ft switchable drive?

[axman53]

As for where to put a 1/4" female jack, just about everything in the back of the amp is hard wired to the board. Rather than messing with that, I just drilled a hole to the right of the fuse holder (between the fuse holder and the Loop Note box) and put a jack in there - and voila! Footswitchable drive!

Thanks for the info on the cable length question. Now, could you elaborate on the drilling process? Did you drill a pilot hole first, then drill the 1/4" (?) hole for the jack? Any tips on doing this without tearing up the amp chassis? Thanks for any add'l info. I really appreciate the info as I really want to do this. I have no problem with the electronics, but the mechanical stuff is a bit scary...

 

[scienceguy]

As for where to put a 1/4" female jack, just about everything in the back of the amp is hard wired to the board. Rather than messing with that, I just drilled a hole to the right of the fuse holder (between the fuse holder and the Loop Note box) and put a jack in there - and voila! Footswitchable drive!

Thanks for the info on the cable length question. Now, could you elaborate on the drilling process? Did you drill a pilot hole first, then drill the 1/4" (?) hole for the jack? Any tips on doing this without tearing up the amp chassis? Thanks for any add'l info. I really appreciate the info as I really want to do this. I have no problem with the electronics, but the mechanical stuff is a bit scary...

I didn't create a pilot hole but it's not a bad idea, if you don't have a variable speed drill or are a little unsure of whether your drill bit is going to wander. You don't need to push too hard - let the drill do the work. If you've never drilled through metal you may want to practice on a scrap piece - at the instant the hole is created, metal likes to grab the bit and it'll pull the drill out of your hand if you're not expecting it. As long as you make sure you're going in straight, you won't tear up anything on the inside (unless you push the bit more than an inch or so past the hole). When you look inside the amp, you'll see how much room you'll have...
Use a piece of scrap wood or metal to figure out what size bit you'll need - you don't want to make it any larger than it needs to be. Also, I would suggest using a common 1/4" jack (like a standard Switchcraft open frame type, which requires a 3/8" hole).

Hope this helps!

 

[axman53]

Hope this helps!

Yep, it helps alot! Just ordered the Switchcraft jack from stewmac.com. I'll let you know how it goes...

 

[jaquetapus]

A little tip for punching holes in sheet metal: step drills are your friend! They make drilling very round holes very easy.

-dave

 

[scienceguy]

A little tip for punching holes in sheet metal: step drills are your friend! They make drilling very round holes very easy.

-dave

+1! Gotta get me one of those!

bill

 

[axman53]

Just ordered the Switchcraft jack from stewmac.com. I'll let you know how it goes...

So while I'm waiting for the switch to arrive, I found this footswitch from voodoomanswitches.com:

http://voodoomanswitches.com/component/page,shop.product_details/flypage,shop.flypage/product_id,154/category_id,1/manufacturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,1/

The REVERB cable can just as easily be used for the external DRIVE jack I'm about to install, no? And that would put all three switches together in one footswitch: channel, solo, drive. I didn't ever bother with the reverb footswitch anyways. Comments?

 

[djw]

Just ordered the Switchcraft jack from stewmac.com. I'll let you know how it goes...

So while I'm waiting for the switch to arrive, I found this footswitch from voodoomanswitches.com:

http://voodoomanswitches.com/component/page,shop.product_details/flypage,shop.flypage/product_id,154/category_id,1/manufacturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,1/

The REVERB cable can just as easily be used for the external DRIVE jack I'm about to install, no? And that would put all three switches together in one footswitch: channel, solo, drive. I didn't ever bother with the reverb footswitch anyways. Comments?

Wow, I really like that -- or I did until I saw the price tag. You can build yourself the same thing for much less, there are lots of DIY pedal resources out there. But I like the basic plan. Heck, I might even do this specifically for drive/solo/reverb, since I do use my reverb pedal a lot. Maybe a 4-button version is called for if I get around to this footswitchable drive idea.

 

[scienceguy]

Just ordered the Switchcraft jack from stewmac.com. I'll let you know how it goes...

So while I'm waiting for the switch to arrive, I found this footswitch from voodoomanswitches.com:

http://voodoomanswitches.com/component/page,shop.product_details/flypage,shop.flypage/product_id,154/category_id,1/manufacturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,1/

The REVERB cable can just as easily be used for the external DRIVE jack I'm about to install, no? And that would put all three switches together in one footswitch: channel, solo, drive. I didn't ever bother with the reverb footswitch anyways. Comments?

The only minor issue is that the only place for the stereo plug (for channel/solo) is on the front panel, while the reverb (drive) jack will be on the back. Unless you get a stereo breakout y-cable (like this one):

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/YPP136/

Then you could route the entire cable assembly to the back of the amp...
bp

 

[axman53]

Wow, I really like that -- or I did until I saw the price tag. You can build yourself the same thing for much less, there are lots of DIY pedal resources out there. But I like the basic plan. Heck, I might even do this specifically for drive/solo/reverb, since I do use my reverb pedal a lot. Maybe a 4-button version is called for if I get around to this footswitchable drive idea.

Hey, 4-button... even better! I REALLY like that. Do you have a good link for DIY footswitch boxes?

 

[djw]

Wow, I really like that -- or I did until I saw the price tag. You can build yourself the same thing for much less, there are lots of DIY pedal resources out there. But I like the basic plan. Heck, I might even do this specifically for drive/solo/reverb, since I do use my reverb pedal a lot. Maybe a 4-button version is called for if I get around to this footswitchable drive idea.

Hey, 4-button... even better! I REALLY like that. Do you have a good link for DIY footswitch boxes?

I spent some time looking for a mini Hammond-style enclosure to house my reverb footswitch (got it thru the Amazon Marketplace, of all places), and I saw a lot of sites out there... can't quite find my thread at the moment, but here's a good place to start: http://www.smallbearelec.com/ ... here's another popular resource: http://www.geofex.com/

 

[axman53]

Hope this helps!

Yep, it helps alot! Just ordered the Switchcraft jack from stewmac.com. I'll let you know how it goes...

OK, did it. Done deal. I've got footswitchable drive now. Just gotta settle on a permanent footswitch solution, but I tested it with a switch I had laying around. Works great! Thanks all for your input on the finer points of this mod. Much appreciated.

 

[scienceguy]

Some folks have been asking, so here are some pictures of my modification.

External shot:

Inside shot of the jack. Note the green wire going from jack ground lug to chassis ground:

Here's the inside shot of the drive switch - it's the one in the middle, oriented horizontally with the green wire going to the middle terminal. That green wire comes from the tip lug of the jack.

Hope this helps! (and these are my very first pics posted - how'd I do?)

 

[djw]

Hope this helps! (and these are my very first pics posted - how'd I do?)

Very, very well, my good man. I like your choice of locations for the jack.

Right on.

 

[axman53]

Had to open up my LSS for another issue and thought I'd post pics of the drive switch mod.

This first one shows the drive switch from inside the chassis. The orange wire is the added wire to the center post of the switch. I used 24AWG bell wire, but still felt it was heavier than I would have liked. Maybe 28AWG would be about right?

This next one shows the wired jack at the back of the chassis. I chose to use the ground lug on the chassis just behind the jack for the ground wire connection.

And finally the jack viewed from the rear of the chassis.

 

[plan-x]

Thanks dude for the pics. The thought has occured to me that this function can be wired to the oringinal footswitch jack to one (3 switch) pedal. But you got to build the pedal. How about adding a reverb switch also? Swap out the standard front panel footswitch jack with a 5 pin din rig.

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?partnumber=092-150&source=googleps

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=092-154

 

[lance]

Some folks have been asking, so here are some pictures of my modification.

External shot:

Inside shot of the jack. Note the green wire going from jack ground lug to chassis ground:

Here's the inside shot of the drive switch - it's the one in the middle, oriented horizontally with the green wire going to the middle terminal. That green wire comes from the tip lug of the jack.

Hope this helps! (and these are my very first pics posted - how'd I do?)

Thanks scienceguy! I just got the footswitchable drive mod done, and your pictures were a big help!

-Lance

 

[scienceguy]

Thanks scienceguy! I just got the footswitchable drive mod done, and your pictures were a big help!

-Lance

Glad I could help! Frankly, I'm kinda surprised Mesa doesn't (didn't) do this to all Lonestars...

 

[aaland_brian]

Couldn't you wire a stereo jack in where the reverb jack is and then run a stereo cable to a Boss FS-6 and be able to control both your reverb and drive. I also think it might be cool to put a relay in to switch the effects loop. I think this is a great mod and thank the people who decided to try it before me.

 

[chmiel]

Hey guys,

I was planning on disconnecting all wires going to the reverb jack (as i dont turn the reverb off) and using that as my footswitchable drive jack.

Just wanted to see what you all thought, and would this affect the reverb in any way (other than obviously meaning i can no longer footswitch it).
Also, will i follow the same wiring procedure with the reverb jack as the one science guy drilled into his (and where can i ground it thats nearby?)

Cheers

 

[chmiel]

P.S. science guy your a legend thank you so much for figuring this out!!