The following is a guest post by Christian Moraga (@cubisteffects). If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Welcome to Part 3 of the Mod.It.Yourself series where we have previously looked at the basics of Tools and Techniques in Part 1 and how to mod the Diode Clipping in a pedal in Part 2. Part 3: Switches will look at an important component in the pedal modder’s toolkit. Switches are mechanical devices that allow an instantaneous flip to either turn part of a circuit on or off (break the circuit), or introduce a new part to the circuit. The latter function is useful in doing reversible modifications, or mods that use the original stock component. This part of The M.I.Y series will explain a bit about common switches and some ideas on how to use them in your own pedal mods.

The two most common mechanical switches used in modifying pedals are the push button switch and toggle switch.

Both of these switches use common nomenclature for their components that must be understood before selecting them for your next project. Below is a look at some of the more common names of switches that are used for pedal mods and an explanation of their specs.

Each switch is named with respect to the functions of their contacts, i.e. the part of the switch that is in contact with your wire, component, PCB etc. Also called a lug or pin. The two terms are poles (denoted by P) and throw (denoted by T). A pole is the number of switch contact sets of pins/lugs, and is labelled SP- for single pole, DP- double pole, 3P- for triple pole etc. The diagram below shows the poles of a 4PDT switch.

Most switches used in pedals have three pins per pole. The center pin is common i.e. is always connected to either outer pin of the three. Moving the toggle either up or down selects (as shown in the photo below) between these two connections or conducting positions. These positions are known as throws and are denoted -ST for single throw or -DT for double throw. A single throw switch only has two pins with the third pin shorting to ground, thus having only one position.

Common switches used in modifications are single pole double throw (SPDT) or double pole double throw toggle (DPDT) switches, and true bypass foot switches are known as triple pole double throw (3PDT). Using this knowledge of switches, here are a couple of mods you can try on your next pedal designs or mods.

KILL SWITCH

To get a stuttering effect made famous by guitarists Tom Morello and Buckethead in stompbox form, you can make use of a type of push button switch called a momentary switch. By using a push-to-make momentary or “normally open”, when pressing the switch you are breaking the circuit thus creating a staccato effect. To do this, all you need to do is cut the wire that goes from the output of the PCB to the bypass switch. Wire each of these two ends to a normally open SPST momentary switch and you have a momentary kill switch. The effect signal will stay on until you step on the switch, cutting all volume of your signal. By pressing at rhythmic intervals, you can create unique guitar rhythms heard in many RATM riffs. Momentary switches are great for these “stab” like effects and can be used for feedback loops, or wiring to a potentiometer in a delay pedal to get that spaceship, oscillation sound.

DIODE CLIPPING SWITCH

As previously discussed in Part 2 of the M.I.Y series, we can mod a pedals’ clipping diodes to create a different tone of the distorted sound. We could use different diode material, symmetry, combinations etc to get our desired sound. But what if you liked two diode sounds and wanted to switch between them? Using an SPDT switch, you can do just that and is a common feature on many effects pedals.

The schematic below [PIC 5] shows the clipping diode structure of many distortion pedals – a hard clipping pair at the output of the IC.

One end of the pair shunts to ground, while the other end is in the signal path. If this end on the signal path (A) is wired to the common pin of the SPDT switch, we can then switch between two differing pairs of diodes. Wire the end of two pairs to ground, and the other end to (B) and (C) of the switch and you can select between your favourite clipping tones. The symmetry of the clipping can be controlled using this switching layout as well – just use different symmetrical pairs for (B) and (C).

You can also use this principle to switch between two components of differing values i.e. the output capacitor to provide more/less bass in the circuit. Remove the initial capacitor from the PCB where one pad will have one wire running to (A) and two wires from the other pad to one end of either capacitor you wish to switch between [PIC 7].

Hopefully this information and diagrams will give you ideas on how to mod your next pedal, or to modify your next pedal build. Also, I would suggest getting a multimeter with a continuity test function. By putting either probe on any two connections, a beep or sound should be heard. This is very useful to test your new connections.

Happy modding,

C.

About the author.

Christian Moraga is the owner of CubistEffects.com located in Sydney, Australia. Christian repairs and mods most brands of pedals like BOSS, Ibanez, EHX , Arion, MXR, Danelectro, Marshall, Dunlop, VooDoo Labs, Digitech, DOD etc and specialise in Big Muffs and ProCo Rats. He also makes custom switching and loopers for your pedalboard needs. A/B, True Bypass, Tap Tempo etc.

A note from EffectsBay.com
I found Christian while doing some research on the Line 6 DL4, where Christian has some great mods available!

Incoming search terms for EffectsBay.com:

• double pole double throw switch
• dpdt switch
• 4pdt switch
• double pole single throw
• double pole switch
• 4PDT Switch Diagram
• Hard Clipping
• single pole triple throw switch
• single pole double throw
• single pole single throw switch

The following is a guest post by Christian Moraga (@cubisteffects). If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

DIY electronics for guitar effect pedals has become increasingly popular of late. Guitarists and musicians worldwide are downing instruments and picking up tools to build and modify their own pedals, searching for that unique tone. There are sites like Build Your Own Clone, General Guitar Gadgets and Tonepad that sell printed circuit boards (PCBs) and kits to create your own version of popular effect pedal designs. There are also websites like DIYstompboxes, Ampage, GEOFEX and AMZFX that provide a wealth of knowledge from a committed online community. However, all of this information is useless if you do not have the basic tools and techniques to enter the DIY realm. The Mod.It.Yourself (M.I.Y) blog series aims to give you those skills (plus a handful of ideas) so you too can begin deconstructing electronics to create your own personalised sound.

Part 1 of the M.I.Y series is starting from the beginning – Tools and Techniques. Without these fundamentals, you will no doubt be left with damaged parts, boards and burnt finger tips. So safety first! Be sure to work in a well-ventilated, well lit work area with a clear work space to avoid burning anything as a soldering iron can reach 900 degrees (480°C). Soldering produces fumes so ventilation is a must and safety glasses/goggles are also recommended as stray metal is known to fly around an electronics work space.

To build/modify any electronics you will need to have tools for soldering. Soldering is the melting of metal to join two components to form a conductive connection (solder joint), so you will need solder and a soldering iron to create this connection. Soldering irons come in many forms but a 40W iron is best to provide adequate heat transfer and solder flow. Solder comes in different compositions, with different types of metal. Leaded solder flows best but has toxic fumes so try and use lead free solder. There are other tools required for building/modifying guitar pedals; long-nose pliers, side cutters (or snips), multimeter and wire strippers (as pictured). These tools will help in populating boards, cutting away component legs, checking proper connections and stripping insulated wire.

Now that we have the tools, let’s get to soldering technique.

To form a solder joint, place the component through the PCB hole and follow these four easy steps to ensure a solid joint is made:

(1) It is important to place the iron where the component passes through the board. Heat this spot for a second.

(2) Apply the solder to this spot.  Keep applying solder until a dome forms up the component leg (two seconds).

(3) Remove strand of solder while maintaining iron on spot. This allows the solder to flow through the PCB hole (one second).

(4) Finally, remove iron from spot. Cut off the remaining component leg and you should now have a shiny, solid solder joint.

But mistakes do happen, and a technique as important as soldering is desoldering, the process of removing solder from a joint. This skill is a must in electronics for removing components from a board, correcting a bad (or cold) solder joint etc. A desoldering pump and desoldering wick or braid (as pictured) are just as valuable as a soldering iron and are must haves in your toolbox. This video from Make Magazine runs through a few desoldering methods, as well as a brief soldering demonstration and is well worth watching.

So go off to your local electronics store, pick up these tools and an electronics kit and practice your soldering/desoldering technique. In Part 2 of the M.I.Y series, we will look at common modifications to overdrive/distortion pedals and how to hot-rod that old pedal on your shelf into a mean gain machine. Until then…

C.

About the author.
Christian Moraga is the owner of CubistEffects.com located in Sydney, Australia. Christian repairs and mods most brands of pedals like BOSS, Ibanez, EHX , Arion, MXR, Danelectro, Marshall, Dunlop, VooDoo Labs, Digitech, DOD etc and specialise in Big Muffs and ProCo Rats. He also makes custom switching and loopers for your pedalboard needs. A/B, True Bypass, Tap Tempo etc.

A note from EffectsBay.com
I found Christian while doing some research on the Line 6 DL4, where Christian had some great mods available!

Remember, if you like reading about pedals and seeing videos reviews from others, please subscribe to the RSS feed and get notified via email when there are new postings!

Incoming search terms for EffectsBay.com:

• how to remove solder
• nikko fighter booster
• pyle pro delay pedal
• toxic bass rc booster