Send in the Clones

[LK155]

Just finished another BYOC (Build Yer Own Clone) pedal, this time the Reverb2.

The Vibrolux found a new home last summer, and neither of my two remaining amps have onboard reverb.

Yes, I know, there are umpteen dozen reverb pedals out there, but I wasn't looking for lots of bells and whistles, and wanted something I could build myself.

BYOC has two different reverb pedals, a really tiny one (without even room for a battery) and this one, in a standard size enclosure......

 

 

 

Pretty simple PCB construction. The resistors seem to be getting smaller and smaller, to the point where it's just about impossible to determine their value from the painted stripes. Digital multi-meter definitely required here. Plus there were some very tight work areas, so soldering was not something you'd do in a hurry. There's a Beltron BDTR-2 digital spring reverb module about two thirds the size of the PCB, sitting under the board.

At any rate, it does work, and sounds amazingly good. Dwell and Depth controls are all it has, and it doesn't need much Depth to sound quite Fender-y. Bright Calypso is the name of the colour, chosen from about five hundred different spray cans at my local auto supply store. Will worry about labels later, if at all. I might be able to remember what the plethora of two knobs are for.

 

Another far more elaborate pedal kit is in my future, but not until Santa visits next month.

 

 

 

 

 

[t0aj15]

Very clean...neat work.

[big bob]

👍

[bolero]

that is interesting!

 

does it do the reverb "BAAROOOM" crashing noise, when you kick it?

[LK155]

that is interesting!

 

does it do the reverb "BAAROOOM" crashing noise, when you kick it?

 

 

Ah, nope.

This thing is very submissive. Takes all such abuse and stays dead quiet.

 

After playing around with it a bit, I think I like it better than the typical Fender reverb. It doesn't get the nasally honk that I dislike.

But it's very easy to dial in the 60's surf sound. Cool. And the Dwell is useful from zero to max.

[TalismanRich]

That's a nice clean build, LK. Well done! Some letters might be nice, but you really need to get a nice logo.

[kidsmoke]

sweet! Ever since making DuhVooDooMans acquaintance on another guitar forum many many years ago...I've perused their kit's with thoughts of taking the plunge. Never have done it. My hat's off to you, Lyle.

 

The three BYOC kits I own, two pedals and an amp, as built by DVM, are excellent.

[LK155]

Kip, put your hat back on and order yourself a pedal kit.

You do need to know how to solder, and how to work in tight quarters. Appropriate tools are essential, particularly small needle-nose pliers, a side cutter/nipper capable of snipping off excess leads down close to the PCB, a good magnifying glass, a digital multi-meter, and a soldering iron with an extremely small, sharp point for getting into crowded areas. I use a 25W soldering pencil with a really sharp point and it works great on these kits.

 

Some of the BYOC kits are pretty simple (I consider my Reverb2 in that group) and others are seriously complicated. Pick an easy one for your first build. The BYOC website offers access to all the build instruction manuals in PDF form, so you should be able to judge the complexity before you buy. The component quality seems quite good, and as for the quality of workmanship, well, that's up to you. There is a very supportive forum for technical help. These pedals give great results at reasonable cost. There's also the intangible asset of having built the thing yourself, and the feeling of accomplishment that comes along with that. You do, of course, have to realize that resale value will always be at toilet level, so pick something you know you'll use for a long time. Building these kits is actually enjoyable, and a good use of your time.

 

My biggest pet peeve with these kits is that there doesn't seem to be an easy way to get any graphics (including labels for what the controls might do) on the face of the pedal. I've tried the rub-on letters from an office supply store, and they worked fine on one of my builds (a simple A/B switch box) but didn't work at all on the reverb pedal, in fact requiring me to strip and repaint it. I know some people use graphics software, clear decal paper, and laser printers, but that's beyond my budget and technical savvy. There must be a better/easier/less expensive way for us amateurs to get labels on our pedals.

 

Go for it, I say. Enjoy the process, and good luck.

 

 

 

 

[schundog]

I dig it, Lyle! If I had any mechanical skills at all, I might try it, but handling a screwdriver pretty much taxes my ability, so I'll just have to live vicariously through guys like you that have the patience and ability. Now fire up that non-reverb amp, kick on that reverb pedal, and give us some clips!

[grubber]

Hey Lyle! Nice build! I've built 2 Silver Pony kits, a tremolo pedal, and another one that I can't recall off the top of my head. You did a great job and they all sound great! Plus theres a pride of building yourself.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[CJTopes]

That is some clean soldering there. Wouldnt look like that if I were to attempt it.

[HANGAR18]

I'm baffled how someone somewhere can make a decision on what bunch of electrical components they need to combine into some sort of electrical circuit in order to produce a particular tone of some sort when it gets added to the signal path of an electric guitar. And apparently there are many different ways to make a circuit for a distortion pedal for example. Just look how many thousands of distortion pedals there are in this world. I don't think of solid state electrical components as having anything to do with tone. A difficult concept for me to grasp.

[albertgooding]

Very sorry to bring back a possibly dead thread,

 

I was just inquiring as to if you remember what the dimensions of your PCB were? for a project i'm currently looking into

 

Many Thanks

[LK155]

2 1/4" X 2 3/8"

[kidsmoke]

man.. nice reminder. I was on BYOC yesterday considering taking the plunge, I actually can say i NEED a pedal, little ol' phaser, for a tune we're doing with the band in a gig in a couple of weeks, alson interested in a true bypass A/B pedal, with a 9V connector.

 

same concerns... 2 weeks from now I'll be out the time and the money and still not have what I need. Sure does look tidy, Lyle

[asharrow]

Awesome job on the build and soldering.

Can you share some www links for these FX pedal kits?

 

Side Note - Related to FX pedals;

My wife and I stopped in to support a friends band at their gig and they had me sit in for a couple.

My buddy had a "T-Rex Dr. Swamp" dual overdrive pedal.

I had never used a dual OD pedal before. It was really nice. The first section gave it a bit of gain, The second section added more gain and some crunch.

A very handy pedal to have on your board.

[kidsmoke]

Awesome job on the build and soldering.

Can you share some www links for these FX pedal kits?

 

I'll jump on this because I'm very familiar with Lyle's source on this kit, as well as other kits by the same source.

 

https://buildyourownclone.com/

 

I currently use 3 pedals and one Amp, all developed/trouble shot/and sold by the people behind this site, one of whom is also a member here and a Heritage owner. There's no affiliation, I just "know" and trust the guy, and can speak to the product quality. Workmanship is on you. (I bought all my kits pre-assembled, thus far)

[asharrow]

Thanks for the link