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Hello
After my first pedal build i got this Ratt from GuitarPCB , id figure i learned from my mistakes as a unexperianced rookie.
Id thought i get a new Kitt and start over!
Id skip the painting of the enclosure (made some minor mistakes with drilling the enclosure but fixed it…(sorta)
I got the pedal together……AND i get nothing (IC placed backwards)
I corrected the IC placement and i get NOISE (the wrong kind of noise), it is like the pedal is dead. But makes whitenoise/static and when i turn the pots they all seem to adjust the noise is different ways, but im not hearing any of the guitar (only when pedal is turned off on by-pass)
the pots seem to react to my volume and gain controlls , but the switches do nothing….. Bypass works fine.
So thats it, fresh build. Where should i start?
Ps. i realy want to learn , but i would like some guidance on this process
(the PCB is attached to the middle POT) and all 3 pots are covered with plastic pads.
Also i never tested it outside the enclosure.
I’m taking it you took this photo with the IC in the wrong way? The dot should go towards the centre of the pcb
Make sure your stereo jack is wired correctly can’t see it clearly but it’s easy to mix up the tip and ring connections, normally your stereo jack would be used on the input side although as far as I know it doesn’t matter put a jack into it and follow the connections around to their solder lugs like this
You can also use your meters continuity check to make sure you have it wired correctly it sounds like you may have the tip and ring mixed up
If your stereo jack is wired correctly post your voltage readings to the ground and 9v pads, for the IC pins and a clear photo of the DC jack
I’m extremely curious why the 3PDT Wiring PCB daughterboard has two wires going to two different places on the main PCB. ???????
Also, it appears that the INPUT jack is on the left side and the OUTPUT jack is on the right. Is that intentional?
Hey Billy , you are right this photo is from before i turned the IC around.
Here are some extra pictures to see things more clearly.
@cybercow, i dont know what wires you refering too? And also yes the output jacks are switches intentional. THis is because of that Drilling mistakes i mentioned (they are drilled too low)I might start by pulling out the entire thing and correcting that drilling mistake first before i contiu. =) wil post new pics after!
And i wil double check the wiring @Billy =)
What Cybercow means is that you have the “Stereo Jack” on the Output Side of the pedal.
It is supposed to be on the Input Side but in the case of your pedal it will still work by just removing the battery strap.
What will not work is you have the I or “Input side” of the wiring board going to the “Output” Stereo Jack Tip.
That = No Sound. It needs to go to the Input Jack Tip hence the I on the wiring board. I is for Input.
When you flip the pedal over as if to play it the guitar jack goes in the right side or Input. So looking at the gutshot your Input Jack is always on the Left side. This is why the wiring board has the I Pad on the left side as well.
Another Issue is you have not installed the LEDs in D3 and D4. They are part of the circuit.
Install the LEDs in the proper orientation and then switch the two orange wires to where I show you in the Image below.
Do this at the Jack Tips so you do not burn out any pads on the wiring board.
Finally since this is a kit the potentiometers are supposed to connect directly to the board. The pedal will still work but it saves you a lot of extra wiring and be sure that you are not touching the solder side (back of the board) against the potentiometers or bare wire or anything that will cause a short.
I hope that helps.
I soldered the LED’s Removed the battery strap and changed the orange INput and Output wires.
I tested the pedal and it stil makes lots of buzzing noise.
The good news is that the guitar signal comes true but , i would say progres but not there yet.
I could make a recording/video if that helps? But i posted a picture here first:
(cannot edit my last post)
Update: it took everything out the enclosure.
I was looking at some pictures @barry posted of his own ratt Deluxe and noticed a 3-pin thing in D5 and the LED on the footswitch. (PS what is that iron wire below the LED on the footswitch?) it looks like a strain of tin connecting 2 points.
Anyways my pedal works (without enclosure) This realy makes me happy =)
Now i can finish my enclosure first and then put everything inside it! and test it again. (knowning the whole kit works)
Here is how it sounds: https://soundcloud.com/dennis-de-wit-335798799/ratt-deluxe-into-kuassa
If the build works outside of the enclosure, but NOT inside the enclosure, there is likely either something touching the inside of the enclosure that it should not – or – a wiring mishap with ground.
everything is working golden.
Spending 3 weeks on the enclosure, making many mistakes and correction.
while i wait for my 4th attempt on drying/hardening
i wanted to check back the LED issue that remains.
the orientation is as stated in the instructions. But when i use the pedal the led never turned on.
Anybody can help me get the LED to work properly?
I can’t see a CLR installed on the 3PDT board.
Wilkie1 is correct. When using an LED on the 3PDT Wiring board, the CLR (currently limiting resistor) is required on that 3PDT Wiring board. I suggest at least 1K8Ω value. If you want it dimmer (less bright), use a 4K7Ω or higher value.
I could not find anything in the build documents that explain this in a way a novice like myself can understand.
Thank you , this helps a lot !
The Crash Course Guide (page 5) as well as A Beginners Guide to Components (page 14) both located on our Guides Page cover it.
You should read all of the Guides on our Guides Page because that is there for all of the items that we do not want to squeeze into every Project Build Guide for brevity.
Thank you, i have to be honest and say i read what i thought was essential. But i suppose more theorie is better.
It has been such a frustrating experiance.
I took about 6 weeks to finish the enclosure.
Last night i had everything working on 9v battery
I wanted to test a 9v power adapter. And after i plugged in the cable nothing is working…..
Cannot even get it to work on battery again, electronics can be so confusing.
Im ready to learn more and wil take a read at the entire guide section before i sit down and have another attempt to troubleshoot this circuit.
Thank you Barry
So i have taken the time to read tru the GuitarPCB guides on the guide page.
And a couple things have come to my attention:
First is the diodes , they protect reverse polarity. Is that to do anything with too much voltage?
(im think not but i might misunderstood in translation. / i am Dutch)So pardon if i misunderstand any of the readings.
Secondly , i read about this audio probe , this sounded useful for a beginner like myself to learn troubleshooting.
Trouble shooting is a subject i need to understand circuit scematics better to effectivly be able to search and come to my own conclusions.
At this time the kits are just big advanced lego sets for me.
So i would like to start trouble shooting my Ratt Deluxe, and i have no idea where to start.
All i can say is that the entire circuit was 100% functional. I am assuming i have the circuit powered on the 9v battery while i plugged in the 9v adapter. Because the LED is not working i assume i forgot to turn the pedal off before pluggin in a 2.1mm 9v adapter cable.
Secondly i have a BIG MUFF PI USA wich can both handle battery and 9v adapters, so i assumed this is something all pedals can handle simultaniusly. I might be wrong here for this ratt Deluxe?
When i plugged the cable in , the circuit died …. so after that I pulled out the entire kit of the enclosure to make sure the enclosure was not part of the issue.
I also cleaned up and resoldered the ground and 9v wires inside to make sure they had good contact with all the parts.
But so far nothing.
The LED’s on the PCB are not burning anymore. (they did when they are working)
So that is another indicator for me that something got defect.
My own first gessing are the sensitive parts like the ic , I know they break easly
But i am just making wild assumptioned not based on any facts….
Help would be much appriciated =)
You’ll get there it is a steep learning curve
The reverse polarity protection diode is to protect against using the wrong polarity adaptor
The majority of guitar effects circuits work with a +9vdc centre negative power adaptor that is to say the centre of the adaptor socket is ground (-) the sleeve or outer part is + voltage
Not all adaptors are the same some output AC instead of DC some are centre positive polarity (+) so if you accidentally plugged a centre positive adaptor into your pedal the diode would not conduct and not allow current to flow, protecting your circuit
Polarity, input and output voltages are usually listed on the adaptor label it is very easy to use the wrong type of adaptor
This link explains power adaptors in more depth, the importance of using correct polarity, quality filtered and regulated power adaptors are something most guitar players are completely ignorant of! just for info filtering helps reduce noise from voltage ripple and regulation ensures the output is regulated close to the voltage it should output e.g. 9vdc, cheap unfiltered, unregulated adpators can be noisy and output much higher voltages than they should I’ve tested some cheap adaptors and found some 9v adaptors actually put out as much as 14v
You can check your power adaptors output like this
Plug your adaptor into the wall set your meter to 20vdc insert your black probe into the centre of the adaptor socket and touch the outer part with your red probe, if it’s centre negative it should read around 9vdc if it’s centre positive it will read –9v
You can use both a battery and a power adaptor with the RATT your DC jack would be the 3 solder lug type ie switching what happens is when you plug an adaptor into the DC jack the battery would be disconnected when you remove the adaptor it would switch to battery power from what I can see you have the correct DC jack wiring as shown in the build doc would be like this
Again from what I can trace yours seems correct, battery + red wire to DC jack middle lug battery ground black wire to stereo jack ring lug
Top DC jack lug to pcb 9v and bottom ground to pcb ground
If you haven’t already, read the audio probe explained PDF it should give you some idea of how to use one
Reading a schematic is basically just a join the dots type thing starting at the IN pad through the connected circuit components to the OUT pad
For tracing the audio path again you would start at the IN pad through the components to the input of the first active component and so on until you reach the OUT pad so in the RATT you’d go from the IN pad through C1 then R4 into pin 3 of IC1 (first active component) out of IC1 at pin 6 etc
I’m not entirely sure from your previous posts whether you have used your adaptor to power the circuit what I’d suggest you do is read the article on power adaptors then check your adaptor label to make sure it’s the correct type, centre negative with a +9v dc output
If it is the correct adaptor I’d plug it in and check what power you get to the pcb at the 9v and ground pads
It sounds to me as if your problem may be a power issue or as Cybecow has already stated something is touching the bare metal enclosure causing a short
With troubleshooting after visually checking your wiring and components are the correct value and orientation, the first thing to check is,does your circuit actually get power
This has been my only adapter for about 10 years to power a big muff
more recent purchase Harley Benton
And yes Cybercow was right, something was right, i solved the isseu where the bent pot leg was touching a surface.
Btw do POTs break easly when u bend the legs? because i believe i just broke another one >.<
i wil look into the audio probe , how to get one, or make one. it seems like a usefull tool.
I wil update when ive done these things , thank you!
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