Phil O'Keefe Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I shared this over on HCEF, but not all of you read or post over there, and since this is the DIY forum, I thought I'd post it over here too. The Pep Box I built is basically a clone of an early and very rare fuzz pedal from the 1960s, with an added tone control. It's the silicon version, and uses two BC107 NPN transistors. I used a Ghost Effects Pedals (Birmingham UK - http://www.ghosteffects.co.uk/ ) PCB and tried to shoehorn it into a 125B enclosure, which I ordered (drilled per my preferences) from BYOC, along with a few of the other parts I needed but didn't have on hand. Ian at Ghost is a great guy, and will sell you a PCB if you're interested in building one for yourself. The paint job was originally intended to be regular silver Hammertone with a clear coat, but it went south on me when I was baking it; I kind of liked the effect, so I decided not to re-do it. I used inkjet printed waterslide decals for the labels. The logo is a engraved plastic badge and was inspired by the one on the original WEM Pep Box, which credits the circuit's original designer (Pepe Rush - a picture of an original Pep Box badge can be seen at http://www.watkinsguitars.co.uk/pep5.jpg ), but since it isn't a WEM build, I instead credited Ghost on it, using lower case lettering, as per their logo. It's an interesting sounding fuzz. I have it biased so it gets a somewhat gated sound when dimed, but it's thick and rich, with a lot of sustain at slightly lower settings. It's not very good at cleaning up with your guitar's volume knob, but you can get tones with much less fuzz at the lower end of the Pep knob's range. There is a ton of volume on tap - unity gain is pretty low on the volume knob. John Lennon was famously pictured in the studio at Abbey Road using a WEM Pep Box on the Paperback Writer / Revolver sessions, but after hearing it first hand, I seriously doubt the pedal was actually used on any of the final recordings; maybe on the backwards guitars on Tomorrow Never Knows... but there's no way to really know for certain. Anyway, it's been a while since I put a pedal together, and I forgot just how enjoyable it can be. I think I'll make a Vox V806 treble booster clone next. I've already got a kit from GGG sitting here, and the box is already painted. I just need to fire up the soldering iron... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members E-money Posted April 9, 2015 Members Share Posted April 9, 2015 Nice work Phil! Love the paint job and the wiring is pristine. Sounds samples please when you get a chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted April 10, 2015 Author Share Posted April 10, 2015 Thanks! Here's a couple of clips that shows how it sounds - not mine, but mine sounds identical to what you hear in these videos; especially the first one - the only difference is that mine has an added tone control... [video=youtube;sX2he7u8yyg] [video=youtube;vvLwyj9ScbA] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members E-money Posted April 10, 2015 Members Share Posted April 10, 2015 Sweet! It has a lot of tasty tones for a 2 knob pedal. I may have to add one of those to my build list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted April 10, 2015 Author Share Posted April 10, 2015 It's a pretty easy build - especially if you get the PCB from Ian at Ghost Effects. I also ordered the transistors from him, which saved me the hassle of trying to track down a pair of suitable ones. I originally thought I'd want to build a germanium version, but the YouTube clips I've watched demoing the silicon version side by side with the germanium sounded close enough to each other that I'm not going to bother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators AMZ-FX Posted April 16, 2015 Moderators Share Posted April 16, 2015 Great looking project! Thanks for posting. regards, Jack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AJ6stringsting Posted May 9, 2015 Members Share Posted May 9, 2015 Thanks! Here's a couple of clips that shows how it sounds - not mine, but mine sounds identical to what you hear in these videos; especially the first one - the only difference is that mine has an added tone control... [video=youtube;sX2he7u8yyg] [video=youtube;vvLwyj9ScbA] I just scored a Dallas-Arbor Fuzz unit from the 1960's. I tried it out at the pawn shop, everything is functional. The folks at the pawn shop didn't know what they had and I'm glad they didn't. There is something magical about the older Fuzz tones that modern Distortion or Overdrive lacks. What kind of amp and guitar are you using with your Pep Box ? I've noticed that in the last 22 years, the older Fuzz tone is starting overtake the use of more modern forms of Distortion and Overdrive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 Great looking project! Thanks for posting. regards, Jack Thanks Jack - coming from you that's quite a compliment! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 I just scored a Dallas-Arbor Fuzz unit from the 1960's. I tried it out at the pawn shop, everything is functional. The folks at the pawn shop didn't know what they had and I'm glad they didn't. NICE score! What kind of amp and guitar are you using with your Pep Box ? The usual suspects in my amp collection - my Princeton Amp and Princeton Reverb II, AC15 and Marshall Class 5. I've noticed that in the last 22 years, the older Fuzz tone is starting overtake the use of more modern forms of Distortion and Overdrive. I guess it really depends on the preferences of the individual. I use overdrives far more often than "distortion" pedals, and the same could probably be said of fuzz pedals - I use them more often than distortion pedals too. I like the variety of characteristics you can get from different fuzz pedals, from smooth thick sustaining fuzz with lots of low end like a Big Muff to thinner, more gated and glitchy tones - I love fuzz! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members motterpaul Posted June 17, 2015 Members Share Posted June 17, 2015 I have been doing a lot of pedal buildiong myself. I started about a year ago doing mostly FET circuits (amp in a box, things like Diesel Diefet, JCM800, ROG Thor, etc). I just got into Germanium transistors for the first time about a month ago. Most are PNP so the whole positive ground thing was a learning experience. I scored 150 AC125s on eBat for about $50. The HFEs are nice, 80 to 210, high leakage tho. I build some fuzzes and Rangemaster boosters. Excellent. Now I am using ICs to make power inverters rather than making non-compatible positive ground pedals. I have a couple of Mullard OC75s looking for a project as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted June 17, 2015 Author Share Posted June 17, 2015 Now I am using ICs to make power inverters rather than making non-compatible positive ground pedals. I'm starting to see more companies using charge pumps in their PNP pedals so that they can be used on standard power daisy chains and don't require their own separate power supply. For example, the EarthQuaker Devices Park Fuzz Sound and the Del Rey Custom Shop PRO MkI+ that I reviewed recently both utilize them, and I highly support that as a trend - I hope more manufacturers start doing so! I have a couple of Mullard OC75s looking for a project as well. They're getting pretty tough to find. I can understand why you're saving them for the right project. Have anything in mind yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LeBerbs Posted June 17, 2015 Members Share Posted June 17, 2015 Those solder joints though... Looks so clean! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted June 18, 2015 Author Share Posted June 18, 2015 Those solder joints though... Looks so clean! Thanks. That comes down to two things really... years and years of practice (you haven't lived until you've tried doing all the wiring for and soldering up a few full-sized recording studios - plus, I used to manage a gear repair shop too) and just working slowly and patiently. Both are important, but with just a little practice (try using scraps from thrown out electronics to practice on) and more importantly, care and patience, almost anyone can learn to solder well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.