AD633 Ring Modulator

Dave — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:58:17 +0000

This is a Ring Modulator or similar sounding effect box based around the AD633 (Analog Devices Four Quadrant Analog Multiplier). The original design is taken from Roman Sowa. His website has further details on his design and the schematic I used as a starting point. The above photo shows the finished version albeit without knobs. This is mostly because I, despite better judgment, bought pots from Radio Shack, and didn’t want to waste them. As you can see the shafts are just a bit long. No matter; they work.

I made a few modifications. The first was to remove the option to select AC/DC coupling. I felt that I had no need for DC coupling so I hard wired it up AC coupled. Secondly I added some gain on the clean channel. The clean signal was coming through a little light which I personally didn’t like. Lastly, I added a LED meter on the output volume which you can see in this picture. Using a LB1403N I made a level meter which increases as you turn the volume up. This doesn’t actually monitor signal level but the position of the pot. There’s no real purpose other than I like blinking, flashing, pulsating and adjustable lights on all my gear. Who doesn’t? It’s wired through a dual ganged pot with a trim pot to adjust sensitivity. The detailed photos can be seen at the full Flickr photo set.

From a distance the paint job looks OK but as you can see in the first photo there’s definite room for improvement. Wet sanding, Clear Coat, and Polish would definitely help but it’s not a bad first run. The fluorescent paint however had a tendency to get ‘powerdery’ and presented some problems. Check the sound samples below to hear what it sounds like.

Many more photos and comments on the build can be found on Flickr here:
AD633 Ring Modulator

Sound Samples:
Before & After Number 1
Before & After Number 2
Before & After Number 3
Before & After Number 4

Supersetsounds » ad633

AD633 Ring Modulator