Tips for the sexiest offboard wiring!

[benallison]

I want to take things to the next level. What will it take?

Rainbow ribbon cable? Mounting the PCB to the backplate? Help me make my offboard wiring sexy!

[benallison]

These put a tingle in my dingle:

[jacobyjd]

those 90-degree bends and 3" lengths of parallel wire give me the heebie-jeebies.

[frequencycentral]

Rainbow ribbon cable, solid core grounding, pot board......

[benallison]

Are the heebee jeebees good or bad in this case?

[benallison]

Frequency Central this thread is your fault damn it. I read your thread on transparencies for graphics, and it got me thinking...

Your pedal guts are ART... that ribbon cable is haunting my dreams.

Where do you get that stuff?

And aren't you worried the exposed ground wires might move and short something out down the road?

[knealebrown]

im still a noob but with my first dirt box i went all out and used PCBs for the jacks, solid core wire (bent with needle nose pliers) and hellerman sleeving.

TBH its just good planning and measurement that i think are the most important things. also take your time and enjoy it, take pride in your guts, even though nobody will see them......except us.

[frequencycentral]

Ribbon cable: http://www.spiratronics.com/rainbow-ribbon-cable-9397-0.html

And aren't you worried the exposed ground wires might move and short something out down the road?

That ground wire isn't going anywhere, the sockets are screwed down real tight, the wire is so taut that it's tuned to Eb.

[siore]

I thought parallel wires were bad... what's it called... capacitive inductance?  Clearly I do not understand that term well , but man those pictures make me want to re-do my builds.

[Mark Hammer]

25 years ago I used rainbow ribbon cable.  These days I wouldn't touch it with a 10-ft pole.  Why?  Because if one conductor fractures, it is a major job to repair.

[G. Hoffman]

I have this picture of a Harry Joyce Hiwatt up next to my bench.  I think it is just about the prettiest thing ever, and use if for inspiration.  (Thanks to MHUSS for the picture!)




Cable Lacing


Probably a bit much for a stomp box, but one of my hobbies of late has been reading NASA build standards documents.


Gabriel

[jacobyjd]

Are the heebee jeebees good or bad in this case?

Bad. The parallel wires, mainly because of crosstalk and noise (not really an issue if it's not a high-gain distortion or something); and the 90-degree plier bends because they're unnecessary stress.

Probably won't cause any problems in a stompbox, but it's bad practice for bigger toys.

[jkokura]

It's just careful planning on the builders part, and practice. John Lyons does some unreal gut work too. A guy at another forum with the screen name Farndurk is also one of my favourite builders. Not to mention guys like Solderman or Freq Central who do unbelievable work.

I find using solid core wire is the best for getting your wires to stay put. Using a drill to wind wire together will get a nice tight spiral.

Make sure your circuit works before putting it in the enclosure
Carefully make sure all your guts are mounted firmly in the enclosure. All parts should be easily accessible, but firmly mounted.
Begin to measure out and cut wire (solid core, ribbon, whatever you use). Make sure you cut a small amount more than you need.
I begin with my switch, making the connections to each successive part.
Sometimes it's best working 'up', so if you pots are the 'lowest' in the upside down enclosure, start with those connections to the board, then the board to the switch, then the board to power, then the LED to power and switch, then the switch to jacks.
As you're working with the solid core, make sure it's straight, and only bend it once. Bending it once, and unbending, and then bending and unbending will not lead to those nice 90 degree turns you're hoping for.
Also, trim off the excess as you work. Rather than trying to cut a piece of wire the perfect length, make it slightly too long then remove the excess. Using small tools will help you get in there. Use pliers to make bends, not your fingers, use angle cutters and wire strippers instead of a razor. Again, solid core wire will stay much nicer in those bends.

Plan, plan, plan! Patience, patience, patience. I'm still not good at it, but whenever I plan it out I get a nicer result. My problem is I often get a super nice gut job on my pedal going, then I rush to get it done and make shortcuts. Even worse, I rarely take my own advice and check that the circuit works fine until AFTER it's already put together. Troubleshooting and debugging make my nice builds into sheer messes.

Jacob

[benallison]

Are parallel wires really that big a deal in pedals?

Surely the sheer beauty improves the toan?

[jacobyjd]

Are parallel wires really that big a deal in pedals?

Surely the sheer beauty improves the toan?

Poor lead dress can be a problem if it's something like a high-gain distortion or something with an LFO in it. Usually it's not an issue, but why chance it?

[MikeH]

I'm less a fan of solid core wire.  Generally we don't necessarily use what the big guys do as an example for our work here, but you'll notice there aren't any widely available, large-scale production pedals that use solid core wire.  Why?  It's more prone to failure than stranded of the same gauge.  At least that's always been my understanding.  Which is a bummer because it's so damn easy to work with, especially when you need to desolder it

[MikeH]

Are parallel wires really that big a deal in pedals?

Surely the sheer beauty improves the toan?

Poor lead dress can be a problem if it's something like a high-gain distortion or something with an LFO in it. Usually it's not an issue, but why chance it?

"Spaghetti Don't Oscillate"

[benallison]

but why chance it?

Because of the sexiness.

Sometimes sex requires risk!

[Paul Marossy]

Uh, there's something wrong with you if you find wires to be sexy. 

[jacobyjd]

but why chance it?

Because of the sexiness.

Sometimes sex requires risk!

I'll remain disease and oscillation-free, thanks