Introduction: How to Make a Cheap Pyle Pro Wah Not Suck (tone)


hi folks, for this instructable, i'm gonna tell you how to improve a cheap pyle pro wah and convert it to true bypass.
it's wicked easy, so easy i'm not even going to post pictures of it as i go.
you can get these cheap wahs on ebay, amazon, heck, a lot of places...just google 'em. i got the one here i just worked on off amazon for $23.90, shipped. i needed a cheap wah casing for another project, but until i get to that, i figured i'd mess with it a little bit.
so...ready? here we go....

Step 1: What You Need...


ok, what you'll need for this...
the cheap pyle pro wah, model PPDLW1 (btw, you can pretty much do this with any crybaby style wah...tho you may need to install a dpdt heavy duty stompswitch....you can get them all over the net, pretty cheap...i reccomend http://diystompboxes.com, small bear electronics, or ebay if you're as cheap as i am..lol)

about an inch of wire...just enough to connect two poles of the already onboard DPDT footswitch

a soldering iron...20-30 watts, these switches melt fast, so you don't want to get them too hot!!!

a little good rosin core ELECTRONICS solder...don't use plumbing solder, the better quality solder, the better!!

a phillips head screwdriver

a pair of wire cutters

and a wire stripper.

a guitar, amp, and two patch cords..

and finally, about 5 minutes of time!!

;)


Step 2: Time to Open Her Up!!


flip the wah upside down, and remove the four phillips head screws that hold the rubber feet on the bottom of the pedal.

remove the bottom plate.

orient the pedal so the input/output jacks are facing away from you, we'll call this the top of the pedal.

inside, you'll see the dpdt switch. stock, you'll see only one side of this is used. the left side, in mine. i'd imagine they're all the same.

we're gonna use both sides to convert this to a "true bypass", so that the pedal is hardwired when it's turned off.

this will stop "tone suck" when the pedal is off, which will somewhat improve the tone in bypass. as wired, the wah circuit is always on.

you don't want that, most likely.

Step 3: Time to Make Some Changes...


ok, first things first...locate the red wire from the input jack tip. this will go to the upper left pole of the switch...

there are 6 poles on a dpdt switch, so we'll call this pole 1.

think of it like this, for reference... each pole, from left to right, top to bottom...

1       2

3       4

5       6

stock, the left side only is used, and it's wired like this:

red wire from input jack tip to pole 1 of switch
blue wire from pole 3 of switch to tip of output jack
red AND blue wire from circuit board to pole 5 of switch.



carefully...and quickly...unsolder this wire from the switch end, on pole 1 (upper left), and re-solder this to switch pole 4...(the middle right one).

next, where the red wire is connected to the input switch jack's tip connection, there is also a blue wire. clip it off the input jack close to the red wire, then strip the end about a 1/4 inch. twist it together tightly, then apply the soldering iron to the wire and melt a little solder into it to make it solid. work quickly, a little solder goes a long way!! this is called "tinning" the wire.

now take the tinned blue wire, and solder it to pole 6  (lower right side) of the switch...be quick, if you apply too much heat/solder, you will melt the cheap switch and have to replace it!! put the wire thru the little hole, and heat the junction of the wire and terminal and apply just a little solder to it quickly. don't wiggle it, remove the soldering iron, and let the solder set. no more than 5 seconds, max..it shouldn't take more than a second or two, really..

finally, take the small length of wire...an inch or so is plenty.

strip both ends, and twist them tightly...then "tin" them, as we did with the blue wire.

stick one end in pole 1 of the switch (upper left side). heat it quickly with the soldering iron, and solder in place.

take the other side of this "jumper" wire, and  stick it in the hole of pin 2 (upper right side of switch). solder quickly.


Step 4: It Should Look Like This Now...

that's it...it should look like the picture attached.




Step 5: That's It...time to Plug 'er In!!

ok...so now the re-wiring is done, so it's time to plug her in...plug your guitar into the input jack, plug the output jack into another cord and plug it into your amp.

now, when the "wah" is engaged, it will work as it should...and when ya stomp down hard on the toe-end of the wah, it'll not only be off, but for all intents and purposes will be completely out of the circuit..."true bypassed", literally hard-wired from input to output of the wah.

if all works, cool, put the bottom plate back on, re-attach the little rubber feet, and rock out!!

if it doesn't work, check your wiring/soldering.

no more tone suck!! ;)