Request for schematic/advice

Hi there, first post, so sorry if I inadvertently trespass against any protocols or courtesies!

I was looking to buy a unit and then thought I should man up and have a go at building one myself. What I plan to build is, I hope, pretty straightforward.

Basically, it's to go on my pedalboard which I use between my guitar and my amp. I have two inputs which I wish to combine into one. One of my effects pedals has two outputs, a dry output which will carry an unmodified tone, and a wet output, which is the modified tone. I wish to have the dry output feed into a distortion pedal, and then combined with the wet signal to be fed into the amp.

So what I am looking for is a box which can take two 1/4" inputs, mix the sound, and output to one 1/4" output. These will be mono signals.

Can anyone offer any advice?

I've not done much stuff like this since high school many years ago, however I recently changed the pickups on one of my guitars myself and felt quite empowered! I have decided it is time for me to justify the hair on my knuckles and start doing stuff for myself!

In the simplest scenario a passive mixer may suffice; otherwise an active mixer would be needed.
Are the levels of the signals to be combined about the same?
Should either signal be given a level control?
Is the combination fixed or switchable?
Does either signal feed anything apart from the combiner?

I'm not sure why you would want to overdrive a dry signal, then mix it with a clean tone that has the wet signal on it. To me that wouldn't sound very good but to each their own.

What you need is a simple active 2 channel line mixer. I'm working up a schematic for one that should suit your needs.

Thanks both. I am looking for something very very simple, the levels would be both the same and any adjustments to the levels would take place on the preceeding effects pedals. I would not require it to be switchable, or levels adjustable.

Jon - I know what you're saying, however... The pedals I am using are an EHX Micro POG and a Blackstar HT DistX, and a bass guitar. A POG will generate an octave lower and an octave higher as well as the original note. I am finding that when I add distortion whilst the POG is on then the overall sound is somewhat messy. So, I am hoping to just add distortion to the dry signal, but have the octave effects from the POG fed into the mix without having the distortion applied to those. Am I making sense? I would end up with the original tone from my bass with the distortion, as well as the octave up and down sounds without.

At the moment the sound I am getting is unusual, but too much of a gimmick. I want something which I can actually use on stage which sounds distinctive but listenable.

bileofwood said:

Thanks both. I am looking for something very very simple, the levels would be both the same and any adjustments to the levels would take place on the preceeding effects pedals. I would not require it to be switchable, or levels adjustable.

Jon - I know what you're saying, however... The pedals I am using are an EHX Micro POG and a Blackstar HT DistX, and a bass guitar. A POG will generate an octave lower and an octave higher as well as the original note. I am finding that when I add distortion whilst the POG is on then the overall sound is somewhat messy. So, I am hoping to just add distortion to the dry signal, but have the octave effects from the POG fed into the mix without having the distortion applied to those. Am I making sense? I would end up with the original tone from my bass with the distortion, as well as the octave up and down sounds without.

At the moment the sound I am getting is unusual, but too much of a gimmick. I want something which I can actually use on stage which sounds distinctive but listenable.

Click to expand...

Out of curiosity, have you tried connecting the overdrive pedal after the POG vs before the POG? There will be a difference in sound depending on what order they are connected in.

I have. The difference is minimal.

OK..here's a schematic for a simple active 2 channel mixer. It has controls for output level and the mix between the wet/dry signals. It should be 100% tonally transparent to keep from robbing your tone and with the +/- 15VDC supply you'll have LOTS of headroom to keep from overdriving it.

For the "mix" pot you'll wanna use a linear taper pot with a center detent. For the volume pot you should use an audio taper. Setting the mix knob to the 12:00 (on the center detent) should give you a nice even mix between the two.

If you want to "hard set" them you can replace both pots with a trim pot for a one time "set and forget" setup.

For the jacks I prefer to use the plastic "Cliff" jacks to avoid potential ground loops. Here's a link to some from Antique Electronics Supply -



**broken link removed**

You sir are a gentleman.

I will embark upon this project and let you know how it goes!