Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

[ratherdashing]

I am the current owner of a Danelectro Dan-Echo that is essentially the village bicycle of forum delay pedals. It came to me from BigAlTheBird, who acquired it from B2D, who probably gigged with it more than a few times I would guess. I really dig the analog-like feel of the thing, and for a simple delay it's very useful.

Unfortunately, Danelectro cut a few corners building this thing, the most disappointing of which are the PC-mounted plastic input and output jacks. They are both fairly loose, which is not surprising.

Yesterday in rehearsal my sound started cutting out like a connection was being broken and restored. I immediately suspected the Dan-Echo and removed it from the pedal chain in mid song. Sure enough, everything was fine after that. When I got home, I opened the pedal up and found that both the input and output jacks were literally falling apart.

* DISCLAIMER: I in no way blame Bi GAl or Brenda for the problems I have had. I place 100% of the blame on Danelectro for using such craptacular jacks.

ANOTHER DISCLAIMER: This is one of the big Danelectro pedals with metal enclosures, not the puny widdle mini pedals you often see.

Anyway, long story short: I think I can fix this thing. It looks to me like the input jack is stereo (to defeat the battery when unplugged) and the output jack is mono. My plan is to de-solder the broken jacks and replace them with something more robust. The only difficulty is that the shape of the pedal means it is somewhat difficult to swap out components willy-nilly. I could probably get a couple more pc-mounted jacks, but I don't want to go through this all over again a year from now. If I can fit some standard Switchcrafts in there I will do so, but I am not confident they will fit.

The other option is to gut the pedal, buy a generic aluminum enclosure, some pots, jacks and a switch, and mount the Dan-Echo's pc boards in there. That's a pretty big undertaking though, and I would probably just buy a different pedal rather than go through that.

What would you do if you were me? It's a nice sounding pedal, it's just not put together very well.

 

[LoFiBrian]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Mine has the same issues...any help would appreciated guys...

 

[millsart]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

being a digital pedal with IC's and probably a really cheap board, it would be rather tough and time consuming to even trace where the problem lies.

Unless your handy at electronics repairs yourself, the bench time for a tech to even look at it would exceed the value of the thing.

I'd sell it cheap to someone who wants to take a shot of trying to fix it and just pick up a new one or used one on ebay. They are common and cheap.

 

[BigAlTheBird]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Sorry matt!

 

[BigAlTheBird]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

To answer the question, can you replace the jacks easily, and keep everything else? I never had one problem with it, but then again it never left my bedroom floor. I can't imagine the plastic jacks are too great.

 

[B2D]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

LOL oh wow so that's where my old Dan-Echo ended up. I bought that thing back in late 1998 or so!

If you can't fit better jacks into the enclosure then I'd probably just sell it as a fixer-upper and get a new delay pedal. Or get another Dan-Echo; they can be had for REALLY cheap.

 

[Sludgenutz]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

The jacks might not be the actual problem. Often, its a loose solder connection between the pc board and the jacks. Loose connections plauge all manner of electronic gear, where physical demands are not isolated from the PC board.

I would simlpy put some fresh rosin flux on all suspect solder points, and reheat them.

Also, before that is done, get that PC board into some bright light, and inspect the PC board traces and solder pads. They are often the weakest portion of the joint. The worst case is the when copper solder pads pop off the PC board itself. Rocking the jacks a little, while examining the joints (with a magnifying glass) can reveal tiny shadows where the PC board is damaged at the solder pads.

 

[BigAlTheBird]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Yeah Bren, if I didn't have to sell it I wouldn't have. Boy I loved that pedal!

Really sorry it busted Matt, I know it's not my 'fault' but I still feel terrible about that.

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

being a digital pedal with IC's and probably a really cheap board, it would be rather tough and time consuming to even trace where the problem lies.

Unless your handy at electronics repairs yourself, the bench time for a tech to even look at it would exceed the value of the thing.

I'd sell it cheap to someone who wants to take a shot of trying to fix it and just pick up a new one or used one on ebay. They are common and cheap.

If you saw the state of this pedal, you would know immediately that the problem is the jacks themselves. As I said, they are literally coming apart. Plugs just slip right out of them if gravity/friction is not holding them in. I am quite handy with electronics, and I would consider replacing these jacks to be a pretty easy job: de-solder, replace, solder, done.

LOL oh wow so that's where my old Dan-Echo ended up. I bought that thing back in late 1998 or so!

If you can't fit better jacks into the enclosure then I'd probably just sell it as a fixer-upper and get a new delay pedal. Or get another Dan-Echo; they can be had for REALLY cheap.

Agreed.

Out of curiosity, what do you use for delay right now?

The jacks might not be the actual problem. Often, its a loose solder connection between the pc board and the jacks. Loose connections plauge all manner of electronic gear, where physical demands are not isolated from the PC board.

I would simlpy put some fresh rosin flux on all suspect solder points, and reheat them.

Also, before that is done, get that PC board into some bright light, and inspect the PC board traces and solder pads. They are often the weakest portion of the joint. The worst case is the when copper solder pads pop off the PC board itself. Rocking the jacks a little, while examining the joints (with a magnifying glass) can reveal tiny shadows where the PC board is damaged at the solder pads.

As I said to millsart, it's definitely the jacks. Even if somehow I am wrong and there is another problem, these jacks need to be replaced regardless. 10 years of plugging and unplugging cables from them has made them quite sloppy.

Yeah Bren, if I didn't have to sell it I wouldn't have. Boy I loved that pedal!

Really sorry it busted Matt, I know it's not my 'fault' but I still feel terrible about that.

It's all good. Please don't feel bad. It probably would have happened to you if you had kept it. Not at all surprising given that it's 10 years old.

Tell you what: if I manage to get it fixed and decide not to keep it, I'd be glad to sell it back to you for less than what I paid. It is indeed a nice sounding pedal, and it deserves a good home. I'll let you know.

 

[BigAlTheBird]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

That's really nice of you! I just bought a car, and I'm in the process of paying for it. Or rather, I've paid for it, now I'm in the process of not spending more money.

But like a month from now I should be back 'on my feet' so to speak, and if I've got the money on hand I'll happily buy it back.

 

[millsart]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Even if it is just the jacks, the trouble is that if they are done in the typical mounting method to the board, its honeslty not that easy to desolder, so if youv'e got some experience doing it you could probably do it, but if you've never picked up an iron before, you'll have a rough time.

Its easy to desolder something like a pickup or pot, but when you've got to work with a circuit board and get that solder out, especially if its old, and not damage the copper traces or any other IC's from the heat, its another.

I've tried to replace jacks and pots a bunch of times and all too often the actual trace gets messed up which I only find after putting it back together. Then its a big waste of time and the cost of new pots.

Theres a couple on ebay right now for $25 and $35 respectively. Its going to cost more than $35 to have someone replace the faulty jacks is the point I'm trying to make.


Try it yourself first if you want to though, might be fun and even if you really screw it up, your not really out much

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Even if it is just the jacks, the trouble is that if they are done in the typical mounting method to the board, its honeslty not that easy to desolder, so if youv'e got some experience doing it you could probably do it, but if you've never picked up an iron before, you'll have a rough time.

Its easy to desolder something like a pickup or pot, but when you've got to work with a circuit board and get that solder out, especially if its old, and not damage the copper traces or any other IC's from the heat, its another.

I've tried to replace jacks and pots a bunch of times and all too often the actual trace gets messed up which I only find after putting it back together. Then its a big waste of time and the cost of new pots.

Theres a couple on ebay right now for $25 and $35 respectively. Its going to cost more than $35 to have someone replace the faulty jacks is the point I'm trying to make.


Try it yourself first if you want to though, might be fun and even if you really screw it up, your not really out much

I guess I'm not making myself clear. I am quite capable of doing the work myself. I have de-soldered components from PC boards many times. I wouldn't even consider doing this myself otherwise.

Additionally, it's important to note that on the Danelectro pedals, the jacks are mounted on their own PC board separate from the rest of the circuit. The mini board with jacks is attached to the main board with a 6 pin connector. I can't decide whether this design is clever or stupid, but the point is it will be impossible to damage any kind of semiconductor or other major component by de-soldering the jacks.

Worst case scenario, I'll be out about $4 for parts and an hour of my time, and still have a broken pedal.

 

[B Bent]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Solder some new jacks in there and quit whining!! :beerchug:

j/k buddy.....

I think this is an easy job to fix.

 

[B2D]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Out of curiosity, what do you use for delay right now?

A Boss DD-20 GigaDelay. I love it.

 

[LoFiBrian]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

This concerns me because at the current point my unit only craps out when its moved or stepped on too hard...

and my pedal board needs to be setup just right so the pedal is sideways because if the patch cable for the output is twisted over from my small stone it is a bunch of trouble...

I see the future as bleak for my Dan-Echo...which is sad because it is a great effect IMO.

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

I have a Fabtone distortion pedal that has a broken jack as well. Not much can be done to fix it IMHO. I've tried looking up replacement parts.

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

This concerns me because at the current point my unit only craps out when its moved or stepped on too hard...

and my pedal board needs to be setup just right so the pedal is sideways because if the patch cable for the output is twisted over from my small stone it is a bunch of trouble...

I see the future as bleak for my Dan-Echo...which is sad because it is a great effect IMO.

I have a Fabtone distortion pedal that has a broken jack as well. Not much can be done to fix it IMHO. I've tried looking up replacement parts.

I'll let you guys know if my attempts are successful. If so, maybe you'll be able to fix your pedals too using the same methods.

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

I'll let you guys know if my attempts are successful. If so, maybe you'll be able to fix your pedals too using the same methods.

That would be greatly appreciated RD. If I am not given a steady supply of work in the next coupla days I may do some more searching to see if I can find something for us both as well.

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Well, bad news ... there's no way I'm going to be able to fit case-mounted jacks in there. The design is actually stupid, because it means the jacks have to be sandwiched between two PC boards with less than 1 cm clearance. The only thing that can fit in there is another one of the crappy jacks that falls apart.

I also explored the possibility of drilling the case to mount jacks somewhere else, but that's not a possibility either.

So, for making a pedal that is doomed to fail and is impossible to repair, Danelectro can kiss a big fat wang. It's really a shame, because it's one of the coolest delays I've heard.





There is one other thing I can try, however it's a bit insane.

Basically, I could gut the Dan-Echo, mount the PCB's into an enclosure, and wire it up to new pots, jacks, and a proper switch (whatever form of bypass the pedal's circuit supports).

I priced it out, and such a scheme would cost me about $40 in parts. I could spend a bit more and get a working delay, but the idea of doing this as a fun project is intriguing.

Hmm ...

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Dan-Echo crapped out on me in rehearsal ... possibly fixable

Why not find a dead danelectro pedal with good jacks in it?