Homemade pedal board ?'s

You could get one of the premade ones now available at Musician's Friend and other places.

I think it's more fun to put one together for youself though.

First, even though you're not gigging at the moment, think about having a case anyhow. What I would do is go to a Goodwill type store (where they sell used, non-vintage stuff for cheap), and find an old suitcase or similar piece of luggage. You can sorta envision if all your pedals would fit in the bottom of the case, or if not, before you go to the store, lay them out on the floor just so you can see how much room they'd actually take. Doesn't have to be exact; just say for instance, you'd want to have any volume or wah pedals near the edge closest to you, and the others arranged with an inch or so between them to allow for the connecting cables/plugs. You should also think about raising the back row of pedals to make it easier to hit the switches. This can be easily done with a 'riser' made of 2x4" wood. Don't forget to allow for a powerstrip for your adapters.

Then find a used suitcase that has a floor which would contain that same area, and get it. The more beatup looking, the better ;)

Then go to a lumber/home improvement store and get a piece of marine plywood that would be able to sit comfortably in the bottom of your suitcase. At this point, since you have the case, you can take exact measurements if you want. 3/4" I've found is pretty sturdy. Plywood I think is best because it has the grain of various layers going different ways so it's less likely to warp.

Some places you can get the guy to cut it for you. It really doesn't need finishing, but you can sand any sharp wood edges down yourself. Also get some 2x4" pieces for your back row riser.

Then you can get a bunch of Velcro (hook and loop) and start attaching your pedals that way. I've found that 1/4" wide strips of brass - from hobby stores - can be used to make nice straps or 'tabs' that then attach to the bottom-plate screws of most pedals (and then into the board), or bent to shape to go over the top of other pedals. It's different for each, but I like the brass/woodscrew because it's really solid feeling.

Arrangement of pedals: Generally speaking, you put the 'filter' type effects before the distortion type effects. Filters, to me are things like wah pedal, phaser, chorus, graphic EQ - where the clean sound of the guitar is being passed through a frequency filter of some kind. The distortion type is self explanatory - fuzzes, overdrives (I use both together sometimes), and anything that clips the signal and gets it nasty sounding.

You can experiment (before attaching anything to the board), but it just seems that when distortion is in the signal chain before filters, the sound is nasal and not very creamy. The other way around sound pretty nice.

You can then either make up your own patch cords from shielded wire and 1/4" plugs or buy a set of premade ones. For me, pedals of the same manufacturer, or that have their in/out jacks in the same place so they'd line up, I just get two 1/4" angle plugs, take the covers off them, solder a wire from tip-to-tip, and then close the two backless plugs together and use the same screws to connect them. No shielded wire at all; direct connection. It saves a bit of space between pedals, and if you have a lot of pedals, you can cram a whole bunch close together like that.

Other pedals, which don't have their in/out jacks aligned, you can use or make regular patch cables.

There was one point where, because of always having the plugs/jacks getting oxidized and losing connection, I was considering just soldering wires directly between the pedals, but I never got to do it. Then I was told about DeOxit, and...no problems since.

The only other thing really, after you've figured out the best arrangement of pedals and gotten everything connected and mounted to the board, is to do the powerstrip and your adapters. That's the messy part because there's all these different adapters hanging off the thing. There's a few really good AC powering units out on the market which can power 9 and 18 volt effects with no problem, and it's a single unit so it takes up less room and isn't as spaghetti looking.

And when you finally do have to go to a gig or some other rehearsal hall, you'll already have a 'custom made' case for the pedalboard (because you'll have made the board to 'custom fit' the case). You can also throw spare cables and guitar stands and stuff in there and be able to walk in with amp, case and guitar and be ready to go in 8 minutes.

Oh, forgot to mention those inexpensive screw-on rubber feet you can get at those same home improvement stores. They work great on the bottom of your board to keep things from slipping around; gives it a nice solid shock-absorbed feel when you stomp a pedal.

Hey DemoEtc, thanx for all the good tips re making a board. Getting something here takes alot longer than it does in the U.S.A. esp with shipping ,duties etc, (still waiting for my EVJ head ordered in June).Originally thought a case wasn't necessary but your plan makes it way simple. Am now on the lookout for an old suitcase or whatever. Will keep all your suggestions in mind when building and also try the effects order out before attaching anything. I hear you saying that the still to arrive Tube Overdrive should be after the Eq in the chain to give that creamy tone. Anyway thanx for taking the time for a long reply.
Robbie

Robbie, you have got to be kidding about that EVJ head. Order one from Musiciansfriend and I bet it will get there really quickly. They ship to Canada now. Then, when you finally get that one you ordered locally, you can hook up a stereo effects set-up. That is just poor customer service from the local dealer. They may be great people, but 5 months waiting on that head is WRONG!