Page 1 Guitarpedalkits.com Overdrive Pedal Build Instructions Follow the instructions in this guide to build your very own DIY overdrive pedal from GuitarPedalKits.com. If you re a first time builder, be sure to follow each step in the build guide carefully and if you have any questions along the way reach out to cody@guitarpedalkits.com. Parts list Reference the parts list below if you get stuck and need to know what a certain part is called. Component Type Enclosure PCB Component Name Component Image 1x 1590B box, pre-drilled to accommodate 3 knobs, 1 footswitch, 1 LED light, 2 I/O jacks, and 1 DC jack Overdrive
Page 2 Resistors (from left to right) 3x 1K, 1x 470K, 4x 10K, 2x 47R, 1x 1M Capacitors (from left 1x 0.1uF(104), 1x 0.0033uF(332), 2x 0.47uF(474), 1x to right) 100pF Electrolytic Capacitors 1x 47uF, 1x 100uF Diodes (from left to right) 1x 1N4004, 3x 1N4148
Page 3 Transistors 2x 2N7000 Integrated Circuit (IC) 1x TL082, 1x 8pin chip socket Pots 1x B50K, 1x B100K, 1x B500K, 1x 50K Trim Wires 18x
Page 4 1x 3mm LED, 1x DC jack, 2x 6.35mm I/O jacks, 1x 9V Other battery snap, 3x knobs, 1x 3PDT footswitch, 4x floor pads, 4x enclosure screws Equipment Putting together a DIY guitar pedal kit doesn t take much. However there are a few tools you ll absolutely need to get the job done. Additionally, I ve included a few nice to haves or optional things that you may want to pick up if you plan on building multiple DIY guitar pedal kits. Required Soldering iron Solder Phillips head screwdriver Tiny flat head screwdriver 9V battery or DC power adapter Optional Soldering iron holding station Cleaning sponge Blutack Tweezers Multimeter Desoldering pump Magnifying glass Adjustable light Protective eyewear Wire cutters Soldering iron Small Wrench
Page 5 Build Guide Follow the build steps below to complete your DIY overdrive guitar pedal kit. 1) Start by adding the resistors to the printed circuit board (PCB). Add one resistor at a time, solder it in place, and cut the leads. The direction of the resistors don t matter, just make sure that you match them to their corresponding number on the PCB. 2) Add the capacitors. Again, the direction in which you insert these into the holes of the PCB doesn t matter, just ensure that you look at each capacitor s number and associate it with the number on the PCB. 3) Add the electrolytic capacitors. Unlike the previous components, the direction of the electrolytic capacitors does matter. You ll notice that one lead is longer than the other. The longer lead is positive and the shorter lead is negative. The silk screen (i.e. the printing on the PCB) shows which side should hold the positive lead for each electrolytic capacitor. 4) Add the diodes. Each of the 1N4148 diodes has a small black line on one side of the component while the 1N4004 diode has a small silver line. Ensure that you place each diode in the same orientation as defined on the silk screen of the PCB. 5) Add the transistors. The two end leads of each transistor must be slightly separated from the middle to allow it to fit into the three holes of the PCB. Pay special attention to the rounded part of the transistor and match it to the rounded part shown on the silk screen of the PCB. 6) Add the IC. The integrated circuit comes with an 8-pin chip socket to reduce the amount of heat transfer the IC must incur during soldering. Ensure you orient the chip socket the same way as shown on the PCB (there is a half moon cutout on one end of the socket). As for the integrated circuit, there is a dot on top it which tells you which way it should go. Place it inside the chip socket with the dot-end closest to the half moon cutout on the socket then solder all 8 pins into place. 7) Add the 50K trim. Insert the 50K trim pot into its designated slot and solder.
Page 6 8) Start wiring all pots. This kit comes with three pots in total - a drive, tone, and volume pot. Each pot is different and you ll see numbers on them if you look closely. Use each pot as follows: 1) B500K pot for drive 2) B50K pot for tone (note that the tone pot only uses two wires, therefore, you can ignore the third pin) 3) B100K pot for volume Also, take note of the numbers on the PCB and the numbers of each knob s pin. Wire and match each number accordingly. Reference the diagram below. 9) Start wiring I/O jacks. The input and output jacks each have a Sleeve, Tip, and Ring as shown below. The Sleeve connects to ground (look for this symbol: ) on the PCB, the Tip connects to the input or output of the circuit and the Ring connects to the L shaped lug of the DC jack (this applies to the input jack only). The output jack only makes use of the Sleeve to connect to the ground and the Tip to Connect to the Out Tip on the PCB. The input jack is a little different. Use the Sleeve to connect to a ground on the PCB. Then connect the tip to the In Tip on the PCB. Lastly, solder a wire to the Ring which will eventually connect to the L lug of the DC jack (don t do this until the DC jack is installed in the enclosure - step 12).
Page 7 10) Connect battery wires. Make sure you connect the black wire to the negative and the red wire to the positive on the PCB. Run the battery wires through the 2 small holes located near the top of the PCB to help reduce wire clutter. 11) Solder the 3PDT footswitch. Make sure you have the footswitch firmly pressed into place (blutack comes in very handy) and start soldering all 9 pins to the PCB. 12) Fasten DC jack to enclosure and wire to PCB. Take the nut and washer off of the DC jack and insert it into place within the enclosure. Replace the washer and nut and tighten. Then, solder a wire from the L shaped lug on the DC jack to the PWC In Ring on the PCB, the corner most lug (furthest away from the L shaped lug) to the V+ section of the PCB, and the last lug to the PWB section of the PCB. Once this is done, connect the Ring wire from the input jack (step 9) to the L lug on the DC jack. 13) Fasten LED to enclosure and wire to PCB. Similar to the DC jack, remove the washer and nut from the LED light, insert it into the enclosure and replace the washer/nut to tighten it into place. Then, solder a wire to each lead. The longer lead is positive and the shorter lead is negative, solder these accordingly to the PCB. 14) Add a battery and test the pedal. With the pedal still not completely enclosed, try testing everything by adding a +9V battery or connecting it to a power source. Then, insert an output and input cord and test the pedal through an amp. Test it in both bypass and overdrive mode to ensure everything is working as expected. 15) Once everything checks out, fasten the backplate and secure all hardware with washers, nuts. 16) Add the knobs. Turn the pots clockwise until they have reached their stopping points. Then, slide the knob on to where you want the level to be zeroed. Lastly, tighten the screw within the knob with a small flat screwdriver. Additional Tips Ensure the positive and negative LED leads aren t touching when their within the enclosure Double check that all components are facing the right way as shown on the silk screen of the PCB Don t solder the LED and DC jack before fastening it to the enclosure Use pliers to bend component leads close to the component itself so that they will easily fit in their designated PCB slots When wiring, add a little bit of solder to both the end of the wire and the piece you re soldering to, this will make it easier to solder them both together When soldering, touch the solder pad and lead for about 1-2 seconds before adding the solder, this will heat up the section and allow for the solder to be distributed evenly upon application When connecting wires to the I/O jacks and DC jack, feed the wire through the tip/ring/sleeve holes and fold them around to ensure proper connection, then add your solder Clean your soldering iron tip periodically with a wet sponge