T.M.K.

 by gaussmarkov

T.M.K. Layout

T.M.K. stands for “too many knobs.” :D Designed by Tim Escobedo, this circuit can produce a wide range of fuzzy sounds. There is a good sound clip on his site. Here’s Tim’s list of what the pots do (following the numbering on my version of the schematic):

    pot 1: feedback
    pot 2: input impedance
    pot 3: gain/color
    pot 4: crossover distortion
    pot 5: octave/fundamental blend
    pot 6: volume

At the time, I was trying out some features in this layout suggested by Chris Gregory, Mark Hammer, and Jim Rayden: ground fill, wider traces, and identifying text. And Chris Gregory <stobiepole@gmail.com> kindly wrote to say that he has verified this layout. His build is shown above.


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6 Responses to “T.M.K.”

  1. Mitch said:

    I think i might try and build this pedal, i was listening to the sound clips of it and it sounds pretty good!

    Posted 12.07.2008 at 5:58 pm

  2. Dustin said:

    Where did you find a 300K ohm Pot? Everywhere I’ve looked they it jumps from 250K to 500K. Would it work correctly using another 250K for the volume pot, or would it be more loud or quiet or just messed up?

    Posted 11.11.2008 at 10:51 pm

  3. Jared said:

    The sound clips are great. This is a fun sounding pedal. Are all the pots linear or audio? I was also wondering the same thing as Dustin, can a 300K pot be replaced with a more common 250K?
    Thanks – Great website.

    Posted 19.05.2009 at 9:58 pm

  4. gaussmarkov said:

    hi, i’m pretty slow responding aren’t i? in july, things will improve.

    all the pots can be linear or audio. stobiepole used linear in the pictured build, except for the final volume pot.

    a 250K will work and so will a 500K. besides controlling volume, the pot works with the final capacitor as a high pass filter. so the choice does affect the tone.

    you could also add a 47K resistor on one side or the other to reproduce Escobedo’s values for most of the throw of the pot.

    cheers, gm

    Posted 20.05.2009 at 5:43 am

  5. dead beat said:

    Hi !!
    Can we use others diodes ?? Should it work or not ?

    Posted 23.12.2009 at 11:26 am

  6. gaussmarkov said:

    dead beat,

    no you cannot use just any other diode and get the same sound.

    all the best, gaussmarkov

    Posted 28.12.2009 at 10:37 am



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