This is a library of perfboard and single-sided PCB effect layouts for guitar and bass. I'm not an electrical engineer by any stretch of the imagination, just a DIY'er who likes drawing layouts. It is meant for the hobbyist (so commercial use of any of these layout is not allowed without permission) and as a way to give back to the online DIY community.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Alembic Stratoblaster

The Stratoblaster was originally built as an onboard preamp that could be mounted on a Strat in place of the normal output jack canoe. The gain was adjusted by a trim pot (so no external knob), but the circuit provided 3-14 dB of clean boost. It's a great simple circuit and can fit in a 1590a or you could build it into a guitar (for all you Grateful Dead fans out there).


16 comments:

  1. doh! :)
    Thanks for the quick reply!

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  2. for what is the gain 3 and gain 1/2 and how will i connect the output jack? thanks
    for the answer. :D

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    Replies
    1. Those are the potentiometer lugs. If you're building it into a pedal, see the General build notes for how to wire it with a footswitch. If you're building it into a guitar the concept is similar to what's described there too. And Google is always helpful.

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    2. thanks for the quick reply sir.

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  3. What is replacement for 2N5457 is 2n5458 okay?

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    Replies
    1. That should be ok. Though you may need to adjust the bias (22k resistor going into the drain and/or the 12k off the source)

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    2. what value to replace in that position, of I use 5458

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    3. You’ll have to experiment and see. Maybe use a 50k trimmer to dial it in.

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  4. is it okay to change 1.5 uf to 1 uf?

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  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. Verified.
    Layout works but the 100 ohm resistor off of the output should be 100 Kohm. An anti-log pot, like on the GGG version, might have a better rotation.
    I substituted a J113 and a 1uF cap in place of the 2N5457 and the 1.5uF cap, respectively, but it still sounds good. I might lower the 68k resistor to 100 ohms (also suggested by GGG) and replace the output resistor with a volume pot.

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  7. Doesn't sound good in a Strat because its too bright. A unity gain buffer sounds better

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