The demand forKlonCentaurs has driven prices into the stratosphere. All of the originals were hand-built by Bill Finnegan, who joined forces with a couple of MIT engineers to design this most revered boost/overdrive pedal. By stompbox standards it’s a complex and highly original circuit, and after producing around 8,000 units between 1994 and 2000, Finnegan understandably decided he’d had enough.
随着需求如此之高并切断了供应，不可避免的事情发生了。在过去的二十年中Ceriatonehas gone to the trouble of recreating Finnegan’s original enclosure and PCB layout. The result is the Centura Professional Overdrive.
Ceriatoneoffers customers various options. You can buy the printed circuit board and enclosure, or the PCB fully assembled. You can also buy the pedal pre-built or a full kit with a variety of finishes and graphics. I can’t resist the chance to build my own and learn more about this fabled circuit in the process.
Boutique building
Ceriatone’s Centura kit is a fairly advanced build, but only because there is a higher than usual component count for a DIY overdrive and the instructions don’t quite hand everything to you on a plate. You’ll need to read the instructions carefully and do some planning for final assembly.
也需要从一开始就做出选择。尽管克隆半人马座巡回赛在整个生产过程中保持不变，但比尔·芬尼根（Bill Finnegan）确实调整了一些组件值。在1995年，信号路径中的两个1UF电容器增加到4.7UF，以允许使用更低的频率，并添加了15K电阻以“甜”中间距离。还添加了三个电阻以减少脚步开关的弹出，但对声音没有影响。
该手册将所有这些都放置出来，并在清晰绘制的图表上识别组件。拥有反民用的电阻器是一个不聪明的，但是我不确定延长的低点和增强的中音。由于绝大多数克隆半人马都拥有后来的赛道，因此我决定尝试一下。
与任何套件一样，第一个任务是对组件进行排序，并验证列表中的所有内容已包含在内。我更喜欢从印刷说明中工作，并且我沿着电阻列表附近的页面左侧运行一定长度的胶带。
即使您知道自己的颜色代码，我也建议使用万用表测量每个电阻。一旦确定并验证了电阻器，我就将其一根电线放在屏蔽胶带下方，并在其在列表上的位置。这有助于使事情井井有条，这意味着您只需要将它们整理一次即可。
Electrolytic capacitors are easy to identify because the values are written on the casings. The film capacitors have three digit numerical codes with the value and a multiplier, so you may need to find an online capacitor code table for clarification. And beware of the diminutive yellow 1uF capacitor because it’s polarised. One leg has a tiny plus sign printed next to it.
PCB非常紧凑，但要明确标记组件的位置和值。我首先使用三个集成电路插座焊接，使用一个小尖端固定到350摄氏度。过量的热量会损坏电路板，因此，这比在孔眼和炮塔板上焊接组件更精致。
接下来，我将电阻器安装，将电线推入PCB孔，将组件压在板上，并将电线稍微折叠在板后部。当我焊接关节时，这将使电阻保持在位，一旦接头冷却，我就会剪掉多余的电线。我一次执行四到五个电阻，我全部努力，并通过焊接七个链接线来完成。
I follow the same procedure with the diodes. There are five in total – three used in the power supply and two ‘germanium’ clipping diodes that augment clipping in the op amp to produce the Klon’s distinctive overdrive characteristic. Pedal geeks have long argued over the type of diodes Finnegan used. The PCB is labelled 1N34A, and Finnegan confirmed in a forum post that it is the diode he used in the Centaur.
但是，数十年来制作了无数的1N34A版本，Finnegan声称它们在用于剪裁时听起来都不同。我同意为自己的踏板版本测试了许多二极管，因此Ceriatone设法提供了与Finnegan显然无法获得的俄罗斯二极管完全相同的类型？我们很快会找出答案。
电解电容器接下来是棕色电容器。如原始踏板所示，我将电解质折叠。PCB满载后，经过仔细检查，以确保没有被忽略的焊接接头，也没有不应连接的痕迹之间的意外焊接桥。一旦我相信可以，就该加载围栏了。
Getting loaded
即使没有说明，也很清楚所有的锅和连接器都在哪里。请记住，双帮派锅是为了获得的，并确保插孔插座的定向正确。该图清楚地显示了这一点，但是您可以通过插入吉他电缆并使用仪表的连续性设置来识别与顶部，环和套筒相对应的标签来验证套接字连接。
Klons were built with pots designed to be soldered onto PCBs. Instead Ceriatone supplies pots with rounded solder tags, and the volume and tone pots have to be spun 180 degrees so the solder tags point away from the PCB. The gain pots have the same connections, which renders the detachable section of the PCB unusable.
所有锅以及开关，插座，LED和电源插座都通过跳线连接到PCB。将所有硬件加载到外壳上，我也将完全组装的PCB拧紧到外壳上，因此我可以为每种连接剪掉长度的电线 - 所有大约10mm的超大号。
由于必须将这些电线推开并焊接到PCB的底面，因此我在焊接电线之前将其卸载。然后，我重新安装了PCB并将其牢牢拧紧。在不断提及接线图的同时，我在所有接线链路上进行了操作，将电线缩小到正确的长度。接线完成后，可以开始测试。
最好的测试
完成踏板版本后，在电池夹和接地的正接头之间进行连续测试。如果您听到了万用表的哔哔声，则应在供电之前检查所有连接。如果有问题，您可能会损坏PCB上的组件。热电池是另一个警告标志。在这种情况下，我以错误的方式连接了导致DC插座的两条电线 - 可能是由于过度兴奋所致。但是发现错误后，踏板首次起作用。
Initial impressions are extremely favourable and I’m thrilled with the sound quality. But before getting into a detailed analysis, most of you will probably want to know how the Centura stacks up against a genuine Centaur. My mate Ed Oleszko has kindly loaned his to me so we can find out.
Ceriatone版本变得如此接近，但与Ed的版本不完全相同。信号链中的真实klon（无论是在绕过还是绕过时），频率平衡，清晰度和宽阔的铃声都可以使其与众不同。坦率地说，这比1,500英镑的差异要接近15英镑的差额，而我的耳朵中，Ceriatone具有更多的低频含量。这会软化低音响应，并蒙蔽了下部中部，相当于较少的冲击和清晰度。
As the gain is increased, we start hearing a slight midrange boxiness and the Centura doesn’t have the Klon’s upper-mid sweetness. Of course, that’s only in direct comparison to one specific Klon rather than a selection of units, but it does get me thinking about those two 4.7uF signal capacitors that are installed rather than the 1uF caps. It could be that the Centura’s extra low end is the issue.
A few minutes later, with 1uF capacitors installed in the C2 and C15 positions, the Centura is sounding much closer to Ed’s Klon. The lows are tighter, which improves matters more with a Les Paul than a Strat, but we also hear a bit more clarity and definition. However, the Centura still falls slightly short on chime, low string punch and pick articulation.
I think this is attributable to a slight bump in the low mids, so attention turns to the 15K midrange sweetening resistor. Connecting it with flying leads and a switch makes it easy to assess its influence and although subtle, taking the resistor out of circuit appears to even out the low mids and our Centura really starts to deliver on that Klon chime, punch and clarity. It’s less thick and velvety, however, and if you were to modify this kit, a permanently installed midrange switch for the 15K resistor could be a useful option.
Like all Klons, Ed’s circuit board is covered in opaque black goop, so I can’t identify the signal caps that are in his and I have no idea if the 15K resistor is installed. It has a relatively low serial number, but there’s no sure-fire way to date original Klons. Having established that the kit can be tweaked to sound identical to a randomly selected Centaur by opting for the earlier-style circuit, it’s not unreasonable to assume the kit can also be configured to sound like a later Klon. It’s not a question of which is best, but rather which sounds best to you, and best suits your rig and playing style.
Legendary tone
I first tried a Klon Centaur almost 20 years ago and it left a big impression. I was amazed at the sound quality and yet I couldn’t quite decide if it was a boost or an overdrive. Of course, it’s actually both, but I’ve always thought of it as stepping on a ‘better’ switch because it just seems to make every guitar and amp sound better. Indeed, it’s easy to see why so many of the Centaur’s fans rarely switch it off.
Klons somehow enhance things without obviously changing your sound. I’d liken it to a studio scenario where a sound engineer subtly tweaks a recorded guitar sound using high quality equalisation and compression. It’s basically the same sound, but clearer, punchier, more present and better integrated in the mix.
In a way it’s as much about feel as sound. This circuit frees you up to be more expressive and dynamic in your playing because it’s always easy to hear the finer details as they punch through – and this really shines in the context of a live or recorded band mix.
It seems the various frequency bands within an electric guitar’s audio spectrum are processed separately, with more compression and dirt in the mids, but less in the bass and treble. It feels smooth and sustaining, even when gain is set low, and you never feel like you’re struggling against the iron grip of excessive compression. If anything, I’m even more impressed by the Klon circuit 20 years later, and everything I’ve said about it applies equally to the Ceriatone Centura.
Top kit
The Ceriatone Centura kit cannot be faulted for quality. The Daka-ware knobs are indistinguishable from those on the original and the attention to detail is extraordinary. We could point to slight differences between the enclosures, with the original having slightly crisper lines, but without placing them side by side, you wouldn’t notice. We prefer the Klon’s polished metal look too, but the Centura’s finish is excellent.
最好的踏板套件为具有必要的DIY技能的人提供了精品踏板的便宜和可行的替代品。与其他KLON克隆套件相比，Ceriatone Centura的价格并不便宜，但这是我们唯一以这种准确性的观察到的，它的成本仅占了一小部分。完全组装的套件只需花费25美元，但是我真的很喜欢构建它并能够调整电路。我对结果的方式感到高兴。
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