EH Small Stone on the fritz...

[kid sergio]

Hi

I have a version 4 Small Stone that is giving me some headaches. The pedal sounds fine, but the rate knob has an issue.

When the pedal is engaged, the rate knob doesn't affect the rate from minimum until about 12 o'clock. From 12 o'clock until max, the knob works like normal - the rate climbs as it gets turned up. Any setting from min to 12 o'clock just sound like it is set at 12 o'clock.

Could anyone a little more electronics-savvy help a guy out? I am going to try to change out the pot just to see if that can be a quick fix. I've read that a 1 meg log pot will work for the small stone; if not, please feel free to correct me.

Thanks in advance.

[Jazz Noise]

You're probably running it on a battery. When the voltage of the battery drops it not only affects the output but the LFO which uses VCC as a voltage reference - the lower the voltage, the faster the LFO. This means with low power it simply can't do low speeds.

I recommend swapping out the generic power supply adaptor with a normal DC adaptor so you can use it properly. Just swap the red for the black!

[kid sergio]

I have only been using an external power supply for this, the EH power supply with the 1/8" power jack. I tried using batteries once this problem started, but that didn't change anything.

Perhaps the power supply is dying?

[Jazz Noise]

Maybe. It definitely sounds like the problem I had with dodgy DC.

Check the voltage across the output of the Power Supply with a Multimeter. Then check to make sure that there's 9volts between the power and ground on the board. After that check that the resistor is working within its spec and check what the voltage drop across it is at various points in its sweep.