tremolo please! Recommendations?

[blackieNYC]

Forget this thing below. I'm throwing it out. Maybe I'll yank the TLO22, but the rest I will burn.  Eh, live and learn.
Who's got the definitive tick-free tremolo?   Can the thing be first in line after the guitar or does it need something in front?  I'd love it if there was a square wave as well as a very very nice triangle or sine. No ticks, no mods, works as is. I've got to slap one together and move on.  The tremulous loon at fuzz central? http://fuzzcentral.ssguitar.com/tremulus.php. No 555s please.  I'm battling The Tick, in the standard methods, but I can't get past the fact that if I turn down the volume all the way, the ticking is gone.  So the input is grounded. There is an op amp buffer at the input to this tremolo. How is the LFO circuit, the big cap on the power rail, or any of these fixes going to help a tick if it can be stopped that far upstream?  How does the guitar volume make it go away? 
In the hi-Fi biz, we put ground shorting plugs on the stereo RCA jacks and measure the s/n ratio like that.  This tremolo is great when you leave the volume down!
Dual op amp LFO, signal is buffered then the LDR grounds the signal, then there's a buffer afterword.
Beautiful looking triangle I've got going. The only effective fixes for the tick I can find all misshape the triangle.  I hate making LFOs.  There, I said it.
Ps- I've put it together on perf, after thinking I'd beaten the tick.  So now the circuit is on a perf, connected to the breadboard with wire.  I've seen a lot of things go away when you put them in the box, but I'm reluctant to expect an LFO tick to go away when enclosed in metal.  Think it will go away?  I've got a prototyping tin I'll stuff it in.

[blackieNYC]

To be clear, I'm not considering this a "best" thread. I'm not looking for sonic subtleties, as one might in a fuzz.  Just cold hard basic tremolo performance. 

[davent]

Have you seen this one?

http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=20657.msg202725#msg202725

[blackieNYC]

Sounds like square wave only.  I'm primarily interested in triangle or sine but a quiet square LFO is a big plus. Thanks

[mth5044]

Tremulous Lune is a pretty standard build, as is tr EA trem. Layout can be important, so pick a good one

[TGP39]

From my experience, it's the square wave that is most likely to cause ticking issues. Like mth5044 stated, layout is important.

Steve.

[Kipper4]

Have you seen the shoot the moon ?

[digi2t]

I would say Trem Lune as well. I bought the Stereo Panneur kit (two Trem Lunes in same box) from 4ms way back, and it's never left my board. No ticking issues at all. Layout is the key.

What ever you decide, read up on potential problems, and plan accordingly.

[deadastronaut]

tremshifter..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxkQrS5tlpk

just use the tremolo part of the schemo if you wish...

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=108355.0

[suncrush]

Has anyone built this one:

http://www.musicpcb.com/pcbs/tap-tempo-tremolo/

It looks like exactly what I want.

[Mark Hammer]

Alan,
Go read the Stompboxology chapter on Tremolos at the moosapotamus site.  Boscorelli does a nice explanation of the little trick that Boss uses to sidestep the tick in their LFO (with drawings).  Essentially, it uses an ever-so-slight rise/fall time, to yield a waveform that is mostly square with just a hint of trapezoid.

The tick is from the near instaneous rise and fall, and the sudden current draw that requires.  Making that rise and fall transition occur over a just-long-enough timespan yields something that sounds like it is square, but isn't square enough to produce a tick.  That, plus a low-current op-amp and decent decoupling of the LFO from the audio path, will get you there.

[blackieNYC]

Thanks - I read that. And tried that trick.  It helped a lot with the tick, but misshaped my square wave enough to wreck my triangle. It went square on me.  Audibly and on the scope. Tried a couple of values than, didn't get anywhere. I'm on the Lune now. May start a new thread.

[smallbearelec]

Alan--

I am writing from Hong Kong, won't be back in NYC till mid-June. If you don't get to this project till then, get hold of me and you can try the Tremulous Bear that I have on my shelf at home. I think it will make you happy. Meanwhile check out the build-it article:

http://diy.smallbearelec.com/Projects/TremBear/TremBear.html

Regards
SD

[armdnrdy]

I am writing from Hong Kong
SD

Bring back a suitcase filled with BBDs! 

[smallbearelec]

Bring back a suitcase filled with BBDs! 

I asked a few of the brokers at SEGBUY in Shenzhen for MN3205. They said: "mei you" (Mandarin = not have). I only had a few hours there, will talk more in my blog.