Mod Mod Instr Instruct uction ionss First, First, clear clear a plac placee to work work and and plug plug in your your sold solderi ering ng iron iron so it will be heating up. Now remove the battery cover and the ba battery. ery. Remove the four scre crews and the the rea rearr pl plate. Remove Remove the black black plas plastic tic circui circuitt board board insula insulator tor and now you see see the circuit circuit board. Use this this photo to unsolder unsolder the old old parts from the the board. board. Remember, Remember, the parts parts like like it where they are so do a good job soaking up the old solder before you attempt to pull them out. For Soldering/De-soldering tips, scan down to the end of this document.
Now Now remo remove ve the the scre screw w to the the circ circui uitt boar board d and and flip flip the the board over over to remove remove these fourteen fourteen parts. parts.
Here’s what the board should look like once the old parts are removed.
Your part collection should consist of six capacitors, two transistors, three diodes, and three resistors. You also should have pulled the red & white wire from pin 2 of the board.
Now it’s time to repopulate the board as shown. Remember to pull the red and white wire from the circuit board and solder it to the negative side of where the diode used to be. The arrow on the board points to the negative side.
The 10uf mustard colored capacitor is the only part that is polarity sensitive, and only goes one way. As you’re looking at the writing on the capacitor there is a + sign on the right and a – sign on the left. The negative side goes in the hole where the black mark is located. The writing on the part should face away from the circuit board.
When you’re done soldering it should look like this.
Now look down under the main circuit board and you will see a mini circuit board with a single screw holding it in place.
Unscrew it and pull the mini board up, and screw it into the screw hole for the main circuit board ~ that way it will be accessible and you can desolder it.
Unsolder it, remove the screw, and pull out the LED.
As you are holding the New Led you will notice that one lead is longer than the other ~ that’s the positive side. It goes in the hole that is closest to the wires, right above where it says PIN on the bottom of the mini board. Now slide the Led into place, leaving around 3/16ths of an inch clearance between the board and the glass.
After you’ve bent the leads, rescrew it and resolder it.
When it’s done trim the lead ends and screw it back where you originally removed it. If the Led doesn’t work it’s usually a bad battery, or the polarity is backwards; which means desoldering it and turning it around.
It’s finally time to remove that old Fet switch. First remove the foam. If you’re careful it will come out in one piece, but since it’s not going back in, you may not care.
Now desolder the switch. They’re worth money so you may want to touch the iron to each point & remove the wires.
You’ll need either a ¾ or 19 mm socket ~ an open end wrench, pliers, or vice grip will also work in a pinch.
Now it’s time to mount the 3PDT True Bypass Switch.
The orientation is correct so long as the contact points are horizontal ~ there’s no up or downside. You’ll want to refer to this photo for pin orientation.
First make sure the input & output jacks are turned so that the yellow and white wires are closest to the switch. Now locate the Yellow wire on the input jack and cut it just enough where it will reach pin 4 of the bypass switch.
Locate the White wire on the output jack and cut it so that it will reach pin 5 of the bypass switch.
When you’re done it should look like this.
Take the Yellow wire from the board and connect it to pin 1 of the bypass switch. Now take the White wire from the board and connect it to pin 2 of the bypass switch. When you’re done it should look like this.
Now use a piece of wire or lead and jumper (connect) together pins 7 & 8. When you’re done it should look like this.
Now take the red & white wire you soldered to the board and solder the other end to pin 3 of the bypass switch. Then take the black wire you desoldered from the old Fet switch and and solder it to pin 6 of the bypass switch. When you’re all done it should look like this.
When it’s all put back together there is just enough room for the battery.
If the rear plate doesn’t want to fit because it’s running into the switch, just loosen the nut on the switch and reposition it until it fits. Another way to make it fit is simply to bend the fins of the back plate slightly and it will go on then. Below, please find a section on troubleshooting and soldering tips.
Troubleshooting There are several common things that can happen to make your mod experience a bit more fun than you’d planned. When you get no sound or there is something wrong with the sound the most common problems are: 1. A missed solder joint 2. A poorly soldered joint 3. A crossover soldered joint 4. The battery is bad 5. The battery plug is loose 6. The chip is bad (rare, but it happens) 7. The chip cradle was installed wrong 8. One of the wires broke Any of these problems are easily solvable so don’t sweat it. The case of a problem solder joint requires that you carefully re-examine the rear of the circuit board. A missed joint is easy to spot and the repair is obvious. A poorly soldered joint requires a little closer examination, but is just as simple to remedy once you have located the bad joint. A crossover joint means that you have inadvertently linked one solder joint with another. Important note: some joints are supposed to be linked, so use these photos as a guide in order to be certain. If that’s the case, de-solder the joint and re-solder it correctly.
A power problem is easier still. Simply remove the battery and test it in anything you know is good. As for the battery terminal being loose, just squeeze together it using either your fingers or a pair of pliers. The quickest way to know if you have a bad chip (which is rare) is to put the old TA7558P chip that you removed into the cradle. If the chip cradle is improperly installed you can know by noting the position on the circuit board. Unless it is all the way down and flush with the board, it may not be making contact with one or more of the contact points. No sweat, just de-solder it and push it down and solder it again ~ problem solved. If one of the wires breaks anywhere on the pedal it won’t work until it is re-soldered. This is a simple matter of examining the pedal, gently pulling on the wires until the broken one is found, and then de-soldering the place where it was and re-soldering it again. Remember to use the photo’s here as a guide. Also check the wires to the input and output jacks. If none of the above solves your problem then perhaps you may want to consider shipping the pedal to me and I’ll repair it for a nominal fee.
How to De-solder Tools Required: •
•
Soldering Iron – 30 to 40 watts is just right. De-soldering Braid – This is many thin strands of copper that absorb the solder like a sponge.
To Begin: Place the braid against the solder joint and apply the soldering iron to the braid, sandwiching the braid between the joint and the iron.
Hold it there until you see the braid absorb the solder, and when it does pull back the iron. If there is still more solder on the joint repeat the process until you are reasonably sure you can remove the old part. Also, as the braid fill with solder you’ll need to trim the used piece with a scissors as needed so you’ll have fresh piece for each joint.
How to Solder •
Firstly place the iron against the solder joint. Allow several seconds before applying the solder, when you do apply it where the iron and the board meet in a V pattern. When the solder melts it will fill the joint, and when it does pull back the iron & solder. Make sure the joint is completely covered like the joints around it. Periodically wipe the soldering iron tip on a damp cloth to remove excess flux.
