Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Lovepedal Englishman
Here's the Lovepedal Englishman. It's claimed to sound like a cranked Vox (either AC15 or AC30 depending on which clipping diodes are selected). Like many of Lovepedal's offerings, this circuit is built around a single transistor. Unlike many of Lovepedal's offerings, it's not based off the Electra Distortion. Instead, it draws from the EHX LPB-1 booster with switchable diodes at the output.
What transistor should I use here? I have a good variety of si and some ge npn, just want your opinion on what hfe range to try and stay in. Thanks and I love this site.
ReplyDeleteNot sure how I forgot to include the transistor info. Sorry! Use a 2N5088. Hfe range shouldn't matter too much. But if you have any higher gain NPN germaniums, it might be fun to experiment with those.
DeleteThanks, I have a few Russian npn ge that tested kinda high ~ 250 -300 hFE that I'll try. Appreciate your quick response.
Delete2n3565 is said to be a killer, a bit hard to get but will pay off in the end ;)
DeleteHi! I made it and discover that the Gain Pot is reversed, can be? Great Pedal! I love it..
ReplyDeleteShouldn't be. Maybe try jumping lugs 3 and 2 instead of 2 and 1.
DeleteWhat happen when the switch is "off" possion, it will be like a booster? i mean, won't have any clipping diodes to the ground.
ReplyDeleteThe switch doesn't turn off the diodes, just switches between 2 different pairs. The sound will still be overdrive, it just gives you 2 different tones.
DeleteGot it .. tnks for the clarification.
Deletehello again, a built it last week, and i just realize that the volume pot affect my master volume on my amp, even switch off this pedal. any suggestion? thanks
ReplyDeleteHi.
ReplyDeleteI am unable to find 2N5088 i tried lot, please provide sub for this.
and changing or substituting transistors can change pedals function and most important its tone?
kindly help.
Thank you.
Just about any medium to high gain (hfe) transistor will work in here. Compare datasheets. Different transistors can alter the tone slightly, but in this circuit it would probably be very subtle. Good subs would be BC549C, BC550C, MPSA18, 2N5089.
DeleteThank you for prompt reply.
Deletesure ill try these sub.
tnks again.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteagain i have one silly question.
what is difference in transistor coding like after Code A, B, C (i read on some website they says it is gain coding A means Low, B means Medium, C Means High gain) meaning i.e: BC108A,B & C.
it can effect gain/distortion/drive of pedal?
and if i want transparent gain i suppose to use (A) coded transistors?
Thank you.
Transistor gain isn't the same as gain in a pedal or amplifier. Often you can't just plug in a low hfe transistor and it work without modification to the rest of the circuit. A Big Muff for example needs to have transistors with at least ~250 hfe for it to actually work. And using super high hfe transistors can increase the saturation of the distortion/fuzz, but not necessarily the gain/volume.
DeleteAppreciate for prompt reply, tnks for clarification because i did buy diffident sub transistors for 2n5088 (Emerson em drive project) but i didn't got what i needed hence i had some confusions regarding transistors.
DeleteActually i really need very low gain & transparent sounding over drive which does not effect guitar and amp sound.
before couple of days i had made emerson em drive but it was not as i thought, now my choice is on Englishman, hope this project will work as i needed.
or please suggest me which project i should do?
Tnks again.
I think this one has more gain than the EM Drive. Sounds like what you're after is probably a Klon.
DeleteOk. Tnks for suggesting.
DeleteThanks for reply.
Ok. Tnks for suggesting.
DeleteThanks for reply.
i have mad it,
ReplyDeletebut i m very sad, it sounds big fuzzy pedal like no clearity just bassy fuzz.
is this transistor problem?
i dont have 2n5088, MPSA18, 2N5089.
just have 2n2222a, 2n3904b, i swapped transistors but couldn't find satisfactory results.
but still working on it, please suggest me.
If it's too bassy, try decreasing the value of the input cap. You may also need to adjust the biasing resistors for the transistor (first 3 in the top left of the board) since you're using lower gain transistors, but since it's based on the LPB-1 it shouldn't need that much modification. I would definitely try using a higher gain transistor though.
DeleteThank you for suggesting, sure I'll try ur update and get back to you soon.
DeleteThank you for replying. Tnks.