DIY Guitar Heaven: The Best DIY Resources, Build Your Own Stompboxes, Effects, Pedals, Amplifiers, Tube Amp, Kits
Who said you can't build your own distortion box or even a delay unit? A small pratice amp or a majestic high power tube amplifier?
'Online communities' running for more than a decade created a powerful wave of electronics experiment and knowledge at a 'consumer' degree. Building a perfect equipment became user-friendly with the growth of a vast resource library. A big online laboratory where thousands experimented, debated, way over speculated and created myth's but with it came this vintage like trend that is rushing through almost every guitar player. Also the popularity of the DIY attitude granted musicians a better sight of the "electronics" behind an amplifier chassis or a wha pedal.
And yes, you can do it. Does take time, not a summer hobby. Can also get dangerous if dealing with high voltage circuits like tube amplifiers, they have a very simple design. But their guts run from 300v to 400v.
Start with stomp boxes, the basic ones are fuzzes which are always cool. Those very nice fuzz tones you can build suit nicely on every guitarist pedal board. Very simple also some compressors, even eq's and distortion boxes. More complex ones the delays, chorus, etc...The degree of difficulty comes from the PCB (printed-circuit-board), the schematic, your skill with a soldering iron and very, very important: your skill to handle a various amount of tools you need to assemble a project.
It's not so cheap at a start, so if you do not have the patience...don't go into it. This is something anyone can handle but does take it's time except if you already into electronics. And you can end up build units that run commercially for hundred of dollars with 50 bucks.
It's a crazy world the DIY one. Very rewarding also...
The Best DIY Online Resources
- RunOffGroove
Simple creativity make these the most interesting projects on the web. Feature some of simplest designs around that you can build with a pre-drilled perfoard avoiding the etching process of a PCB. Shurely the best option for a newbie. - General Guitar Gadgets
Very well compiled set of projects with everything you need. Also some nice tutorials and they also provide parts if you need. Some very cool projects for beginners here! - Geofex
The DIY Bible. Everything you need to know about parts, schematics, layouts, repairing, debuging, lots for projects also. The Holy Grail of the DIY movement for music electronics. - AX84.com - The Cooperative Tube Guitar Amp Project
The Kindergarden for the tube amplifier builder.
Choose The Best DIY Projects:
- Guitar Tube Amp Dummy Speaker Load - Recording Guitar
An affordable and comfortable guitar recording technique. With the use of a Dummy Speaker Load (aka Power Soak) you can get those fat tube tones without using a microphone and a full blown stack. Make your neighbors happy while nailing down that guit - Guitar Microphone - Shure SM 57 vs Sennheiser e 609 vs Audix i5 vs Speaker Cabinet Simulator - Recor
Choose the best guitar microphone! We test and review the Shure SM 57, the Sennheiser E 609 and the Audix i5. And also high resolution Speaker Cabinet Simulators. Get the job done, on a budget! But like a Pro! - DIY Guitar Compressor - The Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer - The Best Stomp Box Projects (Project PCB
Mark Knopfler, John Frusciante, "Sultans of Swing, "Under the Bridge"...ever wanted to nail that silky squashed guitar tone? The Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer is the answer and you can build your own for under 15 bucks! Just Do-It-Yourself! - DIY Distortion Pedal - The BSIAB (Brown Sound In A Box) - The Best Stompbox Projects (Project PCB &a
The Brown Sound In A Box distortion pedal (BSIAB) in one of the best stomp boxes on the planet. For years thousands of DIY'ers proof it. Build your own for under 20$ and get a Boutique distortion pedal! - Build a Home Studio - How to choose The Best Pro Audio Interface, "2-Track" ...(we
Because your studio starts at your Audio Interface. The Best Choice to build your home studio.
