Home made Strymon tap tempo switch

[laurie]

I've been trying to make a tap tempo switch work with my Lex V2. Following the schematic in the manual, it seemed that the TIP and RING of the TRS jack must be connected together:
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Strymon tap.jpg (67.78 KiB) Viewed 242 times

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Could not make it work. Tried everything - changing SPST switches, putting in a passive de-bounce circuit ... then in desperation I contacted Strymon tech support who were very helpful. I even made a video of the test-rig I was using and showed the results - as soon as the switch is depressed, the SLOW/FAST LED would stop flashing and the pedal "stalled".

Ultimately Strymon provided an RMA so I could return the pedal for an out-of-warranty repair that I ultimately did not do.

The schematic in the manual is wrong. Connecting the TIP and RING together is the problem. With a non-Strymon switch (e.g. a Carling SPST momentary), the switch is wired across the TIP and SLEEVE, the RING is unconnected. With this wiring, the tap tempo appears to work normally.
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Strymon tap2.jpg (11.91 KiB) Viewed 238 times

[bigtone23]

Interesting. Glad it was figured out.
I have had some experiences with switches that needed to be ring to ground only... It's a funny world of switching out there!

I have a MXR TAP small format switch. I had a need for another small momentary open switch and got it used for $15, which was cheaper than making one and way cheaper than buying it new. Opened it up and came to find out that it has dip switches to allow tip and/or ring to ground. Turned out to be much more flexible/cooler than it appeared! It has come in handy one other time when I was doing what you are: trying to figure out how to get a footswitch to function.

https://www.jimdunlop.com/content/manuals/M199.pdf