Another offboard wiring thread

[rousejeremy]

I try and try and every pedal I make starts out like this


And ends up like this.


I mount the hardware on the outside and try to keep wire lengths to a minimum. I usually wire the board first, then measure the length I need to the pot, cut, strip and solder. Still looks like crap.
I tried wiring the pots first on the two pictured above, then running those wires to the board. It was a little better but still sloppy.

Any tips? I wish there was a John Lyons wiring tutorial out there.

[Hemmel]

Well you're lucky if your wires are too long when you box up.
You can always re-open, cut a bit and re-solder.

Imagine if they were too short !!!

[GGBB]

Right angles.  Don't let your wires change direction at anything except a 90 degree angle.  Also make your wires follow the box perimeter, not across other wires and components.  At least that's what I see when I look at John Lyons' pedals - I haven't made any look that good yet. 

[nosamiam]

I'm no guru, but one thing that makes a difference is the project itself. Try a layout--maybe a PCB-- with all the pads are along one edge of the board. One where the connections for each pot are grouped together. That alone can make a world of difference. If you have wires dropping into the center of the board it's a lot harder to make it look neat.

[rousejeremy]

Do you guys wire it up outside the box like in my first pic? Do you wire the board or the pots first?

[strungout]

As was said, pcbs are often made so the wiring fits on the outter edge of the board.

I've only ever done perfboard. I twist the pot wires together and do the same for switches and battery/dc socket wires (I've been using scavenged computer wires, which are mostly already twisted ). Helps keep things tidy. I do my own layout and try to keep in mind where stuff is gonna be connected to the board and/or mounted in the box, also helps.

Your third pictureshows what happens when there's no real planning involved and everyone does what the hell is quickest/laziest (dangerous)! I'm sure you put more thought into it 

[rousejeremy]

Right angles.  Don't let your wires change direction at anything except a 90 degree angle.  Also make your wires follow the box perimeter, not across other wires and components.  At least that's what I see when I look at John Lyons' pedals - I haven't made any look that good yet. 

This makes sense. I wired the switch and jack wires like this and it instantly looked better. Great tip right here.

[duck_arse]

lighter gauge wire. wire everything to one something. I rough measure wire lenghts, strip and tin one end each, then solder them to the jacks, switches, pots, the circuit board whathaveyou. add heatshrink to taste. then I use a dummy panel of plastic, usually, and mount everything on it, measure tidy, cut strip tin, and solder them to the millenium daughter board mounted on the footswitch.

that's the latest plan anyway. my 2 pedals thus far using it are v. neat and tidy, but I don't yet know if functional ......

[rousejeremy]

Using GGBB's advice.

[Hemmel]

This looks very good !!

[rousejeremy]

Thanks, it's a start. keeping wires running along the length of the box and at 90 degrees angles makes it look much nicer.

[MrStab]

FWIW, i often twist multiple wires going to the same pot (like a braid kinda) successfully without any crosstalk. i don't doubt problems do arise from doing this in some circumstances, though, so you might wanna read up on it. it helps save on space and just makes things easier to handle all-round.

just noticed your pic - seems like you have more of a knack for neat wiring than i do! nice work!

[duck_arse]

^ that wiring makes mine look like mumbai .....

mrstab, I've also been doing bad things like twisting input and b+-to/from-jack-switch down one side, and output and ground down the other side of my recents. and they both work.

[davent]

Do you guys wire it up outside the box like in my first pic? Do you wire the board or the pots first?

Hi Jeremy, I'm no John Lyons but some food for thought. I do most of the wiring outside of the box using a thin piece of plywood drilled to match the enclosure layout (John showed me this), essentially the same as you do on the outside of the enclosure. I wire to the board first and then to the outboard parts.

I'll try orient the pots so the lugs are pointing to where the wires are coming off the board, allows them to be shorter. Wire up the board then use the drilled jig to determinete wire lengths, trim the wires then solder things up removed from the jig unless there's lots of room and easy access to the solder lugs.

Stompswitch to jacks are all wired up in the enclosure. Wiring to the stompswitch i go as direct and short as possible trying for ~90 degree bends (22awg Tefon wire) where direction correction is needed. See no point in shoving these leads to the bottom of the enclosure, they float in the third dimension close to the back plate.

Anyways... some ideas.










dave

[rousejeremy]

I'm a big fan of your pedals sir.
I tried some more neat wiring with a TBP loop using solid core this time.

[lowbrow]

I like to wire up the pots, jacks, switches and LED in the box, then when its time to install the board, only the flying leads remain. My wires (24AWG stranded) are a little longer than most because I prefer routing them along the corners and edges of the enclosure.

[rousejeremy]

Very nice. I see the 90 degree angle of wires everywhere now.

[J0K3RX]

These all look great! They look meticulously hand crafted... I am liking all of them but Dave has got some serious skill! I am not a big fan of perf board but you guys do it up right...  I try to keep as much stuff on-board as possible but I realize that is tricky with perf board...  embarrassed I am, won't be showing any gut shots any time soon I feel like I would be comparing my abs to the guy on the Bowflex commercials!   

[rousejeremy]

I've been running for two years and doing Muay Thai for a year, my abs are better than my wiring.

[J0K3RX]

I've been running for two years and doing Muay Thai for a year, my abs are better than my wiring.

Well la dee frickin da!