Helicon Harmony Singer 2...

[Tekkytyke]

..Hi all..new to the forum for a specific reason.. I have read on a few forums that many guitarist/vocalists , like me, I found the Harmony Singer 2 gives a good bang for the bucks but having to keep bending down looks pretty sh*t to an audience (also provides work for osteopaths) if , like me, you want to change settings reverb levels, harmony type between songs.
Actually for me it is a bit easer as a pianist/singer I am already nearer to the floor than most performers.

Anyway...I have found that it has been very easy to modify the unit (albeit invalidating the warranty along the way) with minimal DIY skills being necessary but so what??!... I fitted a 1/4 inch jack socket and soldered the Tip and sleeve to the corresponding lugs on the foot switch. You can tell which is live and which isn't by tracing a ground wire back to the CB where it fixes to a black screw in the corner. I then connected to a 'Soundmy' piano (non-latching) sustain pedal (cost me the sum of 15.99 euros inc. free delivery from Amazon.it -I live in Italy). (bonus ..it has a right angle jack plug which was really handy for the pedal placed on the pianoto keep the cable well away from the keyboard. I used panel mount jack socket salvaged from an old '80s Roland chorus pedal that had finally 'given out' and a couple of bits of wire.
You need a drill, soldering iron a sharp craft or Stanley knife*, A couple of short pieces of insulated wire and a star bit to remove the four star bolts (dont know the actual name but they are not standard cross head or Allen key bolts. The lid is easy to remove but watch out for the earth Gnd button on the side that can snag. I also found it easier to first disconnect the wire that runs to the CB and also took the existing stomp switch off temporarily.

Originally I was going to replace the footswitch with the socket but that meant I wold have the plug sticking out of the top . However, the front and side cream box base is cream plastic so it is easy to drill a neat hole. BEWARE: The positioning is critical, as there is not a deal of room inside, so the socket and jack plug do not snag on the battery holder. I did have to *trim the battery holder as the Roland socket is in a small black plastic box and needed a little more space. If you are careful it will not affect the ability to use batteries (although by all accounts it 'eats them and I only use a PSU. I placed it on the left which is the opposite side to where wires from the switch run to the circuit board and internal earthing points.
It is a simple 4 point solder job and means I can still use it as a stomp box OR place it on my Yamaha CP88 and access the controls easily whilst still triggering the harmonies with my foot. It works great!

[RogerPease]

Cool idea. Thanks for sharing. Cheers, _Roger