I Think I Finally Understand The Blackfire

[RDV]

With my humbuckers it hums(though there's plenty of gain happening before it starts to hum), with weaker single coils, it doesn't(even with the gain dimed). Or with my Les Pauls in the in-between pickup setting, it doesn't hum. This thing seems to have been designed with weaker pickups in mind. I wonder how(other than the obvious just turn down the gain) this might be done to somehow lower the massive gain this thing produces just a bit. Inline resistor before the gain pot? Lower gain trannies in the first stage? Both? Neither? I Wonder.

Regards

RDV

[Ansil]

This thing seems to have been designed with weaker pickups in mind. I wonder how(other than the obvious just turn down the gain) this might be done to somehow lower the massive gain this thing produces just a bit.

Inline resistor before the gain pot? Lower gain trannies in the first stage? Both? Neither? I Wonder.  




couldn't hurt.. try both of them..

[RDV]

What about inserting the Marshall tonestack after the first stage!http://www.joefus.com/oldstuff/images/3band_eq.gif
Has anyone tried this? I believe I'm gonna.

Regards

RDV

[Ansil]

does anyone have a sample of the blackfire at full tilt.

[Paul Marossy]

I had the same idea to put the tonestack after the first stage. Seems like you would get a slightly Fendery sounding Marshall sound. If you try it, let us know how it sounds. I haven't tried that yet, been working on three other projects at the same time this weekend...

[Ed G.]

I think I am finally going to have to post a schematic of what I've done with the blackfire gain stage. I call it Shaka Joe because it's the opamp section of Aron's Shaka series pushing the Blackfire gain stage into overdrive. I've tinkered and modded it for some time now and used it on numerous gigs and I think I finally have a winner.
The blackfire gain stage in itself is a wonderful thing. It clips even sweeter to my ears than jfets, it has a lot of detail and clarity that I haven't heard in anything else. When I hear it through my amp, it does not sound like I'm using a distortion pedal. It sounds like a true extension of my amp and guitar's sound.

[Joe Davisson]

You can adjust the overall gain of the pedal adjusting the 470k/470pf after the gain pot. Try 2.2M/100pf for starters. This should reduce the gain enough.

Alternatively, you can put the 470k/470pf before the tone control, and just a 470k afterward. You might also need a bleeder cap (.001) across pins 2/3 of the gain control to preserve treble when the gain is reduced. (This is like a Marshall or Boogie gain control.)

I use pretty weak pickups, preferring to get the extra gain from a pedal. Not that I'm some sort of virtuoso to whom it really matters, but... :)

-Joe

[Doug H]

I think I am finally going to have to post a schematic of what I've done with the blackfire gain stage. I call it Shaka Joe because it's the opamp section of Aron's Shaka series pushing the Blackfire gain stage into overdrive. I've tinkered and modded it for some time now and used it on numerous gigs and I think I finally have a winner.
The blackfire gain stage in itself is a wonderful thing. It clips even sweeter to my ears than jfets, it has a lot of detail and clarity that I haven't heard in anything else. When I hear it through my amp, it does not sound like I'm using a distortion pedal. It sounds like a true extension of my amp and guitar's sound.

I can vouch for the Blackfire stage as a building-block. I used it in the Highway89 and have designed a couple other things (not built yet) with it as an output stage. It is very versatile and sounds great.

Doug

[WGTP]

Aron said he'd tried that, but I guess he wasn't happy with his results.  Love to see the scheme.

I'm driving a BF stage with a SRPP.  Best of both worlds.    

[aron]

No, it sounds fine.

I didn't post it because I wasn't sure about Joe's status.

I will post the schematic soon.

It sounds good.