Difference between revisions of "Britannia"

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The Brittania is a pedal architecture developed by RunoffGroove.com for the purpose of building a sound-alike pedal of the [[Vox]] [[AC-30]] with Top Boost amplifier. [http://1776effects.com 1776effects.com] developed the printed circuit board(PCB) to match the schematic developed by ROG.  
+
The Britannia is a pedal architecture developed by [http://www.runoffgroove.com RunoffGroove.com ]for the purpose of building a sound-alike pedal of the [[Vox]] [[AC-30]] with Top Boost amplifier. [[1776 Effects]] developed the printed circuit board(PCB) to match the schematic developed by ROG.  
  
 
Thermionic Studios has purchased this PCB and sourced the parts necessary to build this pedal.  We are in the process of building the pedal and will have more to report upon completion.
 
Thermionic Studios has purchased this PCB and sourced the parts necessary to build this pedal.  We are in the process of building the pedal and will have more to report upon completion.
 +
 +
; Thermionic Studios has one(1) Britannia. When we finish assembling it, it will be available for rental
  
 
==Controls==
 
==Controls==
* Bass
+
[[File:1776_Britannia_front.png|right|frame|<div style="text-align:right">Image from [http://www.runoffgroove.com/britannia.html Runoff Groove Britannia page]<br>Note Bass & Treble controls are mislabeled.</div>]]
* Treble
+
 
* Brilliance
+
* Knob 1 - '''"Brilliance":''' Sets the amount of treble '''after''' the preamp section, increasing treble as control is turned clockwise.
* Gain
+
* Knob 2 - '''"Volume":''' This knob sets the output level of the pedal with the total volume increasing as the control is turned clockwise.
* Volume
+
* Knob 3 - '''"Treble":''' Works like an AC/30 amp by boosting treble and upper midrange while cutting bass as the knob is turned clockwise.
 +
* Knob 4 - '''"Gain":''' Sets the amount of overdrive in the preamp section, increasing the gain as the knob is turned clockwise.
 +
* Knob 5 - '''"Bass":''' Sets the amount of bass frequencies in the signal with most bass available when control is fully clockwise.
 +
* Footswitch 1 - '''"On/Off":''' This switch toggles the effect between "off" (bypass) and "on" (active).
 +
 
 +
==Bypass: True==
 +
The Brittania is a true bypass pedal.
  
 
==General Information==
 
==General Information==
 
http://1776effects.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Britannia-BOM.pdf
 
http://1776effects.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Britannia-BOM.pdf
  
The Brittania can be powered by a 9-volt battery, or a tip-negative Boss-style 9-volt power adapter. The transistors must be biased correctly for this pedal to be as accurate sound-wise as possible.
+
The Britannia can be powered by a 9-volt battery, or a tip-negative Boss-style 9-volt power adapter. The transistors must be biased correctly for this pedal, sound-wise, to sound as accurate as possible to an actual [[Vox]] [[AC/30]] amplifier.
 +
 
 +
==Pedal Manual==
 +
As of this time, 1776 Effects has not issued a separate manual on how to use the pedal.  The best references are either this wiki page, the entry on the Runoff Groove website, or the build manual from 1776 Effects which describes the architecture of the pedal.
 +
 
 +
Runoff Groove offers the following advice when attempting to use the Britannia with a treble booster:
 +
 
 +
<blockquote>
 +
<div style="background-color:#222222; border:2px solid #e69710; padding:10px; {{border-radius| 8px}}">
 +
If you would like to use a treble booster at the input of Britannia like Brian May did into the AC-30 Normal channel, we recommend that you start with the following configuration: set the Bass control at maximum, the Treble control at minimum, and the Brilliance control at noon; adjust the Gain control as desired, and then fine-tune the sound to your liking with the Bass, Treble and Brilliance controls. Use of a flat or full frequency booster in front of Britannia will also produce some interesting sounds.
 +
</div>
 +
</blockquote>
 +
 
 +
==Build Details==
 +
In the instance where this is a pedal built by Thermionic Studios, provide the specifics of the build in this section here. In the instance of a production pedal, either post an image of the completed PCB of the production in the enclosure, or remove this page section entirely.
 +
 +
[[File:JMKPCBs_TestingRig_PCB.png|center|frame|<div style="text-align:right">JMKPCBs Testing Rig PCB</div>]]
 +
<center>
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="center; margin-right:20px; background-color:#eeffee;" cellpadding="10"
 +
|-
 +
! Item || Value
 +
|-
 +
| '''''PCB Creator''''' || (PCB Creator)
 +
|-
 +
| PCB Dimensions || length X width (metric)<br>length x width (SAE)
 +
|-
 +
| Enclosure Size || Hammond 1590(!!)/1550(!!)
 +
|-
 +
| Enclosure Orientation || Portrait / Landscape
 +
|-
 +
| Power Adapter || 9 volts, Standard Boss "barrel-negative" supply <br>9-volt battery snap available
 +
|-
 +
| Power Consumption || 'XXX' milliamps
 +
|}
 +
</center>
 +
 
 +
==Phase Inversion: Yes==
 +
From our examination of the schematic below, the Britannia appears to invert phase on the output as compared with the signal that goes into the pedal.
  
==Phase Inversion==
+
{| class="wikitable" style="left; margin-right:20px; background-color:#eeffee;" cellpadding="10"
Our preliminary look at the schematic indicates that this pedal inverts phase.  This will need to be born out by testing and observation.
+
|-
 +
! Schematic ID ||Electronic Part || Action || Phase State
 +
|-
 +
| Q1 || 2N5457 || Inverts || Inverted
 +
|-
 +
| Q2 || J201 || Inverts || Reverted
 +
|-
 +
| Q3 || 2N5088 || Does not Invert || Reverted
 +
|-
 +
| Q4 || J201 || Inverts || Inverted
 +
|-
 +
| IC1a || TL072 || Does not Invert || Inverted
 +
|-
 +
| IC1b || TL072 || Does not Invert || Inverted
 +
|}
  
==Pedal Manual==
+
This will need to be borne out by testing and observation.
As of this time, 1776effects.com has not issued a separate manual on how to use the pedal.  The best reference is either this wiki page, the RunoffGroove entry on their website, or the build manual which describes the architecture of the pedal.  RunoffGroove states that when attempting to use a treble booster as follows:
 
<blockquote>If you would like to use a treble booster at the input of Britannia like Brian May did into the AC-30 Normal channel, we recommend that you start with the following configuration: set the Bass control at maximum, the Treble control at minimum, and the Brilliance control at noon; adjust the Gain control as desired, and then fine-tune the sound to your liking with the Bass, Treble and Brilliance controls. Use of a flat or full frequency booster in front of Britannia will also produce some interesting sounds.</blockquote>
 
  
 
==Schematic==
 
==Schematic==
Currently only available from the 1776effects build manual and the RunoffGroove website. We'll post it alone here when we can.
+
[[File:1776Effects_BritanniaSchematic.png|center|frame|<div style="text-align:right">&copy; Copyright 2013, runoffgroove.com</div>]]
 +
 
 +
==Artists==
 +
We are currently unaware of any artists actively using the pedal now, or who have in the past.
 +
<div style="column-count:3;-moz-column-count:3;-webkit-column-count:3">
 +
</div>
 +
 
 +
----
 +
;Additional Sources
 +
# http://www.runoffgroove.com/britannia.html
 +
 
 +
 
 +
[[Category:Pedals]]
 +
[[Category:Overdrive Pedals]]
 +
[[Category:PCB-Only Pedals]]
 +
[[Category:1776 Pedals]]
 +
[[Category:Thermionic Pedals]]

Latest revision as of 10:13, 22 December 2022

The Britannia is a pedal architecture developed by RunoffGroove.com for the purpose of building a sound-alike pedal of the Vox AC-30 with Top Boost amplifier. 1776 Effects developed the printed circuit board(PCB) to match the schematic developed by ROG.

Thermionic Studios has purchased this PCB and sourced the parts necessary to build this pedal. We are in the process of building the pedal and will have more to report upon completion.

Thermionic Studios has one(1) Britannia. When we finish assembling it, it will be available for rental

Controls

Image from Runoff Groove Britannia page
Note Bass & Treble controls are mislabeled.
  • Knob 1 - "Brilliance": Sets the amount of treble after the preamp section, increasing treble as control is turned clockwise.
  • Knob 2 - "Volume": This knob sets the output level of the pedal with the total volume increasing as the control is turned clockwise.
  • Knob 3 - "Treble": Works like an AC/30 amp by boosting treble and upper midrange while cutting bass as the knob is turned clockwise.
  • Knob 4 - "Gain": Sets the amount of overdrive in the preamp section, increasing the gain as the knob is turned clockwise.
  • Knob 5 - "Bass": Sets the amount of bass frequencies in the signal with most bass available when control is fully clockwise.
  • Footswitch 1 - "On/Off": This switch toggles the effect between "off" (bypass) and "on" (active).

Bypass: True

The Brittania is a true bypass pedal.

General Information

http://1776effects.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Britannia-BOM.pdf

The Britannia can be powered by a 9-volt battery, or a tip-negative Boss-style 9-volt power adapter. The transistors must be biased correctly for this pedal, sound-wise, to sound as accurate as possible to an actual Vox AC/30 amplifier.

Pedal Manual

As of this time, 1776 Effects has not issued a separate manual on how to use the pedal. The best references are either this wiki page, the entry on the Runoff Groove website, or the build manual from 1776 Effects which describes the architecture of the pedal.

Runoff Groove offers the following advice when attempting to use the Britannia with a treble booster:

If you would like to use a treble booster at the input of Britannia like Brian May did into the AC-30 Normal channel, we recommend that you start with the following configuration: set the Bass control at maximum, the Treble control at minimum, and the Brilliance control at noon; adjust the Gain control as desired, and then fine-tune the sound to your liking with the Bass, Treble and Brilliance controls. Use of a flat or full frequency booster in front of Britannia will also produce some interesting sounds.

Build Details

In the instance where this is a pedal built by Thermionic Studios, provide the specifics of the build in this section here. In the instance of a production pedal, either post an image of the completed PCB of the production in the enclosure, or remove this page section entirely.

JMKPCBs Testing Rig PCB
Item Value
PCB Creator (PCB Creator)
PCB Dimensions length X width (metric)
length x width (SAE)
Enclosure Size Hammond 1590(!!)/1550(!!)
Enclosure Orientation Portrait / Landscape
Power Adapter 9 volts, Standard Boss "barrel-negative" supply
9-volt battery snap available
Power Consumption 'XXX' milliamps

Phase Inversion: Yes

From our examination of the schematic below, the Britannia appears to invert phase on the output as compared with the signal that goes into the pedal.

Schematic ID Electronic Part Action Phase State
Q1 2N5457 Inverts Inverted
Q2 J201 Inverts Reverted
Q3 2N5088 Does not Invert Reverted
Q4 J201 Inverts Inverted
IC1a TL072 Does not Invert Inverted
IC1b TL072 Does not Invert Inverted

This will need to be borne out by testing and observation.

Schematic

© Copyright 2013, runoffgroove.com

Artists

We are currently unaware of any artists actively using the pedal now, or who have in the past.


Additional Sources
  1. http://www.runoffgroove.com/britannia.html