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PROJECT NAME
AURORA
BASED ON
Ross Compressor / MXR
EFFECT TYPE
Compressor / Sustainer
PROJECT SUMMARY
The original guitar compressor, still a favorite of guitarists after over 40 years. The Aurora makes several
improvements to the original circuit as well as adding a few new features.
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.
AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER
Dyna Comp
®
AURORA
IMPORTANT NOTE
of the documentation instead. The circuit is the same, but the instructions
BUILD DIFFICULTY
Intermediate
®
DOCUMENT VERSION
1.0.1 (2024-08-08)
1
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Summary of Contents for aion AURORA
- Page 1 Compressor / Sustainer 1.0.1 (2024-08-08) PROJECT SUMMARY The original guitar compressor, still a favorite of guitarists after over 40 years. The Aurora makes several improvements to the original circuit as well as adding a few new features. AURORA IMPORTANT NOTE This documentation is for the kit version of the project.
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Page 2: Table Of Contents
21 Enclosure Layout: Panel Mounts (Cont.) 22 Enclosure Layout: Main & Footswitch PCBs 23 Enclosure Layout: Input/Output PCB 24 Final Testing & Assembly 25 Schematic 26 Full Parts List 27 Troubleshooting Information 28 Support & Resale Terms 29 Legal Information & Document Revisions AURORA COMPRESSOR/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”) Electrolytic Capacitors 150k NAME 220k 390k 470k 10uF 47uF 100uF Diodes MLCC Capacitors NAME NAME 1N5817 150pF 1N914 180pF 330pF Transistors 820pF NAME 100n (marked “104”) 2N5088 IC & Sockets NAME LM13700 or NE5517 8-pin socket AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... - Page 5 9V battery snap 3-pin wire assembly header DC jack 4-pin wire assembly header Input/output jack 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 AURORA COMPRESSOR/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). AURORA COMPRESSOR/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 AURORA COMPRESSOR/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 AURORA COMPRESSOR/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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/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! AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 11: Diodes
PART VALUE 1N5817 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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 12: Ic & Sockets
LM13700 or NE5517 Next up are the IC sockets. The Aurora uses one 16-pin IC, but there are two 8-pin sockets. Install them as shown in the diagram above. You can’t bend the leads of a socket like you can with the other components, so it won’t stay in on its own until it is soldered. -
Page 13: Trimmer
The default position is all the way down. If you experience any clipping, turn it up until the clipping goes away. This gradually reduces the input signal in order to keep from overloading the compressor IC. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 14: Transistors
Since these are just used as buffers and don’t need to be selected for gain, sockets are not necessary. You can just solder them directly to the board. Bend the outer leads to hold it in place on the board. Then, solder them and clip the leads. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 15: Capacitors (Non-Polarized)
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. CX1 is not used in this kit and should be left empty on the PCB. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 16: 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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 17: 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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 18: 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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 19: 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) AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 20: 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. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 21: 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 AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 22: 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 23: 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 AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 24: 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! AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 25: Schematic
SCHEMATIC IC1A LM13700N IC1_BUF1 IC1_BUF2 1N5817 LM13700N LM13700N 100uF 47uF 100n GND GND TREBLE 2N5088 2N5088 180pF 820pF 330pF 100n 2N5088 INPUT 100K IC1B 2N5088 2N5088 LM13700N 2N5088 10uF SUSTAIN 500KC 150pF GND GND GND GNDGND AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 26: Full Parts List
VALUE PART VALUE PART VALUE PART LM13700 or 2N5088 Sustain 500kC SPDT on-off-on NE5517 2N5088 Attack 250kC 3PDT stomp IC1SA DIP-8 socket 2N5088 Volume 50kA IC1SB DIP-8 socket 2N5088 Attack is labeled “Release” on the enclosure. 2N5088 2N5088 AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 27: Troubleshooting Information
Note: The pins not listed for IC1 do not have any electrical connection to the rest of the circuit and do not need to be tested. Measurements were taken with Sustain knob all the way up and Attack all the way down, which affects the voltage slightly. AURORA COMPRESSOR/SUSTAINER... -
Page 28: Where To Get Help
“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. -
Page 29: 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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