where can i get transistors for my wah pedal?

[Enzo]

I am with Steve here. What does your wah do wrong?

You mentioned your transistor doesn;t measure resistance. That is rather vague, but asssuming you mean there is a low resistance, you could be measuring other things in the circuit. A low value resistance or an inductor could look like a shorted transistor.

Or if you mean that a transistor looks open, that depends upon your meter offering enough voltage to turn on a semiconductor junction. Many do not. That is why the meter makers add a diode test function on most meters. it can be used to test transistors too - at least crudely.

Wah pedals that stop working, in my experoence, are more likely to need a new gear pot, or repair to broken wires, or a new inductor, before they need transistors.

[Tom F]

ok enzo my dad works with electronics and he tested the transistor; it had infinite power running through it meaning that its not working while the other was working fine. We also tested the gear pot which is what i first thought was wrong with it but it seemed to be working. I put a new fasel inductor in months ago and the wires look fine.

I tried to read what the transistor said on it, its got some symbol i can't make out then MPS A18.

[Enzo]

MPSA18 is a vey common transistor type. Mouser sells them for 9 cents each.

Several brands of them are in stock, it doesn;t matter which brand you chose, they are all MPSA18, so go with the least expensive.

mpsa18


it is an American type, which means EBC across the front. All the MPS-types are EBC as are all the 2Nxxxx types.

[Tom F]

well i was thinking of getting a different kind of transistor just for shits in giggles. What was in those early italian voxs?

[R.G.]

well i was thinking of getting a different kind of transistor just for shits in giggles. What was in those early italian voxs?

Today's music scene has convinced even the non-technical guy that an effect which has had the guru-of-the-day's mods put into it must be better somehow, and that therefore, by extension, anything modded must be better. The guys who take money for making changes to effects quite naturally are happy to let this go along unchallenged.

It's what you might call by the acronym BUMS - Blind Urge to Mod Syndrome - and it manifests as a surety that different must somehow be better.

There is really very little difference between one NPN silicon amplifier transistor and another for low-frequency audio. This is one of the things that led to Keen's Second Law: When in doubt, whip in a 2N5088.

Quite a lot of circuits are designed to deliberately make the transistor specifics not matter much. And in the Vox wah, there is a very broad range of NPN silicon signal transistors which work almost indistinguishably.

Which the mods-sellers think is OK, too. If changing transistors almost always works, it's hard to mess up too bad.

[Tom F]

lol RG i think i have this sickness you are talking about, thanks for pointing this out ill just go with the stock transistors. thanks everyone who helped you guys are awesome.

[Tom F]

ok the only type of transistor i was able to get was a 2N2222 silicon npn type switching transistor. will this work in my wah pedal?

[Robert M. Martinelli]

Yes, 2N2222s will work, even though they're general purpose switching transistors, and not small-signal ones. As already ( and wisely ) pointed out, there is a wide range of NPN Si BJTs that will work.

Just for the record, some "Italian made" Vox Wahs had BC109Cs, some others had 2N5232As.

FWIW in my builds I have used BC109Cs, 2N4104s, 2N5210s, and even the Japanese 2SC1815s. All these are small-signal, low-noise Si NPN BJTs, and they all work very well in Wahs IMHO.

Cheers

Bob

[Enzo]

Yep, just make sure to keep the legs organised.

[Tom F]

transistors for wah

I got some silicon npn type switching transistors. They are 2n222. Would these work as the new transistors in my vox wah pedal?

[Mark Hammer]

I got some silicon npn type switching transistors. They are 2n222. Would these work as the new transistors in my vox wah pedal?

Quite probably. However, you may have to diddle with an emitter resistor to adjust the gain. No big whoop, though.