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Bass Big Muff volume mod

#41
dannybuoy said:
Thunderscreetch, I think the 1M pot is a good choice, just wire up legs 1&2 in place of the switch so it acts like a variable resistor. Since the link will be always on, a really high value will prevent much current flowing so that at one end of the knob's turn it will sound like it's off, then at the other end of rotation there will be no resistance so it will act like the switch turned on.
Click to expand...

Yup. Thats what I did with my muff, and the 1M works exactly like that. I did notice that the 1M might be a little bit big - around 50% of the knobs' travel makes no difference to my ears, so maybe a 500K might work as well???

I also tried the diode mods in both spots - between no diodes, germanium and silicon. Switching between the diodes and using the two feedback mods can get some velcro ripping crazy out there sounds, especially with Ge diodes - they're wicked for feedback ;)
Anyone thinking about whether to do a diode mod - it is definitely worth it if you like feedbacking craziness.

Another great site for info;
Invalid Link Removed
 
#42
Excellent DIY! I just finished it today (was waiting for my shipment from Small Bear Electronics)...

Fairly easy to do, and the previous posts really helped a lot.

While I had the wait time, I took this mod one step further and painted the pedal casing out of nostalgia for the Sovtek Big Muff that I used to mess around with when I was a teenager...I also changed the LED to a Super Bright Green..

Anyway, it was all a great success! I couldn't be happier...

DSCN3709.jpg


DSCN3706.jpg


DSCN3705.jpg


I have one question though, when the feedback/oscillation mod is engaged on bypass, there is a high pitched squeal coming from the signal.. Is this normal? Is there anything that can be done to fix this?
 
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#43
That shouldn't be happening if the pedal is bypassed.

I have mine setup with a separate footswitch for each osc/feedback loop (pic below)
Just a simple on/off connection, and the other side of the switch is used to light the LED.
Both feedback switches WILL cause uncontrollable feedback when engaged, with the pedal turned on. This can be manipulated by the volume and gain knobs quite easily.
But once the pedal is bypassed you shouldn't hear anything from the muff.

Beast001.jpg
 
#44
Oh, interesting layout you did... Yeah, in bypass mode once i back off of the 'stock' volume level (gain now, I guess?), the high pitched noise fades to where it's just inaudible enough in the clean signal... but if i leave it cranked up, I can hear it through the amp... I can't see why it's doing this, everything is wired exactly like the previous posts... Perhaps it's just a caveat of this mod and I can't have the 'volume' up all the time to the max level?.. It's still producing a pretty gnarly fuzz tone, but I don't know what i'm losing with it tapered back a bit... hmmm....

I was wondering.. can you post a pic of the internals for your pedal..? I'm not sure what you mean by 'diode mods in both spots.' I would love to fully max the potential of this pedal... It would be greatly appreciated...

One more question... has anyone tried to replace the 3PDT latching switch with a 3PDT momentary switch? I tried to do it, but it didn't work, and I can't understand why?
 
#45
4stringphuzz said:
Oh, interesting layout you did... Yeah, in bypass mode once i back off of the 'stock' volume level (gain now, I guess?), the high pitched noise fades to where it's just inaudible enough in the clean signal... but if i leave it cranked up, I can hear it through the amp... I can't see why it's doing this, everything is wired exactly like the previous posts... Perhaps it's just a caveat of this mod and I can't have the 'volume' up all the time to the max level?.. It's still producing a pretty gnarly fuzz tone, but I don't know what i'm losing with it tapered back a bit... hmmm....
Click to expand...

If the pedal is bypassed - the input should be directly connected to the output. ie No muff.
The volume knob should have ABSOLUTELY no effect on the sound. Am I reading this right?
You've may have a soldering whoopsie or something else going on.

4stringphuzz said:
I was wondering.. can you post a pic of the internals for your pedal..? I'm not sure what you mean by 'diode mods in both spots.' I would love to fully max the potential of this pedal... It would be greatly appreciated.......
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what mods the Bass Big Muff has in comparison to the original Muff circuit - which has four clipping diodes, in two pairs. This is what helps to give the Muff it's compressed fuzzy sound. Changing them will change the character of the sound, and pulling them out entirely will make the pedal a lot louder, and make it sound more like an OD pedal. Which mine can do.:cool:
Mine is a bastardised version of a NYC Muff\Supercollider on a GGG Muff PCB - with other ideas and component values in it.
Beast006.jpg


4stringphuzz said:
One more question... has anyone tried to replace the 3PDT latching switch with a 3PDT momentary switch? I tried to do it, but it didn't work, and I can't understand why....
Click to expand...

A momentray (i think) will only stay turned on whilst you've got your foot on it. As soon as you lift up your foot, it'll disengage.
A 3pdt TB latching switch is what you want.
 
#46
You know, as is turns out I think it was just my cheap Behringer practice amp that was causing the noticeable squealing problem when the oscillation mod was engaged. I tried it on my normal backline today, and while the slightest squeal was still there (with my ear right up to the speaker), it's pretty much inaudible at a normal playing volume... so i'm glad that I didn't have to open the casing again.... ha.ha.ha.!!!

As far as the momentary switch, i've replaced switches on my SansAmp Bass Driver DI, and my guitarists Line 6 DL4, and those have worked fine... I thought all/most guitar pedals were momentary anyway? That they just engaged an effect from on or off... this is my first EHX pedal, so maybe the latching 3PDT switch is necessary....??? Shows how much I know about these things!!!!
LOL.....
 
#47
4stringphuzz said:
You know, as is turns out I think it was just my cheap Behringer practice amp that was causing the noticeable squealing problem when the oscillation mod was engaged. I tried it on my normal backline today, and while the slightest squeal was still there (with my ear right up to the speaker), it's pretty much inaudible at a normal playing volume... so i'm glad that I didn't have to open the casing again.... ha.ha.ha.!!!

As far as the momentary switch, i've replaced switches on my SansAmp Bass Driver DI, and my guitarists Line 6 DL4, and those have worked fine... I thought all/most guitar pedals were momentary anyway? That they just engaged an effect from on or off... this is my first EHX pedal, so maybe the latching 3PDT switch is necessary....??? Shows how much I know about these things!!!!
LOL.....
Click to expand...

Almost every pedal made has a latching switch ;).
 
#49
I couldn't stay away from the pedal, so i was messing around with the transistors... In addition to the original feedback/oscillation mod that dannybuoy did, i found that connecting the emitters Q1 and Q2 also provides a nice kick to the fuzz sound ... It's not as extreme as the original mod, but it seems to boost the signal slightly and produce a little more treble in the mix.. Check out the pic:

IMAG0035.jpg


Now in addition to the orignal fuzz, I have two boost options to choose from...

IMAG0037.jpg
 
#51
Thanks to this thread, I also managed to do the volume mod! Thanks guys!

I couldn't find a mini pot quickly, so I installed the normal size pot on the right side of the pedal too, which I probably would have done anyway. I don't use the battery, but it still fits below the switch if needed.
I didn't have any heat-shrink tubing, so I wrapped electrical insulation tape around the joints instead. I avoided getting blobs of solder on the other components by quickly sticking some paper painters tape on everything that didn't need soldering.

I don't know anything about electronics, but I found it to be an easy and quick job, and the result works perfectly!

KopievanIMG_6820.jpg
 
#58
As you can see in post *51, I did the volume mod on my BBM last year.

After working perfectly for months, it recently suddenly stopped functioning. The extra volume knob did't have any effect at all anymore, and the pedal was working again as if there is no volume mod done to it.

After some time it worked again, then stopped working again, ... On and of like this for some weeks, and now it seems to have stopped permanently.

Of course I opened the pedal and checked for loose joints etc. but everything seems to be exactly like the day I modded the pedal.

Does anyone have an idea what might be the cause of this?
 

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