RMA Tetanus Booster

[crochambeau]

Based on that, I think I should just start offering them again as standard. Pushing someone over to the dark side is always worth it.

It works well as an all purpose dirty preamp. I've used in on microphones.

The core is based on an early 1970s "budget" (transformerless) microphone preamp circuit, so that comes as no surprise. I've thought about sticking several into a box and calling it a mixer, but that's another rabbit hole.

Yours is definitely pre-HG. The high gain experiments were relatively recent, I prefer the standard gain myself, as it has more than enough boost to keep up/compensate and a lower noise floor.

[lordgalvar]

The standard gain is great. Really improves on my beta lead base I've got going; the gain is much better and responsive from the tetanus. I know people like the beta lead, but i find the distortion very muddy, dark, and a dynamic void. Tetanus really opens it up. It sounded great with bass into my sorado too (which is a kind of strange sounding amp to me...but that's another deal).

Be curious to try the high gain someday. I think I am going to tear into my old Sovtek and finally fix it and recap it (might as wewelwhile it is open) to see if there is still magic. Tetanus should post that amp over the edge and hopefully open the sound up a bit.

The mixer thing: I was thinking the same thing. I need to try to do more tests with it as a recording preamp (why not? Not like I could play pretty if I wanted to). It really worked well as a mic preamp for feedback and vocal carrier oscillator because of the amount of gain (and adding a bit of grit and sustain). Just a useful dirt and overall utility pedal.

[crochambeau]

Be curious to try the high gain someday.

There's a crazy cheap one in BST right now, I'm probably killing the HG off for the CGs, since I'm no longer at roughly equal cost with a dual gang in the "master volume" position (to correct the high noise floor), may as well add even more versatility with the SG/HG switch since I needed to add expense anyway..

I'd love to see some gutshot of the Sovtek! I really missed the boat on those, had my head in the realm of surf when they were super cheap.

[lordgalvar]

It was my first real amp. I got it for 200 in 2003 or 4 from a guy that "upgraded" to a kustom (his words). He immediately wanted it back and tried to trade me a Randall for it haha. Will bump the Sovtek thread in general when I bust it open. There was a bunch of sunns at the same shop at the time for 500-1100 for the full setup...but that was way too much for me back then...I should've bought those haha (missed that boat).

CG is cool too. Tetanus is something I can see have a few around just for the utility. Great stuff!

[crochambeau]

The main problem with the CG & HG in terms of utility is that I nuke the unity buffer section and stick in a PNP boost section in that spot, so supporting multiple outputs (the main utility function in my opinion) isn't really viable. Plus I think the SG delivers about as much voltage amplification as available with the power supply, so all you really gain with the HG mode is bite.

[lordgalvar]

The splitting isn't the only utility though. They do work to goose an amp or feedback a microphone in a pinch. Plus they have enough gain to cut though a dense feedback loop. Utility as in preamp pocket knife!

[crochambeau]

This circuit has seen some refinement in the past two years:



I'm bumping this thread because I have a couple built and ready to go here: https://reverb.com/shop/rochambeau-musical-apparatus

[ibarakishi]

just wanted to say that after using the newest version of the Tetanus Booster for a few months now i can honestly say that this is a pedal that i don't see myself getting rid of ever. Have used it for recording, preparing live sets, ect. and absolutely love it. Until this point, only the infanem the driving notion was a pedal that i didn't want to ever be without and have been considering buying another one just incase it ever died. Now the TB is added to that list.

Really hoping curtis finishes and releases his mic preamp that he has talked about in the past because after getting to really know the TB, i can only imagine what his mic preamps will do to mic recordings. Heres to hoping they are released sooner rather than later. Really, really, really hoping hard for this one....

[crochambeau]

just wanted to say that after using the newest version of the Tetanus Booster for a few months now i can honestly say that this is a pedal that i don't see myself getting rid of ever. Have used it for recording, preparing live sets, ect. and absolutely love it. Until this point, only the infanem the driving notion was a pedal that i didn't want to ever be without and have been considering buying another one just incase it ever died. Now the TB is added to that list.

Really hoping curtis finishes and releases his mic preamp that he has talked about in the past because after getting to really know the TB, i can only imagine what his mic preamps will do to mic recordings. Heres to hoping they are released sooner rather than later. Really, really, really hoping hard for this one....

Good to hear!

Here's the status on the 918 Power Plant, I have the PCB drafted and ready for order (it has been this way for months):



The ongoing *delay* stems from what you can see at the lower left hand corner. Hefty bipolar power rails. It does not have to be +/- 24, but I think it should be above +9 cut in half unless it's going to just serve as a distortion generator (I haven't confirmed this, though I have some 918s around and they like to drink from the deeper well). So, in terms of meeting the form factor we all use around here I need to design a +9 to bipolar DC to DC converter that meets my criteria.

Put simply, I haven't gotten around to that stage yet.

That said, I do need to cut a PCB order soon and I'll stick these in the mix so I can have some "hard copy" to fuck around with. Thanks for the nudge!

[ibarakishi]

glad to hear its coming along, please keep us updated as you get things moving with it and continue testing. i would be really interested to test the prototype whenever you get to that stage with it