The Surfy Bear Fet Reverb

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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Gear »

The Surfy Bear Fet Reverb

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driptone Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 32 Chicago	Posted on Feb 10 2015 09:45 AM I am going to order one. What type of pan did you use? The pans don't seem expensive. Is there one that works better with the unit than others? Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Feb 10 2015 10:54 AM To match the Fender Reverb, Bjoern recommended me the Accutronics pan. Someone else recommended the MOD pan because it is supposed to be a little less harsh in the high end, more mellow - Which I actually prefer, so I ordered an MOD. I ordered blind based on those hints - I'm not the "perfect sound persueing" type of player - I inform myself about interesting hot hints (like this one about the FET reverb), and when I like it, I use it. In the end, pan brand seems completely a matter of taste (and, maybe, some psycho-accoustics...) - And, as you said, once you have the electronics running and in a case, switching pans to compare and play around is a matter of some 20...30 bucks and seconds. Just make sure you get the right format type indicated on the surfy bear website. Last edited: Feb 10, 2015 11:03:24 Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Feb 10 2015 12:16 PM You might want to have an eye on the posts on MOD pans having a "long tail" - I cannot compare, but it does seem that this pan has a long decay with little damping. Usually a good thing, but might be too much of the good for staccato players (unless you add damping to the springs yourself). Last edited: Feb 10, 2015 12:16:32 Top
driptone Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 32 Chicago	Posted on Feb 10 2015 12:37 PM Thanks for the info. The mod pan seems to be at the upper end of the price range for pans but what the hell. Good tip about dampening it. Seems like a simple build so I guess its all about the enclosure. Cheers! Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Feb 10 2015 01:09 PM In Germany, it's actually 15% cheaper than the Accu... I think dampening the springs is more a matter of which plastic the mounting plates are made of (not the accoustics of the enclosure). If you're unsure, I'd take the accu which seems to be widely accepted standard. Top
Ariel Joined: Aug 29, 2009 Posts: 1556 Israel	Posted on Feb 10 2015 01:40 PM Novamax and Driptone, welcome to the club, Enjoy. I agree, Bjorn's care and support is amazing, and his product/creation is amazing. I strongly suggest to all beginning with this project to re-read the whole thread, including whatever links it leads to. This will answer 99% of your questions, as people have probably been through all the same considerations. Here's one specifically about pans for the SB. After all that, go HERE, for a good injection of common sense. Reverb to the people! The Surfy-Bear should IMO be acknowledged as a revolutionary technical advancement to 'surf guitar technology'. Badge of honor, for helping spread the good sound around the world, alanogically!, for tenth the price. Tubes shmubes, I say Last edited: Feb 10, 2015 13:47:17 Top
driptone Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 32 Chicago	Posted on Feb 10 2015 04:56 PM Point taken. My main interest is building one. I just finished an amp build and it doesn't have a reverb. In fact, I found this site because I was shopping reverb units and it was the Surfy Bear that brought me here. So.. cheers to him! I like the idea of something lightweight and potentially on the smaller side. Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Feb 11 2015 04:50 AM Thank you for the welcome and valuable links - I ordered the SB after reading about it in a German forum, so I'm a little overwhelmed by the baby thread here. The pan experience thread is really valuable. I will read the rest too Top
SanchoPansen Joined: Jan 04, 2011 Posts: 1588 Berlin L-Berg	Posted on Feb 11 2015 06:29 AM Hey Novamax, welcome to SG101 — The Hicadoolas Top
novamax Joined: Jan 23, 2015 Posts: 105	Posted on Feb 11 2015 10:34 AM Thanks for the friendly welcome Top
Snufkino Joined: Nov 03, 2009 Posts: 228	Posted on Feb 13 2015 04:09 PM Finally got my enclosure delivery and got to work today. Had a very minor boo-boo with the PCB screw, in that I had no nut for it to latch onto, but I just improvised, filing the PCB hole a fraction and using a tight-fitting screw. And being an idiot I forgot to actually order the 12v lamp so I'm not going to fully wire it up yet. I know I could just omit it to test it, but I'd rather not go through the de/re soldering. The only wiring that I made too short was the Dwell, but everything fits. I'll be insulating the inside just in case there are any stray points touching, but it seems fine. The enclosure will attach to the underside of the cab at the points marked X So other than a few more bits and bobs I just need to get the wood for the cab and get that lovely dark green tolex on it. Just a couple of questions while I remember: 1) The new PCB has the heat-sunk MOSFETS, but should I still drill a few vent holes to help with any heat issues? 2) There's a small point on the PCB just above Dwell 1. Is that to connect a ground wire to? 3) I assume I'm going to have to connect all the ground wires just like I would in an effects pedal? Top
warioblast Joined: Nov 23, 2014 Posts: 98 Dijon	Posted on Feb 13 2015 05:43 PM 1) I didn't. More metal surface should mean more heat dissipation !? 2) I didn't touch it. 3) I didn't look at the traces beneath the PCB but I'm pretty sure all the ground points are already connected. In my build I only added 2 wires for a footswitch. I think Bjorn's latest layout is exhaustive. 4) I can't figure how you're going to fix the enclosure to the cab. Top
bjoish Joined: Jul 06, 2010 Posts: 596 Stockholm	Posted on Feb 13 2015 05:53 PM Hi I have only one thing to add: 2) that small point is only used for manufacturing the board Top
Snufkino Joined: Nov 03, 2009 Posts: 228	Posted on Feb 13 2015 07:02 PM warioblast wrote: 4) I can't figure how you're going to fix the enclosure to the cab. The screws would be in the enclosure, pointing up and out, fixing into the underside of the top panel, which is the area in the dotted line. I'll probably try and design it so that the back panel ends up supporting it from below. Last edited: Feb 13, 2015 19:05:22 Top
Snufkino Joined: Nov 03, 2009 Posts: 228	Posted on Feb 14 2015 03:19 PM Got bored and decided to fire it up... and it works! Initially I got the RCA's the wrong way around at the tank end, which produced a slightly muffled reverb and a lot of distortion, but swapped them round, and it's fine. Sounds great, though the mix gets high way quicker than I remembered my Fender tank doing, so it'll take some time to get used to. Not 100% sure if it will replace my Topanga reverb. There are settings it can do that the tank can't, but the tank can get tones that the Topanga can't. Tough decision but time will tell once I have more time to compare. Cost wise I think including every single nut and bolt it'll come out at about £150 which is cheaper than buying a Topanga new here in the UK, and half the price of the tank I had, and that was an exceptionally low price. Excellent value and a fun project. Can't wait to get started on the cab. Looks like it'll be way more sensible to attach a couple of brackets to the back of the stupidly compact enclosure to fix it to the underside of the top panel too. There is some noise/hiss issues, though I might try coating the inside with copper paper like you might with a guitar cavity... would that help or is the noise unavoidable on account of my weird choice of enclosure? Last edited: Feb 14, 2015 15:20:22 Top
ElBirkerio Joined: Dec 17, 2012 Posts: 519 Vienna	Posted on Feb 14 2015 03:54 PM björn! finished mine ... and this is a fricken fine reverb!!! thank you!!! made the mother of all heatsinks for it yours wolfi — http://www.surfgrammeln-san.org https://www.facebook.com/BaluUndSurfgrammeln http://greencookierecords.bandcamp.com/album/coming-out-soon-los-chicharrones-del-surf-10 Top
andreuthegiant Joined: May 27, 2007 Posts: 254 Madrid, Spain	Posted on Feb 14 2015 04:51 PM One question: is it possible to use a shorter reverb pan with the surfy bear? Top
dboomer Joined: Jan 05, 2009 Posts: 262 Port Hueneme, CA	Posted on Feb 14 2015 04:58 PM Certainly if you don't care about the sound of it. Top
LaFleur Joined: May 20, 2009 Posts: 525 Leipzig	Posted on Feb 14 2015 05:22 PM Yes but they sound like shit. — http://www.reverbnation.com/bangmustang http://www.facebook.com/bangmustang https://soundcloud.com/bang-mustang Top
driptone Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 32 Chicago	Posted on Feb 15 2015 09:09 AM If you line the inside of your housing with copper tape, you would have to ground it. Just like the inside of an amp. Top

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