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Yamaha NE-1 mods


Silent Fly
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Hello everybody,

I recently purchased a [url="http://www.yamaha.com/guitars/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=60151"]Yamaha NE-1[/url]. It is a great little pedal but quite frankly I found the majority of the sounds not very musical. Event the Nathan East favourite setting (deep, freq=4) sounds like the bass is played in a box.

I worked at some mods you may find interesting.

First I added an external power supply connector. I don't like batteries. They have a limited lifespan and they are ecologic bombs.

Secondly I removed C6. In this way the volume doesn’t change between flat, deep and shallow.

Third, I added a double pole 3 position switch (on-off-on). In position 1, the NE-1 operates normally. In positions 2, C5 and C7 are removed from the circuit; the NE-1 operates as a variable LP filter. In position 3, the NE-1 has two new more subtle (and usable) sounds for shallow and deep.

It also changed the stock IC (JRC062) with something more hi-fi.

The NE-1 is a much more usable pedal now. With my Fender Jazz it can go from super-slap sounds (Marcus Miller tone), to nice Jaco-like tones, to a more deep sounds.

I hope you'll find this interesting.

[attachment=31700:yamaha_ne_1__mods_.gif]

Edited by Silent Fly
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[quote name='dood' post='583599' date='Aug 28 2009, 02:46 PM']Now this is the kinda stuff I like to see! Yes, I do find it interesting! - What was your choice of IC? 5532 or similar?[/quote]
Thanks Dood for your encouraging words.

The IC type doesn't make a huge difference. Apart from some applications, I am not a big fan of the TL07x family. That’s why I changed it. Considering the pain of de-soldering the JRC062 I am not entirely convinced it is worth the effort. The NE5532 is a good choice. TLC2262, OPA2227 or LM4262 are also good op-amps that would work fine. If the IC needs more current it might be better reducing R5 and R6 and increasing C4.

If you plan to build one, instead of SW1 and SW2, I would recommend a single rotary 6 positions switch. 4 positions with 1 capacitor each (one for every filter depth), one position open (low-pass) and one closed (flat).

As general note, some people may find the similarities between [url="http://hem.passagen.se/robin2/effects.htm"]Robin Tomtlund-Edman[/url]'s [url="http://hem.passagen.se/robin2/im/fjbamp.gif"]Fender JB Special preamp[/url] and the Yamaha NE-1 intriguing...

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[quote name='Silent Fly' post='583663' date='Aug 28 2009, 03:48 PM']Thanks Dood for your encouraging words.

The IC type doesn't make a huge difference. Apart from some applications, I am not a big fan of the TL07x family. That’s why I changed it. Considering the pain of de-soldering the JRC062 I am not entirely convinced it is worth the effort. The NE5532 is a good choice. TLC2262, OPA2227 or LM4262 are also good op-amps that would work fine. If the IC needs more current it might be better reducing R5 and R6 and increasing C4.

If you plan to build one, instead of SW1 and SW2, I would recommend a single rotary 6 positions switch. 4 positions with 1 capacitor each (one for every filter depth), one position open (low-pass) and one closed (flat).

As general note, some people may find the similarities between [url="http://hem.passagen.se/robin2/effects.htm"]Robin Tomtlund-Edman[/url]'s [url="http://hem.passagen.se/robin2/im/fjbamp.gif"]Fender JB Special preamp[/url] and the Yamaha NE-1 intriguing...[/quote]


Fantastic! Thanks! - interestingly, I have the Power Jazz Bass Special with the 'notch filter' preamp in - I hadn't found a schematic diagram for the original - but this has obviously sparked intrigue!

I've already fitted a full bypass switch, so that should the preamp go down I could flip to 'passive' mode.. Not that I actually use the bass in any live situation - it's just a bass I have wanted since -well.. the PJBS was the first bass I ever wanted - my dream bass. Anyway, I digress - the preamp 'idea' is really cool and I could get some really awesome useable tones out of it - but it, to me, needed a bypass switch, so that you could still make use of the active circuit's tone improment, without the notch being added.

[edit] hmm.. I cant actually remember what the settings of the toggle switch are now - so I may even be talking complete rubbish!!

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