The Return of the King (of Tone)

One of my earliest builds was a clone of the boutique Analogman King of Tone pedal. The King of Tone itself is a very sought after double overdrive pedal, with a variety of clipping options (most of which are set using internal DIP switches). The "real thing" is currently in Version 4, and on Reverb they still tend to start at around $600 for a real one and go up from there. The waiting list for an original remains long as well. My first build was in my "pre-dino" days - and I'd bought a kit from Germany that included an unpainted enclosure, the PCB, and all of the parts. I substituted some good matches for the original diodes rather than using the stock ones with the kit, though, as depending on who you ask the King of Tone has "magic diodes" much in the same way the Klon Centaur / KTR does. I'd always wanted to circle back and make a real "dino" version of the pedal, so I finally took the plunge.

Return of the Queen - A Special Saurus Regina!

Back in July I completed my first clone of the Lizard Queen pedal - it's really a decent old school fuzz pedal, and I've built a few here and there. I'd ordered some more enclosures and unfortunately one of them was misprinted at the factory. This is a fairly rare event, and Tayda always makes things right, but I wondered if it might be possible to use this particular enclosure for something fun - so enter a special version of the Saurus Regina pedal!

An Updated IVP Preamp! With a Really Loud Dinosaur!

One of the most complex builds I've done in the past is the AionFX Intersound IVP pre-amp. I finished one up almost two years ago. It was a beast of a build. I was happy with the build itself, but the enclosure I used was both fairly unimaginative and had a minor error in the UV printing. I had recently gotten a request for an IVP build, so I decided to go all out this time and come up with something really amazing.

Special Dinovember 2023 Edition Dimetrodon Distortion Build Report!

A while back I had a Dimetrodon Distortion enclosure that had a bit of a problem. It had gotten scratched up, although the UV printing on the face of the enclosure was just great. I'd had mixed results trying to paint enclosures in the past, but I found some powder coat spray paint (rather than having to go through the powder coating process) and I figured this would be a great opportunity to see if I could recover a damaged enclosure - and then I decided to take it a few steps further!

Kloned Kentrosaurus Block 3 Mini Build Report!

The Kloned Kentrosaurus is one my favorite pedals. I'd initially built several using the South Obolon FX Kent Rev 2 board. Then my friend updated the board with the Steggo logo and Kloned Kentrosaurus name and I've used that PCB for all subsequent builds. It's an amazing board, but there was only one drawback. As the Klon is a buffered effect, I didn't have a suitable daughter board for the LED and stomp switch, so the production dinos had to hand wire each pedal. Since the pedal has proved popular, I figured it would save time if there was a suitable daughter board that would enable the use of ribbon cable and reduce the lengths of hookup wire in the enclosure - so Steggi went to work in EasyEDA and came up with something amazing!

Steggo and Steggi with a panel of the new daughter boards

Seeing Red - Cloning a Unique Overdrive Pedal

I was looking for a unique and fun overdrive project when I came across the PedalPCB Bloodshot overdrive. It's a clone of the Heavy Electronics Red Eyes - which is a very cool pedal. Not only is it a really responsive dirty overdrive pedal, but on the originals the red LED clipping diodes are mounted to the front of the enclosure, so you can see them as the pedal is used. I didn't go that route with my build, but it looks like it might be possible with a little creative wiring.

Updating the Dimetrodon Distortion - A New Deluxe Version!

Back in June Steggo released its first original pedal design, the Dimetrodon Distortion. I love it (obviously), and a lot of other people have picked one up and really seem to be enjoying them. The only limitation of the original design was the fact that you had to pick one of the at least six major variations of the Big Muff based tone stack during the build unless you socketed components, which is a nightmare in a production pedal. I ultimately went with a fairly scooped mids version - the '75 Ram's Head - for the primary variant. However, at the time I mentioned that I wanted to try something like what was done on the AionFX Halo board and add a three way mids switch. After some work laying out the changes to the circuit and finding a switch that would work, Steggo is proud to introduce the next iteration of the Dimetrodon Distortion, the "Deluxe" which includes a three-way switch to toggle between three tone stack modes!

Is It Distortion? Is It Sustain? A New SS-3 Clone!

A little over a year ago a built the AionFX Soma - their clone of the Cornish SS-3 - and called it the "Dimetrodon Distortion 2." This was before the complete re-work of the Dimetrodon Distortion pedal into its current form, and honestly the SS-3 is a little bit of a different beast than a Distortion+, even with the shared DNA. Recently I'd gotten a request for a new SS-3 clone, so I worked with the requestor to come up with a new prehistoric creature to serve as the mascot for the build. I also transitioned over to the PedalPCB Semi-Sweet Distortion 3 board in the process.

A Truly Dino Bluesbreaker Clone!

The Marshall Bluesbreaker is one of the all-time classic pedals which sought to re-create the sound of the legendary Marshall Bluesbreaker amplifier from 1962. Original units have gone out of production and command a fairly high price, and there are some recent re-issues that aren't terribly expensive, but aren't terribly cheap either. I'd previously built an AionFX version of the Bluesbreaker, the Cerulean, which adds some different clipping modes to the circuit, but I'd never built a "stock" Bluesbreaker clone. My friend at South Obolon FX was kind enough to make a Steggo version of his board, so I started from there for an awesome dinosaur version.

Custom Built Brutalist Jr. - With Steggo!

Kurt Ballou at God City instruments had the brilliant idea to create a distortion pedal, the Brutalist Jr.,  and use the PCB as a business card. I'm not sure whether or not he still gives these out as business cards, but the PCB is still available on his DIY PCB website. I'd previously built clones of the Brutalist Jr. using both hand-etched and commercially produced PCBs which would fit in a 125B enclosure, as the original business card version requires a slightly larger enclosure. However, a local friend had one of the original PCBs lying around and asked if I would build it up. Since I'd never built one of the "real things" - I jumped at the chance!

Second Son of Ben??? Steggo's Personal Preamp

A few weeks ago I finished up a Benson Preamp clone for a friend. He has an original unit, but wanted something smaller for his gigging board, so using the PedalPCB Son of Ben board I made him something that fits in a standard 125B enclosure size. His board has a lot of purple pedals on it, so I made his from a purple metallic enclosure with matching knobs using my laser etcher. I wanted to try something a little different on my copy - though it falls very much in the same theme.

A New K-T Event Fuzz - With a Fun New Board!

I've built a few versions of the Black Ash Fuzz at this point, mostly on the South Obolon FX board. The first one was a straight modern build with all modern components, well apart from the somewhat unique transistors. It sounded great, but part of the schtick of the original pedal was the fact that it used a lot of vintage and/or unusual components in the build. I did a second version of the pedal where I took a step closer to the original - carbon film rather than metal film resistors, higher voltage film caps in place of the low voltage film caps (which were used in lieu of the paper in oil caps). I'd posted that build on the PedalPCB forum, and another forum member posted their amazing version of the circuit - that lets you go really old school - and they were nice enough to make me a version of the board!

Updating an Old Favorite - A Cornish-Inspired Silicon Big Muff

Before the release of the PedalPCB Polonium 2 distortion board (which I've built up as the Protoceratops 2, and which now has taken up permanent residence on my pedalboard), there was a loose consensus on the internet as to what the Cornish P-2 looked like from a schematic standpoint. I'd previously built up several hand-etched versions using the Effects Layouts PCB, and really enjoyed them. In hindsight with a clone in hand, there are several differences, and the Effects Layouts design always included the "probably" disclaimer anyway. It's therefore likely more proper to call this an "Cornish-inspired" variant, as it really is kind of its own thing.

A New Violet Ram's Head 2 Big Mutt

So since it's been several months since I built a Big Muff clone (granted, the combo pedal I just finished includes a Big Muff, but it is more than just a Muff clone), I figured it was time to go ahead and test out some alternate configurations of the Loud Cancer board - and try out some different potentiometer orientations as well. One of my favorite variants of the BMP is the Violet Ram's Head 2, so I decided to give it a whirl!

The Dark Side of the Steggo??? A New Gilmour Inspired Combo Pedal!

 Combination pedals are a great way to get multiple amazing circuits in one box. I've built a few pedals that are either physical combinations of two separate PCB's, or clones of pedals that involved multiple PCBs in the past. However, all of these combinations were essentially clones of existing pedals that were combination pedals in their own right, including the Steggo versions of the Cheese Source, Hoof Reaper, and Heavy Water. However, I wanted to do something that was a combo of two different pedals to help create a specific sound, so I went back to the pedal board of one of my favorite guitarists, David Gilmour, for inspiration.

Son of a Ben - Cloning the Benson Preamp

Benson Amps is an amazing boutique amplifier and pedal builder based in Portland, OR (very near to where Steggo is based!). One of their guitar pedal offerings is a pre-amp based on the Chimera 30 amplifier, and it is an awesome pre-amp. I have a friend who has an original unit, but was looking for something a little smaller to put onto his pedal board for gigging, so he asked if I could build him a version in a smaller form factor. Fortunately PedalPCB offers a board that fits in a 125B enclosure, so the project was a go!

An Pair of Updated Thagomizers!

The Colorsound Power Boost is one of my favorite utility / boost pedals which I've built under the "Thagomizer" name in several varieties. Given all of these have the volume knob modification, the pedal can be used as a very nice clean boost and equalizer, or it can be used to add bit of a dirty overdrive depending on where the drive / gain knob is set. I worked with my friend in Ukraine, South Obolon FX, to finally develop a Steggo version of the power boost board with a charge pump, and I've now finally gotten a couple of varieties of the pedal together!

Dropping the Hammer - Cloning the Precision Drive

The Horizon Devices Precision Drive is an exceptionally nice overdrive pedal really geared toward metal styles. It is designed to pair well with both solid state and tube amps, and provides a wide array of tone and attack options for the player to optimize their sound. I'd had a request for a dinosaur version of the pedal, so I went in search of a good schematic or board and went from there.

16-bit Four Octave Synth - Cloning the EQD Bit Commander

Carrying on yesterday's theme of unusual modulation pedals, I'd also gotten a request for a clone of the EQD Bit Commander. This is an analog synth pedal that will turn your guitar's tone into a square wave with four octaves (two down and one up) of tone. It really gives you that early 80's video game sound in one fairly customizable package. 

Rainbows and Unicorns? Cloning the Rainbow Machine

Earthquaker Devices has a lot of unusual modulation effects. I mean a lot of unusual modulation effects. One of the most unusual is the Rainbow Machine which is described as a "polyphonic pitch mesmerizer." It's a tough pedal to dial in, but it does have a fairly dizzying array of sounds on tap - with the pitch control being perhaps the most important. I'd received a request for a dinosaur version of the pedal, so I decided to take the plunge and see what I could make happen with it.

Cloning the Lizard Queen!

About a year ago, Josh Scott from JHS pedals released a really fun video where they did a bit of live action role playing and developed a new effects pedal from the ground up they called the Lizard Queen. Nothing unusual there, but the catch was they wanted to replicate the process used by Electro Harmonix in the 1970's and create something that was simultaneously new and vintage. The result was a brand new fuzz pedal with very old DNA that could be built using available components. Speculation abounded as to whether or not the pedal would ever actually be released, but earlier this year, JHS released both small and large form factor versions of the pedal. Amazingly enough, the large form factor pedal was shown in full detail (front and back) so not only the components but the electrical traces were visible. Therefore this is likely one of the most quickly and extensively cloned pedals out there, but I figured there had to be room for a dinosaur version too!

Updated International Style!

About a year ago I'd built a couple pedals based on the Godcity Brutalist Jr. - a really neat, fairly mod-able, distortion pedal using a hand-etched board based on the template from Effects Layouts. It's an awesome pedal, but as I have been having some issues with my lithography lately - I hadn't made any more because I haven't been able to hand etch boards recently. Fortunately, my friend at South Obolon FX was able to lay out a board for me, so now I have some printed circuit boards - that fit neatly into my preferred 125B enclosure size that I can use going forward!

A Long and Winding (Development) Road - The Dimetrodon Distortion is Finally Done!

When I started building guitar pedals a few years ago I had a couple of initial goals in mind. First, I wanted better (and affordable) access to guitar pedals that were expensive, esoteric, out of production, or often a combination of all three. Second, I'd always had an interest in electronics (I work as a materials chemist in the semiconductor industry, and my uncle was always good with electronics), so building my own pedals seemed like a great vector to develop my skills in an area that I'd long neglected. As with most people new to the hobby, I started with professionally produced PCBs which were clones of the pedals I wanted build. However the further I delved into the hobby, the more I wanted to start making something different or unique - which gave rise to the idea of creating my own distortion pedal using a classic pedal as a base. 

A little over a year ago I posted an article with my hand-etched prototypes of the Dimetrodon Distortion pedal. It basically took the MXR Distortion+ and added a Big Muff tone stack and a gain recovery stage. It was okay, but after I'd built it and tested it, there were problems. It tended to pop a fair amount because of where the volume and gain recovery were located in the circuit. I tried solving this with pull-down resistors, buffers, you name it, but it just didn't quite fix the issue. So I decided to take a step back and see if I could re-engineer the pedal a bit better, and now a year later - it's finally done!

Dimetrodon Distortion prototype enclosure

Another New Design - The Falcarius Overdrive - Modified TSV808 With 3-Band EQ

As I mentioned yesterday in my entry on the Kosmoceratops, I've moved from simply populating boards laid out by 3rd parties (either professionally or by request) to boards I've laid out myself. One of my all-time favorite pedals it the TSV808 (the Secret Spinosaurus in its dino version), so when I found that "Chuck Bones" of Celestial Engineering had worked with others on a modified version of that circuit with a 3-band equalizer, I knew I had to try laying one out myself.

One of Steggo's First Layouts - the Kosmoceratops Envelope Filter!

For the first couple of years building pedals, I was content to mostly just buy professionally produced circuit boards, populate them, and enjoy the awesome tone. However, as time has gone by, I wanted to start learning how to take that next step from schematic to layout. I'd gotten good at reading a schematic and could breadboard, but most of the available programs for actually turning the schematic into a set of Gerber files for a manufactured PCB (Eagle, Kicad, etc.) weren't not intuitive, expensive, or both! A few weeks ago a came across a video by the Tone Geek on how to lay out your own PCB using EasyEDA, so I figured I'd give it a try. Let's just say it's sent me down an amazing rabbit hole and opened up a lot of new possibilities because I'd finally found a layout program that was intuitive and cheap (read free). 

Don't Fear the (Hoof) Reaper - A Double Fuzz With Octave

There are many combination pedals on the market today. Sometimes these combine two different types of pedals, other times they pair very similar pedals. I've done several of these in the past including a clone of the Cheese Source (a distortion + fuzz clone), a clone of the ThorpyFX Heavy Water (essentially a clean boost + dirty boost), and even a build inspired by the venerable Mu-Tron Bi-Phase (two of the same six-stage phaser in one box, with some extras). A few years ago, Earthquaker Devices decided to mate wto of their fuzz pedals - the Hoof and the Reaper together in one pedal, an sneakily added an additional octave up circuit (later released as the Tentacle) to the mix. The pedal was available in both the normal "Hoof Reaper" version, and with a "Cloven Hoof" variation - the "Cloven Hoof Reaper." PedalPCB has a board available for this project, the War Scythe, so I decided to take the plunge... well, twice!

Supersized Kloned Centrosaurus!

By this point I've built a lot of Klon clones using multiple different boards - AionFX, PedalPCB, Ceriatone, South Obolon FX, Tone Geek, and Puzzle Sounds are the ones I can remember off of the top of my head. I've used several combinations of diodes and a variety of part load outs depending on what I was trying to do with the pedal. I had a friend approach me and commission a large form factor Klon clone, so I decided to go back to the Tone Geek BFK board, and work out from there. 

A Custom Triangle Big Mutt Phi!

The Triangle version of the Big Muff Pi is one of the more popular versions of the venerable circuit. I've built one in the past using a Tayda board, and it came out really pretty well. A friend was in the market for a Big Muff clone, and so I brought in pretty much my complete stable of variants to my favorite local guitar store (Five Star Guitars) so he could try them all on relevant amplifiers. In the end, he decided he wanted a triangle variant. He also wanted something in a form factor slightly larger than my standard 125B Big Mutt Phi build, so I decided to just go back to the Tayda board and come up with a suitably cool 1590BB2 enclosure for it!

Return of the MX-RAWR! Distortion+ with Options!

A few weeks ago I posted a custom MXR Distortion+ build I worked up for a friend using the tried and true AionFX Aphelion board. Well, the response I got to the design was frankly overwhelming and unprecedented. So I've decided to make up a few more for the shop. If they sell, I'll make more. They're not terribly hard, but I really want to keep using good vintage diodes where possible. So that may limit the pedal's lifespan, but maybe not. We'll see.

A New Electric Mistress Clone - With a Dinosaur Theme!

The Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress is one of the foundation modulation effects pedals released in the 1970's. It has been used by many guitar luminaries over the years, and is a really amazing flanger / chorus pedal. I'd previously built the PCB Guitar Mania version of the board - though it appears that this was a copy of the Madbean Current Lover board as it had many of the same quirks. Madbean has recently released a 2023 revision of the board that adds a volume knob, support for multiple BBD chips, and multi-voltage support (up to 18V). While my previous build was a great pedal, I really wanted to do a fun dinosaur version to add to my Steggo line-up. I'd also gotten requests for an Electric Mistress clone from some friends, and I really wanted to go with a better base PCB than on my original build, so I grabbed a few of the new Madbean boards and got to work!

Cloning the Famous EQD Monarch

The EQD Monarch is an out of production FET based overdrive pedal that gained a lot of popularity as a dirty boost without a lot of extra distortion or compression. It was also available as a DIY kit for many years through StewMac (and others), but while StewMac still offers many DIY effects pedal kits, the Monarch is no longer among them. I had a friend who wanted a Monarch clone - largely to allow a bandmate to leave his original unit in the studio and gig with a more easily replaceable copy - so I started doing some investigation on boards and kits available. As it turns out, the pedal is more than a bit finicky, and there were some flaws in the original design which likely led to a fair amount of frustration for both the users and the DIY community. Chuck Bones (of the PedalPCB Boneyard) did a great analysis of the circuit, suggested some modest improvements, and then took that a few steps further ultimately creating the Viceroy - a six-knob, two footswitch Monarch on steroids. Down the road, I plan to build the Viceroy, but for now I was more interested in getting a good direct clone of the Monarch working well - and across its full range.

A Dino-Inspired Red Llama!

A little over a year ago I finished up my first clone of the Way Huge Red Llama pedal using the AionFX Yacana PCB. It was a really fun build and is actually a pretty useful little pedal which can be used either as a straight boost or a boost with overdrive (and ultimately distortion). My original enclosure was a very Tongue in Cheek reference to the Disney film The Emperor's New Groove, but I really wanted a dinosaur version to fit the overall Steggo theme. Fortunately my friend Dmytro over at South Obolon FX laid out a version of the board with some additional gain stages like on the AionFX board under the name "Groovy Emperor" (I'm sensing a theme here), and he was kind enough to create a special "Steggo" version of the layout as well!

A Fun Custom MXR Distortion+ (Modded) Clone

The MXR Distortion+ is one of the classic distortion effects pedals. I'd built one using the AionFX Aphelion board last year, and it also forms the basis of my home-brew Dimetrodon Distortion pedal (which I swear is really coming soon - I'm just waiting for the last of the beta test feedback!). One of the cool things about the AionFX board, is that it has three clipping and treble options which can be selected with a couple of toggle switches on the front of the enclosure. The clipping switch lets you choose between germanium diodes (as used in the Distortion+), silicon diodes (as used in the DOD 250), or LEDs (more like a turbo Rat). The treble switch changes the high frequency cut characteristics of the effect tone. I have a friend who recently took up the guitar and wanted a Distortion+ pedal, and the cool thing about this particular configuration is it gives you effectively three distortion pedals in one, with three treble options on each!

A Very Groovy Steggo - Cloning the Uni-Vibe

The Shin-ei Uni-Vibe is a very early chorus / vibrato pedal first sold in the 1960's. It has been used by many legendary guitarists including Jimi Hendrix, Robin Trower, and David Gilmour. It was marketed as "Vibra-Chorus" the Uni-Vibe uses a series of phasing filters connected to light dependent resistors (LDRs). The LDRs themselves are modulated by a small light bulb whose intensity and rate of pulsation are controllable using the knobs on the effect itself. I'd wanted to do a Uni-Vibe clone for ages, and the PedalPCB board looked very approachable, so I took the plunge!

Cloning the Cornish P-2 - For Real This Time!

Pete Cornish's effects and pedalboards have been used by a wide array of guitar luminaires including David Gilmour, Tony Iommi, Brian May, Paul McCartney, and Mark Knopfler. While some of his designs are completely original, like the CC-1 Overdrive and OC-1 Compressor, other designs are based on existing circuits, like the SS-3 (loosely based on the MXR Distortion+) and the G-2 and P-2 (both based on the Big Muff Pi circuit using germanium and silicon diodes respectively). AionFX offers many Cornish boards, and as a fan of Cornish pedals, I've built many of them including the OC-1 compressor, the SS-3, and the G-2 (both in non-dino and dino versions!). Unfortunately AionFX did not offer a board for the P-2 and after hunting around, there were no commercial boards available. The only board I could find was the Effects Layouts version, which had the "probably" disclaimer and appears to have been based some speculative circuit diagrams on the net. I'd built a few pedals using hand-etched boards, both with and without the effects layouts Cornish buffer, and had really loved the sound. I still wanted to have a faithful clone of the original, though, and with a little gentle dino-sized nudging, PedalPCB has recently released the Polonium-2 board based on a trace of the actual P-2 pedal itself.

For a Pachycephalosaurus this counts as a "gentle nudge"

Steggo Studios End of Q1 and Secret Lab Update!

It's been roughly three months since my last Studio status (and Steggo's Secret Lab) update, so I figured it was time for a quarterly check-in. The first three months of 2023 have been busy, with a heavier than normal focus on modulation pedals - largely because I'd had several friends request them. Modulation pedals tend to be more complex than overdrive, distortion, or fuzz pedals (in general - anything that's a Boss clone is complex by its very nature!), so several of the builds have taken a bit longer than normal cutting my overall output, but I've been really pleased with how several of the pedals have come out!

Updated Geisha Drive Clone!

About a year ago, I posted a build using a hand-etched board cloning the out of production Way Huge Geisha drive. It was a really fun build, but recently I've been having trouble with my photoresist which has made creating hand-etched boards very difficult. I have an alternative in the works, but it's not ready to go yet, so watch the blog for more info there! In the meantime, South Obolon FX had laid out a version of the Geisha, and was kind enough to create a Steggo version of the board.

Finally a Dino Themed G-2 Clone... No Really!

I've been threaten... errr... promising to get around to finishing up my dinosaur themed G-2 clones for a while now, but they kept getting put on the back burner for other projects. This past weekend I decided it was high time to get them finished up! For more details on the pedal itself and some of the challenges one encountered making a reasonable clone of it, please refer to my original build from last May.

Under the Sea! Cloning the Quirky EQD Sea Machine

I've been on a bit of a modulation pedal kick lately because I'd gotten some requests from friends, including this build, a clone of the Earthquaker Devices Sea Machine. Touted as a "super chorus" pedal, as with most EQD modulation pedals, this one isn't a one-trick pony and has several very unusual controls that provide a very wide tonal palette. While it is still in production, the "real thing" runs around $199 brand new, so it isn't exactly a cheap pedal - making it a decent candidate for cloning.

It's BMP Time Again!!! A '73 Gilmour Ram's Head Build for Steggo's Personal Board

I've definitely built more Big Muff Pi pedals than any other type, and in more variants. The circuit goes together well, and with all of the modifications over the years, there are a ton of options that can make subtle (and in some cases not so subtle) differences in the sound of the effect. Last November I finally came up with a suitably "Steggo" name for the venerable BMP, the Big Muttaburrasaurus Phi, or the "Big Mutt Phi" if you prefer. The enclosures I'd used were a modified version of an earlier take of roughly the same art that I'd intended on using with the AionFX Halo PCB that I've used on many successful builds. Since I had one of the enclosures for the Halo PCB available, I decided to go ahead and use it for a personal build - with only a few ulterior motives.

Cloning the Lovepedal JTM - a New One Knob Pedal!

As Steggo and Kyle announced earlier this week, there is a new entry in Kyle the Ankylosaurus' "one-knob pedal" line of effects - the Philovenator Overdrive. This one is a clone of the Lovepedal JTM with an added twist (which does add an extra control, but it creates a fairly fun and unique pedal in the process). The Lovepedal JTM itself is essentially mid-60's British tone in a box, but it's not exactly a cheap pedal with new examples running around $225 (US). The original just has one control that varies the volume at the clipping stage, so it was an ideal choice for a Steggo clone!

Announcing a New "One-Knob" Pedal!

Back in November, Steggo and Kyle introduced Kyle the Ankylosaurus' "one-knob" collection of pedals with three inaugural designs:

• The Astrodon Physicist - A Brian May treble boost pedal
• Acanthopholis Gold - An Acapulco Gold clone on a new board
• Archaeoceratops - An EQD Arrows clone

A fourth model will be fully released later this week (with a full build log forthcoming). As before, Steggo and Kyle couldn't wait to tell everyone about it! So without further ado...

Get the Funk Out - Cloning the Legendary Mu-Tron III

The Mu-Tron III envelope filter possibly more than any other pedal created the funk sound of the 1970's. Classic units are in high demand and cost in excess of $600 for units in good shape. The circuit itself is another one that is hard to clone because there are some specific parts required. Madbean pedals used to make a couple of PCBs - the Naughty Fish and Nautilus - that captured the sound of the original pedal. Unfortunately both of these are currently out of production. However, Fuzz Dog now offers the Moo Tron (see what he did there?) board which combines the features of the original Madbean boards to  replicate the effect of the original Mu-Tron III. 

Off Axis Fuzz - Cloning One of the Originals!

Originally developed by Roger Mayer for Jimi Hendrix in 1967, the "Axis Fuzz" is a unique and classic fuzz pedal. Named after it's prominent use on the title track of Hendrix's album "Axis Bold as Love" - the effect uses a unique combination of NPN and PNP transistors that provides stable tone response without interference. As I'm a sucker for fuzz pedals and classic effects in general, I decided to take the plunge and see what the hub-bub was about!

Cloning the Venerable Maestro PS-1A

The early 1970's saw an explosion of effects pedals with many well-regarded units making their debut. One of these was the Maestro PS-1 and PS-1A phasers, or more technically it was called a "phase shifter." I had a friend request one, and I figured it would be an entertaining challenge. Fortunately Lectric-FX has recently released the Altered State Phaser. This is not an exact clone of the original, rather it is a bit more user-friendly version of the original effect with some modern modifications. The effect now runs off of a normal 9V power supply, which still providing the effect the +/-12V it needs to function properly. There are also changes to the buffer, op amps, as well as a few optional modifications to the circuit. 

New Black-Ash Variant - Closer to the Original

Back in December I finished up a clone of the EQD Black Ash fuzz pedal. For that first validation build I went with all modern components, but the original Black Ash used a lot of vintage bits in its construction - including carbon composition resistors and what appear to be paper in oil capacitors. I wanted to experiment with the components a bit and decided to try to take the build a few steps closer to the original to see if it made much difference.

Another BMP Variant? Cloning Frantone's The Sweet

It's been a while since I've done a Big Muff Clone (in my world two months is an eternity!), and I figured it was time I finished up a project that's been collecting dust - Frantone's The Sweet. Frantone is an independent pedal builder who does a lot of very cool fuzz effects (though there are others thrown in there). I was intrigued by her big muff variant as it includes a couple of germanium transistors and I honestly wanted to see what it would do. Unfortunately there isn't a commercial PCB available, but since when has that stopped me?

Steggo Studios Tayda UV Printing Tutorial

A lot of people have asked about the art on my enclosures. Almost all of my enclosures are UV printed by Tayda. They do some amazing work, but there is a learning curve to getting it "right" - so I've put together this tutorial on the steps and programs I use to get my enclosures together. I will have a PDF version of this tutorial as well and I can send it out.

Steggo Studios Tayda UV Printing Tutorial

This guide is designed for individuals wanting to create enclosures using Tayda Electronics’ (https://www.taydaelectronics.com/) UV printing service using Adobe Illustrator. At this point, Illustrator is the only program that is known to work correctly 100% of the time with the Roland VersaWorks printers used by Tayda. This tutorial will assume that you have a basic working knowledge of how to use Illustrator, but I’ll include a few fun tips and techniques as well.

Step 1 – Start with the Right Template!

Tayda has both Adobe Illustrator and PDF versions of their UV templates. Each size of enclosure has its own template, and they’re available online when you order the UV print job:

https://www.taydaelectronics.com/hardware/enclosures/enclosure-uv-printing-service.html

Another Filthy Rodent - Cloning the Old School Rat / Dirty Rat

The Pro Co Rat distortion pedal in one of the most ubiquitous effect pedals sold. It remains inexpensive in its base version (about $79 new), though modified pedals quickly climb over $100. For example, the germanium diode equipped "Dirty Rat" version retails for $179. With prices for the basic unit so low, it therefore only makes economic sense to clone one of the modified boutique variants of the Rat. Though cloning a basic pedal is always fun if you want to make your own unique looking version of the pedal. I've previously cloned the Rat using an AionFX Helios board. The AionFX board had multiple clipping diode options and the Ruetz mod (Sweep knob) built in on the front. Opinions vary on the efficacy of the Ruetz mod, but having multiple clipping options is always fun. For this build, I went with a different board that retains most of the functionality of the AionFX board, but in some ways is a bit more true to the original.