Introduction: Banana Booster - True Tube Booster
Congratulations on your initiative to assemble your own valve pedal. The “Banana Booster” was a project designed for novice assemblers.
The motivations for assembling your own pedal can be to learn in practice about vintage electronics, to assemble an excellent quality valve unit at a low cost, not to mention that it is very fun and enjoyable. “Banana Booster” is a low-voltage booster pedal, working with low voltages, only 12V, very safe for first-time sailors. The Banana Booster is truly valved, we truly say because there are so many projects named tube, valve, etc that don't even have a valve. The Banana can be used for studio recordings, linking your guitar, bass or microphone to the soundboard, turning your sound into “tube sound”, can be used to “push” your tube amplifier, extracting from it the true organic, harmonic-rich overdrive, and still be used to transform your “Amp solid state” (transistorized) into a “hybrid” (pre-valve) amp.
designers website: tubeamps.com.br
Supplies
Component List
- 1 box assembly, standard Hammond 1590BB box;
- 1 jack J-4;
- 2 J-10 mono or stereo jack;
- 1 foot switch 3PDT;
- 1 9-pin socket with shield;
- 1 tube 12AU7 (or 12AT7) (the 12AX7 tube does not work at low voltages, do not use)
- 2 capacitors 1uF x 50V;
- 1 LED; 1 mini potentiometer 1M;
- 1 mini potentiometer 100K;
- 1 220K 1W resistor;
- 1 Resistor 100K 1W;
- 1 resistor 1K 1W;
- 2 knobs;
- 1 power suply 12v 1A;
- wiring or connecting cables.
Step 1: Schematic
This is the electrical diagram to follow the assembly
Step 2: Layout
o Layout for point-to-point assembly
Step 3: Video Montage Step by Step
Video of the assembly step by step in Portuguese, for other languages use the youtube subtitle translator
Step 4: Audio Test
audio timbre test of this beauty
5 Comments
4 years ago
This looks good, nicely done!
Reply 4 years ago
thanks
Reply 4 years ago
thanks
4 years ago
Is there a mistake in the schematic in the way SW1.1 is connected?
How does the grid bias of U3.2 work? Presumably you're relying on the grid current through R1 to provide the right grid voltage. Does adjusting R1 produce different distortions. It's decades since I learnt with valves but I recall something about different harmonics being introduced with grid current distortion vs. anode distortion.
Reply 4 years ago
Is there a mistake in the schematic in the way SW1.1 is connected?
Thanks, i will correct this.
How does the grid bias of U3.2 work? Presumably you're relying on the grid current through R1 to provide the right grid voltage. Does adjusting R1 produce different distortions. It's decades since I learnt with valves but I recall something about different harmonics being introduced with grid current distortion vs. anode distortion.
We use starved tube designer, the best bias for low voltages.