Riffster Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I am modding my Crybaby GCB95, I am looking to replace what they call the "sweep cap" from .010uf to .022uf, can I use a paper in oil cap for this? The stock caps look so different in a cheap kind of way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I use Panasonic poly film caps in my Crybaby mods. I've never tried a paper/oil type cap in a pedal. The ones that are in there are most likely the "box" type - also poly film though, I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted February 19, 2012 Author Share Posted February 19, 2012 I guess I'll swing by Radio Shack and get something closer, I looked in my parts box and do not have any 0.022, What mods do you do to Crybaby wahs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I guess I'll swing by Radio Shack and get something closer, I looked in my parts box and do not have any 0.022, What mods do you do to Crybaby wahs? Radio Shack will have the "greenies". They will work. Watch that "sweep cap" though. I find it's sometimes better to manually adjust the sweep lower via the pot itself and the pedal throw than using the .022 which can create some funky bass distortion. However,the most improvement to your wah will likely be had from changing the 33k resistor next to the inductor to a 100k. Many people suggest changing other resistors to add gain, but I find it muddies up the tone. Ultimately all these things work together (resistors, capacitors, pot, inductor) so you kinda have to noodle with them to get what you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted February 19, 2012 Author Share Posted February 19, 2012 Radio Shack will have the "greenies". They will work. Watch that "sweep cap" though. I find it's sometimes better to manually adjust the sweep lower via the pot itself and the pedal throw than using the .022 which can create some funky bass distortion. However,the most improvement to your wah will likely be had from changing the 33k resistor next to the inductor to a 100k. Many people suggest changing other resistors to add gain, but I find it muddies up the tone. Ultimately all these things work together (resistors, capacitors, pot, inductor) so you kinda have to noodle with them to get what you want. I just found a small dark red 0.022 cap in my scrap parts from another pedal, I had already adjusted the pot a bit to get rid of the harsh treble. the instructions I found have the 33k replaced by a 47K resistor, what does taking it to 100k do? I did find several 0.10uf caps that look better than what's on the wah circuit so I may replace them while I am at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Try the 47k, but also try a 68k and a 100k. I like the 100k myself. This is often referred to as the Q resistor and should affect the "vocal" quality of the wah. Supposedly the old Clyde McCoy wahs used a 100k resistor. There are a lot of opinions and ideas out there on the interwebz... but always trust your ears through your own rig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 Well I used the 100k and replaced other resistors and all the caps but...now the pedal does not work when engaged, I can only hear a faint signal. I will troubleshoot it but ran out of time for today, I realized that the mods I am making could have been meant for true bypass modded pedals. The PCB is fragile so maybe a point of contact got burned off. No biggie, I'll figure it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Yes, PCBs can be tricky. I trashed a TS5 real good before I learned to use a lower wattage iron with a pointy tip. Just curious, you said you replaced all the caps? Including the electolytic (round) one? Or only the box type ones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 I replaced the box type caps with red polyester film, I kept the box caps just in case. I actually did a good job being careful with th the iron, I did a clean job overall, what actually happened is that I pushed in a wire that I though was clean but was still attached by a spec of solder and that's what broke off the contact, I do have to check and see if other contacts are burned off. Working on pedals requires a lot more finesse than working on amps...the voltage is the trade off I guess. So I changed the 33K resistor to 100K. Changed the 390K resistor to 270K Changed the 1.5K resistor to 2.2K Repleaced the box caps with polyester, same values I checked all caps and resistors with my multimeter so the values are correct. Just found this, brief explanations but still useful. http://www.beavisaudio.com/techpages/Caps/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Is the PCB the type with the traces exposed on the bottom? If so, destroying a "pad" isn't really a big deal. You can just put your wire through the hole and bend it to follow the trace and solder it on. If you can't figure it out post some pics and maybe we can help. That beavis audio link was good. Did you read the part about tropical fish capacitors? Those are the cool ones to throw in your wah wah. I just used one in my Fuzz Face build and they're really cool looking.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 So I changed the 33K resistor to 100K. Changed the 390K resistor to 270K Changed the 1.5K resistor to 2.2K Repleaced the box caps with polyester, same values So how's it sound? I get too much muddy bass distortion with the 270k, so I generally either leave that 390 or swap it for 470. Then again I remove the input and output buffers and do a true bypass switch too so that may result in the problem with the 270k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Does removing the buffers help it work better with fuzz pedals? I've got an old Hendrix Crybaby that I think sounds great, but I have thought about swapping in a new PCB with cooler components and some tweaks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Does removing the buffers help it work better with fuzz pedals? I've got an old Hendrix Crybaby that I think sounds great, but I have thought about swapping in a new PCB with cooler components and some tweaks. One of these Pigeon boards would do the trick. Once I chopped the buffers out of mine it looks pretty much like the Pigeon circuit. Trying another inductor in it next week and some new transistors too. Le quest continues! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShredAstaire Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I LOVE how nerdy you guys are....in a good way!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted February 20, 2012 Author Share Posted February 20, 2012 Is the PCB the type with the traces exposed on the bottom? If so, destroying a "pad" isn't really a big deal. You can just put your wire through the hole and bend it to follow the trace and solder it on. If you can't figure it out post some pics and maybe we can help. That beavis audio link was good. Did you read the part about tropical fish capacitors? Those are the cool ones to throw in your wah wah. I just used one in my Fuzz Face build and they're really cool looking.. I did use the "leg" on one the caps to bridge the broken spot, my soldering looks really clean, it will not be evident what the problem is. I will troubleshoot with my multimeter and see if there are issues. I did read about the Tropical Fish caps, I may go that route. I also read that (all other things equal) the box caps are actually better than the dipped type as they have an evenly shielded shell and can sit tighter on the PCB. I am working on a BC108 fuzz that I am going to ask you for help...when I get to it. So how's it sound? I get too much muddy bass distortion with the 270k, so I generally either leave that 390 or swap it for 470. Then again I remove the input and output buffers and do a true bypass switch too so that may result in the problem with the 270k. It doesn't work, I had to out the pedal back together. I have a 4-month old baby, I don't get a lot of "me" time. But I will get to it. First I need to make it work. I find this wah so limited that most of the time I use it as a foot rest when I am playing in front of my computer, works wonders for that. I LOVE how nerdy you guys are....in a good way!! Ha! indeed, wouldn't it be funny to be sitting at a sports bar drinking beer, talking about this instead of talking about Lebron's contract terms? when it comes to this stuff I am a "paint by numbers" guy, I can solder well and know the basics but I do not know what to do on my own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I have a 4-month old baby, I don't get a lot of "me" time. I hear ya there. I can't tell you how many times I end up soldering during our two year old's nap - not like I can crank up the Marshalls! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.