VFE Pedals stereo Klein Bottle

It has been almost seven years since the original Klein Bottle campaign launched. The most common request I have received since then was to make a stereo version of the Klein Bottle. My response was consistent - it is too expensive and too complex to make without serious compromises. As I started the design process on a new Klein Bottle, I asked my customers what features they wanted most. The response was virtually unanimous - MAKE IT STEREO! I took this feedback as a mandate to figure out how to make a stereo Klein Bottle possible.

Below is a demo video from the first version of the Klein Bottle that explains all the core features

.The stereo Klein Bottle includes all the features of the original Klein Bottle plus:

• Compatible with stereo & mono effects and sound sources using TRS jacks
• Independent trails decay switches for each loop
• Independent phase correction switches on each loop
• Independent pre/post switches to move the filter circuit before/after the FX loops
• Lower noise floor & quieter switching
• Internal charge pump makes it work with -10dBV signals (using 9V power supply) and +4dBU signals (18V power supply). Power supply is not included.
• Natural trails decay when you press & hold a footswitch, regardless of the position of the trails switch

The stereo Klein Bottle is made possible by the use of custom-made dual-gang and quad-gang pots and and custom circuit boards for the jacks, quad-gang pots, plus six total circuit boards to house more than double the circuitry as past versions. The many custom-made parts makes it cost-prohibitive for me to build a final prototype of the stereo Klein Bottle unless I can raise the money to also put into production.

If we are able to raise $40,000, I will be able to develop a stereo Klein Bottle and start a production run. If successful, the Klein Bottle will be the one and only pedal I design & build between the end of this campaign and next summer. If we do not raise $40,000, your contribution will be refunded and the stereo Klein Bottle will not be made.

Campaign Perks

• $1 - Follow My Journey - select this if you just want to follow the Klein Bottle journey during and after the campaign ends.
• $299 - Stereo DIY Kit - this kit includes everything you need to build a fully functional Klein Bottle, including a pre-drilled enclosure painted in the color of your choice. There are add-on options to get a graphic printed, 20 knob set, or stacked jacks.
• $439 - White Stereo Klein Bottle - this will be my first production batch of the Klein Bottle.
• $449 - Stereo Klein Bottle - fully assembled stereo Klein Bottle with your choice of paint color, knob color(s), and LED color(s).
• $499 - Stereo Klein Bottle STACKED - comes in a taller 1590X enclosure with stacked jacks that let you use TS patch cables to connect to other stereo gear.
• SHIPPING - I ship via USPS Priority Mail. Shipping cost is included in the price for US states & territories, but is $30 extra to Canada and $45 extra everywhere else.
• RETURNS / REFUNDS / WARRANTY - You can request a refund at any point for any reason up to 14 days after receipt of the Klein Bottle. Extra shipping charges will not be refunded. All VFE Pedals come with a 1-year warranty on parts & labor, and I charge a maximum $50 + shipping repair fee after the warranty has expired.

Customize your Klein Bottle - Indiegogo EXCLUSIVE!

At the $449 level, you can choose from any of the available paint, knob, and LED colors! This option is exclusive to this Indiegogo campaign. You will choose your color options after the campaign ends, and you can change your color choices until production begins. Here are all the available options:

PAINT COLORS - Choose from any color available from Tayda Electronics. Click here to browse all available colors: https://www.taydaelectronics.com/hardware/enclosures/1590xx-style.html

KNOB COLORS - All colors below will be available except for green. The knobs numbered 3, 6, and 12 will have black markers, but all others will have white markers. NOTE: The knobs below are color samples - only knobs 3, 4, 12, and 15 show the size & shape of the knobs I will use on the Klein Bottle.

LED COLORS - Red, Orange, Yellow, Yellow-Green, Green, Cyan, Blue, Purple, Pink, White, Warm White

STACKED JACKS - use TS cables to connect your gear

The stacked jacks option uses a taller 1590X enclosure and stacked jacks to let you use standard TS patch cables to connect your stereo gear.

AVAILABLE COLORS - Black and white the only paint colors available so far. Because the 1590X enclosure is not available at Tayda, I can only order colors in quantities of 25 or more. For every 15 stacked jacks version claimed, I will add one additional color. All knob & LED colors are still available with this option.

ABOVE: Dimensions of taller 1590X enclosure that is 0.67" (17mm) taller to make space for stacked jacks. This enclosure will be milled/painted/printed by Hammond Manufacturing.

BELOW: Dimensions of the 1590XX style enclosure used in the all other versions of the Klein Bottle. This enclosure will be milled/painted/printed by Tayda Electronics.

ABOVE LEFT: TRS jack used in the $449 stereo Klein Bottle option. The tip of this jack carries the one channel, and the ring carries the second channel. You will be able to use this jack 3 ways. Use a TRS cable or splitter to connect to stereo gear, insert a TS cable one click in to connect mono gear to both stereo channels, or insert a TS cable fully to connect mono gear to the tip channel only. You can also use an internal switch to let mono gear connect to both channels even when the plug is inserted fully.

ABOVE RIGHT: Stacked TRS jack used in the $499 stereo Klein Bottle - STACKED option. You will be able to use this jack 4 ways. Use two TS cables to connect to stereo gear, use one TS cable in the bottom jack to connect mono gear to both stereo channels, use one TRS cable in the top jack to connect to stereo gear that uses TRS jacks, or use one TS cable in the top jack to connect mono gear to the tip channel only.

Make a custom graphic!

You can even make your own graphic if you can follow all of Tayda's rules precisely. This option is NOT AVAILABLE with the stacked jacks version. Here is an Adobe Illustrator template that already has the white, color, and gloss layers set up to get you started: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ndkwxz5gt6nidtvqbal7t/Tayda-KBtemplate.ai?rlkey=f3953qpdhxbtxr2urt0o2gem3&dl=0.

If you make your own graphic, please make sure that your graphic abides by these three guidelines.

#1 - You must follow all guidlelines precisely as they are created by Tayda, including sending me a PDF with clear (labeled GLOSS-V), color, and white layers. The file you send me must be ready to submit to Tayda without editing (no control outline layer).

#2 - The graphic must have "BUILT BY VFE PEDALS" for a fully assembled Klein Bottle or "VFE DIY PEDAL KIT" for DIY kits in a clearly seen spot. Other than that, you can change all other text, even the name!

#3 - Your graphic must be free from graphic violence, sexual content, religous/political iconography, or any offensive/controversial material. DIY builders can do whatever they want on their own, but if you get a graphic printed through VFE, it must abide by these guidelines.

Other Custom VFE Pedals

I have added a $199 option to get a custom pedal built by me between September 2-6. Here are the full list of options:

Available Effects

• Overdrive - Blues King, Dragon, Ice Scream, Merman, Pale Horse, The Scream
• Distortion - Alpha Dog, Dark Horse, Distortion³, Dragon Hound, Triumvirate
• Fuzz - Fiery Red Horse, Fuzz Duo, Woodchipper
• EQ / Filter - Homing Missile, Mini Mu, Pinball/Standout v3, Pinball v2, Standout v2, Rocket EQ
• Modulation - Choral Reef, Old School, Tractor Beam
• Delay-Reverb - Blueprint, Möbius Strip, Springboard, Yodeler
• Dynamics - Bumblebee, The Triplet, White Horse

Available Colors

• Paint (see image above) - Copper, Candy Blue, Candy Teal, Denim, Gamma Ray Green, Transparent Gold, Glam Pink (not pictured), Cinnamon Shimmer, Candy Red, Ghost Black, Purple Starlight, Transparent Green
• Knobs - Black, Silver, Gold with white marker, Gold with black marker
• LED - Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Aqua, Blue, UV, Pink, White, Warm White
• Graphic - I will hand-paint a white graphic on most colors, but a black graphic on Gamma Ray Green, Transparent Gold, and Hot Pink. I can also engrave any graphic for $20.

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Where I am at now, and what I need to make a stereo Klein Bottle.

Here is the work I have done so far:

• All 6 circuit boards needed to make a stereo Klein Bottle are fully designed and ready for the first manufacturing & testing stage.
• I have created a full parts spreadsheet and obtained accurate pricing quotes & estimates for every stage of manufacturing.
• I drilled out an enclosure and dry-fit all the components to make sure there is room to fit in every promised feature.

Here is what the funds will help me do. I can start the process as soon as we hit $40k.

• Order custom-made dual-gang and quad-gang pots, including a quad-gang pot with two C10k and two C100k wafers. The minimum order quantity on these parts is the reason why I can't just raise funds for a small batch.
• Pay for the development of a final prototype, including custom-made wire assemblies and production samples of the custom-made pots.
• Get large production runs of each circuit board type assembled for hundreds of Klein Bottles, plus pay for additional labor costs to help me assemble these complex pedals.
• Fulfill all claimed perks.

Fundraising Goal & Manufacturing Timeline

We need to raise at least $40k to reach the minimum needed for me to develop and manufacture a stereo Klein Bottle with all it's custom-made components. As we reach higher fundraising levels, I will be able to add more color options. If we do not reach the $40k minimum threshold, you will receive a full refund from Indiegogo.

Project Timeline

I will update this section before, during, and after the Indiegogo campaign to show you what phases are completed and what still remains. Last updated on July 30, 2024

FINISHED:

• Core PCB Design & Control Layout - The mockups you see in this campaign are very close to what the final pedal will look like. I updated the designs to add more features than I describe in any of the videos (see infographic near the top of this page for full list of features).
• Core Indiegogo perks & pricing - I also added/modified many perk options after the campaign began, including DIY options and custom VFE Pedals.
• Physical Dry Fit - I made draft PCBs made to do a dry fit of all pots, switches, jacks, and PCBs to make sure there will be space to add in all the promised features before launching the Indiegogo campaign. This also helped me redesign the circuits to include more features.
• Launched Indiegogo campaign - please share this campaign to help us make the stereo Klein Bottle possible!

REMAINING STEPS:

• Order custom-made parts - August-September 2024
• Complete prototyping process - November 2024
• Submit fabrication & assembly orders - December 2024
• Final graphic design & drilling template - December 2024
• Custom packaging design ($75k level) - February 2025
• First production run (white only) - April 2025
• Summer production run - starts on June 12, 2025

In the 20-minute video below, I walk through all the differences between each version of the Klein Bottle. I mention a mono version in this video, but demand has shown that you all want a full-featured stereo version, so the mono version is no longer available. Also, this video was made before I added the pre/post and 6/12 dB slope switches to the design.

Current schematic & board layouts

Below are images of the five schematics and six board layouts for the Klein Bottle mkIII. These designs will get updated as I refine the physical layout when I make the final prototype.

Above: Schematic for the circuit board housing most of the controls, including the full PRE, MIX, TRAILS, 0/180 phase correction and feedback loop circuits.
Below: Board layout for the circuit board housing most of the controls. The use of surface-mount resistors, diodes, ICs, and electrolytic capacitors is the only way to make space for all the circuitry to make a stereo version possible.

Above: Schematic for the LPF/HPF and main mix / MASTER volume circuits. The circuits on the left side will be connected to the circuits on the right side via custom-made quad-gang pots.
Below: Board layout for the LPF/HPF and main mix / MASTER volume circuits. I remove the op amps from this board so I could shrink down its size to make it easier to connect all 6 circuit boards together. There are many through-hole components on this board because through-hole film capacitors are critical to the fidelity of the filter circuits.

Above: Schematic for input and main mix circuits, plus a LOT of analog switches. The HPF/LPF slope switches required 12 analog switches (3 DG445 ICs), and pre/post switches need 36 (9 DG445 ICs)!
Below: Board layout for input, main mix circuits, pre/post and slope analog switches. It will connect to the main PCB with a 2x16 female header and connect to the filter/master quad-gang PCB with a massive 48-pin header strip.

Above: Schematic for top row of jacks, including the power jack and all the FX loops. Note the slide switch on each jack that can turn any TRS stereo into a TS mono that sends/returns both sides of the stereo signal path
Below: Board layout for top row of jacks, including the power jack and all the FX loops. It will connect to the main PCB with a 2x8 header similar to Eurorack modules. The pinout is different, so it is NOT compatible with Eurorack...but could be with just two PCB designs - one for all the jacks that includes a proper Eurorack connector, and one panel to hold all the controls in place.

Risks & Challenges

This would be my tenth crowdfunding campaign if we raise $40k. I was able to deliver on the promised goals in each of my previous nine successful crowdfunding campaigns, outside of one bonus perk (I fully refunded all 5 customers). I have a strong track record of finishing manufacturing projects. Here are the biggest 3 risks of this campaign.

• Delays, delays, delays. I can't control many manufacturing delays due to component shortages, missed lead-times for custom-made parts, and other components. I will keep you updated along the full process.
• It's all on me. While I am 100% confident on my ability to fulfill all perks, I am still human. I am determined to finish the job, and the only way I would be prevented from fulfilling all perks is if some tragedy befalls me that physically prevents me from doing so.

Other Ways You Can Help

I stopped posting daily to social media when I returned to full time teaching in 2016. Because of this, my reach is very limited. I need you to share this campaign in every place you meet like-minded musicians! Use the share tools at the top of this page to quickly share the campaign link.