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PROJECT NAME
CORVUS
BASED ON
EHX
Big Muff
®
®
EFFECT TYPE
Fuzz / Distortion
PROJECT SUMMARY
The 1978 redesign of the classic Big Muff Pi, using op-amps instead of transistors. Famously used by
Billy Corgan on the Smashing Pumpkins album Siamese Dream.
This documentation is for the kit version of the project. If you purchased the PCB by itself, please
use the
PCB-only version
are completely different due to the specialized parts and assembly methods used in the kit.
CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER
Pi (1978 Op-Amp)
VOLUME
TONE BYPASS
CORVUS
DISTORTION SUSTAIN ER
of the documentation instead. The circuit is the same, but the instructions
BUILD DIFFICULTY
DOCUMENT VERSION
1.0.1 (2024-08-08)
9V
TONE
SUSTAIN
IMPORTANT NOTE
Easy
1
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Table of Contents
Related Manuals for aion CORVUS
Summary of Contents for aion CORVUS
- Page 1 This documentation is for the kit version of the project. If you purchased the PCB by itself, please use the PCB-only version of the documentation instead. The circuit is the same, but the instructions are completely different due to the specialized parts and assembly methods used in the kit. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER...
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Page 2: Table Of Contents
19 Enclosure Layout: Panel Mounts (Cont.) 20 Enclosure Layout: Main & Footswitch PCBs 21 Enclosure Layout: Input/Output PCB 22 Final Testing & Assembly 23 Schematic 24 Full Parts List 25 Troubleshooting Information 26 Support & Resale Terms 27 Legal Information & Document Revisions CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 3: Introduction
INTRODUCTION If this is your first pedal, welcome to the hobby and thank you for choosing Aion FX. You’ve just joined a community of over 100,000 people around the world with a passion for building homemade noise machines using obsolete electronics technology, and we’re glad to have you! If you’ve done this before, it’s great to see you again and we’re confident you’ll find this build experience... -
Page 4: Packing List
100n (0.1 or “µ1J100”) 120n (0.12) 150n (0.15) Electrolytic Capacitors NAME 100k 220k 10uF 330k 47uF 470k 100uF 560k MLCC Capacitors 820k NAME 330pF (marked “331”) 100n (marked “104”) Diodes ICs & Sockets NAME NAME 1N5817 1N914 RC4558P LM741 8-pin socket CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... - Page 5 4-strand wire assembly, 108mm DC jack 3-pin wire assembly header Input/output jack 4-pin wire assembly header Mounting nut, jack, 0.54" Outer washer, jack, 0.6" Lock washer, jack, 0.5" (thin) Enclosure Enclosure screws PCB, main circuit PCB, footswitch PCB, input/output/DC CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER...
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Page 6: Tools Needed
The tip should used to tighten the dress nut to avoid lot of pedals! be no more than 0.1” (2.5mm) wide. scratching or denting it (which can happen with metal tools). CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 7: Component Identification
Some voltage regulators It’s recommended to use a also look like this. They may also look like this. razor blade to separate have more than 8 legs. these cleanly. WIRE ASSEMBLY WIRE ASSEMBLY HEADER DC JACK LED BEZEL CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 8: Hardware Identification
TOGGLE SWITCH MOUNTING NUT DRESS NUT LOCK WASHER DIAMETER: 0.36” / 9.1mm DIAMETER: 0.375” / 9.5mm DIAMETER: 0.4” / 10.1mm FOOTSWITCH MOUNTING NUT DRESS NUT LOCK WASHER DIAMETER: 0.6” / 15.2mm DIAMETER: 0.77” / 19.6mm DIAMETER: 0.6” / 15.2mm CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 9: Pcb Assembly Overview
6. Transistors 7. Electrolytic capacitors Not all of these component types are included in each kit, so skip them if they aren’t applicable. Some types of film capacitors are taller than electrolytics, so those can be done last. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 10: Resistors
You’ll use this same technique for most of the other components as well. If this is your first time soldering, watch tutorial videos on YouTube and make sure you get it down before you begin. You don’t want to practice or experiment on this board! CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 11: Diodes
1N914 1N914 1N914 1N914 1N914 Next, you’ll populate the diodes. Diodes are polarized, so make sure to identify the polarity band (which indicates the “cathode”, or negative side) and match the band to the footprint on the PCB. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... - Page 12 ICs may have two different orientation marks: either a dot in the upper-left or a half-circle notch in the middle of the top side. Some ICs have both marks. This shows which way the IC should be rotated when inserting it into a socket. The socket also has a half-circle notch to indicate the orientation. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER...
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Page 13: Capacitors (Non-Polarized)
C9 is usually red, but may read “µ1J100” on the top rather than the side. C20 (100n MLCC) is always yellow. It can be hard to read the code since it’s so small, so it’s easier to identify this one by color. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 14: Wire Headers
They do fit pretty tightly in the holes, though, so press firmly. There’s also a 4-pin header on the I/O board that we will do in a later step. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 15: Capacitors (Polarized)
(i.e. they will only work in one direction), so note the vertical mark that indicates the negative side. The longer leg is positive and fits in the square pad. These are the last of the on-board components. Now is the time to go back to page 12 and insert the IC into the socket. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 16: Footswitch Pcb
BLUE MARKING Once all three wire assemblies are soldered, set the footswitch PCB aside. We’ll solder the actual footswitch and LED in a later step. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 17: Input/Output Pcb
Red is positive (+), black is negative (-). After soldering, pull it tight. For even more strain relief, you can thread the snap through the loop to form a knot. (not shown) CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 18: Enclosure Layout: Panel Mounts
You’ll need to hold the bezel in place when OUTER WASHER tightening the nut. The top of the bezel is fairly MOUNTING NUT sharp, so try using a rubber band for grip instead of pressing your finger against the bottom. CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 19: Enclosure Layout: Panel Mounts (Cont.)
MOUNTING NUT LOCK WASHER BEZEL MOUNTING NUT & LED The dress nut acts as a mounting nut, unlike the footswitch dress nut. Use flat- nose pliers on the flat sides of the nut to tighten securely. FOOTSWITCH 125B CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 20: Enclosure Layout: Main & Footswitch Pcbs
However, Aion FX projects are designed to be extremely easy to remove from the enclosure for troubleshooting, with no desoldering required—so with these kits, it’s actually much easier to “box it before you rock it”. -
Page 21: Enclosure Layout: Input/Output Pcb
Note the use of two mounting nuts on each of the jacks, one inside and one outside. The inner nut acts as a spacer to set the DC jack flush with the outside of the enclosure. The inner nuts should be threaded as far down as they can go. MOUNTING NUT OUTER WASHER LOCK WASHER MOUNTING NUT 125B CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 22: Final Testing & Assembly
Be careful not to over-tighten or you may damage the set screw. But if it’s not tight enough, the knob will be more likely to fall off or lose its alignment with the markings on the enclosure. Last, just close the panel on the back using the four screws. That’s it! CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 23: Schematic
SCHEMATIC 1N5817 100uF 100n 47uF 47uF LM741 560k IC1A IC1B RC4558P TONE_BYP RC4558P 330pF 330k 120n 470k 10uF CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 24: Full Parts List
VALUE PART VALUE PART VALUE 150n 150n 330pF 47uF 47uF 10uF 100n 100uF 10uF 120n 100n Potentiometers Switches PART VALUE PART VALUE PART RC4558P Sustain 10kB SPDT on-on LM741 Tone 10kB 3PDT stomp DIP-8 sockets (2) Volume 100kA CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... -
Page 25: Troubleshooting Information
Note that IC pins are labeled counter-clockwise from the upper-left, as shown in the diagram to the right. VOLTAGE VOLTAGE 4.52 4.58 4.99 4.58 4.96 (falling) 4.52 4.54 5.01 4.50 9.18 9.18 CORVUS DISTORTION/SUSTAINER... - Page 26 “goop” the PCB or otherwise obscure the source. In other words: you don’t have to go out of your way to advertise the fact that you use Aion FX kits, but please don’t go out of your way to hide it.
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Page 27: Legal Information
These kits are intended to be built by the customer. Aion FX is not responsible for language that may be used by the customer in the marketing or resale of the finished product.
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