Remote bypass switching with opto bypass board

[patrick398]

I feel like there's been a bit of talk about remote switching recently, most of which i haven't understood. Which is annoying because i now need to do it.
Basically someone asked me to build them a Tremolo in a Wah enclosure. Easy enough, and it's all working well. I originally suggested a 3PDT toggle for bypass but he's now saying he wants a footswitch which can be in a break out box.

I've salvaged one of these Opto-Tron Optical Bypass boards: (https://1776effects.com/products/opto-tron-optical-bypass)  from an old build and am hoping i can run a DPDT footswitch in parallel like Mark Hammer demonstrates for Boss pedals. Ideally i can run a patch cable in between the wah and break out box to carry the two connections, seems like the neatest way of doing it. I toyed with the idea of running all the wires out of the wah and into a normal 3pdt switch in a box but bugger that.

Is that possible with opto-bypass? If so, to what connections am i running wires from on the board? Many thanks

[mth5044]

The opto-tron is not an ideal candidate for remote bypass because the signal runs through the switch. When using remote bypass, you ideally just want a control voltage on the switch so you're not running your signal to and fro a long cable.

There are a lot of options out there, though. Check out GEOFEX for info, and also look into ToneGod's wicked switch. http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/rmtswtch/rmtsw.htm 1776 does have a project that would work for this: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0022/3952/9069/files/1776-Relay-Bypass-BOM.pdf?14931847358987224012 THCustom also has a few projects that fit the bill.

[Mark Hammer]

Worth noting that the remote switching I suggested relies on electronic switching that uses a momentary contact to ground to actuate the electronic switch.  So unless the circuit you have been asked to stick in a wah shell has that sort of electronic switching, you would need to consider what alternatives are available to you.

One is to use a flip-flop to actuate a relay inside the wah shell.  That's not impossible or especially difficult to do.  There are a number of documents on the geofex.com site about how to do that.

[patrick398]

Thanks for the replies. Shortly after posting it did strike me that due to the fact the bypassing still uses a latching DPDT switch it isn't using electronic switching in the same way as boss and others use.
I wired up a 3pdt today and covered the twisted wires in aluminium tape and heat shrink which should hopefully be sufficient to run form the break out box into the wah enclosure. Not an ideal set up but he wants it built sooner rather than later so unfortunately this is the route i'm taking.