I built a circuit and although it's powered and all cables tested ok, it is still not sounding the way it should. There is no sound, noise or noisy sounds. I have checked the board by eye but didn't find anything wrong. What now? Help, help!

Take an audio amplifier and turn down the volume (IMPORTANT!).
Attach an aligator clip to the shield (ground) lug of a female jack, with a long enough wire.
Attach a 0.1uF/50V (or about that value) capacitor to the tip (signal) lug of the female...

If you have a debugging question for the forum, there are some things you can do to get the best, most timely advice possible. Some suggestions:

1. Describe the problem *as observed* (just the facts)
2. Include a complete (as-built) schematic and layout of the circuit
3. Include relevant measurements, such as voltages at IC and transistor pins, power supply voltage(s)
4. Include clear pictures

What is relevant to include in #3 depends greatly on your particular circuit. For example, if your...

Hi,

I've built some effects and an amp out of kits in the past and recently wanted to build some vero board stomp boxes.
I tried to build two, but none of them worked. And while I think I can solder (hey, my cables work! :-) ), I don't have the knowledge to debug a vero board project (or anything related to schematics).
So... I have to gain some insights to make my pedals work. Naturally, I've read the Geofex article on fixing broken pedals, but I need to dig deeper.

Is there a good book or...

There are things that are not covered at GEOFEX. But not a lot.

See
- The Technology of the... series
- How to measure germanium transistors to find good ones
- The Guitar Effects FAQ
- The Tube Amp FAQ
- The Tube Amp Debugging Page
- The Guitar Effect Debugging Page
- A large assortment of hints, tips, how-tos, projects, ideas and explanations on a wide range of topics.

I find that a large portion of the beginner's questions I answer wind up being answered go look at my web site .