Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

[nebucanazza]

I have got a Rocktron Silver Dragon which I want to mod(tube change).Now, I am a n00b to modding and this is the first pedal I am opening up.Turns out, couldnt have picked a worst candidate.Its not like other box pedals where you just unscrew your pots and switch and the top opens up.

I have opened it up somewhat, and it appears that only way to bring out the circuit board is to slide it out, but how to do that with all the pots and switches getting in the way.Silver Dragon owners, please help!

I will put up a few pics shortly, my PC has suddenly developed some problems.

 

[Loserchief]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

i've sold my Silver Dragon a short while ago, but i'll try to give you a step by step way to change the tube(i hope i remeber everything right). It's definitely a PITA to change the tube but it's very well worth it(a JJ ECC803s is the best tube in there since it smoothens the sound a little and gives huge tight bass)

1. Take off both sides of the chassis

2. Slide out the circuit board and the faceplate of the chassis(with the pots and switches). Because of the pots and switches mounted to the faceplate you have to pull them out together. The faceplate is actually a seperate part that slides into the rest of the chassis so you can take it out without problems.

3. Now you have the faceplate and the board, but the tube won't be accessable by now. Remove all the knobs(using a small screwdriver as a lever and being gentle works great) to get to the brushings of the pots.

4. Unscrew all the pots and the switches from the faceplate. Now you should have just the circuit board in your hands.

5. Now you can change the tube.

6. Now have fun putting it back together.

I hope i didn't forget anything and it's understandable.

 

[nebucanazza]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

Hey thanks a ton man, thats a pretty detailed guide.

I had already opened up the sides, removed all knobs and unscrewed the pots and switches.I also observed that the faceplate and circuit can only be slid out, but it was jammed so tightly that I had second thoughts about forcing it.

BTW, I am going to try a 12AY7 and then a 12AU7 in it.Hopefully, that will make its knobs have much more range and tonal options, and more gradual onset of distortion in the first channel.

Just curious, what was the reason you sold the pedal?

 

[Loserchief]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

Well, when i got my Engl Sovereign i found out that it could deliver great tone at accetable home levels, so the silver dragon--> Ibanez Valbee setup i was using to practice somehow became redundant.
I would have kept it but i wanted a new suit of armour and sold the dragon and the valbee to finance it.

 

[nebucanazza]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

Following your guide, I opened it up and tried a Hitachi 12AU7, now i can use the Slayer Knob over its full range!And with the Fire knob at 0, its a great semi-clean which cleans up almost completely if you roll your volume down to 8.Its been converted to a medium gain pedal.

With the 12AX7, it was useless after a 4 on the Slayer side and in my case, microphonic.

Now for the 12AY7:fingersx:

 

[Loserchief]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

yeah the chinese stock tubes sucks hard. But with the slayer mode you have to use the volume to keep it from squealing. Using it that way with a 12AX7 gives you a modern sounding warm fuzz sound(gain full on with the volume turned down so it won't squeal).

 

[nebucanazza]

Re: Modding my Silver Dragon..Help!!

These units are pretty variable.The first one I got had this vague problem of volume dropping suddenly and then getting back to normal when I knocked on the pedal a few times :laugh2:..got a new one under warranty and did NOT have to send back the old one(however bad their QC is, their customer service is good).Now, the old one is my guinea pig, and works properly 80% of the time!The new one starts whistling with the intensity past 4.

Anyways, the 12AU7 was too low gain(but very responsive, even the slightest touch was reflected in the sound) and the 12AY7 seems perfect.It didnt really change the sound all that much, just made it controllable and less noisy, plus a more gradual onset of distortion in the Awaken mode.Any other mods for changing the sound?