Dr. Zontar
2006-01-30 13:50:29 UTC
A few days ago, I asked for help in fixing this pedal. Someone named
Justice gave me advice (thanks again). But over the weekend, I decided
to see what I could do to improve it.
If you read the "Help with a cheap Behringer wah" thread, you know the
problem. The light-sensors in these pedals aren't mounted securely.
Only the wire leads going from the sensors to the circuit board keep
them in place. A good bump can knock them out of alignment- causing the
pedal to not shut off. That's the price you pay for getting $150 worth
of features in a $30 plastic wah.
So I came up with this mod, using stuff I had lying around the house:
1. I desoldered the sensor that turns the wah on and off. This is the
one closest to the front of the pedal. I removed the screws holding the
circuit board. Lifted it out of the case. And using a heat sink (to
avoid damaging the sensor) desoldered it. I saved the sensor in case I
ever want to reverse the mod.
2. I soldered 2 wires in it's place. I used aprox.10" lengths of wire
(long enough to reach the front of the pedal. I returned the board to
the case and put the screws back.
3. I soldered the wires to a heavy-duty SPST stomp switch (that I took
out of an old amp footswitch from a garage sale). Any heavy-duty SPST
will do.
4. I drilled a hole in the case and mounted the switch. I didn't have a
drill bit wide enough, but since the case is plastic, I was able to
easily widen the hole by turning a knife in it. I had to experiment
with the height of the switch to get it to work right (not accidentally
turning off when rocking the pedal). One thing that really helped was 2
self-adhesive felt pads placed on the top of the base, directly under
the rubber feet of the rocker pedal. This allowed the pedal to be fully
depressed without clicking the switch, but a little extra effort will
click it. You can get these pads at hardware and furnature stores. I
had originally bought them for a glass tabletop.
5. I adjusted the trimpot that controls the shut-off time all the way
to the right (instant shut-off).
6. I removed the spring under the pedal. This is a matter of personal
taste- I like to leave a wah parked halfway for a mid-boost sometimes.
So now my cheap little $29 wah does everything I want it to. It still
uses the other sensor for the wah sweep, so it has no pot to wear out.
But now I totally trust the on/off switch and can get the "parked" wah
sounds I couldn't before.
And for a cheap pedal, it sounds great. It has a selectable range, Q
control, fine tuning, and an adjustable boost. Despite the plastic
case, it's quiet (radio signals are a big problem in my area). And it
doesn't suck tone (so a true-bypass mod wasn't really necessary).
I'm really, really happy. If you can use a soldering iron, I HIGHLY
recommend trying this. It's like having the best features of a Morley
and a Crybaby in one pedal (one very affordable little pedal).
- Rich
Justice gave me advice (thanks again). But over the weekend, I decided
to see what I could do to improve it.
If you read the "Help with a cheap Behringer wah" thread, you know the
problem. The light-sensors in these pedals aren't mounted securely.
Only the wire leads going from the sensors to the circuit board keep
them in place. A good bump can knock them out of alignment- causing the
pedal to not shut off. That's the price you pay for getting $150 worth
of features in a $30 plastic wah.
So I came up with this mod, using stuff I had lying around the house:
1. I desoldered the sensor that turns the wah on and off. This is the
one closest to the front of the pedal. I removed the screws holding the
circuit board. Lifted it out of the case. And using a heat sink (to
avoid damaging the sensor) desoldered it. I saved the sensor in case I
ever want to reverse the mod.
2. I soldered 2 wires in it's place. I used aprox.10" lengths of wire
(long enough to reach the front of the pedal. I returned the board to
the case and put the screws back.
3. I soldered the wires to a heavy-duty SPST stomp switch (that I took
out of an old amp footswitch from a garage sale). Any heavy-duty SPST
will do.
4. I drilled a hole in the case and mounted the switch. I didn't have a
drill bit wide enough, but since the case is plastic, I was able to
easily widen the hole by turning a knife in it. I had to experiment
with the height of the switch to get it to work right (not accidentally
turning off when rocking the pedal). One thing that really helped was 2
self-adhesive felt pads placed on the top of the base, directly under
the rubber feet of the rocker pedal. This allowed the pedal to be fully
depressed without clicking the switch, but a little extra effort will
click it. You can get these pads at hardware and furnature stores. I
had originally bought them for a glass tabletop.
5. I adjusted the trimpot that controls the shut-off time all the way
to the right (instant shut-off).
6. I removed the spring under the pedal. This is a matter of personal
taste- I like to leave a wah parked halfway for a mid-boost sometimes.
So now my cheap little $29 wah does everything I want it to. It still
uses the other sensor for the wah sweep, so it has no pot to wear out.
But now I totally trust the on/off switch and can get the "parked" wah
sounds I couldn't before.
And for a cheap pedal, it sounds great. It has a selectable range, Q
control, fine tuning, and an adjustable boost. Despite the plastic
case, it's quiet (radio signals are a big problem in my area). And it
doesn't suck tone (so a true-bypass mod wasn't really necessary).
I'm really, really happy. If you can use a soldering iron, I HIGHLY
recommend trying this. It's like having the best features of a Morley
and a Crybaby in one pedal (one very affordable little pedal).
- Rich