Double Preset Mod Updated & Volume Drop Mod & More!

In the next coming weeks, UnderGroundPedalMods.Com will be releasing an updated Double Preset Mod, Expression Wheel Mod, Volume Drop Mod, LED Replacement, Switch Replacement, Tone Upgrade Mod eBooks!

The Line 6 DL-4, or Line 6 DL4 (whichever you prefer) has become an iconic pedal and we’re very pleased to be able to release updated eBooks covering the following mods:

1. Double Preset
2. Expression Knob
3. Volume Drop Mod
4. LED Replacement
5. Footswitch Replacement
6. Tone Upgrade Mod (not for the faint of heart..)

We’ve streamlined our eBooks to include less fluff and more of the “meat and potatoes” of the processes.

Stay tuned for an official release date!

>> www.undergroundpedalmods.com

Pedal Parts Plus

Guitar Effects Pedal Parts Heaven

Let’s face it, sourcing parts for a build is a pain. What values do I need? What physical size should I choose? What brand should I buy? Metal? Ceramic? NonPolar? Polar? Shaken? Stirred?  The list goes on and on.

PedalPartsPlus.com gets you in and out with the RIGHT, GOOD parts every time.  They don’t offer fluff, only the stuff you’ll use.  Pictures of actual components, not just a white-paper sketch.

Not only do they do parts, they do enclosure drilling, powder coating and screen printing to polish off your build, making it truly one of a kind.

Their forum and gallery should get you stoked to finish your new build as well as help answer questions along the way.

And their pricing is great.  $3.80 for a 3PDT switch ain’t bad at all.  You’ll have quite the time finding a price in that ballpark, or should I say basement…

 

>> www.pedalpartsplus.com

AMZFX

Analog Music Zone

Guitar Pedal DIY

From the front page:

AMZ is a resource with information about guitar effects pedals, stompboxes, audio circuits and tips on how to build them. There are fuzzbox schematics, signal booster projects, audio mixers and much more available free. Take some time to browse the site and discover information that can help you with your next DIY effects pedal project. You might decide to build your own clone of a classic!

AMZ is a great guitar effects pedal DIY stop for the avid DIYer. Apart from the usual effects projects, schematics, and  general tips and resources, AMZ has a cool “Lab”

The Lab Notebook is sort of a raw, ‘stream of consciousness’ type thing of notes and lessons learned through the different projects over the years.  Great nuggets of wisdom and experience are hidden within, it’s worth a look.

They also offer PCB boards for many of their projects so if you don’t want to etch, you can simply order!

This site is one of the guitar effect DIY pioneers, so some homage is due!

 

>>   http://www.muzique.com/

RunoffGroove.com

Perf Layouts & Sound Clips

One of the sometimes frustrating things about guitar effect DIY is what seems like a lack of sound clips for many pedal projects.  Some places offer PCBs, great, but what does this thing SOUND like?

Enter RunOffGroove.com.  Custom DIY projects and a crap load of sound clips to actually HEAR what you’re thinking about building!!  It’s great!

As of this posting they have 25+ different projects in their archives. Things like “The English Channel“, an AC30-type top-boost project to the “Umble“, inspired by the infamous Dumble amplifiers.

Most projects include a sound clip, schematic, perf-board layout as well as a brief history of the project’s development.  A couple have PCBs contributed by outsiders.  All in all, it’s a great site to browse and get inspired to build after cruising through all of the clips and project pages.

 

>>  www.runoffgroove.com

MusicPCB.com

Wicked Cool Fab’d PCBs

As you can see from the pic on the right (actual musicpcb.com board) these things are the real deal.  Here’s an excerpt from their website:

MusicPCB offers PCB projects to build guitar and bass effects, and synth modules. All PCBs are professionally manufactured, and include soldermask, a silkscreened component legend, and plated through holes and pads. They are designed to be easy to build, provide simple and clean wiring, to work well with your other pedals, modules, and instruments, and most of all to sound great and provide sounds and features not available in commercial designs.

That sums it up.  the boards look stunning, the PDF accompanying each build/board is very informative and easy to follow.  I haven’t actually built any of their projects, but, looking at the documentation as well as the board, it’s an ‘all-inclusive’ package for sure.

They’ve got seven projects up at the time of this post as well as a few on the way.  Very clean website as would be expected from such detailed, all-encompassing projects.

 

>> www.musicpcb.com

MadBeanPedals.com

Serious Projects

This guy’s got some killer projects.  Whether DIY, kits, PCBs, he’s got a nice looking stock of builds.  Boost, Delay, Compression, Distortion, Filter, Fuzz, Modulation, Octave, Overdrive, “Other” (We can only imagine 🙂 )

You’ll find a dummy-proof difficulty rating ranging from Noob to Genius so you’ll be sure that the project you are taking on fits you’re level of expertise!  (I personally enjoy the ‘Cowboy’ level of difficulty, brilliant!)

Each PCB you purchase comes with an extremely well oiled PDF that includes parts, layout, mods/notes on revisions/alterations from ‘originals’ if applicable as well as a schematic for those who may fall in the ‘Genius’ difficulty sphere.

The forum also looks like it’s well used and seems like folks are able to get questions answered from the community as well as Brian himself at times.

>> www.madbeanpedals.com

TonePad.com

“Tone For The Masses”

-tonepad.com

This place is great.  A simple list of solid FX projects to build with PCB art, schematics, layouts, some sound clips.  Everything a person would need to start off in guitar pedal DIY, and even some projects that will challenge even a seasoned vet.

Tonepad.com boasts a nice list of guitar pedal projects from the “Blue Clipper” to the more advanced “MXR Envelope Filter”  While you won’t find many ’boutique’ projects, you’ll still find enough to get your board rockin’

Another aspect of the site that is absolutely stellar is the PhotoEssay section.  We’re talking how to etch PCBs, populate amp chassis, to making a guitar cabinet.  All good stuff, it’s where I learned to etch a PCB and I still reference these things from time to time.

Bravo, TonePad team.

 

>> www.tonepad.com

How to etch a PCB

Don’t spill the acid!

As a guitar pedal DIY-er you’ll undoubtedly run across a pedal / design that you’ll want to build but that no one is fabricating boards for.  I came across a “Double Drive” which looked like a FullTone FullDrive 2, but no one had kits, so I ventured out to my local electronics store, picked up some copper clad and pressed my first PCB with my wife’s clothing iron.

If you need some guidance in crafting your own PCBs, I’d check out the DIY section at The Recording Art website.  They’ve got a great PCB making tutorial which is a couple steps above my caveman-like clothing iron experience.

Here’s the materials list from their guide:

• -Laser Printer
• -Copper clad board
• -Scotch pads, Brillo pads, or fine steel wool
• -Laminator (I use a GBC 9” laminator but an iron can be used with varied results)
• -Ferric chloride or ammonium persulfate
• -Plastic or glass tray
• -Sharpie marker
• -Drill press (a hand drill can work in a pinch)
• -Wire gauge drill bits
• -Magazines

As you can see, if you have a Radio Shack and a hardware store in your town, it would seem that you’ll be able to etch your own boards (assuming you have a laser printer)

I must say, there is a certain pride factor that comes into play when a “board-gawker” walks up and you explain that you built the majority of the pedals on your board down to etching the PCBs.  Hardcore DIY baby…

 >>  http://www.therecordingart.com/

Kits: BuildYourOwnClone.com

No Frills Goodness

This place does it right.  No frilly webpage with gobs of ads, just a list of pedals with awesome build guides.  We’re talking super detailed guides stepping you through the entire process.  Bravo.

They also stock some basic parts as well, enclosures, ICs, caps, resistors, and more in their store. While the store and pedal list certainly aren’t all-encompassing, it hits on solid builds that everyone should probably have on their boards.

One thing that really sets them apart, however, is their forum.  It seems to have good traffic and folks are able to connect with other builders for help/ideas and such.  DIY, while inherently a solo act is always better, more fun and easier if you have a forum of others who can pitch in a tip here and there.

I have yet to order a kit, but, I would assume by their longevity the order process is painless.

 

>> www.buildyourownclone.com

 

 

GuitarPCB.com

PCBs, Parts, Demos & More

Looking for some kits to start off your DIY journey?  GuitarPCB.com is a good place to peek at.  They’ve got hand built, hand etched boards for sale, reasonably priced as well as some parts, demos and a fairly active forum with tips and build help.

Whether you’re looking for something “Ratty” or something a bit more “Standard”, you’ll find demos, build help, diagrams and modding options for most if not all projects.

The inventory may not be pages and pages of kits, but, these guys really hit some “Big Ballers” in the guitar pedal world. Check ’em out!  You never know what you might run in to!

>> www.guitarPCB.com