LukeFRC

I also note that there's still space for another effect in that case...

invest in some heat shrink! looking good though!

the boxing reference was clever

You said your personal goal is to learn to read. this fella isn’t going to do that - so I wonder what you’re hoping to learn from him. Go elsewhere.

Same idea - it’s going to flow to hot things

lead based solder melts at a lower temprature - so it's a lot more forgiving and easy to warm everything up enough. Lead free, it might be my cheaper soldering iron, and I find it harder to get the joints to flow together properly. (mind you I never learned to solder properly, but I did learn to weld and braise at uni, and it's similar right?)

Best necro post ever.

So that PCB I’m sorting you with… I guess I’ll do the SMT J201s then for you 🤣 it’s fiddly and annoying and frustrating but not impossible. For not microscopic parts… IC or computer chips with the super fine solder pads I wouldn’t want to touch!! I use solder with lead in - I can’t imagine doing it with lead free stuff

right ... review time of the Lab Series L4 preamp since I've built it... It's the oddest sounding thing I've built! It doesn't sound like I would expect it too, and can't put my finger on why! What I was expecting was "preamp pedal, quite clean, maybe crossed with an low gain overdrive pedal." The closest thing I've experienced to it is my old HX stomp and flicking between two amp models (once set up with non crazy gain) - there's a processed nature to the sound, some compression maybe? and a complexity that feels more like an amp model, esp when getting hairy, than something like most the OD pedals I've tried (or indeed models of said OD on HX stomp or the Zoom stuff) Channel A is pure Fender tonestack, probably more bassman feeling than showman preamp - there's that classic dip in the mids. Channel B is more- I dunno what - I can get more driven rock tones out of it. Deep switch on both just adds more everything and changes the way it reacts. Swept mids is very powerful but fairly wide Q I think. You can set it up so A is lower gain, and B higher, and then bounce the high gain into the post master limiter to keep the signal level under control. Playing with it this way I was thinking "this is finicky to set up and get levels right" ... and then played along to a track and it sounded great - slightly dirty but fitting in the mix and not fizzy or shouty at all - just right and part of the tone I was hoping to get when I built this pedal. Another strange thing... The preamp I built before this was a valve version of a Alembic/Fender showman, and it had quite a lot of output that would quickly clip the colourbox at the end of my chain. This also has lots of output, or at least sounds LOUD- but doesn't seem to make clip the colourbox clip as much - I don't think it's subsonics as I was using a HPF between them but it's very strange. Anyway. slightly fiddly to set up, but rewarding when it is.

not really crossed my mind, but would be cool to hear what you're thinking of building!

One at the start and one at the end?

Having owned one and enjoyed owning it - yes- it has both sansamp and SVT models! you would need TRS-XLR cable to get your DI signal but that’s it. it would do all you want and masses masses more. it is a digital wee box you can dive deep on - if you play electric too it’s def worth buying - I carried mine in the front of my gig bag… ideally you might put it in another bag… But if you are carrying another bag and all you want is sansamp-tuner-di then a tuner and the programmable sansamp, a one spot power supply and a bit of board and Velcro might be just as easy.

Buy a whole cab from Stevie pre made and all the design and DIY niggles taken care of!

I didn't know what this is before looking it up. Now I want one!

My thinking too. MS60b can do a few things per patch? I’ve had the HX stomp, thr Zoom B3n and B3 (I think the MS60b is same gen as B3) and while the stomp subjectively sounded better -esp drives- the zoom was good enough - esp for one off things. I have a pedalboard with thr things I need - MS60b or MS70cdr I can see myself having to add, or try, the thing I don’t think I need but want to try - press a pedal and “bam” there’s a reverb delay reverb thing happening… But if the HX one is one effect …for me the fun in my hx stomp was trying different arrangements, and splitting signals - what one effect am I buying it for in the HX universe that would be better than finding a standalone pedal for the same budget to do it? I’m struggling to think of anything HX did better on its own - amp models were cool maybe? Synth things buy a FI or C4, cabs - an IR loader or Two notes m+ … drive/fuzz/od - is simple to do in analogue… etc I guess if I had a midi setup and I could do more things via midi? But - if I’m set up with a midi system to do this I imagine I would want something with more functionality

I stuck mine pre compressor as I think that's what SA recommended. The other benefit I found is that when I'm trying out patches I can turn my comp up into limiter mode, and then when I try someones patch with way way more gain than I need the compressor stops me blowing my ears off. You can of course stick it where ever and then put a pre everything signal in input 2 and use that to trigger envelope filters etc on the signal of input 1

not as cheap as subzero, less than radial https://www.showbitz.co.uk/product/orchid-electronics-dual-micro-di-box/

And, new batteries in the basses?

the chance of two basses having the same fault is low. Have you tried a different cable? (this could be the simplest common denominator) Have you tested it all in a different room/building? and Doing what, to which pots cause the sound?

depends if it's the input or output of the effect causing it.. .

I looked - I didn’t see anything that wasn’t available cheaper elsewhere

This is one of the most beautiful looking pedals out there to my mind. if I were loaded I wouldn’t be messing around DIY building things I couldn’t afford otherwise - but would have a pedal board with everything they make