How do I build it?
So, you want to build your own stompbox!
Good. You can do this. People have been building their first pedal from this site since 1998, most of them with no electronics background at all, and the ones who get stuck email us and we get them going. This page tells you what to build first, what you need on the bench, and how the build goes. If you've already bought a kit, your project's instructions are on its page in the Effects Projects; the General Instructions that cover every kit are on the Technical Help page.
Which kit should I build first?
Pick by how comfortable you are with a soldering iron, not by which pedal you want most. Your second build can be the one you want.
Never soldered before: the Stratoblaster™ ($31) or the LPB2™ ($31). About a dozen parts each, one knob, no tricky components. The Stratoblaster™ is a JFET booster that pushes a tube amp into overdrive; the LPB2™ is the classic Electro-Harmonix™ booster. Either one teaches you everything the bigger kits need: reading the parts list, placing components, wiring the jacks and footswitch, and boxing it up. You'll have a pedal you actually use.
Soldered a little, want a real effect: the Fuzz Face™ ($50), Green Ringer™ ($39) or Rat™ ($55). The Fuzz Face™ is two transistors and two knobs, and the kit comes with a trimmer and sockets so you can tune it and swap transistors without unsoldering. The Green Ringer™ is an octave-up with no controls at all. The Rat™ is our most forgiving distortion build and sounds great the moment it's done.
Comfortable with a build: the Tube Screamer™ ($55), Big Muff Pi™ ($55) or Klon™ Centaur™ ($61). More parts, more wire, same process. The Tube Screamer™ and Klon™ use op-amps and a few more capacitors; the Big Muff™ board builds nine different versions. These are the three pedals people most often come here to build, and plenty of first-timers manage them, but you'll have an easier time if a booster or fuzz came first.
Leave for later: the Phase 90™ and Super-Fuzz. They are not hard, but phasers and multi-transistor fuzzes have more places for a mistake to hide, and we'd rather your first success be quick.
What's in a GGG complete kit
Everything on the parts list:
- A double-sided printed circuit board with plated-through holes, tough enough to survive a beginner's rework
- All resistors (1% metal film), capacitors (mostly Panasonic), diodes, transistors and ICs
- Mill-Max sockets for every IC and for any specialty transistors
- Potentiometers and knobs
- Switchcraft™ input and output jacks and a DC power jack
- A heavy-duty 3PDT true-bypass footswitch and an LED indicator
- A 9-volt battery snap (solid plastic, not vinyl)
- 24-gauge stranded hookup wire
- Lead-free solder
- A pre-drilled enclosure
The 9-volt battery is the one thing we leave out. Already have an enclosure you want to use? Most kits can be ordered without one, at a lower price. Every kit also has a project page with the schematic, parts layout, wiring diagram and build instructions, free whether you buy the kit or not.
What you need on the bench
- A soldering iron, 25 to 40 watts, with a fine tip. A temperature-controlled station is nicer but not required.
- Rosin-core solder, 0.8 mm or thinner. Lead-free is what we ship; leaded is easier to work with if you have it.
- Small wire cutters and needle-nose pliers.
- A wire stripper, or a steady hand with the cutters.
- A multimeter. Any cheap one will do. You'll use it to check resistor values and, if something doesn't work, to read the voltages we publish for each project.
- Good light and a way to hold the board still (a "helping hands" clip or a bit of Blu-Tack).
- A 9-volt power supply or battery for testing.
That's it. No oscilloscope, no special tools.
How a build goes
- Read the instructions first. The General Instructions cover every kit; your project page has the specifics. Ten minutes of reading saves an hour of desoldering.
- Sort the parts against the parts list. Resistors by colour band, capacitors by marking. Our parts lists show the colour codes and markings for exactly this step, and the Identifying Capacitors page helps when the markings are cryptic.
- Populate the board lowest to tallest: resistors and diodes first, then sockets, small capacitors, transistors, then the big electrolytic capacitors. Mind the polarity on diodes, electrolytics and transistors; the layout shows the orientation.
- Wire the off-board parts (pots, jacks, footswitch, LED, DC jack) following the wiring diagram, then mount everything in the enclosure. Keep wires short but not tight.
- Test before you close the box. Plug in, step on it, play. If it works, celebrate. If it doesn't, go to step 6 instead of pulling parts.
- If it doesn't work: check the polarity of every diode, electrolytic and transistor; check for solder bridges between pads; then measure the transistor or IC pin voltages and compare them with the chart in the instructions. Nine times out of ten the problem is one of those. If you're still stuck, email us the voltages you measured and a photo of the board.
Why build instead of buy?
Because a $55 kit becomes a pedal that would cost several hundred dollars new or, in the Klon™'s case, several thousand used. Because you'll understand what's inside the box and be able to fix or modify it. And because the second one is easier than the first, and the tenth is a hobby.
Where to go next
- Effects Projects: every project, with free schematics and layouts
- Technical Help: General Instructions, switching and wiring, powering your effects
- FAQs
- Contact us. We answer like neighbours, not like a ticket queue.