Baldwin-Burns - Buzzaround  [schematic]

Discussion regarding early stompbox technology: 1960-1975 Please keep discussion focused and contribute what info you have...
User avatar
Whoismarykelly
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 395
Joined: 22 Oct 2007, 18:26
Has thanked: 6 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Post by Whoismarykelly »

I ordered some of that board today to build up a tag version. Need to get some hex screws and nuts too for installation. Not sure if I want to use a pedalenclosures box again but they seem to be perfect for this build.

User avatar
noelgrassy
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 388
Joined: 28 Nov 2007, 02:43
my favorite amplifier: MOTS Magnatone & Trainwreck
Completed builds: Tonebender Mk II w/ 3 OC75's, Burns BuzzAround w/NKT 275,Rangemaster w/ OC44, Fuzz Face w/ SKS363's, CJOD, Harmonic Percolator w/2N404A & 2N3635(vintage correct box,sliding pots, 1%glass resistors),Stack-O-Dimes & Whipple Wahs,
Location: Vacuum Tube Valley, Cali
Has thanked: 11 times
Been thanked: 3 times

Post by noelgrassy »

Howdy John,
I'll take a Pedalenclosure's box off your hands.
I'll PM yez too.

NG.
Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed. US Copyright Office

User avatar
noelgrassy
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 388
Joined: 28 Nov 2007, 02:43
my favorite amplifier: MOTS Magnatone & Trainwreck
Completed builds: Tonebender Mk II w/ 3 OC75's, Burns BuzzAround w/NKT 275,Rangemaster w/ OC44, Fuzz Face w/ SKS363's, CJOD, Harmonic Percolator w/2N404A & 2N3635(vintage correct box,sliding pots, 1%glass resistors),Stack-O-Dimes & Whipple Wahs,
Location: Vacuum Tube Valley, Cali
Has thanked: 11 times
Been thanked: 3 times

Post by noelgrassy »

WhiteKeyHole wrote:Yeah, well worth the effort. Thanks!

Here's what I came up with to use the excess board;

Image

Pretty cool.
Totally. What is it? A SupaFuzz perhaps?
Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed. US Copyright Office

User avatar
WhiteKeyHole
Cap Cooler
Information
Posts: 546
Joined: 05 Apr 2008, 04:38
Has thanked: 24 times
Been thanked: 220 times

Post by WhiteKeyHole »

Rangemaster into a Big Muff-like gain stage. Interesting sound, a bit polite with a horn quality. I tried it first without the Darlington pair but it didn't sound "right."

User avatar
floorboards
Information
Posts: 3
Joined: 19 Nov 2008, 06:01

Post by floorboards »

Hi i have one of these pedals completely original! been stored for over 30years and never been used in that time!

Thinking of selling it, any questions email me

jimbo_304@hotmail.com

thanx

jamie.

User avatar
DiscoFreq
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 414
Joined: 13 Aug 2007, 10:56
Has thanked: 9 times
Been thanked: 27 times
Contact:

Post by DiscoFreq »

There will be a reissue by Burns soon, the prototype (made by Gary Hurst) was at the Musikmesse (in the case of an Elka Dizzy Tone, but they want to use the correct case for the production models):
http://filters.muziq.be/model/burns/buzzaround
EffectsDatabase: http://www.effectsdatabase.com
22000 pedals, 4000 brands, 350 brand interviews
NAMM 2016: http://fxdb.org/namm

User avatar
user123
Information
Posts: 4
Joined: 19 May 2009, 17:57

Post by user123 »

hi all

instead of using nkt213

i can find: nkt214, nkt274, nkt275

can anyone tell me, is there really a big difference soundwise between using 214/274/275 instead of 213?

any recommendations is really appreciated

thanks

User avatar
SPeter
Cap Cooler
Information
Posts: 553
Joined: 08 Jan 2008, 21:10
Has thanked: 5 times
Been thanked: 80 times

Post by SPeter »

user123 wrote:hi all

instead of using nkt213

i can find: nkt214, nkt274, nkt275

can anyone tell me, is there really a big difference soundwise between using 214/274/275 instead of 213?

any recommendations is really appreciated

thanks
I don't think there will be big difference1 I am going to use AC128, 188 etc!
Cheers!
:D

User avatar
royaltoots
Breadboard Brother
Information
Posts: 88
Joined: 07 Oct 2007, 17:55
my favorite amplifier: Davoli Studio 60
Location: London
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 5 times

Post by royaltoots »

well - there will be a difference, but your other choices will still sound good!

User avatar
PB Wilson
Information
Posts: 5
Joined: 11 Nov 2007, 15:38
Location: Rochester NY

Post by PB Wilson »

Steve at Smallbear sells a trio of Germanium transistors for Tonebenders and they should work. No idea just what specific transistors they are, but I'm gonna give them a try once I get my next order all set.

User avatar
Solidhex
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 261
Joined: 02 Apr 2008, 04:43
Has thanked: 10 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Post by Solidhex »

Yo

You're gonna want to get the "3 knob Tone Bender" set from Small Bear, not the MkII....
Http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=11
The 3 knob has the same sort of transistor configuration as the Buzzaround you also get the germanium diode...

--Brad

User avatar
mipo
Information
Posts: 12
Joined: 21 Dec 2007, 02:32
Has thanked: 7 times

Post by mipo »

I know this is an old topic, but I've worked out a perfboard layout for this, and was wondering if anyone would like to give it a look-over. This is based on MoreCowbell's schematic: Image

Though I couldn't find the "100% correct schematic" that he mentioned on page 5, I've got this version on my breadboard right now and it sounds tremendous. I've built a few pedals before, but always used another's layout, so this is a first for me. The only change I made was to add a 1M pull-down resistor on the input. I tried to keep it pretty tight, as I want to put this in a 1590B box. Any insights would be appreciated.
Attachments
Buzzaround Perf Layout.png

User avatar
devastator
Cap Cooler
Information
Posts: 675
Joined: 19 Jul 2008, 16:00
Location: France
Has thanked: 8 times
Been thanked: 22 times

Post by devastator »

Any Silicon project of that circuit ? I tried to breadboard it this afternoon and nothing good . A bad gated sound only with the drive full, that sounded like a bias issue.

User avatar
joegore
Breadboard Brother
Information
Posts: 128
Joined: 01 Dec 2008, 23:04
my favorite amplifier: Little ones
Location: San Francisco
Been thanked: 8 times
Contact:

Post by joegore »

Hey folks -- thanks for the killer thread.

I just built the Fuxxaround, the NPN version created by Alex Frias and posted earlier in this thread. Sounds fantastic. But I'm experiencing some, um, unexpected behavior, which I suspect is due to some typical screw-up on my part.

I used three linear pots per the prevailing advice. The behavior and interaction of the balance and timbre pots are pretty much as described throughout this thread. But all the Sustain pot action occurs in the uppermost fraction of the pot's range.

Here's an audio clip demonstrating what I mean:

http://files.me.com/joegore/vc6s5p.aif

There are about 10 seconds each of four sounds:

1. Pedal bypassed (just for reference)
2. Sustain at 100% (blazing yet dynamic fuzz)
3. Sustain at 90% (a bit quieter and "splattier," still nice)
4. Sustain at 75% (massive amplitude drop, quieter than bypassed, though still an interesting tone)

With even lower sustain settings, the sound drops to an unusable whisper, regardless of the timbre and balance settings.

So:

1. Can any audio mavens ID my problem?
2. Have those who've built the Fuxxaround encountered this?
2. If this behavior IS expected, might there be a pot substitution that would focus on that upper 25% of the sustain range? I tried an A100K, and it was even worse. Might a reverse log help?

Thanks!

Joe

User avatar
Alex Frias
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 270
Joined: 19 Dec 2007, 16:05
Has thanked: 10 times
Been thanked: 14 times

Post by Alex Frias »

It's suposed to behave equal to the PNP version.
So, did you double checked the pot conoctions? Even using a linear pot I didn't expect such compromise...

User avatar
joegore
Breadboard Brother
Information
Posts: 128
Joined: 01 Dec 2008, 23:04
my favorite amplifier: Little ones
Location: San Francisco
Been thanked: 8 times
Contact:

Post by joegore »

Yeah, double-checked to the best of my limited capacity.

Sadly, I've never used a real one, so I'm not familiar with how the sustain should behave.

Do the tones sound accurate otherwise, Alex? Thanks.

User avatar
Solidhex
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 261
Joined: 02 Apr 2008, 04:43
Has thanked: 10 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Post by Solidhex »

A reverse audio taper pot would do the trick. Mouser now carries 16mm Alpha pots with reverse taper. Like this: http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Alp ... k7Mg%3d%3d
They only come in knurled shaft, pc mount though.
I believe another option is to use a 250kb pot and place a 180K resistor across lugs 3 and 2 of the sustain pot. That should approximate a 100k reverse audio voltage divider.

--Brad

User avatar
joegore
Breadboard Brother
Information
Posts: 128
Joined: 01 Dec 2008, 23:04
my favorite amplifier: Little ones
Location: San Francisco
Been thanked: 8 times
Contact:

Post by joegore »

Thanks, Brad! I popped in a C100K for the sustain control and it seems like a BIG improvement. Lots more fun, interactive variations, though I could only play for a few seconds (I'll try again tomorrow).

I tried that 180K-resistor-on-a-250KB-pot trick too. Not precisely the same result (I preferred the C100K), but a big step in the right direction, and one I'd recommend for any builders who don't have a reverse-taper pot around.

That fake-reverse trick is sweet. Never run into it before. Can anybody list the formulas for faking reverse taper for other common pot values?

User avatar
jfromel
Breadboard Brother
Information
Posts: 71
Joined: 27 Feb 2008, 16:52
Been thanked: 8 times

Post by jfromel »

joegore wrote:Thanks, Brad! I popped in a C100K for the sustain control and it seems like a BIG improvement. Lots more fun, interactive variations, though I could only play for a few seconds (I'll try again tomorrow).

I tried that 180K-resistor-on-a-250KB-pot trick too. Not precisely the same result (I preferred the C100K), but a big step in the right direction, and one I'd recommend for any builders who don't have a reverse-taper pot around.

That fake-reverse trick is sweet. Never run into it before. Can anybody list the formulas for faking reverse taper for other common pot values?
a forbidden link for sure Analog Alchemy https://www.diystompboxes.com/analogalc ... h/emh.html

User avatar
Solidhex
Resistor Ronker
Information
Posts: 261
Joined: 02 Apr 2008, 04:43
Has thanked: 10 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Post by Solidhex »

Ah

I spoke too soon. To replicate a reverse audio voltage divider you need to use a tapering resistor that is 20% of the larger value running in parallel. Read this: http://www.geofex.com/article_folders/p ... tscret.htm and this: https://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/ ... ic=70732.0
Someone specifically notes that to make a 100k reverse log pot you need to place a 100k resistor across lugs 3 and 2 of a 500k linear pot. 100k being 20% of 500k and the parallel value of 500k and 100k being 100k. This is specifically related to the reverse audio voltage divider like the sustain knob in a Buzzaround.
So the reason the approximation of the revlog wasn't as good as the actual 100kc pot is probably because of those wrong pot/tapering resistor values.

--Brad

Post Reply