Wednesday 12 February 2014

Soulsonic FX Fourbanger

This could well be the ultimate tweakers boost pedal, with a switchable Rangemaster (PNP transistors but negative ground), Super Hard On, Opamp and JFET booster.  The one change from his original is that I have included the original SHO circuit instead of his Crackle Not OK version of it.  Each booster has its own gain or volume control, and are turned on with a toggle, and then the stomp switch takes the whole lot in and out of circuit.

The wiring for each toggle is shown on the layout, and the offboard is essentially like a true bypass looper with the signal going from the stomp switch to the first effects toggle, with the toggle send and return going to the effects inputs and outputs shown on the board.  It should be pretty straight forward with one toggle going to the next and then ultimately back to the stomp switch.

I think the order Martin has the effects is Rangemaster (R), Mosfet (M), Opamp (O) and JFET (J).

Info about his original.

This is an exciting 4-in-one boost that gives you a choice of four distinct flavors of boost to suit any occasion or style. Pushbutton switches allow you to choose any combination of the four, which allows for many “stacked” sounds that result in a diverse range of overdrive, distortion, and fuzz tones. This is where it truly stands apart from other boosts… it’s like a dozen pedals in one!

The boosts  are as follows:

    R – Rangemaster – a modern recreation of the classic Rangemaster treble boost. I have painstakingly replicated the signature vowel-peak slightly dirty boost using modern components for lower noise and higher consistency and reliability.
    M – MOSFET – my version of a popular boost known for its super hard sound. Not a simple copy, I’ve redesigned the circuit to feature my noise free “non-crackling” gain control and use a lower-noise transistor. The tone is clear and clean at low gain, and loud and fat when turned up.
    O – Opamp – an original design boost circuit using an opamp. Designed to sound neutral and clean at low gain, but becomes a hot overdrive when turned up. Can be used as a high-quality buffer at minimum gain.
    J – JFET – this is a hot boost based on the SRPP topology and utilizing Toshiba 2SK117 JFETs. The sound is an intense boost with a slightly lean low-end. When overdriven by the other boosts, it has a very tube-like character that makes it ideal in the last position.










Original version with Crackle Not OK instead of the SHO circuit.





And just to make the offboard wiring a bit simpler:





44 comments:

  1. Never heard of this before.. This looks way too fun

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree, this is definitely going on the list of things I need to build soon. Looks like 741 or TL071 could be subbed in for the LF411 I believe (although do your own research to confirm until I verify... I'm not a smart man...).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes most of our usual single channel opamps should do the trick

      Delete
  3. Definitely going on the list. Sweet!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh my goodness!! Still got some NKT275:s left. This one is up on the list.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Looks very interesting !
    Just to be sure about the DPDT wiring :
    In and out to each boost in & out, send to input jack / previous switch and return to next switch or output jack ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No I did it the other way around so it matched up with a true bypass looper so that people could relate to it that way.

      Stomp switch >

      First toggle:
      In > Send > R Input (vero) > R Output (vero) > Return > Out

      Second toggle:
      In > Send > M Input (vero) > M Output (vero) > Return > Out

      Third toggle:
      In > Send > O Input (vero) > O Output (vero) > Return > Out

      Fourth toggle:
      In > Send > J Input (vero) > J Volume 2 > Return > Out

      > Stomp switch

      I may have made it more confusing but it seemed to make more sense to me like that.

      Delete
  6. So each circuit has its own input and output jack? I would prefer to just wire each circuit "true bypass" with DPDT toggles with one master bypass switch

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No, the output of one toggle goes into the input of the next. So one input and output socket which wire as usual to the stomp, and then a chain of 4 toggles from the stomp that can true bypass each effect in turn.

      Delete
  7. Ok ok, that's what I was thinking, even your explanation confused me. I'm on break at work though so I'm not thinking too hard

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Check out the offboard wiring overview I've added to the main post ^

      Delete
    2. That's just what I was thinking, but you improved it by adding input grounding. Awesome.

      You're the best, Mark have a nice Valentines Day

      Delete
    3. Yes I think I'd always do true bypass switching with that same method now whether it be stomps or toggles. It just makes sense to use any method that helps to keep noise at bay.

      Delete
  8. Hey Mark,

    Is there a way to have the "Crackle Not Allowed version of it"?

    Is just that a simple mod or do that implies big changes in the veroboard?

    Thanks!, amazing stuff!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oops, noticed I have the J Volume 3 wire one row too high, it needs to drop a row. Layout updated.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Soulsonic's website says that they are "now using 2SK880! WAY BETTER!" Is this a direct substitution for the 117, or would other changes be needed?

    ReplyDelete
  11. I’m new to this forum, but I definitely want to try this one out. Which one is better? The SHO or “Crackle Not” version? Are there schematics available for both? I like to see what I’m building. Keep up the great work. I’ve already set aside parts for two other layouts of yours!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think there should be a cut to isolate pin 5 of IC2 from pin 4 of IC1, with a link from that pin to ground. It's now working perfectly, many thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No that cut shouldn't be there, pin 4 of IC is being fed -9V by pin 5 of IC2. But I can see what the problem is though. There should be a 1M resistor from pin 3 of IC1 to ground so I'll have to wriggle things about a bit to add it.

      How you have described it would work as well, but you'll have more headroom if you do it as per the updated layout that will appear soon :o)

      Delete
    2. That's great, thanks. I'll look forward to the updated layout.

      Delete
    3. It might be a bit of a pain to move things about when you've already built the main circuit, so if I was you I'd solder a 1M resistor between pin 3 of IC1 and ground on the back of the board just to save you messing about too much. You should be able to do that quite easily by just attaching to existing solder points.

      Layouts are now updated.

      Delete
    4. Thanks - I reversed the changes that I made earlier and added the resistor as above. As you suggested it is working better with the resistor than with the cut and link I made earlier.

      Delete
    5. Excellent, so are the other 3 sections working ok as well then, can it be tagged?

      Delete
    6. Yes, all the sections are working - so it can be tagged.

      Delete
    7. Excellent, nice one matey!

      Delete
  13. Thanks, it's been great to be able to build effects from the layouts here and I really appreciate the work that goes into them.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hi, could you tell me what the Diode with 9V1 is please?
    I can't work it out with my baby brain

    ReplyDelete
  15. What could be used instead of the S2K117s?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 2SK170 is very similar and I think you can still get both from Futurlec. Otherwise try any JFET but you may have to twist pins over to match the orientation. It's probably a good idea to socket them

      Delete
    2. Settled on 2N5952s for the JFETS, has to twist the pins on them. Stuck this in a box with 2 buffers and 3 loops for a nice utility peal. Thanks again Mark.

      Delete
  16. Managed to squeeze this in a 1590b. I think this is my 5th vero build (not counting my box of absolute fail) and it worked in one go :o)

    Might try some different transistors for the Rangemaster. Anyway, thanks for all the great work |\/|ark!

    Should you want it, here's a gut shot for your collection: https://www.flickr.com/photos/dannyvandam/14129477205/in/set-72157642356692863/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Great job Danny thanks for sharing, but I couldn't save it :o( Could you email it to me at guitarfx at hotmail.co.uk. You also officially have the blog's coolest name :o)

      Delete
  17. I'm having trouble with this one. Built it according to the standard SHO layout above, but the only effect that works is the op-amp-based effect, and it doesn't work very well at all. I get sound, but it is super compressed and faint. The effect LED goes out altogether when the R, M, and J effects are on, unless the O effect is on, too. That has to be a short on the board. I have knifed between all the rows and cleaned out my cuts really well.

    I substituted a MAX1044 as the voltage converter, 2N5457s with the leads bent in the J effect, an OC44 for the R, and an LF356 for the op-amp. All my ICs, semiconductors, and caps are oriented correctly. All my off-board wiring is correct. I verified all resistor and cap values. None of my transistor leads are touching somewhere they shouldn't be.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You need to post all the transistor and IC voltages to see if that gives us any clues

      Delete
    2. With O active (with or without any other effect), using a battery with 8.3V, I have as follows:
      MAX1044, pins 1-8: 8.3; 4.21; 0; -3.93; -8.03; 4.4; 3.87; and 8.27.
      LF356, pins 1-8: 0; 0; 0; -8.05; 0; 0; 8.32; and 014.
      Q1, EBC: -0.68; -0.74; -6.13.
      Q2, DGS: 4.48; 0.65; 0.39.
      Q3, DGS: 4.6, 0.34, 1.0.
      Q4, DGS: 8.26, 2.78, 4.82.

      With O inactive (with or without any other effect active), the LED turns off, all voltages change to 0, and the battery starts getting hot. I've paid particular attention to Row 7, as all effects but O are connected to it. I resoldered it twice now, and made sure that there are no microscopic bridges. I can't think of any other causes but a short somewhere on that row.

      Delete
    3. I had a bad 4u7 cap. It's awesome now!

      Delete
    4. I built this and everything appears to be working. With my single coil pickups I’m having to turn up the knobs high to get the overdrive sounds that I’ve heard on the sound samples to the point that the volume level is much higher than the straight signal. (Actually each one of the four effects boosts the signal above the straight signal even at the lower settings.) Has anyone else had the same problem? I’m thinking of putting an attenuation circuit at the end of the signal chain to rebalance the signal level. Great sounds!

      Delete
  18. Haré este proyecto entonces ya que stratman66 dice que le funciono..... espero terminarlo pronto

    I will make this project so as stratman66 says he worked ..... I hope to finish soon

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hello, I want to make this effect but having trouble understanding the wiring. I know it was discussed earlier. I still don't get it. Not the smartest tool in the shed. To be clear is the send and return off board the input/output of each circuit on board? Thnx!

    ReplyDelete