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DIY Stompboxes => Building your own stompbox => Topic started by: Gearbuilder on February 07, 2004, 07:24:20 PM

Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 07, 2004, 07:24:20 PM
Hi,
Who's  yet cloned the  Octave Divider?
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: R.G. on February 07, 2004, 10:41:15 PM
Which one? There are several.
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: BillyJ on February 08, 2004, 01:50:17 AM
Ten dollars say Musitronics...
Someday  :cry:
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 08, 2004, 04:24:10 AM
Hi,
I'm looking for this one used by Neil Young .I think it's the Musitronic but i'm not sure at all.
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: BillyJ on February 08, 2004, 02:36:26 PM
Yeah I think that is the Musitronics.
Haven't seen it yet but I am looking to find one to revers but who knows when one will plunk down on my bench.
Someday someday...
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 09, 2004, 11:46:55 AM
Hi,
Can i approach this sound with a MXR Blue Box if i don't find the Musitronic schematic?
Thanks
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Mark Hammer on February 09, 2004, 01:07:56 PM
I can't think of a single octave divider that does NOT use a flip-flop (whether discrete or 4013-based) to produce a square-wave either one or two octaves below the original signal in a monophonic (one note at a time) way.

Where octave dividers tend to differ is in the extent to which they anticipate difficulties in tracking, permit blending of straight and octave in different ways, and shape the tone of the octave down.  In that sense, octave dividers are a lot like flangers and chorusses which also all use the same core technology but differ in their performance controls and features.

The Bluebox uses a simple gating principle to keep the sputtery tail of a note from reaching the output.  It also uses a blend control for adjusting relative straight/octave signal-level where other pedals might use individual level controls for each signal type so that overall volume level is independent of blend.  Finally, the Bluebox has no provision for adjusting the tone of the divided signal, just a lowly cap on the output to roll off the treble from everything, straight and octave alike.

So, to answer your question....finally....yes you CAN produce the same overall sound with a Bluebox, though your capacity to tailor the sound in the same way may not be identical.
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 09, 2004, 04:50:54 PM
Hi,
Thanks a lot Mark for all your infos about octave divider.I didn't know anything about Octave Divider and   these small differences beetween this two effects . It's seems that the bluebox could help me but i'm sure the Octave Divider from Musitronic is hard to find,even the schematic.
Have  you ever seen or owned one?
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Mark Hammer on February 09, 2004, 05:03:00 PM
Before you lust after one too much, just remember you can only play one note at a time into them.  Many people confuse octave dividers with harmonizers which shift ANY input signal, whether one note or more, by a certain proportion.

I have never seen or played a Colorsound Octave-divider, but I cannot imagine it is of any higher quality than the PAiA Rocktave (http://www.paia.com).  That pedal, designed by Craig Anderton and originally an article in Guitar Player magazine (scanned and available at hammer.ampage.org) is probably the best-behaved analog divider out there.,  It does not have the same "pedigree" as the Colorsound or MXR, but that is more because big name musicians buy their pedals from a display case and not as mail-order kits.  The Rocktave IS better than much of what is available as commercial pedals.  Don't take my word for it.  Listen to the people who I know will add to my posting.

If you need a Colorsound one for certain reasons, fine, but if it is simply the only one you know about and you would like to be able to produce that effect, I am confident you will not be disappointed with the Rocktave.
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 09, 2004, 05:16:20 PM
Hi,
Ok, i'm going to wait for other post replies I'm totally agree with you about ""Buy it  because Mr X used this model ......."then i trust you and i let you now for finding the Rocktave schematic
Thanks a lot Mark :wink:
Regards
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Mark Hammer on February 10, 2004, 09:24:43 AM
On peut le trouver en deux formes; chez mon site-web à http://hammer.ampage.org et aussi chez http://www.generalguitargadgets.com

En tout cas, c'est une bonne idée de lire l'article de Craig Anderton à mon site-web, qui (comme toujours) explique tous parfaitement.

Bonne chance, et meilleurs voeux
Mark
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Gearbuilder on February 10, 2004, 07:01:19 PM
Bonjour Mark,
Merci pour tes conseils ;je vais essayer le Rocktave.Bravo pour ton site !C'est d'ailleur un des rares endroits  ou j'ai pu trouver du Craig Anderton, car le livre n'est plus édité en France .Alors je te passe aussi le bonjour de Paris .
Salutations
Bruno
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: Mark Hammer on February 11, 2004, 09:59:09 AM
C'est mon plaisir.

Veuillez noter que la version originale chez mon site-web emploi un LM4136 pour les amplificateurs operationelles.  Comme parfoit les gars ont des difficultés d'obtenir ce chip, le dessin alternatif de Dean Hazelwanter, trouvé à www.generalguitargadgets.com (http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/v2/index.php?option=displaypage&Itemid=87&op=page&SubMenu=), emploi un TL074 (avec des connections differents, mais plus commun et avec plus des remplacements), et incorpore aussi le "mod" pour obtenir des autres intervales avec un compteur/diviseur 4017.

Salut, et bonne chance avec les

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Mark  :wink:
Title: Octave Divider ?
Post by: puretube on February 11, 2004, 10:16:15 AM
there is a japanese Divider (Korg?) however, that uses the generated square-wave (octave below), to switch the original signal including its dynamics, in the "rhythm" of that lower octave....

the current E-H De-Luxe Octave Multiplexer has a means built in,
to save the dynamics of the original signal...