Fuzz experience

His guitar slung across his back, his dusty boots is his cadillac.

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daveweyer
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by daveweyer » Wed Apr 13, 2022 11:46 pm

Wow I didn't notice your post for a while.
Actually, depending on the wah, you can get by with a smaller resistor. What you have to do is find out if you still have your full range of wah sweep when you have the fuzz on the output of the wah, and the fuzz at minimum gain. When the fuzz is at minimum gain its input impedance will be the lowest, and that can take some of your wah sweep away. Also, if the wah output current is high, it can short out the feedback in the fuzz circuit and send the gain soaring. A 10K resistor on the input of the fuzz usually works, but it is convenient to use a pot.

Normally a momentary reversal of the battery snap connector doesn't hurt anything.

revolver1
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by revolver1 » Thu Apr 28, 2022 3:28 pm

Hey Dave,

Firstly I've got to say a big, big thanks to you and of course the Hendrix Foundation for setting me up with some transistors to get the West Coast Fuzz together. I am eternaly grateful.

So a little bit on that for everyone else. When I started looking into this I hadn't really built any pedals and I felt a little out of my depth especially if any tuning would be required. I also couldn't do a PCB. So I reached out to a friend who builds pedals, a great guy Pedro Garcia who is Ananashead FX in Spain.

Anyway I asked him if I got the info together whether he could build one for me and one I plan to gift to my Brother and he agreed. As it turns out he's as big a Hendrix fan as any of us and so he got into reading all the threads here and loved every bit of it. So thanks to everyone who has contributed here, it really is a trove of information.

So far he has done a proto and it is shaping up really great. He has sent off to have the PCB's made now and last week we started to order parts ie enclosures and stuff. Everything has been discussed as it is all coming together so it's been a great, pardon the pun Experience.

Thanks to every one here who has already built them it certainly helped me decide on a few bits.

So it's going to follow Dave's schematic fairly closely with the exception of Shakti's idea of a true bypass switch and another switch to select between the boost and fuzz. It makes good sense to me. Also I wanted a switch to kill the battery so I can leave it plugged in to my board without killing the battery.

So hoping not too long before I get my hands on the unit and can share my opinions and put up some photos. The journey started before Christmas so I'm really looking forward to it, like they say good things come....

On a side note I ended up putting a 50k pot into a mini enclosure for a portable input resistor I can use between various Wah's and Fuzz's it is really quite good.
It got me thinking when I was reading up on the WC Fuzz I was not seeing the need for the boost. But now I see with that input resistor lowering the input signal it makes an awful lot of sense.

Can't wait to try. And again a huge thanks to Dave and the Foundation.

Stay tuned....


revolver1
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by revolver1 » Sun Aug 28, 2022 6:34 am

OK so that was wierd.... Just renewed my Image Shack Subscription but it won't upload to the site. The best I can do is upload the links.

So there it is finally got my hands on the pedal. I think it looks amazing, Pedro did a superb job on it.

Only problem is I haven't really had a chance to play it yet. Work is flat out at the moment so its going to be a while, the job is comming to an end and its usualy like this till it finnishes up. On the plus side I'm stashing the cash so when it finishes up I can get my flight cases sorted and get my amps stored down at a rehersal studio to finally plug it all in.

I also picked up a 97 Hendrix Artist Series Strat. (Lefty guitar fliped Right Handed) I love it, definately the best Strat Ive ever had, funny the CBS era is not rated but this is better than the 57 and 62 RI's Ive had in the past by miles. Ive pimped it out a bit. Callaham Trem, Raw Vintage saddles and Springs RF screening kit, Abigale Aabarra Hand Wound 69 pick ups, VIPOTS, Luxe Red Dime Tone Cap. Last bit now is a Bone Nut to make.

Really looking foward to plugging it all in and hopefully figuring out a way of posting some soundz.

Big Thanks to Dave, The Hendrix Foundation and also Pedro Garcia (Ananashed FX) Spain.

revolver1
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by revolver1 » Sun Aug 28, 2022 7:59 am

Also forgot to say, I haven't got my hands on it yet but I've picked up a Dunlop Octavio so that's the full signal chain.

That unit seems to sound the closest for BOG from the clips I've listened to.

I'm curious to see how it all plays together especially with the fuzz turned up so there isn't much Octave in there. I wonder if this stacked into the fuzz, volume up fuzz down is the full rawkus "Wild" sound, the extra layer of Wild. Interesting because that would be silicon Octavio into Germanium Fuzz.

I was also listening to the Maui footage the other day and I swear I could hear a subtle pulsating in there. I wonder if this is the Uni-vibe running flat out with the level turned down.

Many interesting things to try....

daveweyer
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by daveweyer » Tue Sep 20, 2022 8:17 pm

We have been working with some of the others who built the WC-3 fuzz, and it turns out that it is pretty handy to have the DC bias control available outside the case. Because the transistors are temperature sensitive, you may get into the cutoff region either on the positive or negative side, and when that happens it is a hassle to open the case to change it. Besides, it also changes the tone, so I would recommend that change while you are building it.

There is also another change which stabilizes the temperature drift; I did this on Mason's WC-3 fuzz and it took care of most of the problem. Instead of the 6.2 volt zener in the DC feedback circuit, you use (12) standard rectifier 1 amp diodes in series, glued to a small aluminum strip which is anchored to the case (cathode goes on the opposite side compared to the zener). These have the reverse temperature coefficient of the zener and transistor Q1, so it stabilizes the circuit quite a bit.

Xplorer is modifying some of the units in Europe with this change.

masonbeckham
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by masonbeckham » Tue Sep 27, 2022 10:51 pm

I highly recommend Dave’s temperature stability mod! Combined with the DC Bias control (and a West Coast Amp), you can get any Jimi tone from early 69 to September of 1970. With the Uni Vibe preamp in line it’s pure Band Of Gypsy’s. If you run just the fuzz and wah and tweak some controls, you can nail the new LA Forum show that’s coming out in a few weeks! All of the tones are at your finger tips, and wherever you set it stays consistent with these few circuit tweaks!

I can’t speak enough on this equipment!

Cheers!

Mason

revolver1
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Re: Fuzz experience

Post by revolver1 » Sun Oct 09, 2022 9:41 am

OK, cool. Moving the bias adjustment to the outside will be easy enough just hoping I have enough room.

Not sure I totally understand the temp stability mod. Are the Diodes in place of the Zenner or added to the cathode side of the Zenner?

Are N4007 OK? Or something different needed?

Does anyone have any pics? That might help.

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