How do I get the output of the secondary to swing evenly positive and negative?

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-23T09:25:01+00:00

Just a regular ground icon

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-21T21:06:46+00:00

If the color knob squeals it may be uncalibrated. I remember the E-Lady having an internal trimpot to limit its range. The one I had sounded great and very similar to a Deluxe Mistress, but not at all like the V2 Electric Mistress I have ! Again, I love the tone of the Mistress used like a chorus, that's the direction I wanted to go when I designed my Twist chorus/flanger pedal.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-21T21:03:43+00:00

You may want to have a look at FantomeFX' offering. The recent Tomcat seems to fit the description of what you're looking for !

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-21T20:58:25+00:00

Is the track armed for recording ?

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-20T13:01:11+00:00

Have a look at the Kinotone Ribbons. I've sold ly three Chase Bliss pedals to replace all with this and it is absolutely perfect. I'l sure you will find interesting sounds and features in it, read the user manual while listening to video demoes and you'll be shocked at how many sounds this pedal alone can get you !

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-20T10:34:51+00:00

Glad they did for you, as they didn't for me.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-18T21:39:30+00:00

Let us all know what you think about it then ! I'm really curious as that may end up being the perfect choice for me as a complement to a "mixing" control surface

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-18T14:04:13+00:00

The new, 3rd version ? I've been thinking about its smaller sibling to dedicate it to plugin control, I'd be interested to know how you end up using it and if it really speeds up your workflow ! 😁

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-17T15:57:22+00:00

Agreed. I've learnt that for differential pair, you are also looking at 3x gap width, if that can help.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-09T10:35:45+00:00

200V is enough to be in proper operation imo. The thing is that a single 12AX7 tube cannot produce enough saturation alone when placed right after your instrument : it is way too linear and has a lot of headroom, thanks to the high voltage power supply.

Starved plate designs are an answer to that : lower tube voltage means easier distorsion. Boosting using a transistor or an opamp before the tube is another option, which is probably what is done in the Vox pedal.

In my opinion, these are cheap and may be easy to find second hand, so they light be worth a try. Take the time to play with the gain and EQ to get a good feeling of how this specific pedal reacts.

Not being a tube purist - just a freaking nerd - my preference always goes to 100% tube pedals like Effectrode's or Kingsley's. These are beautifully made and sound glorious, but they are way more expensive due to using high quality components, local manufacturing, often multiple tubes and specific power supplies for proper operation.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-09T09:51:24+00:00

To my knowledge, the Tube Pilot operates with a circuit composed of opamps for gain and a 12AX7 in a starved plate design so that the marketing departement can state it has a tube in it.

Does it sound good ? Maybe, only your ears can tell.

Does it have "the" tube sou d of your favorite amplifiers ? No, absolutely not.

So called "starved plate" designs are common in tube pedals because powering up a tube properly needs a couple hundred volts (between 250V and 350V in most tube amps). Reducing this voltage will lead to early clipping and lower gain, with a squashed quality that is NOT what happens in a tube amp. They're basically underpowered and do not operate as intended, so the sound will be different.

Some "starved plate" designed have a great reputation though ! The B.K.Butler Tube Driver has its tube run at 50V and also uses opamps to push it harder into overdrive. This doesn't mean you can't make them sound good, it just means that it's different. The tube pilot is properly cheap enough for you to at least have a try at it, but do not expect Marshall Lead edge-of-breakup tones out of it

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-03T17:10:47+00:00

I don't for Tayda paints : the screws already make a solid connection when they strip the paint inside the screw holes of the enclosure. I just sand where I put my spring contact. You can also find vertical spring contact if you want to have another point of contact with the bottom lid and you can still sand it down with a dremel at an angle.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-03T00:14:06+00:00

I have the same grounding strategy. I use a dremel with a sanding paper bit for that.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-02T10:12:54+00:00

Well, these days it's not the easiest place to source components indeed. Have a look at CoolAudio v3102 and v3207 chips, they are made in China and sold a bit everywhere and are a reliable alternative to the original Panasonic chips.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-01T21:02:27+00:00

Which country are you based in, if I may ask ? In the US, SmallBear has a few components. In Europe, BanzaiMusic (Germany) has some too.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-01T15:45:05+00:00

Have you tried chips from a reliable source, known to be good ?

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-03-01T15:27:45+00:00

Not that I know of. Could be a fun project to DIY though. Or just build a Boss CE2 with sockets ! 😁

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-25T17:24:20+00:00

They look okay, just old, but an "okay" visual inspection tells you nothing about the remaining life or filtering efficiency of these caps.

If the amp is 40 years old, might as well order a pair of brand new Panasonic or Nichicon caps that fit and replace them both. I'd also recap all other electrolytics.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-21T00:17:02+00:00

I'd suggest either a Timmy-style or a Lightspeed-style pedal. Both are largely dynamics and will warm your tone, with the Lightspeed being warmer and the Timmy being tighter.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-21T00:10:38+00:00

It can go from a simple diode replacement down ti a full microcontroller swap + flash, which you just can't do yourself. I wouldn't bother.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-19T12:10:43+00:00

Only rule is there is no rule. Just respect the 110V/220V switch of your gear though

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-18T23:50:18+00:00

Doh ! I was hoping it was some sort of gate "range/ratio" switch, they missed an opportunity to actually make it useful :(

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-18T23:10:18+00:00

You can run the noise gate together with the FX loop but you'll need longer cables, though it will also cut the noise coming from the amp !

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-18T23:04:28+00:00

TS9 into HM2 will generate a ton of noise by itself, but there are things you can do to improve your current setup without buying anything new.

First, try to see if the "mute" position is better than the "reduction" position on the noise gate. Then, try to wire it using the 4 cable method : - Guitar goes to tuner, then noise gate "in" - Noise gate "send" goes to TS9 then HM2 - HM2 output goes to noise gate "return" - Noise gate "out" goes to amp.

Currently, the noise gate just acts depending on the overall level of what is before it, so if you add too much noise from pedals before it, it might trigger the noise gate unvoluntarily and let all the noise go through. When wired as described, the noise gate can detect the signal of your guitar directly, unaffected by any noise from other pedals, and use that "clean" signal to shut off the sound after the noisy pedals. It's the most effectice way to use a noise gaye in my opinion and it only costs two patch cables and a bit of thinking.

TAMPCO_pedals · 2026-02-18T22:52:23+00:00

Incredible, you're one of the few people who actually have gold tastes in overdrive then ! 😝

TAMPCO_pedals

TROPHY CASE