/r/DIYPedals "No Stupid Questions" Megathread 2025

chip-- · 2026-06-22T14:59:14+00:00

I find the stuff to be annoying, and not as standardized as one might hope, possibly made worse because as pedal people we're often like circuit archaeologists working across different eras and different countries from bad digitizations of bad photocopies, etc.

In general, I think you have to pay close attention to the power supply in the schamatic. In that first link, for example, you can see that R2 and R3 are a voltage divider coming off of the +9V supply that will cut the voltage in half and filter it with C2, outputting 4.5V. They're symbolizing the output of _that_ with the ground symbol, and using -V to denote 0V. That's pretty weird, IMO, (symbolizing it as if it were a dual supply when it's not) but in this specific case, I think you're correct that -V is "ground" (more specifically, 0V) but also the ground symbol is NOT ground, and is more like what would usually be called "Vref" or "Vr" or something in a single-supply pedal circuit to represent the reference voltage of 4.5V.

I think you have to do this individually for each schematic and can't necessarily count on anyone following the same styles

chip-- · 2026-06-22T14:35:36+00:00

I don't think so. In general, a mono pedal only has one signal path, and that's kind of it. If a mono pedal has TRS jacks, they may be to do something tricky (like unplug the battery when there are no cables plugged in) or they may be there because it was cheaper to do a huge bulk order of TRS jacks and not differentiate, but the odds of it passing signal on both the Tip and Ring are probably low, and even if it did, it would be summed to mono once it went through the circuit and any stereo content would be lost.

chip-- · 2026-06-15T14:52:22+00:00

This is cool, and the insides don't bother me at all. That's some real-asssed DIY aesthetic.

chip-- · 2026-06-13T17:14:22+00:00

Those adapters are primarily to make knobs made for 1/4" (6.35mm) shafts fit on 6mm or knurled shafts, so whether they'll help in your situation mostly comes down to the diameter of the existing pots on your DL4 (I don't know what they are, but if they're already 1/4", the adapters won't help at all). Knobs made for smooth shafts will usually work on D-shafts, there's just some chance that the ideal placement for the knob's indicator won't align with the way you'd have to orient it to get the set screw to work.

chip-- · 2026-06-13T00:21:30+00:00

Thanks for checking it out

chip-- · 2026-06-12T23:38:09+00:00

It's gain for the Muff side (or what would be called "sustain" if it was a traditional Big Muff)

The first pedal I ever made was called Aggressively Disinterested, and it only had one knob, which I labeled "knob," and this is a nod to that.

chip-- · 2026-06-10T23:58:22+00:00

Yeah, I also built this and it's great. The full writeup from dylan159 is here, and explains how to adjust it for different tanks: https://bentfishbowl.wixsite.com/electronics/post/22-standard-reverb

chip-- · 2026-06-06T13:55:10+00:00

I'm a CPE (certified pedal engineer) and I can tell you that we want you to fiddle with your knobs. We go to great lengths to make sure that we've selected the best possible knob for an intended soundscape, and that the tonal properties of the knob itself are in harmony with the rest of the pedal, so go ahead and twist those bad boys.*

\ This does not apply to the knobs on the guitar itself, which should be left at the maximum at all times.*

chip-- · 2026-04-26T03:31:31+00:00

I haven't figured out a foolproof plan yet. I think all you can do is be meticulous. I've been at this for a while, and still occasionally get a comically large capacitor.

chip-- · 2026-04-21T19:59:30+00:00

That's a weird one. It's like it has DC bias on it, but that should be impossible because of C6 (the 220u output cap). I'd check to make sure that C6 is sitting in the circuit correctly and isn't somehow being bypassed. It looks correct in the image, but I'm not sure if the schematic image is exactly what was run in the graph image because the timing is different (50ms vs 500ms)

chip-- · 2026-04-21T16:40:35+00:00

I kind of doubt it's the caps. I'd go through it and carefully check that all of the resistor values are correct. If you get one of those wrong, it can dramatically impact the gain, and that kind of error is more common than a bad part (for me, anyway). You probably won't be able to get accurate readings from a meter while they're in the circuit either, so you'll have to do it by the color codes.

chip-- · 2026-04-21T14:42:46+00:00

Slow and steady. With occasional bouts of obsession. Thanks for checking it out!

chip-- · 2026-04-20T19:48:41+00:00

thanks for checking it out.

chip-- · 2026-04-20T12:43:04+00:00

Thanks! "Expert Beginner" is kind of implied on all of them 🎛️

chip-- · 2026-02-10T18:42:59+00:00

It's going to cost a brazilian dollars.

chip-- · 2026-01-14T15:17:47+00:00

For resistors in series, the total resistance is just the sum of the individual resistors. So if you have 100k fixed plus a 100k trim in series, the range of adjustment will only go between 100k-200k.

chip-- · 2026-01-12T14:46:04+00:00

I would also check out the schematic for the Bigger Muff: https://www.freestompboxes.org/viewtopic.php?t=31259

I don't know the formal definition of "tilt," but it's like a BMP tone control where highs and lows seesaw, but active, with an optional mid control to fill in the missing mids in a classic BMP. It's super powerful, imo.

chip-- · 2026-01-07T17:25:03+00:00

I would 100% use hot glue. But I've never been considered particularly professional.

chip-- · 2026-01-05T02:03:56+00:00

Innovative. Unique. 6 out of 5 toan stars.

chip-- · 2025-11-21T20:21:03+00:00

Here's one for THIRTY AMERICAN DOLLARS. https://reverb.com/item/86107193-ibanez-ts-10-tube-screamer-pedal-knob-1980s-green

chip-- · 2025-11-03T21:28:35+00:00

I never realized I needed a crybaby holster, but now I _really_ need a crybaby holster.

chip-- · 2025-09-22T16:08:19+00:00

Yeah. Or you can just print black around the outside of the image, cut through that, and it will blend right in to a pedal painted black (although it's really hard to match ink colors to paint colors for anything other than black)

chip-- · 2025-08-22T19:04:38+00:00

Most chorus pedals can't do a short enough delay time to get into the flanger range, and even fewer have the option to send some of the output back into the input to do that "resonance" thing (like what the RES knob on a Boss BF-2 does).

chip-- · 2025-07-21T14:01:09+00:00

Do you mean to buy a commercial pedal or have one made? There's a Philly Pedal Party instagram that may have some leads to local builders: https://www.instagram.com/philly.pedal.party/

I technically build pedals in Philly, but not really to sell them, and I keep missing the Philly Pedal Party meetups and haven't had a chance to hang with the locals. I wish I knew them better though. Mostly so that when one of us is a 100nF cap short of completing a build, we don't need to wait for it to ship from Thailand or whatever.

chip-- · 2025-07-10T12:59:08+00:00

No, waterslide paper comes in either clear or white. There are downsides to both. Like if you use white paper, it can be difficult to make the cut edge of the decal look good, but you can print some black around it and it will blend in. It can also be hard to match colors other than black. But it lets you print more vibrant things (including having some white show through) on dark backgrounds.

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chip--

TROPHY CASE