aion Cinder User manual

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 1
PROJECT NAME
CINDER
BASED ON
EFFECT TYPE
PROJECT SUMMARY
DOCUMENT VERSION
Amptweaker Tight Fuzz
A vintage-inspired fuzz/booster with several tone options, most notably a switch to select between
germanium and silicon transistors.
Transistor fuzz 1.0.0 (2023-11-24)
BUILD DIFFICULTY
Intermediate
Actual size is 2.3” x 2.42” (main board) and 1.78” x 0.86” (bypass board).

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1Project Overview 8Drill Template
2Introduction & Usage 9Enclosure Layout
3-5 Parts List 10 Wiring Diagram
6Build Notes 11 Licensing
7Schematic 11 Document Revisions
INTRODUCTION
The Cinder Hybrid Fuzz is based on the Amptweaker Tight Fuzz, a combination silicon/germanium fuzz
first released in 2012 and traced by Aion FX in 2023.
The Tight Fuzz shares several concepts with the other drive pedals in the Amptweaker lineup like the
Tight Metal and Tight Drive, wrapping the vintage-inspired fuzz with James Brown’s signature pre-gain
bass cut control as well as a heavily modified Big Muff-style tone control.
As with the Tight Metal, there are several toggle switch options, changing between silicon and
germanium transistors, ‘60s/’70s EQ, and a sharp or smooth fuzz tone. All in all, it’s a great modernized
take on the classic fuzz topologies.
The Cinder is based on our trace of the Tight Fuzz, which you can read about in our tracing journal. The
only difference is the omission of the “SideTrak” effects loop that is engaged along with the pedal.
USAGE
The Cinder has four knobs and three switches:
• Tight is a pre-gain bass cut that helps to eliminate flabbiness with quick riffing.
• Fuzz is a dual-gang pot that simultaneously controls the gain and bias of the second transistor. At
zero, it acts as a clean boost with almost no clipping. Around noon, it’s a light fuzz, and once you get
past 2:00 or 3:00 it becomes a more traditional fuzz tone.
• Tone pans between a high-pass and low-pass filter after the fuzz section, similar to the Big Muff
tone control.
• Volume is the overall output volume of the effect.
• Ge/Si (toggle) selects between a germanium and silicon transistor for the second position in the fuzz
section of the circuit.
• Edge (toggle) enables “smooth” mode, which softens the highs on the way into the fuzz stage.
• ‘60s/’70s (toggle) selects between two eras. ‘60s has more top end and ‘70s has more body.

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 3
PARTS LIST
This parts list is also available in a spreadsheet format which can be imported directly into Mouser for
easy parts ordering. Mouser doesn’t carry all the parts—notably potentiometers—so the second tab lists
all the non-Mouser parts as well as sources for each.
View parts list spreadsheet →
PART VALUE TYPE NOTES
R1 475k Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 470k.
R2 1k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R3 22k1 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 22k.
R4 1k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R5 1k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R6 22k1 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 22k.
R7 47k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 47k.
R8 100k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R9 1k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R10 475R Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 470R.
R11 1k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R12 6k81 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 6.8k.
R13 150k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R14 150k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R15 150k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R16 10k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R17 4k75 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 4.7k.
R18 1k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R19 2k74 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 2.7k.
R20 4k75 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 4.7k.
R21 220k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R22 330k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R23 47k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 47k.
R24 47k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 47k.
R25 47k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 47k.
R26 1k Metal film resistor, 1/4W
R27 47k5 Metal film resistor, 1/4W Can substitute 47k.
R28 47R Metal film resistor, 1/4W
RPD 1M Metal film resistor, 1/4W Input pulldown resistor.
LEDR 10k Metal film resistor, 1/4W LED current-limiting resistor. Adjust value to change LED brightness.
C1 47pF MLCC capacitor, NP0/C0G
C2 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 4
PARTS LIST, CONT.
PART VALUE TYPE NOTES
C3 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C4 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C5 22uF Electrolytic capacitor, 5mm
C6 1n2 Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C7 4.7uF Electrolytic capacitor, 4mm
C8 22uF Electrolytic capacitor, 5mm
C9 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C10 47pF MLCC capacitor, NP0/C0G
C11 47n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C12 22uF Electrolytic capacitor, 5mm
C13 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C14 33n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C15 47n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C16 220n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C17 1n2 Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C18 100n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C19 220n Film capacitor, 7.2 x 2.5mm
C20 47uF Electrolytic capacitor, 5mm Reference voltage filter capacitor.
C21 100uF Electrolytic capacitor, 6.3mm Power supply filter capacitor.
C22 100n MLCC capacitor, X7R Power supply filter capacitor.
D1 1N5817 Schottky diode, DO-41
D2 1N914 Fast-switching diode, DO-35
Q1 2N5088 BJT transistor, NPN, TO-92
Q2 2N5088 BJT transistor, NPN, TO-92
Q3 AC127 Germanium transistor, NPN Any NPN above 80-100 hFE will work, i.e. 2N1304 from SBE.
IC1 TL072 Operational amplifier, dual, DIP8
IC1-S DIP-8 socket IC socket, DIP-8
IC2 TL072 Operational amplifier, dual, DIP8
IC2-S DIP-8 socket IC socket, DIP-8
TIGHT 100kC 16mm right-angle PCB mount pot Reverse audio (reverse log or antilog) taper.
FUZZ 10kC dual 16mm right-angle PCB mount pot, dual Reverse audio (reverse log or antilog) taper, dual-ganged.
TONE 10kB 16mm right-angle PCB mount pot Linear taper.
VOLUME 100kA 16mm right-angle PCB mount pot Audio (log) taper.
EDGE SPDT on-on Toggle switch, SPDT on-on
TRANS. DPDT on-on Toggle switch, DPDT on-on
TONE SW. DPDT on-on Toggle switch, DPDT on-on
LED 5mm LED, 5mm, red diffused

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 5
PARTS LIST, CONT.
PART VALUE TYPE NOTES
IN 1/4" mono 1/4" phone jack, closed frame Switchcraft 111X or equivalent.
OUT 1/4" mono 1/4" phone jack, closed frame Switchcraft 111X or equivalent.
DC 2.1mm DC jack, 2.1mm panel mount Mouser 163-4302-E or equivalent.
FSW 3PDT Stomp switch, 3PDT
ENC 125B Enclosure, die-cast aluminum Can also use a Hammond 1590N1.

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 6
BUILD NOTES
Silicon transistor substitutions
The original Tight Fuzz used old-stock NEC 2SD1616 silicon transistors for Q1 and Q2. These
transistors are not necessarily unique, and the 2N5088 or any other comparable medium-gain type will
be a close substitute.
You can also use the BC549C, but note the inverted pinout for the European convention, so it will need
to be rotated 180 degrees from the PCB silkscreen.
Germanium transistor substitutions
Q3 is an old-stock AC127 in the original. In the unit we traced, it measured 146 hFE and 175μA leakage.
It’s likely that any transistor with an hFE above ~80 should work about the same, so you probably don’t
need to be too rigid about the specs here.
Note that this is an NPN transistor. Germanium NPNs are a bit more obscure than PNP, but usually easy
to find and fairly cheap since the classic fuzz circuits all used PNP types. If you inadvertently use a PNP
here, it will barely pass signal in germanium mode, so be careful of the type!
Odd resistor values
About half the resistor values used in this circuit are high-precision values such as 47.5k or 6.81k. None
of them are critical to the circuit’s operation, so if you have a nearby value such as 47k or 6.8k, you can
substitute them with no change in sound. We’ve included the nearest substitutes in the Notes column of
the parts list.
However, if you’re just using the Mouser spreadsheet to order, they’re the same price as standard types,
so we recommend just using the original values.

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 7
SCHEMATIC
TONE SW.
B
TONE SW.
A
GE/SI A
GE/SI B
GND
1M
1N5817
100uF
GND
100kC
10kB
100kA
+9V
100n
VA
47pF
GND
100n
475k
47k5
47k5
47uF
VB
GND
GND
47R
VB
TL072P
TL072P
VA
GND
1N914
100n
1k5
GND
100n
22k1 2N5088
1k5
22uF
1k5
GND GND
22k1
1n2
47k5
VA
100k
2N5088
AC127
1k
GND
10kC10kC
4.7uF 22uF
GND
GND GND
6k81
1k5
475R
VA
100n
150k
150k
150k
VB
47pF
10k
47n
4k75
22uF
GND
1k5
2k74
4k75
100n 33n 47n
GND
GND GND
GND
220n
VB
TL072P
TL072P
VA
GND
220k
330k
1n2
47k5
100n
GND
1k
220n
47k5
VB
GND
GND
IN
OUT
RPD
D1
C21
TIGHT
1
2
3
TONE
1
2
3
VOLUME
1
2
3
C22
C1
C2
R1
R24
R25
C20
R28
IC1A
2
3
1
IC1B
6
5
7
84
D2
C3
R2
C4
R3 Q1
R4
C5
R5
R6
2
3 1
EDGE
C6
R7
R8
A2
A3
A1
B2
B3 B1
Q2
Q3
R9
FUZZA
1
2
3
FUZZB
1
2
3
B2
B3
B1
A2
A3
A1
C7 C8
R12
R11
R10
C9
R13
R14
R15
C10
R16
C11
R17
C12
R18 R19
R20
C13 C14 C15
C16
IC2A
2
3
1
IC2B
6
5
7
84
R21
R22
C17
R23
C18
R26
C19
R27

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 8
DRILL TEMPLATE
Cut out this drill template, fold the edges and tape it to the enclosure. Before drilling, it’s recommended
to first use a center punch for each of the holes to help guide the drill bit.
Ensure that this template is printed at 100% or “Actual Size”. You can double-check this by measuring
the scale on the printed page.
Top jack layout assumes the use of closed-frame jacks like the Switchcraft 111X. If you’d rather use
open-frame jacks, please refer to the Open-Frame Jack Drill Template for the top side.
LED hole drill size assumes the use of a 5mm LED bezel, available from several parts suppliers. Adjust
size accordingly if using something different, such as a 3mm bezel, a plastic bezel, or just a plain LED.
ø3/8” ø1/2”
0.385”
0.625” 0.625”
ø3/8”
125B
OUT
TONE
‘60s/’70s
TRANSISTOR
EDGE
FUZZ
VOLUME TIGHT
FOOTSWITCHLED
DC IN
x: -0.775, y: +1.71 x: +0.775, y: +1.71
ø9/32” ø9/32”
x: -0.775, y: +0.41
ø9/32”
x: +0.775, y: +0.41
ø9/32”
CENTER (0,0)
y: +1.06
ø1/4”
x: 0
y: +0.41
ø1/4”
x: 0
y: -0.24
ø1/4”
x: 0
x: 0, y: -1.775
ø15/32”
x: -0.775, y: -1.775
ø5/16”
0 1 2
CM
0 1
INCH

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 9
ENCLOSURE LAYOUT
Enclosure is shown without jacks. See next page for jack layout and wiring.
125B

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 10
WIRING DIAGRAM
125B
IN +VGND NC NC OUT
PCB
IN
GND +V +V JACK GND JACK
OUTIN
GND GND PCB
OUT

CINDER HYBRID FUZZ 11
LICENSE & USAGE
No direct support is offered for these projects beyond the provided documentation. It’s assumed
that you have at least some experience building pedals before starting one of these. Replacements and
refunds cannotbe offered unless it can be shown that the circuit or documentation are in error.
All of these circuits have been tested in good faith in their base configurations. However, not all the
modifications or variations have necessarily been tested. These are offered only as suggestions based
on the experience and opinions of others.
Projects may be used for commercial endeavors in any quantity unless specifically noted. No
attribution is necessary, though a link back is always greatly appreciated. The only usage restrictions
are that (1) you cannot resell the PCB as part of a kit without prior arrangement, and (2) you cannot
“goop” the circuit, scratch off the screenprint, or otherwise obfuscate the circuit to disguise its source.
(In other words: you don’t have to go out of your way to advertise the fact that you use these PCBs, but
please don’t go out of your way to hide it. The guitar effects industry needs more transparency, not less!)
DOCUMENT REVISIONS
1.0.0 (2023-11-24)
Initial release.