freestompboxes.org

Hey Folks!
So I saw an ad in my local CL musical instruments classifieds for a 60's vox wah for $80 that wasn't working. The guy said a wire was loose and the pot was shot. No big deal, right? I have done a heap of true bypass and capacitor and resistor mods on all kinds of Thomas Organ Crybabys, V846, and modern Vox wahs, I figured I'd scoop it up, fix it, lube it, sell it and make some good coin. So I drove an hour up to the mountians, paid the guy and was off. Almost got stuck in the snow on the way home when a freak storm came up. Finally I was home and it was on my bench. Took off the back and it seemed like the trashcan inductor was hanging on by a thread. Someone else apparently already had a go at "fixing" fixing this pedal. They must have had a heck of a solder gun or something cause they burned up 4 different solder lands on the PCB and then tried to run wire jumpers between the places that they screwed things up. They got rid of one of the 10nf caps and replaced it with an 0.1 uf axial polystyrene number. Argh. So now I dunno what to do. Will I lose all the value by etching a repro board? Where in the heck am I gonna find the right capacitor? Help!

timbo_93631 wrote:Hey Folks!
So I saw an ad in my local CL musical instruments classifieds for a 60's vox wah for $80 that wasn't working. The guy said a wire was loose and the pot was shot. No big deal, right? I have done a heap of true bypass and capacitor and resistor mods on all kinds of Thomas Organ Crybabys, V846, and modern Vox wahs, I figured I'd scoop it up, fix it, lube it, sell it and make some good coin. So I drove an hour up to the mountians, paid the guy and was off. Almost got stuck in the snow on the way home when a freak storm came up. Finally I was home and it was on my bench. Took off the back and it seemed like the trashcan inductor was hanging on by a thread. Someone else apparently already had a go at "fixing" fixing this pedal. They must have had a heck of a solder gun or something cause they burned up 4 different solder lands on the PCB and then tried to run wire jumpers between the places that they screwed things up. They got rid of one of the 10nf caps and replaced it with an 0.1 uf axial polystyrene number. Argh. So now I dunno what to do. Will I lose all the value by etching a repro board? Where in the heck am I gonna find the right capacitor? Help!

Well, you can sell me your wah shell I have a turretboard wah to finish, and this should be cool base

timbo_93631 wrote:Hey Folks!
So I saw an ad in my local CL musical instruments classifieds for a 60's vox wah for $80 that wasn't working. The guy said a wire was loose and the pot was shot. No big deal, right? I have done a heap of true bypass and capacitor and resistor mods on all kinds of Thomas Organ Crybabys, V846, and modern Vox wahs, I figured I'd scoop it up, fix it, lube it, sell it and make some good coin. So I drove an hour up to the mountians, paid the guy and was off. Almost got stuck in the snow on the way home when a freak storm came up. Finally I was home and it was on my bench. Took off the back and it seemed like the trashcan inductor was hanging on by a thread. Someone else apparently already had a go at "fixing" fixing this pedal. They must have had a heck of a solder gun or something cause they burned up 4 different solder lands on the PCB and then tried to run wire jumpers between the places that they screwed things up. They got rid of one of the 10nf caps and replaced it with an 0.1 uf axial polystyrene number. Argh. So now I dunno what to do. Will I lose all the value by etching a repro board? Where in the heck am I gonna find the right capacitor? Help!

Etch a repro board, use the original inductor (if you can recover it), put the right value capacitors and resistors (use modern metal film resistors), wire it for true bypass, and sell it as a repaired unit, improved for lower noise, to "modern standards".

Recently, I did this with two Colorsound wahs I got that were wrecked internally. I turned them into the Colorsound Wah / Swell, and resprayed the cases, and re-chromed the treadles. I bought them in a junk shop (I really just wanted the cases and mechanisms, but "won" the inductors too). I rebuilt them using BC109C transistors, (they originally had BC169C), tropical-fish caps (just because I had some of the right values), metal film resistors and the original inductors. I found that the frequency range wasn't quite what I liked, so changed the appropriate cap, and the results were superb. I also added a transparent input and output buffer (which could be jumpered out for the more anal amongst us), so that they were unaffected by equipment before or after them. The buffers provide a high input impedance (1M) and low output impedance, so they will drive long cables or any other effect. This is becoming my standard practice, and allows the use of silent electronic switching, as I have yet to find a hardware switch that's truly silent!

If you're honest when you advertise it, and say that it's an "updated" unit, you'll get just the same money as you would for something all original - trust me, you really don't want to have to try to deal with the anal "mojo" morons who believe that components made prior to 1970 are somehow "better"!

Just for fun, I built a Tonebender MkIII with modern components (and Russian germanium transistors) and compared it against an original with two famous players (both of whom are known for using the Tonebenders). They couldn't tell the difference, and I've built spare Tonebenders for both of them recently.

So - make your repro. Be honest in your advertising - say that it's a rebuild, and you'll make plenty of money on it!

Thanks for the thoughts!
I have a few Thomas Organ PCBs around the shop so I am gonna load one up with the Italian parts and just sell it that way including the wrecked original PCB. Again, thanks!

So I got it all fixed up! Super tone, I'll be sad to let it go as these are getting so hard to come by for less than $500! Let alone the deal I got on this one. I have it up on eBay now.

Gutshot with the Sepulveda PCB now featuring Italian components and True Bypass

The final chapter on this wah...
I got an email through ebay from a fx fiddlewither in Paris. Hey ended up buying it with only the original components so I took everything back off the Sepulveda board, bagged up the pieces and said goodbye. He got a repro board from Thailand apparently. Worked out good though, I made $120 and he is getting more fuel for his Jimi obsession fire. Not too bad for just wasting a little solder and some gas money to go buy it!

sexy!

I've scored the same pcb btw, this is the same seller who selling FF pcb's

; ) hey, what's a fiddle wither ?

so, i'm the guy in Paris. if you guys are interested into a better univibe than a kr megavibe, it should be working in some months. for quite cheap.

why does it work with you and not with me ? i didn't work on it since a week or two, i don't see what it is about ...
i wonder now if the two transistors have to be both with a middle leg on the side or just one ?
what are the correct caps values you're talking about ?
really ,you bought it 80 $ ? just cheaper than the modern 847 wah i bought, used !!! are you in the land of "cheap" ?

guys, please help me make this Wah to work ...

this is the first wah i'm touching, for the electronic.
thanks,
Adrien

i don't know how to post pictures here. i guess it has to be uploaded on some site allready.

as i broke one of the original transistor, as i didn't know about the middle leg ...
i replaced it with a transistor i had under my hands, a bc108 but i guess i should replace both by some BC109. BC109C ?? same story for ebc ? don't know exactly how to know the difference from a transistor to another one, and when some have a different configuration with ebc compared to some other.

i'd love to find one of these 10nf blue cap ...

the inductor : i guess there's no polarity, i've just drilled the new board, to solder the two tiny legs of this one.
well , no sound ... it used to hae a bad sound in the beginning, and it wasn't even wired and soldered the right way.

ok i love Jimi Hendrix work, and discover so many things on him through his instruments. At least i'd like this one to work and have the best wah sound i ever heard, as everyone talks about this mythical vox italian, that you had for 80$ !
cheers,
Adrien

Hello Adrien,
First of all, welcome here.

Then,
If you would have spent some time doing some more homework You'd know that Italian Vox Wahs' are made by Jen. And that there's no "magical components" in a Vox that are not in the same Jen branded under another name. As an example I have a Luxor wah here that i took off the German Ebay for 20 euro's. Identical to the Italian Vox Wahs.

Also, when focussing on that ultimate Hendrix sound, bear in mind that Hendrix played new wahs'. Not 40 year old ones. Components in a wah age, electrolits in the first place but I've had Voxes here that had a 1.5Megohm taper resistance while the pots case said "100k". Therefore a 40 yr old wah will not get you that instant Hendrix tone. On the contrary.

yes, thank you.
well yes, someone told me that jen made these components.
i know that this wah is old, and i certainly know that there's no hendrix button you can push to get his sound and talent.

but at least, i'd like to make this wah to work. Now there's a problem somewhee in what i did i guess, as it is silent.
then, about improving the old components and maybe replace some, i'll see later.

if i post some pictures, do you think you can see where is the problem ? it's maybe simple and i didn't see that.
but i don't know how to post pictures with IMG.

best,
Adrien

Hey Adrien!
A fiddlewither is one who fiddles with things! I am still waiting on my repro PCB's from Thailand, and I have also ordered a quantity of BC109b transistors from Romania. When I get 109b's in I will send you a pair if you like.
I got a great deal on that pedal, but it probably isn't going to happen again. Times are very tough in the US right now and many people are selling things fast at lower than average prices to just keep up with living expenses. I always have to keep looking for those good deals so I can make some money by fixing and reselling the pedals. In your case it was the first time I have ever fixed and then unfixed a pedal then sold it. Strange to say the least.
I wish that you lived right down the street so we could get that thing working again but we will have to do our best through email and forums like this. So again, once I get all my parts I will put together a clone and see where things could be going wrong for you.
Best of luck!
Tim

Hi Tim, i still think that i bought it at an interesting price, don't worry. That's sweet, yes i'd like to try a pair or two of these transistors . Maybe Three or four of them, in case it's damaged for x reason, as it's germanium. Yes we can have fun repairing this one. Thank you Tim.
Cheers,
Adrien