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Rich_S
Silver Member
USA
219 Posts |
 Posted - 12/17/2009 : 03:56:14
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I've come to a realization: all due respect to Brain Wampler, but the SD-1 Eternity mod is just a bad idea from the get-go. I love the Eternity sound, so when Brian's mod came out I tried it.
My SD-1 already had an Allums GT mod in it and was a lot better than stock, but I gave the "E" a go. It's huge mod - 12 or 15 parts to swap, including all three pots. The problem is, putting the board in and out to test after each component flexes the leads and they start breaking. I think I repaired 4 or 5 of them the night I installed the mod.
But the pedal sounds brillant. I love it, but it was noisy. Hiss, hum, RF, you name it. I touched up a bunch of suspect solder joints, no change. Today, I was SURE I found the problem - lead 17, from the input jack to the board, had a cold joint - the wire was just slipped throught the center of a little bagel of solder. I reflowed the connect, and while I was doing that, the lead next to it broke off. Fixed that, and I was sure it would quiet the pedal down. NOT. So it's apart again, and there's ANOTHER lead hanging on by one strand.
I give up.
Here's the thing: building an Eternity from scratch involves fewer solder connections than I've made/repaired trying to mod the SD-1. So, I found a guy online who sells Eternity boards for ten bucks. I can canibalize the high-fallutin' IC, the weird-value pots, fancy-color pointer knobs, and some of the large caps from my SD-1. I'm building me an Eternity clone.
Boss pedals are great for simple mods. I just did Wampler's "Vintage" mod on a DS-1. Seven parts and it sounds great. But major surgery like that involved in the Eternity mod is just stupid.
Anybody need an SD-1 enclosure and/or mostly-populated PC board?
P.S. In honor of my beloved-though-deceased SD-1, I'm going to paint my E-clone yellow. |
Edited by - Rich_S on 12/17/2009 03:59:26 |
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MervsMods
Bronze Member
USA
133 Posts |
Posted - 12/17/2009 : 04:52:29
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Hi Rich,
I would love to have your enclosure! I've been looking for one for this pedal I have in mind. how much you want for it?
You can send the guts too if you want, but I won't be needing them...
Contact me at mervsmods at yahoo.com |
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james rock
Copper Member
8 Posts |
Posted - 12/17/2009 : 08:12:04
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| Most of Brians mods are simple from what I gather. And I think he created that mod due to popular demand he seems to be more into his original stuff now then modding pedals. My main drive pedals are his Pinnacle II and a vintage modded ds-1. |
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zerksies
Double Platinum Member
USA
3406 Posts |
Posted - 12/17/2009 : 14:27:33
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| I still don't like the sd-1 |
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Dirk
Platinum Member
Netherlands
1309 Posts |
Posted - 12/17/2009 : 15:50:35
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I like the basic sound of the stock pedal, but it eats way too much low end for my taste, with the Monte allums 808 + mod it sounds so much fuller, without the low end loss.
I purposely forgot 2 parts of the mod, the flatter mids and 2x gain, I had gain enough for my taste and I actually like the mids boosted for guitar solo's.
I also kept the original resistor for the LED, else it was way too bright for my taste.
It resides in my closet however, cause I've replaced it with a stock BD-2, which works even better for me. |
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MervsMods
Bronze Member
USA
133 Posts |
Posted - 12/17/2009 : 19:03:42
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| I agree with you Dirk, the resistor change for the LED is just way too bright. Monte states the change in value is to allow you to see which state (on / off) in direct sunlight, but it's still too bright, especially on a dark stage |
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Laurie
Double Platinum Member
Canada
4854 Posts |
Posted - 12/19/2009 : 14:11:55
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Mate... really sorry to hear it came to this.
I've been wracking my brain about what it could be, and all I keep coming back with is a ground loop. Bloody hard to find. I had one in my bread-board prototype of my new SVP Phase pedal and it took hours to find it. |
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Rich_S
Silver Member
USA
219 Posts |
Posted - 12/19/2009 : 22:05:58
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Yeah, the worst part is, the more I work to track it down, the worse it gets. All those wire leads soldered to the board... they have NO sense of humor about being flexed back and forth.
The good news is, I'm building a real-deal Eternity clone AND, I have a buddy who wants one, so I'll get some economies of scale doing two at once. I'm going to paint mine yellow in honor of the depart SD-1. |
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droptrd
Copper Member
USA
9 Posts |
Posted - 12/28/2009 : 04:27:35
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| Forgive my noob-ness, but what is an "Eternity"? |
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Dr. Bob
Moderator
Australia
6593 Posts |
Posted - 12/28/2009 : 15:18:51
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quote:
Originally posted by droptrd
Forgive my noob-ness, but what is an "Eternity"?
Hi droptrd
It's an overdrive pedal.
The Lovepedal Eternity.
Here is a link to their home page:
www.lovepedal.com
If you search on google you will finds lots of links & videos
Regards Dr. Bob 
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Rich_S
Silver Member
USA
219 Posts |
Posted - 01/01/2010 : 03:08:25
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Update: The shell of my much-abused SD-1 has gone on to begin a new life with MervsMods. A buddy from work heard I was going to build an Eternity clone, and he wanted in on the action. So I'm building a pair of them, which helped save on shipping, etc... He'll pay me enough for his pedal to cover the parts for mine.
Mine will indeed be yellow in honor of my SD-1. I've designed some fun little graphical icons for the controls, similar to what Orange uses on their amps.
Don't worry, though. I'm keeping my pedalboard's Boss percentage up by adding a modded DS-1. I'll make another post about that.
For droptrd, the Eternity is an overdrive pedal in the Tube Screamer/SD-1 family. It's a very stripped-down circuit, though... no buffers on the input or output. Although there are several different versions, it's generally very dynamic, bright, and clear. My interest in the pedal was piqued when I heard Andy Summers on the '07 "Certifiable" tour. His primary dirty rhythm sound is an Eternity through a clean tube amp. |
Edited by - Rich_S on 01/07/2010 14:33:47 |
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MervsMods
Bronze Member
USA
133 Posts |
Posted - 01/06/2010 : 05:15:53
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Hey Rich,
If you abuse your pedals like this, then I would like to see how you "baby" your pedals!! The case is in top notch shape, and will work PERFECTLY for what I'm trying to do - stuff an Ampeg VH140CH "dirty" channel into this housing. Had to drill 2 holes in it for extra tone controls, but so far so go.. I'll post pics when I get done..
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Rich_S
Silver Member
USA
219 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2010 : 14:37:08
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Although I'm somewhat ashamed to post my non-Boss pedal here, here's a peek at the poor, deceased SD-1's replacement.
Download Attachment:  yellow_E_s.JPG
73.64�KB |
Edited by - Rich_S on 01/07/2010 14:37:43 |
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Dr. Bob
Moderator
Australia
6593 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2010 : 16:02:06
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Hi Rich_S
Looks pretty good.
How about some internal pics?
Regards Dr. Bob |
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Rich_S
Silver Member
USA
219 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2010 : 20:12:15
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What internals? I'm waiting for the PC board to arrive from the supplier.
Update: This afternoon, I got the wiring for the LED, switch, and jacks finished. So now, people will ask "How's it sound?", and I'll say, "um... it's TRUE BYPASS!" That should be enough to get me by in many circles. |
Edited by - Rich_S on 01/07/2010 21:33:54 |
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droptrd
Copper Member
USA
9 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2010 : 16:35:07
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| Thanks for the info guys. Checked out the Eternity pedal on youtube. Wow thats a sweet sounding OD. Quite an upgrade over a stock SD-1. |
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Topic |
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Death of an SD-1
