JObeast wrote:

Bjorn,
I got my kit in the mail the other day! Stoked!
But a few questions before I begin installing it in a vintage Craftsman 18" toolbox:

I am ignorant about polarity of the power jack, with its 3 lugs. I misremembered the required polarity today when I bought a 12v/1A switching-type regulated supply, & got one with a positive center. So I will need to reverse the leads on the jack. Can you indicate which lug is which?

I think the best thing to make sure you got the polarity right is to connect the power supply to the jack (before connecting to the board) and measure the voltage on the 3 lugs.

Do you recommend a power-interrupt switch between the power jack and the 9v input?

I think it is convenient, but its up to you

Is the pair of solder points next to the power input for an LED as power indicator? I am not sure of the symbol's meaning.

Yes thats right. Its optional.

Also, I have a spare footswitch with 1/4" plug. Can you show how to wire it into the Reverb return as it is indicated on the diagram? It's a short-circuit, right? I am a circuit-building infant, so please be patient with me.

No problem. It depends on what type of footswitch you got.
Toggle or momentary. I think you will prefer toggle, otherwise you will need keep your foot on the switch while playing.
Since the return-signal from the pan goes thru the foot switch cable you will need a shielded cable.

I saw above that the Surfgitar who built his kit into a red metal toolbox, has fairly long leads between the control pots and jacks mounted on the lid and the board mounted on the tool tray. Weighing the advantages of mounting the board on the tray-as-chassis:
+
lots of air space & conductance of all the metal to dissipate heat, & less vibration/shock there than in the lid.

-
aren't long leads prone to noise? Doesn't movement of leads upon opening/closing lid degrade solder joints?

Yes, you are right. I recommend short wires to reduce the risk for hum.
Since the toolbox is in metal you got good shielding there and I think you will get good results either way. I dont think the movement will degrade the solder joints.

Good luck with your build!

ok, i need to get one of these

http://dinosaurghost.bandcamp.com/
http://sixtycyclehum.podbean.com

I wrote:
Also, I have a spare footswitch with 1/4" plug. Can you show how to wire it into the Reverb return as it is indicated on the diagram? It's a short-circuit, right? I am a circuit-building infant, so please be patient with me.

Bjorn replied:
No problem. It depends on what type of footswitch you got.
Toggle or momentary. I think you will prefer toggle, otherwise you will need keep your foot on the switch while playing.
Since the return-signal from the pan goes thru the foot switch cable you will need a shielded cable.

My rejoinder:
So the musical signal goes all the way up the cable of the f/s? That would seriously degrade it, I would think. I am thinking this should be an always-on device, in that case.

Squink Out!

LaFleur wrote:

Yeah I also don't like it cause the one from the Fender Tank is also picking up a lot of hum. Whats about a true bypass switch or something in the powersection? Should be much easier in the FET Version compared to the tube.

Yes, this is the way Fender designed it 50 years ago
I suppose Fender found this to be a simple solution and since the impedance is just 2.5kohm the footswitch-cable should be less prone to pick up hum than a guitar cable.

bjoish wrote:

LaFleur wrote:

Yeah I also don't like it cause the one from the Fender Tank is also picking up a lot of hum. Whats about a true bypass switch or something in the powersection? Should be much easier in the FET Version compared to the tube.

Yes, this is the way Fender designed it 50 years ago
I suppose Fender found this to be a simple solution and since the impedance is just 2.5kohm the footswitch-cable should be less prone to pick up hum than a guitar cable.

quote should end here<
Ah! since that footswitch cable is one of the weak points of the Fender Reverb, what about starting here with a first little 'mod'?
with all the experience here in the forum, this reverb-machine can be easily be brought into the 'next generation'!

Last edited: Sep 11, 2014 12:44:41

18" seems to be the standard for vintage toolboxes, the kind you can get for $10 on Cl. Old is better. Made w/better metal, plus there is rust and ding patina.

26Alpha20 wrote:

crmartin wrote:

bjoish wrote:

26Alpha20 wrote:

Saw some of these at Ace hardware stores. Thought you guys who have been using tool boxes would be interested in a cool looking enclosure.

Rocking boxes

Cool !!!

Cool boxes, but they are only 16" wide, not quite wide enough for a long spring pan.

Dang! I'm glad you measured!

Squink Out!

sonni wrote:

Ah! since that footswitch cable is one of the weak points of the Fender Reverb, what about starting here with a first little 'mod'?
with all the experience here in the forum, this reverb-machine can be easily be brought into the 'next generation'!

Good idea, maybe a wireless footswitch

Hej Bjorn,
I am building my kit into an old Craftsman toolbox, with the board mounted to the underside of the lid and the tank secured to the floor of the box with cork flooring and a cardboard pad, stuck with velcro.
I haven't got to the controls and jacks yet, but I recall you said something about printable graphics for a control panel. Can you send a pdf of that that I can take to a printer?
Thanks!

Squink Out!

Here is a file you can open with Inkscape.

JObeast wrote:

ISn't there a pdf ready to print someplace?

There you go:
DOWNLOAD PDF
I encourage to verify the final size with the print shop.