Dallas Arbiter - Fuzz Wah Face ( Sound City )  [schematic]

Discussion regarding early stompbox technology: 1960-1975 Please keep discussion focused and contribute what info you have...
Post Reply
User avatar
modman
a d m i n
Information
Posts: 4890
Joined: 19 Jun 2007, 16:57
Has thanked: 4394 times
Been thanked: 2131 times

Post by modman »

Here's a look inside a DA Fuzz Wah:
zebay.10.jpg
zebay.10.jpg (54.1 KiB) Viewed 1706 times
zebay.15.jpg
zebay.15.jpg (43.41 KiB) Viewed 1706 times
zebay.18.jpg
zebay.12.jpg
zebay.12.jpg (65.85 KiB) Viewed 1706 times
zebay.11.jpg
zebay.11.jpg (48.33 KiB) Viewed 1706 times

I found an old article and separate schematics for fuzz and wah on Jack Orman's site:
http://www.muzique.com/schem/fwf.htm
Fuzz Face part schematic by Orman
Wah Wah part schematic by Orman
Please, support freestompboxes.org on Patreon for just 1 pcb per year! Or donate directly through PayPal

User avatar
CHEEZOR
Diode Debunker
Information
Posts: 831
Joined: 10 Jul 2009, 18:19
Location: California
Has thanked: 42 times
Been thanked: 50 times

Post by CHEEZOR »

I just got one of these yesterday. Mine doesn't wah, instead it acts as a volume. I looked all over online and people say that its the 4.7uF cap or the inductor. I think mine is probably the cap. Im not sure if I want to fix it though, because as it is, it works as a fuzz pedal pretty well and there is no way to get only fuzz when its working correctly. The pot is a bit scratchy on it too. So if I fixed the wah, then I would have to replace the pot probably as well. Dunno if its worth it. Anyways, I got some gut shots of it... The transistors are really hard to read. The ink seems smeared and really small. But from what I can see, it looks like the 3 closest to the batter side of the PCB are S1P5172 and the other one is a 2N5232A.
Attachments
2012-03-02_20-16-27_334.jpg
2012-03-02_20-16-17_571.jpg
2012-03-02_20-13-13_513.jpg
2012-03-02_20-11-22_897.jpg
2012-03-02_20-10-55_774.jpg
2012-03-02_20-10-39_409.jpg
2012-03-02_20-10-31_41.jpg
2012-03-02_20-10-24_703.jpg
2012-03-02_20-10-08_931.jpg
2012-03-02_20-09-53_593.jpg
2012-03-02_20-09-44_474.jpg
2012-03-02_20-09-26_420.jpg

User avatar
mictester
Old Solderhand
Information
Posts: 2923
Joined: 11 Sep 2008, 20:29
my favorite amplifier: Mesa Boogie, Roost Sessionmaster, AC30
Completed builds: Hundreds! Mostly originals, a few clones and lots of modifications.
Location: Somewhat closer to Amsterdam than before!
Has thanked: 32 times
Been thanked: 844 times
Contact:

Post by mictester »

CHEEZOR wrote:I just got one of these yesterday. Mine doesn't wah, instead it acts as a volume. I looked all over online and people say that its the 4.7uF cap or the inductor. I think mine is probably the cap. Im not sure if I want to fix it though, because as it is, it works as a fuzz pedal pretty well and there is no way to get only fuzz when its working correctly. The pot is a bit scratchy on it too. So if I fixed the wah, then I would have to replace the pot probably as well. Dunno if its worth it. Anyways, I got some gut shots of it... The transistors are really hard to read. The ink seems smeared and really small. But from what I can see, it looks like the 3 closest to the batter side of the PCB are S1P5172 and the other one is a 2N5232A.

I used to have one of these. I removed the side-mounted switch and replaced it with a pot to adjust "Q". A bit of drilling and a DPDT footswitch at the "heel" end, and I could have Fuzz, Wah, Fuzz-wah, or Swell according to which switches were selected. The only problem was equalising the levels of the various modes, which I did with a couple of pre-set resistors.

I gave the thing away as a present many years ago.
"Why is it humming?" "Because it doesn't know the words!"

User avatar
CHEEZOR
Diode Debunker
Information
Posts: 831
Joined: 10 Jul 2009, 18:19
Location: California
Has thanked: 42 times
Been thanked: 50 times

Post by CHEEZOR »

CHEEZOR wrote:The transistors are really hard to read. The ink seems smeared and really small. But from what I can see, it looks like the 3 closest to the batter side of the PCB are S1P5172 and the other one is a 2N5232A.
What I meant to type was "battery." Took me a while to decode my own post so I thought I would post the correction so other people would know what I was originally talking about.

User avatar
Godom1975
Information
Posts: 2
Joined: 05 Jan 2013, 17:00

Post by Godom1975 »

I had that problem with a wah where it acted as a volume pedal and it was the pot. Once I changed the pot the wah started working. I guess ut could be the inductir or.cap you mentioned. The switch sounds like a good suggestion.
Regards

User avatar
CHEEZOR
Diode Debunker
Information
Posts: 831
Joined: 10 Jul 2009, 18:19
Location: California
Has thanked: 42 times
Been thanked: 50 times

Post by CHEEZOR »

In my case, it was the inductor. I swapped it out with a new one and the pedal worked flawlessly. Now I just need to find an old Fasel that someone doesn't want so I can restore this one. lol

Post Reply