DIY disaster : No sound

[Yata]

Hey guys, l really need some advice here. I've just finished building my second ever pedal (fuzz dogs foxtone clone) but I can't seem to get any sound out of it whatsoever. This pedal is also wired True bypass but I'm not getting any sound whilst either footswich is on/off so I have a feeling it might be something up with the footswitch daughter board.. I have a basic cheap multimeter I can use but I have no idea what to check to find out the problem. So far I have tested continuity between the centre and centre-top lug on the right footswitch and nothing has seemed out of the orderinery. I have also tried to reflow several solder joints on the daughterboard and footswitch to no success. Is it possible there could be a short on the jack's themself or the daughter board or some other reason I'm getting no sound when in true bypass or otherwise. This is my second ever build so I'm pretty clueless about this stuff but surely if I'm getting no sound it should be something to do with my connection between the input jack and the footswitch or somewhere about there?

here is the schematics: http://pedalparts.co.uk/docs/UltimatumFuzz.pdf

I've attached pictures and one of the leds that is missing I was just replacing with a different colour at the time.
https://imgur.com/gallery/9Yqo2
http://imgur.com/epleGJx

[adrianhertz]

is a two sided pcb??

Sent from my HTC Desire 626s using Tapatalk

[GGBB]

Check for shorts - continuity where there shouldn't be continuity - especially to ground.

As a general rule of thumb, its always best to test your circuit without the footswitch wiring so that you know it works before you connect all the off-board hardware.

And I have to ask - why are all your resistors raised up off the board? Leaving all those leads exposed like that is just asking for trouble.

[Yata]

How would I check for shorts to ground, keep one probe on my ground and just touch every connection?

The reason I am puling my hair out is that there is a very limited number of connections for the true bypass to function so not even being able to get sound out of that is frustrating me. I followed the build documents provided by fuzzdogs as again I have very limited experience.

The resistors being raised was due my bad soldering skills, I've found it hard to seat components and I have very shaky hands. Obviously with future builds I will try my best to improve but the reality is that I am just not that very good.

[GGBB]

How would I check for shorts to ground, keep one probe on my ground and just touch every connection?

Exactly.

The easy way to get components to sit down and stay down is to push them all the way down and bend the leads over so they can't fall out.

[thermionix]

Looking through your pictures, you have a lot of frayed strands on the ends of wires that are soldered to boards.  It only takes one little strand to touch something it shouldn't and the circuit won't work.  You should try to snip all of these strands off with some side cutters or nail clippers or something.  In the future, when working with stranded wire, strip it first, twist it, then tin it with solder.  That helps keep everything neat and it's easy to stick through the holes in the boards, like solid wire.

[Yata]

I'll try to keep that in mind with my next build. So far Ive added some extra solder to some joints and clipped some bits to try and make sure nothing is shorting. I still can't seem to find out what is wrong though. I'm getting continuity between both input and output but zero sound. I'm starting to wonder if my only option is to order another PCB next month and two 3DPT switches and just switch out the daughterboard.

[EBK]

I'm starting to wonder if my only option is to order another PCB next month and two 3DPT switches and just switch out the daughterboard.

That sounds a bit too extreme given the data we have so far.
You get continuity plug tip to plug tip when the effect is bypassed?
And you get no continuity from either plug tip to ground?

[ElectricDruid]

I don't know exactly what the holes in that 3PDT switch PCB looked like before you soldered the switches in, but would it be possible to fit the switches rotated by 90 degrees? The fact that 3PDT are square makes it easy to put them the wrong way around. Obviously "upside down" isn't an issue, but 90 degrees out really screws things up.

That said, it looks like they've both got the tags that hold the top on pointing to the centre. But maybe both are wrong? Is that possible?

Just a thought.

HTH,
Tom

[GGBB]

I'll try to keep that in mind with my next build. So far Ive added some extra solder to some joints and clipped some bits to try and make sure nothing is shorting. I still can't seem to find out what is wrong though. I'm getting continuity between both input and output but zero sound. I'm starting to wonder if my only option is to order another PCB next month and two 3DPT switches and just switch out the daughterboard.

Did you check continuity between input/output and ground? And when you say zero sound, do you mean complete silence or no effect just dry signal?

[Kipper4]

Welcome Yama.

Chill out some one here will help get your fuzz working.

Diagram 5 here
Explains how the 3pole double throw switch functions.

Note the lug direction, as suggested by Electric Druid it may be something simple like this.


http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Learn_About_Guitar_Pickups_and_Electronics_and_Wiring/3PDT_Stomp_Switch_Instructions.html


If it's not the switch wiring, we'll go through debugging the circuit with you.

Mean time go look on you tube to learn how to use a multimeter.
Google is your friend.

I hope this isn't coming across harsh. It's not intended that way.

Is it boxed already?

Rich.

[moid]

Hello Yata

Don't give up - the people here are very helpful at fixing things! As a fellow novice I can add something else to check for - how are you powering this? I recently had a build not work which I assumed was something complex but it turned out to just be the power socket plug had died and was no longer sending power to the circuit! That will tend to have a negative effect on sound going through it...

Have you tried running a cable from the audio of the input socket to the board (bypass the footswitches entirely) and then from the circuit to the audio out socket? If your pedal works at hat point then you know for sure the problem is in the footswitch PCB.

[granite]

If you cannot hear anything with a full passive foot switch, most likely your input signal (or output) is accidentally grounded.

First double-check that you put the foot switch in the right way - in the pdf you linked page 5 I think (would be nice if the doc had page numbers).

If those are in the right way - not rotated 90 degrees - then you can set your multimeter to "beep" mode to check shorts. (If yours does not have beep, you just have to check the resistance.)

Make sure that the signal (both input and output) is never connected to ground. Touch the input jack tip connector (green cable if I am seeing it right) to a ground point (on the jack or the little daughter board with "G" or maybe even the box if the jacks are not insulated) and see the resistance. It should be open. If it beeps or you see something like 1.2 Ohm, you have a short and you have to trace the wires to find where it is.

I second the statement about those fine hair-like strands of wire, they are a massive pain in the butt, check those first if you have a short.

Cannot quite tell from your pics but also make sure that the jack connectors for the tip do not touch the case accidentally - those would ground the signal right away.

Also, there is a little too much red showing for those foot switches I think, you may want to add a bit more solder just to make sure that all tabs have good connections to the PCB - if it is not a short, it may be a no connection from signal to foot switch.

[Yata]

This is almost too much help guys, I can't thank everyone enough for the replies as I sit here dumbfounded.

re:granite

I think you are most likely right, with the footswitch clicked I'm getting continuity between ground and my signal on both jacks. I assume this means my signal has become grounded somewhere on the daughterboard? I've spent the last half hour trying to find out where it could possibly be grounded but to no avail. here is the kicker though, when I depress the footswitch to engage the effect I'm getting no short between the lugs on my output jack and the output of the daughterboard. But I am still getting a short between the input/ground (and on the jack lugs) and everything that touches. is it possible to maybe just have a faulty jack causing a short?
EDIT: unsoldered the jack and the input and ground on the board still seem to have continuinty

I'm going to go back over the daughterboard and everything else with my eyes and just try and see if anything could possibly be touching.

Thanks again.

[Kipper4]

You see now I can't figure out how the switching is done.
Some of those Gnd connections on the switch maybe are supposed to be.
There's going to be at least one grounded lug on each switch to make indicator leds works.

There's all sorts of things you could check before that.

Is the input jack really the output jack in the box. Don't ask. Let's just say I've been there.

Are the guitar signal wires really going to the tips and not the shield .

Is the guitar cable ok?

Etc

How's it going Yata?  Did you figure out how to use the multimeter?

I've got lots more silly questions.
Rich

[Yata]

You see now I can't figure out how the switching is done.
Some of those Gnd connections on the switch maybe are supposed to be.
There's going to be at least one grounded lug on each switch to make indicator leds works.

There's all sorts of things you could check before that.

Is the input jack really the output jack in the box. Don't ask. Let's just say I've been there.

Are the guitar signal wires really going to the tips and not the shield .

Is the guitar cable ok?

Etc

How's it going Yata?  Did you figure out how to use the multimeter?

I've got lots more silly questions.
Rich

Cheers for the reply.

To make things simple I have decided to completely unsolder the board from my jacks and motherboard. I am now left with only the daughterboard and switches and somehow still getting continuity between J-In and ground. I've attatched some pictures if it helps. Also the switches are orientated horizontally across just like the guide told me.
I think I linked the schematics in my first post but here is another link
http://pedalparts.co.uk/docs/UltimatumFuzz.pdf
The routing on the pcb is visable at the bottom of page7.
I believe input goes to the top centre lug of the right switch and output goes to the centre lug for true bypass. The left switch just handles switching for the octave effect.


Pictures of the pcb currently:
https://imgur.com/a/y75eD

EDIT: additional picture of the continuity I get with each switch press
http://i.imgur.com/rLyOEU7.jpg

[EBK]

Any chance a tiny piece of wire may have slipped in between the switch and the board? 

[EBK]

Hmm.  From your continuity diagram:
In one position, the top six lugs are all shorted together, and in the other position, the bottom 6 lugs are shorted together?

[Yata]

Hmm.  From your continuity diagram:
In one position, the top six lugs are all shorted together, and in the other position, the bottom 6 lugs are shorted together?

The bottom lugs only show continuity between the bottom and middle row whilst the top row shows contuinty with everything in the top and middle row when the footswitch is pressed.

[EBK]

Hmm.  From your continuity diagram:
In one position, the top six lugs are all shorted together, and in the other position, the bottom 6 lugs are shorted together?

The bottom lugs only show continuity between the bottom and middle row whilst the top row shows contuinty with everything in the top and middle row when the footswitch is pressed.

So, if we number the lugs like this:
1  4  7
2  5  8
3  6  9

In one switch position, 1-2-4-5-7-8 are all electrically connected as one, meaning you can pick any two of those lugs at random and have continuity between them?