Traced by cenotapf and AlexS. It's basically a silicon Tonbender Mk 2 with a quite subtle treble cut control. 2N3903 transistor is a low gain version of 2N3904 so any NPN silicon with Hfe 100-150 works like MPSA06, PN22222, 2N2369 etc.
Verified by AlexS
Sweet. Doin this after I finish your take on the Bee Baa. Maybe after that I can stomach going back to the Coda Black Hole that has me tearin my hair out.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great fuzz! Very thick yet responds well to how you're picking. Cleans up beautifully with the guitar's volume knob. I really dig it. Great work figuring this one out guys. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteQ1 - 2N2222 - 94 hfe
Q2 - 2N3903 - 95 hfe
Q3 - 2N3903 - 98 hfe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58GmIVN9yLw
https://i.imgur.com/bEkGb87.jpg
I'm stoked to build this one. How is the output level, above unity?
DeleteDefinitely loud. It's good.
DeleteI'm guessing yes. All eqd pedals are loud.
ReplyDeleteJust built it up. It's indeed loud and has a great sound as well. Thank you guys for tracing this one out. I've been wanting to play on this one for a while. A nice Tonebender variant!
ReplyDeleteDid you guys put in the 15pf's?
ReplyDeleteI didn't. I imagine that they shave off a little top end fizz if you have too much of that going on.
DeleteI didn't use them either. The one I built isn't fizzy in any way, it's not a crazy high gain fuzz.
Deletehi, ive built a few veros but never encountered a trimmer on the board. noob question but how do i utilise or set that correctly....i guessing to bias but no idea how to do this. thanks. chuck.
ReplyDeleteWork with your ears Chuck , sweep it until it sounds good to you.
DeleteSomeone tried it with 2n3094?
ReplyDeleteJust finished mine , I've putted 18pf instead of the 15pf
ReplyDeleteand mine was:
Q1-2N2222
Q2 -2N2222
Q3 - BC108
And it's working ..but really strange .
No a lot of gain , and a bit gated on the top strings, like getting fuzz only on the lower strings.
Does anyone also got problem with their buildings?
I haven't built one yet but your transistors might have too much gain. I'd keep em below 150 for something like this. I've built other silicon benders and what you're experiencing happens if the hfe is too high. I really like 2369's for these or (easier to source) mpsa06's. I've had success with q1 and q2 around 90 and q3 around 120. Again, I haven't built this yet, so...grain of salt. Good luck!
DeleteSo I built it for the 2nd time , and now it's working.
ReplyDeleteSounds great , although the "top" pot dosent seems to do anything..
How do you guys bias that beast?
I biased mine by ear: crank the fuzz, turn the trimmer all the way, then back it off until it sounded good. Once I found a setting I liked, I tested the fuzz through the sweep to make sure it didn't fart out.
DeleteHey, man. A friend of mine lent me his EQD Black Ash so I whipped up another clone and did a comparison. I ended up using these for the transistors and it sounds identical.
ReplyDeleteQ1:2N2369 - 60 hfe
Q2:2N2222 - 225 hfe
Q3:2N2369 - 56 hfe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D406p8nW-1I
Cool! Thanks for the info. Will try some 2N2369 in mine then since I feel the 2N2222's I have now is abit high gain.
DeleteHigher hFe for Q2? That correct?
DeleteYeah, ended up with trannies close to MTK's hfe readings.
DeleteHi, thanks so much for laying this out. I'm just wondering if I'm missing something as the layout says 11 cuts, but I'm only seeing 10 in the drawing.
ReplyDeleteHi there. I count 11 cuts. Notice the cuts under the diode and 100ohm resistor.
DeleteAhhhhhhh missed that lil sneaky one under D1 tyty
DeleteAnyone did an external bias to this?
ReplyDeleteI got to say it here, if not somewhere - this is an absolute beast of a fuzz - Tonebenders are my nemesis - I got underwhelming results with my Reaper and DAM Hybrid MKII (probably my NPN germaniums...) and the Scarab Deluxe.
ReplyDeleteThis one however, I highly recommend - Used a B20K for external bias instead of trimmer for bias and completely bypassed the tone section. 2n2222a sound really good. ANd it sounds sweet boosted by an electra or simple boosters.
Thanks for this layout :)
Just about to start work on this...
ReplyDeleteI think I'll just put sockets for the optional capacitors and I can pop them in if I feel I need them
Just completed this. As planned I added sockets for the optional caps, but they don't seem necessary...
ReplyDeleteMy first ever experience with a tone bender type fuzz. Sounds lovely.
Thank you so much!!!
https://youtu.be/zztFYDg1N00
ReplyDeleteI was going to revisit this and build it a bit neater...
ReplyDeleteFirst time around I used a 22k pot for thr 'top'
My question is if I used 50k...could it sound a bit brighter? 🤔
Or even could I get away with 50k at all?
DeleteJust made this with a trio of 2N4123's and it sounds mega! Hfe's around 112.
ReplyDeleteHave you made the tone reaper?
DeleteI haven’t tried that one yet, but it’s on the list (the never ending list 😆)
DeleteOf the two it was by far my favourite, and in line with how I thought a tonebender should be. Real easy build too.
DeleteCool, I’ll get on that next then 👍.
DeleteI just noticed: Isn't the resistor going from Fuzz 3 to the Emitter of Q3 supposed to be 100k instead of 100R?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Delete**emitter of q3 to base of q2 is the 100k - q3 emitter to fuzz 3 is a 100R - should still be a functional fuzz with that resistor left out. the 1k from the emitter of q2 to ground can also be reduced in value too, if you wanted, results might not be as desirable as the stock values though, but most silicon tonebender variants are usually around 100R in this spot - if you're looking to get more distortion out of the circuit - i would recommend hard clipping diodes at the end on a switch rather than playing too much with the values, there's more than enough volume with this pedal that it will still easily push above unity with clipping diodes
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