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How to Customize a Danelectro Foot Pedal

Getting the most out of boutique guitar effects such as the current lineup of Danelectro guitar pedals can be difficult because of cost cutting measures that saw the phasing out of germanium transistors for lower-quality transistors. For those seeking to improve the tone of their Danelectro overdrive pedals, the same germanium transistors used in the Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face and the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer can be installed your Danelectro pedal. Doing so will greatly improve the natural over-driven tone produced.

Things You'll Need

  • 2N1309 germanium transistors
  • Soldering iron
  • Phillips screw driver
  • Desoldering iron
  • Solder
  • Heat sinks
  • Wire snips (wire cutters)
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Instructions

    • 1

      Remove the base plate of the Danelectro pedal by removing the mounting screws with a Phillips screw driver. The plate will pull off of the pedal housing once the four screws are removed.

    • 2

      Remove the screws that hold the PCB (Printed circuit board) onto the pedal's housing. If the pedal is a standard size Danelectro pedal (Daddy-O Pedal), there will be four Phillips screws holding the PCB board in place. If the pedal is a mini pedal (Bacon n' eggs) the PCB board will have three Phillips screws.

    • 3

      De-solder the transistor from the PCB board with a de-soldering iron, which is equipped with a suction bulb that is used to remove solder from a joint. This will allow for the removal of the solder joint along with the resistor. Using alligator clips as heat sinks on each of the transistor leads will help to prevent any damage to other components soldered to the PCB board.

    • 4

      Locate the new germanium transistor into the same location that the original transistor was removed from by pushing the wire leads (metal wire protruding from each end of the transistor) into the corresponding holes in the PCB board.

    • 5

      Solder the lead to the PCB board using electronics-grade solder. Use alligator clip-style heat sinks on each end of the lead to prevent the transistor from over heating during the soldering process.

    • 6

      Mount the PCB board back into the pedal's housing using the same screws that were previously removed. Install the base plate using the four screws that were previously removed. The pedal has been upgraded and is now ready to use.

Digital Music

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