Little VOODOO VIBE project by Kaputepalla

greenskull · Post by **greenskull** » 01 Oct 2007, 22:24

Thanks for the heads up, mz77!! Also looking forward to seeing what your modified circuit does, KT66.

destro · Post by **destro** » 29 Oct 2007, 20:44

So has anyone used the vactrol yet? Just seems like an easier option, but I want to make sure it will work before I order them!

bajaman · Post by **bajaman** » 30 Oct 2007, 04:20

So has anyone used the vactrol yet? Just seems like an easier option, but I want to make sure it will work before I order them!

It should work just fine - go ahead, give it a try - let us all know how it works out.
bajaman

destro · Post by **destro** » 30 Oct 2007, 16:11

All right, guess I will give it a go. I will try to give a build report by the end of November. I won't even be able to start cause I am out of town on training right now. Anyway, I am on a mission to do a clone of all J Mascis' pedals and this is one of the few I have not built. Of course his was a supervibe, but this is close enough.

destro · Post by **destro** » 07 Nov 2007, 22:14

Just a heads up. BGMicro is about out of the ICL8038. I luckily got a couple that were left (she estimated a couple dozen) as well as several 1/4 enclosed input jacks with switches at .65 each. Customer service there is awesome.

s.o.g.t.u.l.a.k.k · Post by **s.o.g.t.u.l.a.k.k** » 08 Nov 2007, 15:53

10n,18n,27n,39n, work very good!! in this order 27n,39n,10n,18n Interesting works.

mike_a · Post by **mike_a** » 15 Nov 2007, 15:00

Hey,

Is there any chance that one of the guys who built this thing might post some soundclips?

I'm really interested to hear how it measures up to other DIY univibes.

Thanks,
Mike.

theyear2042 · Post by **theyear2042** » 21 Nov 2007, 15:21

hey guys

i finally had time to put together the work i did on the vv for you guys.

i zipped the files up and uploaded it to rapidshare:
http://rapidshare.com/files/71272549/kt ... e.zip.html

includes:
-completly redone hi-res version of the pcb transfer
-pcb transfer modified to correctly fit certain parts better
-additional led in the led driver circuit for surface mount display
-cap switching diagrams to switch between RMVV/UNIVIBE/RT-18 caps
-pics of my build

i increased the space around certain parts but you should still be able to use Kaputepalla's parts layout without much difficulty.

this circuit does sound really nice. the additional switching mod make this circuit a must-have. all three cap modes are different and worth having. personally i prefer the RMVV mode best, the RT-18 is a really nice straight up phaser sound; the original univibe caps i find a bit to ice-picky due to the 470pf cap.. but if you want the original univibe sound its right there. the cap switch does pop when changing modes - its just a quickie hack, but does work.

i must say that this circuit would be *impossible* to use without the additional led surface mounted to show you what the led driver is doing; and makes it a whole lot more fun to use when you know what its doing..

if you have any questions just post them in the board here, dont pm me directly becasue im so busy atm i may not be able to get back to you.

if i get time later in the week i will try and record some mp3 samples for you guys.

kt!

theyear2042 · Post by **theyear2042** » 22 Nov 2007, 01:25

ok i knocked up a quick demo this morning:
http://rapidshare.com/files/71385488/kt ... o.mp3.html

00:00 Vibe mode - Slow Speed - RM Caps
00:15 Vibe mode - Slow Speed - Univibe Caps
00:30 Vibe mode - Slow Speed - RT-18 Caps
00:48 Trem mode - Slow Speed - RM Caps - High Intensity
01:04 Trem mode - Slow Speed - RM Caps - Medium Intensity
01:25 Trem mode - Slow Speed - RM Caps - Low Intensity
01:43 Chorus Mode - Medium speed - RM Caps
01:59 Chorus Mode - Medium speed - Univibe Caps
02:10 Chorus Mode - Medium speed - RT-18 Caps
02:20 Chorus Mode - Slow speed - Changes between cap modes several times (undocumented)

You can hear the cap switch "pop" when I change modes. Maybe I'll write "Pop OK" next to the switch

I recorded them all with a straight-up sine wave. essentially the wave controls effect the timing of the swing, and you can alter the swing quite a lot. this demo will still give you a good rough overview of the types of sounds you can get from this circuit without going into the various controls for modding the swing.

Not the best recording - a lot of lights leaking onto my single coils - but you get the idea.

kt!

destro · Post by **destro** » 22 Nov 2007, 01:50

Thanks for the updated file as well as the sound samples! Can't wait to get this one started!

mike_a · Post by **mike_a** » 22 Nov 2007, 07:56

yeah! me too (although I should probably gain some experience with more simple effects first)

Thanks guys!

greenskull · Post by **greenskull** » 25 Nov 2007, 05:03

Oh crap!! Didn't see this post and I'm in the middle of building from the 1st h-res pcb layout..... I'll check to see if I can mod it a bit for some of the updates.
Just a heads up for anybody building from the old hi-res pcb: When soldering in some resistors I noticed some pads not connected to anything, but they are easily fixed.
I'll report back when this monster is finished!!

theyear2042 · Post by **theyear2042** » 25 Nov 2007, 10:37

greenskull wrote:Oh crap!! Didn't see this post and I'm in the middle of building from the 1st h-res pcb layout..... I'll check to see if I can mod it a bit for some of the updates.
Just a heads up for anybody building from the old hi-res pcb: When soldering in some resistors I noticed some pads not connected to anything, but they are easily fixed.
I'll report back when this monster is finished!!

hey greenskull

yeah there was a problem with a couple of joins in the very first hi-res conversion i did. (a photoshop layer was hidden accidently

) it was only up for a day or so before i fixed it. sorry about that.

i highly recommend that you restart with the new one i posted a couple of days ago. the mods to parts placement will turn a sometimes crampt build with some overlapping parts into a nice clean build.

also the additional LED is basically essential if you want to get a good understanding of how the led circuit is currently swinging.

i have personally built this circuit from the v2 hi-res pcb i posted last week and can vouch that it works 100%. fired up perfectly first go (gotta love that on a big build)

take care

kt!

greenskull · Post by **greenskull** » 25 Nov 2007, 23:43

Hey KT - I already had most of the parts soldered in before I noticed your post so I went ahead and finished with it... pretty sure I caught everything, but I'll know for sure when I fire it up. Just need to wire the controls up now.
I'm using the vactrol you recommended so I have no idea what to use for the pulsing LED anyway. I can still implement the cap switcher, if I can't decide what I like best in there.
I have one more question about this build, well maybe 2:
How important is the output buffer to the circuit? And would it be okay to just omit the output buffer for true bypass when the effect circuit is switched out?
Thanks again!!

greenskull · Post by **greenskull** » 28 Nov 2007, 04:07

Okay, it fired up!! I just bypassed the output buffer for now, but will experiment with it before boxing up.... not really sure I want to wired it up for the bypassed signal, though.
Tried different stage caps, but could not get it to sound as great as my Neovibe build in the chorus or vibrato modes.

BUT Bajaman was absolutely correct when he stated this as having a killer tremolo!!! A stand alone trem pedal from this circuit is warranted.
The vibrato on this thing is extremely weird sounding, like an old sci-fi movie effect. Backing off on the intensity and few other controls helps, but not as nice as the ol' Neovibe.
The vibrato mode sounds so bizarre I'm wondering if I wired the Range switch correctly. It skips around speeds instead of gradually getting faster for each position left to right. Is that correct?
I'll mess around with it some more before boxing up.... hope somebody reads this post and responds soon.

bajaman · Post by **bajaman** » 28 Nov 2007, 06:31

It skips around speeds instead of gradually getting faster for each position left to right. Is that correct?

check your rotary switch wiring - something is wrong

bajaman

theyear2042 · Post by **theyear2042** » 28 Nov 2007, 22:33

greenskull wrote:The vibrato on this thing is extremely weird sounding, like an old sci-fi movie effect.

It skips around speeds instead of gradually getting faster for each position left to right. Is that correct?

it sounds like you have wired the switching for the mode (vibe/trem/chorus) incorrectly.

the wiring for the mode switch is confusing, it threw me too. check your wiring then double check. draw it out on paper, dont do it in your head.

the range switch is 3x sine wave speeds, 3x saw wave speeds. there is a speed knob to fine tune the speed of each of the 3 speeds (sine+saw).

listen to my mp3 demo i posted above - it should sound like that.

i highly suggest you add the "surface mount LED" mod i listed in an earlier post so you can see what the led circuit is doing. without it, its going to be difficult to get your head around.

kt!

greenskull · Post by **greenskull** » 29 Nov 2007, 02:44

Thanks for the response, that helped me to understand the range switch quite a bit!! Nothing wacky after all with it, upon checking it again I noticed it's grouped as you noted in two sets of 3. I'm not sure if I have it wired in the proper direction or not, because the fastest speeds come first for each set (position 1 and 4) and I can't tell a sinewave from a saw wave by ear.

Maybe you can clue me in on that.... now I see why the pulsing LED would be a big help!!
I'm pretty sure my build is working right, just got thrown off by all the controls and the vibrato is a lot different than I expected or am used to. Backing off on the intensity cured some of the springy, boinginess (is that a word?) of it.... sorry I was having a panic attack over it yesterday.
I'm out of rotary switches for a cap switcher, but I have a few toggle switches I may try for the last 2 stages. I'm getting a handle on this monster and really starting to enjoy playing around with it!!!
Anyway, I want to give my thanks to Alessandro for making this dream build possible and Steve and KT for selflessly helping and sharing tips.

bajaman · Post by **bajaman** » 29 Nov 2007, 04:34

I can't tell a sinewave from a saw wave by ear.

you are not alone here

The sine wave is slightly smoother sounding - not as abrupt - I prefer the sine setting personally - one complaint - this thing has way too many controls, but it was fun to build (don't think I will build another though)

bajaman

Redhouse · Post by **Redhouse** » 29 Nov 2007, 15:10

The link is currently not working, has the zipfile moved? (or does someone else have it and want to point me to it?)

-Redhouse

BTW, I just got here, nice place, glad to be here!

Little VOODOO VIBE project by Kaputepalla [documentation]