 3 of the level pot
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHi, Having trouble with this build. Bypass works, and when switched on can hear a slight ticking that changes speed with the controls, but no trem or signal.
ReplyDeleteTo double check, the 2646 goes in the middle of the board, as Q1? Is it possible I got a bad one?
if it's ticking then IMO, the 2646 is probably working. i'd check for solder bridges or a misplaced component.
DeleteGuys, do you happen to have the schematics for this? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteActually I tried to trace it, could you please doublecheck if it is ok? Thanks!
Deletehttp://members.upc.hu/dudas.csaba5/EQD_Hummingbird.jpg
Sorry missed this before. Just checked it and yes that looks spot on
DeleteThanks Mark. If anyone interested I made a PCB layout for this one.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Deleteany way you could send me a copy of that schematic?
DeleteHello Mark, I have no 1uF caps here, could I change for a 0.1uF? Would be a problem? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletebuilt this. and start the first time, is very good and sounds really nice, I found some old 2N2646 and everything else brought from TayDa, thanks for these great designs
ReplyDeletegreetings from chile
excuse my English
Hey...does anyone know how to eliminate the pop-up when engaged?
ReplyDeletetry a 1M resistor between level's pot lugs 3 and 1
ReplyDeleteξεναγος νεκρόπολης
Nope..
DeleteΤίποτα..
γεια!
ReplyDeletesorry...it was stupid...cause that way you just changed your pots value...sorry again...
it usually stops with an 1m resistor from input to ground and that resistor isn't somewhere on this layout...that's what i knew and that's why i told you so(or i thought i did...)...maybe from lug 2 to ground?hope you use aligator clips...!!!and don't have to desolder anything...thessaloniki.you?
ξεναγος νεκρόπολης
ah!and how did you wired the footswith?did you grounded the LED pole too as this?
ReplyDeletehttp://tagboardeffects.blogspot.gr/2012/02/offboard-wiring.html
i always use the offboard wiring from this site and never had a problem.
Actually I use this wiring but I haven't saw from here in the first place.. Anyway I also thought that maybe the LED causes the sound but when I disconnect it, there is no difference
DeleteI already tried from lug2 to ground with no luck (also from out to ground)
Τούμπα
Hi Everyone! I'm a greenhorn in this site, I'm from Hungary, my english is not perfect. I made some circuits from this site, for example this tremolo. I could not find a good Hummingbird schematic, so I drew one, here it is:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinypic.com/r/b6a6gl/8
I hope, it's correct, and I hope, I helped someone.
And, I have some questions:
1. How can I change the Depth range, because the minimum depth is too much for me?
2. How can I change the Rate range at Mode 2 (fast rate), because it's too fast? I'd like to make a little overlap between Mode 1 and Mode 2.
Are these possible? Many thanks.
i haven't built yet this fx but from your schematic i think you should use a lower value for the 47k(try with a 50k trimmer and go down till your value) for change the depth and you should use a lower/higher value cap(i don't know if mode 2 is the 4,7u or 1u but if it's the 4,7u try a lower, if it's the 1u try a higher) for change the rate. i hope may help you
Delete4u7 or 2u2 cap parallel over lug 2-3 or 1-2 on switch, depends on how you put it in in first place.
Delete470uF will make it super slow ;)
Hello,
ReplyDeleteAfter dealing with the damned lfo tick, I've found a way to make it barely noticeable, just in fast mode and very high volumes you'll hear a trace of this upseting noise.
You have to isolate the ground of the lfo from the rest of the circuit. Make a new cut on the lower row, just under Q3 gate. Now the lfo has no ground connection. Just solder a new wire to the left or right hole of the lover end of the 39r resistor and the other side of the wire to the ground / negative pin of the DC jack.
This way, the lfo ground is isolated from the rest of the circuit with the 39r resistor, and from the +9v with the diode. You can use a slightly higher value for the 39r resistor, but don't go up too much, 100r maximum.
J.
I forgot: you could use too a 10nf capacitor in parallel with the upper 100uf one, this will get rid of the higher frequency noise of the power supply.
DeleteI think you mean "under Q1 gate"... :D
Deletethanks for the suggestion JaviCAP .. isolating the lfo's ground from input certainly helps cut the tick significantly. i also had to isolate the input jack from the enclosure since it is connected to output jack. SO input jack is gnd to the 3pdt gnd lug which goes direct to DC jack gnd. much quieter but still ticks at high volumes..
DeleteHey JAVI,
ReplyDeleteTHanks for the insight. Question(s). Will putting the two caps in parallel get rid of the LFO tick? Or will it only reduce the tick when conjoined with isolating the LFO from ground? Also, anyone have a answer to Ár István's question about changing the depth range? Thanks everyone for the great input. This site rulessssss.
Seeing as the 2N2646 is hard to get hold of, can I substitute with 2N6027? JayCar website states this is a programmable unijunction transistor so is it right to assume with correct input voltages this could work instead?
ReplyDeleteThe 2N6027 can do the same thing, but more components would need to be altered so you can't use it as a direct replacement without a new layout completely. If you want something very similar but using 2N6027's then I'd suggest building the Moosapotamus Skippy
DeleteThanks for the advice. Sounds like I need that transistor then.
DeleteThis was a very easy and straight forward build. I like the switch that really spices things up a bit. Thank you for the layout. I have uploaded the images of my build if anyone would like to look.
ReplyDeletehttp://s1383.photobucket.com/user/denfox1/media/GreenTremolo2_zps5745938b.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1
http://s1383.photobucket.com/user/denfox1/media/GreenTremolo1_zps3ffe1cd7.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0
I nearly built this working first time but it was too good to be true. I substituted the 27k resistor in line with the rate pot for a 30k one; Q2 changed to 2N5088; Q3 changed to MPF102. Bypass is loud and clear, the LED is on when the effect is engaged, I hear the tremolo effect and the depth pot changes the depth. However, I am finding the following problems:
ReplyDeleteThe effect volume is much lower than the bypass volume. Is this symptomatic of another problem or should I replace the level pot with a larger one (100k)?
The rate pot does not work at all. The tremolo effect at the moment is fixed at a slow rate and a fast rate depending on the switch position. Is this due to my resistor substitution, transistor substitutions or is it another mystery problem?
Any suggestions most welcome!
Triple, no, quadruple check all your component placement and pinouts and stuff. I found that when building something late at night, that I just completely forgot to add a couple of components to a circuit. It could be something as simple as that.
DeleteThanks for this. Will check and see if I've omitted something or connected it wrongly. I noticed after posting that Dexxyy on 30 April 2013 had posted using MPF102 and how it made the output below unity, which solves one issue.
DeleteCan I confirm that my substitutions haven't caused the rate pot not to work?
I didn't mention another issue, though. I pick up radio!
Can anyone help - i get dry signal through the effect, and the pedal volume pot works fine but there is no effected sound.
ReplyDeleteIm confident i have the layout OK, no solder bridges so Im not sure what to check next.
any advice?
Maybe you could check the transistors' pinout...
DeleteDid you ever get the effected signal out? I am having the exact same problem, and I am pretty sure the transistor orientation is not the issue.
DeleteI have built 2 variations of these, the original Vox from schematic, and this one as a copy of the vero board, and have the same issue on both
DeleteI am using some different parts I don't know if this is causing my issues,
I have subbed Q2 for 2n3905, and the diode for a standard 1n4001, the depth Pot for a 50k as I do not have any 25k.
Just in case my reply about the rate LED got lost up the message board, here it is again:
ReplyDeleteI took a multimeter to Q1 and found it was B1 that had the rising and falling voltage. Taking a wire from this row to the LED, I found that it worked as a rate LED albeit very dim even with no current limiting resistor (I'm using waterclear LEDs). Worse than this, I now have ticking even in bypass.
How would I go about raising the brightness of this LED and stopping the ticking?
Does anyone else hear a clicking noise when using this at high gain?
ReplyDeleteHey !
ReplyDeleteWondering if it's possible to add a switchable 2nd depth knob (pot in parallel) to potentially cut the trem out of the circuit. Anyone played around with this?
Thanks,
Andrew
Easiest way is to use a 3PDT footswitch. Take the Depth wires from the board to the middle row of lugs. The wire a pot to the top row and another to the bottom row. This would give you 2 switched depth settings. Use a 4PDT for an LED
DeleteHey guys sorry to bother. I've built this twice exactly to the layout and the only thing that seems to be working is the volume pot. There seems like there might be a slight effect but the pots don't seem to do anything. I tried switching the legs on the transistors but still to no avail. Any help would be appreciated. I would hate to just trash it. Thanks in advance!
ReplyDeleteActually the only thing that might be be different is my 100uf electrolytics are 16v. Could that be the problem? They seem to be holding up and not having a problem....
DeleteThis layout works - I have built several of these. Take photos of BOTH sides of your board, and post them on the De-bugging page in the Forum.. We can have a look for you and hopefully spot your errors.
DeleteThere is no issue with the caps, 16v is fine.
Awesome thanks Beaker. I removed the 2646 so i'll rebuild and if doesn't work I'll send some photos. Reading the comments I saw some people say they had to switch transistors and all but I assumed this layout was the most recent correct version correct? I probably won't have another built til the Pope leaves town after this weekend, Non-stop work so I'll try and put one up monday. Again thanks!
DeleteYes, this layout is correct - no doubt about it. The 2N2646 transistors are notoriously flakey, and some just won't work, while others work perfectly.
DeleteIt's highly possible that you have an error or short circuit somewhere on your board, hence the request for photos. Don't bother rebuilding it, just post some photos to the debugging thread - you may have made a mistake somewhere.
Hey peeps has anyone got a schem for this....?? Appreciate it highly
ReplyDelete[might have posted this earlier but it wasn't showing....]
I know it's a modded Vox Repeater btw....just want to know how modded it is and what the end resulting schem looks like.
Deletehttp://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2015/10/earthquaker-devices-hummingbird.html
DeleteHere it is. dtgehring traced it for us.
Hi. Would it still work if I swapped the 5457 with a 5458? According to datasheets, they seem reaaally similar. Thank you. :)
ReplyDeleteHi mark, could you help confirm - is the D1 diode supposed to be connected forward bias with the 100R from the 9v and in series with the 470R going to the 100uF cap?
ReplyDeleteThe schematic from dtgehring looks different on this D1/470R portion.
Thanks in advance!!
http://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2015/10/earthquaker-devices-hummingbird.html
Sorry, the question was meant for lvlark...
ReplyDeleteBuilt this, effect is work fine. All knobs and switches act how they should.
ReplyDeleteHowever, there is always a pulsing even with no audio connected, and it follows the level when level is at 0 it is still there but gets louder with level increase). and it changes speed with the switch and knob. So theres some noise getting through the effect i guess?
Any ideas? thanks
Having built several of these, some ticking is unavoidable - it's just the nature of the beast I'm afraid. Shielded cable on input and output can help a bit. Do not socket the transistor - once you have established the unijunction works ok, either remove the socket and solder to the board, or solder the legs into the socket. Try several unijunction if you have them - some tick louder than others. Finally, make sure you have nothing, including the lid of the enclosure touching the unijunction - it needs some fresh air around it. Try pinching it between your finger and thumb aand the ticking gets louder!
ReplyDeleteI hope this helps.
I dont have a 1u ceramic cap, what is a suitable replacement for it? I have tried with Tantalum 1u but I am getting no effect, just try signal that is affected by the volume control.
ReplyDeletewill the "2n2646 manu: on encapulation: can-3 unijunction transistor work with this? they're fairly cheap on ebay. or are they different
ReplyDeleteThis one worked great for me.
ReplyDeleteI had a LOUD ticking noise from the LFO for a while, but after a bit of tinkering it went away. I guess there was a loose connection somewhere; I didn't change any components. Now it's pretty quiet even though the connections are still going through the breadboard.
I used 2n2222A for Q2. MPSA18 also works, but I ended up preferring the other one.
I used an electrolytic for the 1uF, as it was all I had. It works both ways round but the sound seems a bit stronger with the anode on the emitter of Q1.
I used 100k for Depth, again all I had handy. This allows you to roll the depth right off and use the pedal as a (very nice) transparent boost.
Finally, I've currently got the Rate pot replaced with an expression pedal. I've wired up the 3 lugs of a stereo jack socket in place of the pot's lugs (some trial and error with croc clips needed). Then a TRS insert cable from there into the in & out of a cheapo volume pedal. It works backwards (i.e. heel down is high, toe down is low) but I can live with that.
Thanks for this superb site -- I have a long list of things to build next...
What components will affect the rate? My rate is super slow (5 seconds between) but it seems to work correctly in the fast mode? Ive built two others that work well? Im stumped?
ReplyDeleteAny help would be great thanks. Please reply to this message
DeleteI just built this but sadly no luck. Not getting any output signal. Obtaining a 2n5457 is pretty hard in australia so I subbed in a BF245b.
ReplyDeleteI traced the audio signal with a probe and it seems to be lost or grounded at the start of the circuit (22k resistor just off input) any ideas?
Ive built a couple and they do work. You may have a short or misplaced components? You may try a j201 in place of the 2n5457 im unfamiliar with bf245b but try and resolve the ground issue first. Also I had to try several transistors to get the best result. Always be sure to scratch between your tracks to clear any possible solder bridges as well. Best of luck.
DeleteHey everyone! Everything's working great, except the level poti. I have to turn it all the way up in order to get the wet signal. If I turn it a little bit back, I get no sinal. Tested with battery. Please help me, thank you!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't guess what the problem would be, especially without seeing pictures but I would go back over the wiring, check that the board is correct and make sure there are no solder bridges or shorts first of all. There's always room for the smallest mistakes, in fact my first test of this layout failed as I had a short (2 strands of wire from a hook up lead touching ground jumper) and a left out a 22k resistor (input from level pot) and had absolutely no sound. Checked the basics and hello... I've built a few now and I always check for the dumbest mistakes when things don't work.
DeleteI don't suppose this one could easily be tap-tempo modded, could it?
ReplyDeleteCompleted this one as per the layout. I also isolated the LFO ground as mentioned above by JaviCAP, whether I needed to do this extra step I'll never know. Works perfectly, I can hear the faintest ticking when volume is up but only very faint. Actually I also installed a DPDT ON/OFF/ON so I could bypass the caps on the board and have a mode switch with 3 speed settings like the Hummingbird Version 3. Caps soldered to the switch; middle is 1uf, position 2 is 3.2uf and position 3 is 4.2uf. Works fine for me, thanks for the layout! Here are some pics:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.dropbox.com/s/1rc7j8p0dit2n5s/EQD%20Hummingbird.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fagxunpa95lr0us/EQD%20Hummingbird%20Gut%201.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/it5bc37x7zx7fji/EQD%20Hummingbird%20Gut%202.JPG?dl=0
Ah so above I mentioned that I only had faint ticking. After playing with it today I found the ticking was real bad! I mistook the tick for aprt of the effect but I figured it out after a while. So I spent the day trying to get rid of it. Already isolated the LFO ground and sent it straight to the DC jack negative pin, then modded the power supply (changed 100R for 220R resistor, changed 100uf cap to 330uf) no change, changed the timing capacitor from 100uf to 220uf no change. So I then changed the 39R resistor for 100R... Ticking alllllmost gone completely! I might play with that resistor a bit more but that made the biggest difference for me. Maybe it doesn't have to be that high but I just went straight to 100R to see if it would work.
ReplyDeleteThe following is a near copy and paste from my post on the Moosapotamus Hummingbird layout: TICKING... If anyone has a minute can they please have a go at the following mod to deal with this ticking... try replacing (or just perform a quick bypass) the 39 ohm resistor with say a 2k trimmer. I tried a 500 ohm and have now settled for 2k. You should hopefully notice as you adjust the ticking/pulsing can be reduced or near eliminated. Between zero and halfway you'll notice the best reduction but beyond that too much resistance starts to minimise the 'chop' and starts to act like a depth control and I guess sounds like a standard tremolo. Test and adjust, you should find a happy medium. It does affect speed you will notice but it's of no real significance, tone is unaffected. Make sure you isolate both the GND from the 100uf electro timing cap (bottom right on the layout) and trimmer (what was the 39 ohm resistor) and send it straight to DC NEG pin.
ReplyDeleteI just did some further testing with this mod and I highly recommend either placing a 2k trimmer (500 ohm works better in the skippy) in series with the 39 ohm resistor or just replacing the 39 ohm resistor with the trimmer. Placing the trimmer in series just allows you to retain the stock value if you back the trimmer right off. I now have a squeaky clean Hummingbird, no tick/pulse but max effect. You will notice if you apply too much resistance with trimmer the effect will start to degrade.
Deleteok, have a look on my build report and comments here
Deletehttps://effectslayouts.blogspot.com/2017/11/skippy-tremolo.html?showComment=1511816725175#c512274682840016594
Hi everyone! Thinking of getting back to building some pedals during winter.
ReplyDeleteI've read this thread completely. Hoping, if I build it, the ticking won't be annoying.
Some ideas, to make it even more versatile:
- add a normal 2K pot, eliminating ticking, but also allowing for a less choppy, "standard tremolo" sound (like Chance calls it)
- add a second footswitch to allow use as a permanent clean boost, with depth at 0. like many people do with the EA tremolo now.
I think I'll have a go at this...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletedid build one for bass player ... after changing the 20nF to 68 nF to totally get rid of a little bit of ticking, that appeared with the bass in fast mode and changing the 2,2 uF to 1 uF ( getting rid of a woofy bass )
ReplyDeletenow it works perfect for bass
... with guitar it was cutting some highs with the mods ... so for guitar i went back to the original values ...
... just in case someone is interested ... ;-)
sunny greetings from Berlin !
To completely get rid of ticking (what I did):
ReplyDelete-Increased the size of the power filter cap to 100u +10u.
-Cut the bottom track right below the gate of the FET, and ran a ground wire from that row to the power supply ground. I was skeptical of the value of this in my build, since in my normal offboard wiring, the power supply ground is connected directly to the input jack ground, then the main board ground, so electrically, they are all the same point and it really isolates nothing. This did not get rid of ticking for me, maybe because of that fact.
-Then I changed the 39R in the relaxation oscillator to a 39R + 2K trimmer to ground. Raised the resistance in that B1=>Ground leg and the ticking disappeared. It does change the nature of the waveform in that oscillator a small bit, but it's not really noticeable. Now it is silent.
I do notice that there is a slight gap in the range of speed between the top of the low speed and the bottom of the high speed. Not a big deal, but if you want things perfect, it'd be easy enough to tweak out. If you increase the size of the 1u cap slightly, you'll slow down the high side. Increase it just enough to get rid of the gap. The high end of the high side of the switch is so fast, you won't miss its very top.
BTW, you can make a quick circuit to test your UJT. It's only the UJT, three resistors and a cap. Google "relaxation oscillator."
You can set this up on a breadboard in seconds, and if you have a scope of some sort, you can verify that it works. I suppose you could set it up to oscillate at audio frequencies and run it through an amp if you don't have a scope.
Hi guys, this is the first pedal I’ve ever built, it works almost perfectly except when I switch to “fast” mode I essentially turn the effect off. Any ideas on where to start troubleshooting? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi there, I built this effect and it seems to work but the it is sucking volume even with the ”level” all the way up. I don't have 2n5089 but I tryed 2n5088, bc550, mpsa18 instead, all with the same results. Maybe my 2n2646 is a little bit different and I need to tweak the circuit to make it louder? Any ideas of what could go wrong or how to get more volume out of it? Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteCrappy 2n5457, I spent the whole day rewiring my entire circuit because of these shitty transistors. I put a j201 and now it even givse me a sight overdrive with 'level' all the way up, loooooads of volume..... never knew these 5457 have such problems, they need biasing I think. If somebody will have volume issues with this pedal, check that freacking 2n5457 first..
DeleteBuilt several of these with no problems. Built another recently, tested it, and it worked 100% perfectly. A week later, I tried it again and all of a sudden it was just dry signal with really loud ticking. Turned out to be the 2n5457 as well! It worries me more that it seemed to work for a little while. I swapped it with another and it works fine now, but for how long?!
Deletethinking about building this beast.
ReplyDeletebut maybe using a Mini Toggle Switch SPDT (On) - Off - (On).
where Off has, lets say, C1 always to ground.
when switched up you get C1 + C2 in parallel.
switch down and you get C1 + C3 in parallel.
you get one more mode (like, if you use pedalPCB's pcb this comes handy)
C1, C2 and C3 with values of your own taste.
For those with TICKING:
ReplyDeleteI've built several of these for people now. All worked perfectly. However, the last one I built was tested and working fine. Someone bought it, and when they got it home, it was not working, and there was just a loud ticking over dry signal.
I first suspected the 2n2646, so I socketed it and swapped it out with a new one. Still the same problem.
Eventually, it turned out to be the 2N5457. Strange. Just thought I'd mention for anyone else suffering from ticking.
Incidentally, I'm very surprised to see so many complaints about ticking and the things people have been doing to try to reduce it. Apart from this recent build, the several others I made had no ticking, not even the faintest trace of ticking. Now that I've replaced the faulty component, neither does this one. I am not sure why some people have it, and others don't. All I can tell you is that I've been following this layout verbatim.
I'm about to build this. What bothers me in this project is that the volume pot is at the input stage, not the output one. This makes (50k pot) low input impedance, too low when plugging the guitar straight away (without buffer or other pedal in front of it). Weird.
Deletei've just finished building it and i'm very confused, it seems to not works but i really can't tell, i chechek multiple times the tracks, the order of components, wiring, everything seems to be ok, i assume that the schematic it's correct so i really don't know what's going on... i'm very frustraded.. if someone has any idea pls help me
ReplyDeletehelp...
ReplyDeleteI follow the layout using 2n2646, 2n5457, 2n5089. And it comes no effect, just a radio...... Can anyone help me troubleshooting this?
Sounds like a ground issue. Check to make sure everything is grounded correctly.
DeleteIn case anyone is looking for 2N2646's, they're still in production! Farnell/Newark sell them pretty cheap, although if you're in the UK CPC are the cheapest source
ReplyDeleteBuilt this and worked superbly right away. Thanks for posting. It sounds awesome. I used a 50k for the depth pot. Gives a lot of control over the amount of tremolo in the signal.
ReplyDeleteI just finished make it today, so happy with how it sound on slow pulse mode, but I notice my fast pulse mode is not working other than level pot, does someone have similar problem? I have really basic!electronics knowledge, so it might be hard for me to trace the problem, thank you.
ReplyDelete