Note: This one is experimental.
Accutronics updated their Belton Digital Reverb unit (BTDR-2) and made it much smaller. It also has a different pinout from the old version. I was asked to update my old layout, but I thought I’d try something a little bit more exciting while I was at it.
I put together a pretty straight forward schematic based on the version 2 datasheet circuit with the same embellishments as in version 1 (from the D-Verb schematic from GGG). But having two outputs it became apparent that true-bypass wiring would be hard without employing either a 4PDT or some additional switching circuitry. Therefore I decided to put this together as a buffered effect, and the general ideas here were borrowed from Merlin B’s “Small Time” delay. So the intention is for this to be a buffered reverb effect with mono/stereo output and tails.
It looks good on paper, but I realize there’s much for me to learn still. But rather than leaving this on my shelf for a month or two while I source parts and give the build a try I figured I’d put it up here for the brave ones among you to have a dig at right away.
I’m fairly confident the vero layout follows the schematic at least.
Feedback appreciated if you give this one a try, as always 🙂
Update (18.05.2012): I built this one myself the other day and it worked beautifully. Verified 🙂
Update (26.12.2012): Finished this one today. Being in a pretty bad mood the end result turned out looking quite awful, but at least it works and sounds great. As you can see this was a tight fit in a 1590B. I had to bend the second set of solder lugs on the pot to make room for the board (with some insulation between, obviously). Also found out I had used a 2.5mm DC jack when the whole thing was completed and had to replace that, bleh. Anyway.
Nuno, If you have a switching pop, try to put a 1 meg resistor From the input Jack to ground.
Hi Nuno.
Can’t remember having any issues with this, but let me try it just to verify… Nope, no popping or any switching noises whatsoever.
Harald, when you built this pedal, did you get any switch popping noise?
Thanks in advance.
Nice reverb, Clément 🙂
And here is another one I made 😉
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQxk7Q_gNT0
Very cool, Clément!
Piece of cake, it was a dry soldering joint on one of the pins of the Belton, so that when the wire from it was moving a bit it was opening or closing the circuit.
Thanks a lot!
Here are some pictures of the finished thing:
http://diyjoie.tumblr.com/post/35570124390/digital-reverb-using-belton-btdr-2-thanks-to
Hope you get it sorted, Clément 🙂
My bad, after looking into it, it seems that it’s my double 10k pot. I took it from a previous project, seems that I have some problems around here 😉
Clément
Hello Harald, I did it and it sounds really nice 🙂 Thanks a lot!
I seem to have a problem though: sometimes after playing for a while, there is no more Wet signal. As if I had pressed the switch, or as if no +5V was coming to the Belton Chip? I read that the 78L05 can pass up to 100mA to the circuit and noticed that the Belton Chip could ask for 100mA so I figured maybe the 78L05 was getting a bit hot? Some people making a pedal after this chip were using a 7805 (which allows up to 1A to pass), I’ll give it a try 😉
Thanks again for this nice website!
Clément
Thanks Harald, I think I will go with 2 100k pots with separate reverb level.
You have several options. You can use the D-Verb vero layout with the BTDR-2 unit, but you need to observe the pinout as I believe it’s slightly different from the older BTDR-1. Or you could use two individual pots, which would give you the option of setting the reverb level on each channel individually. Or you could probably use the v2 vero layout and leave out the second part of the dual pot (i.e. don’t wire lugs 4-6 and the second output).
Hi Harald, I got a Belton BTDR-2 unit but I don’t have dual pots. Can I make this as a mono pedal without the stereo option, with a mono pot? or can I use the BTDR-2 in your other reverb layout which uses the ver. 1 of the belton brick?
Yes you’re right, my mistake
I could be misunderstanding you here, but the pot -is- a stereo/dual one already.
great, the belton sounds really good, but it will be good that the guys from Belton let some more control to the chip. Almost a decay control would be excellent.
As the “reverb” pots are only atenuators maybe a stereo pot there could work better as the good part of the new chip is the size. Then you can put this in a 1590B box. A passive filter is very easy to implement to the reverb out!
You lost me. Where do you get the 1N581x from? Are you thinking of another effect?
Would be interesting, although I haven’t really got time to explore this right now. Certainly a cool Idea I’ll keep in mind.
I do believe culturejam over at FSB posted a reverb with a tone control a few days ago in the “ready to build” section. You should check it out.
and how about subbing a 1n5819 for a 1n5817?
any idea on adding some extra controls to this layout? maybe a dwell or tone control? could you do the tone control off the mix pot?