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.

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Colorsound Tremolo

Haven't done a tremolo in a while, so let's remedy that with the original 4-transistor Colorsound Tremolo (the re-issue is the 3-transistor version). Originals used 2SC945 transistors (BCE pinout), but I've laid this out for more common NPN transistors with CBE pinout. You might want to use a C100k pot for the Speed control. Here's the schematic for reference.


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34 comments:

  1. eve-the-frogSeptember 3, 2017 at 1:41 PM

    I've done it on PCB and it works ! You can tag it verified...
    But when I add the LED it doesn't pulse (only a dimmed light) and there's no more effect. Any idea on how to add this nice feature ?
    Another question : the speed pot could have a wider range, from very slow to ultra-speedy. How can I achieve that ?

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  2. eve-the-frogSeptember 3, 2017 at 1:45 PM

    I forgot to mention that the depth pot is effective only on the first 1/4 of rotation.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsSeptember 3, 2017 at 9:11 PM

      Try increasing the value of the speed pot and lower the value depth pot. Not sure about the LED. Maybe check the Tagboard blog post with this same circuit.

      Delete
    2. Effects LayoutsSeptember 3, 2017 at 9:12 PM

      Also thanks for verifying!

      Delete
    3. UnknownMarch 18, 2019 at 11:00 PM

      You can increase the value of the 220nF cap to 1000nF, and dont ground the pin on the depth pot. Connect it to pin 2 instead.

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    4. UnknownMarch 18, 2019 at 11:05 PM

      you will get a small bit of noise from that adjustment, but it can be filtered with around a 47nF cap between output and ground

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    5. RonieFebruary 2, 2020 at 6:41 AM

      What pin do you mean? can be more specific?

      Delete
  3. eve-the-frogSeptember 4, 2017 at 3:50 AM

    Thanks for the tips. And for the layout of course !

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    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsSeptember 4, 2017 at 7:48 PM

      Stumbled across some info on the LED. Just connect the + side of the LED to the collectors of Q2-3. The connect - side to the footswitch as you would normally. I'll update the layout with a pad for doing that shortly.

      Delete
    2. UnknownNovember 2, 2020 at 6:09 PM

      When I did this I noticed a change and drop in the tremolo effect and when the speed is maxed the effect goes away, any thoughts?

      Delete
  4. John BarsikSeptember 23, 2017 at 4:46 AM

    verified!! really nice, but I have the same problem with the LED as eve-the-frog!
    excellent website thanks for the projects

    ReplyDelete
  5. PeteOctober 10, 2017 at 12:23 PM

    I've built this on pcb and on vero - all I get is clean output, no tremolo effect. The LED pulses just fine. I'm confused.

    ReplyDelete
  6. GerezeNovember 21, 2017 at 5:10 PM

    For anyone wondering about the LED (I got everything working and took some time to experiment). You have to add a resistance between the LED and ground. I got these results with a C100k speed pot:
    * Little to no resistance (~<1k) will ground the pulsating signal resulting in no effect.
    * Low resistance (3.3-5.7k) will result in a dead zone on the speed control.
    * Too much (>10k) and the led will be too dim.

    I got it working with ~7.6k (33k and 10k on parallel). But still, the Super Bright LED I put gets as dim as a regular one. So I'll modify it sometime. Maybe some transistor would be a better choice for powering the LED.

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    Replies
    1. GerezeNovember 24, 2017 at 12:31 PM

      Update: I added another 2N5088 for the led to work. Base to the LED+ on the board, Emitter to the Anode of the LED and Collector to +9v. Works great. Also changed the 100k depth pot for a B25K for a way better working range.

      Delete
    2. CANEPLAFebruary 4, 2018 at 12:19 PM

      need to add some resistance between the emitter and the ground?

      Delete
    3. UnknownNovember 3, 2020 at 6:27 PM

      I can verify this, thank you!! Worked like a charm! And yes add a resistor between the cathode of the LED and the footswitch lug, I used a 7k4 it was close to the mentioned 7k6 and works great!

      Delete
    4. Zaraki1337April 1, 2021 at 9:33 AM

      I added bc547 instead of 2n5088 but didnt work if led works theres no effect

      Delete
    5. UnknownOctober 4, 2021 at 5:29 PM

      I add a 6k8 resistance in the base of transistor and a 1k resistance for the LED. Work well.

      Delete
    6. UnknownOctober 4, 2021 at 5:31 PM

      Works

      Delete
  7. UnknownFebruary 9, 2018 at 5:16 PM

    I could use a Darlington (MPSA13/TIP120) for Q2+Q3 right?

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    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsFebruary 11, 2018 at 10:55 PM

      You could try it, but the typical HFE of an MPSA13 is 5000, while the combined HFE of 2, 2N5088s would be 160,000.

      Delete
  8. Velhinho-RJOctober 15, 2018 at 1:55 PM

    Hello everyone!!. I'm from Brazil and maybe my English is not very good.
    Well, I built this tremolo but all I got was a clean sound at the end, with no effect whatsoever. All values ​​and operation of components checked several times and pcb without possible short. Any bright ideas for me? Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Carpe DiemJune 27, 2020 at 8:11 AM

    Hi, can you make original circuit for ECB japanese transistors, I have few 2SC945, and also I don't have any EBC transistors anymore..or just tell me can I make this with C945 but only if I connect transistors lugs properly, base to base, em. to em., col. to col.?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Effects LayoutsJune 27, 2020 at 10:27 AM

      Yeah, you can just twist the transistor legs around to fit in the right holes. Just be careful not to short any of the legs together.

      Delete
  10. UnknownNovember 27, 2020 at 12:34 PM

    olá ! Sou do Brasil, esse circuito realmente funciona ?

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  11. UnknownNovember 27, 2020 at 12:37 PM

    Hi! I'm from Brazil, does this circuit really work?

    ReplyDelete
  12. UnknownNovember 30, 2020 at 12:07 PM

    Good afternoon, I set up the circuit but only the sound comes out clean, without modulations.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Zaraki1337January 31, 2021 at 6:49 AM

    Would 2n5457 or 2n3904 or or 2n3905 or 2n3906 work???

    ReplyDelete
  14. Zaraki1337February 17, 2021 at 12:48 PM

    It worked but speed is fast its not slow on video. I did use 500klin though..

    Any suggestion? It is working but its not playing slow as in video

    ReplyDelete
  15. trevJune 11, 2021 at 9:31 AM

    where can i get a schematic for this?

    ReplyDelete

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