If you can find a double pole momentary switch it will work. It will just send Hot and Ground to nothing.
A Momentary DPST I think IS what you need.
It might click or pop though.

ktone wrote:Get a keyboard mute pedal (normally open) and a 1/4" Y cord and you're done.

A standard Keyboard pedal switch usually arcs the tip to the sleeve.
I'm not sure what you would be doing with the Y-Cable but you don't want to arc the Hot to Ground on your guitar cable.

On one of my basses I removed the volume knob and installed a 'push-to-break' switch. That does this job perfectly. But you need a free hand to use it.

japmn wrote:
A standard Keyboard pedal switch usually arcs the tip to the sleeve.
I'm not sure what you would be doing with the Y-Cable but you don't want to arc the Hot to Ground on your guitar cable.

Arc? You are one fukkin monster guitar player. If you can create an arc across a switch contact with your guitar output, I want that guitar or at least for you to show me what you're playing.

No damage would occur from shorting the guitar signal and it would prevent the buzzing that would likely occur with an open high gain amp input, especially if you are overdriving the preamp for a little distortion. If I were to instruct the design of a mute switch like this I would include a short to ground.

Benny wrote:It's simple:
- just a small pedal with only a footswitch
- you hold the switch on and it kills / mutes the signal
- stop holding it and the signal returns.

the idea is to use it as a fast foot-controlled tremolo of sorts. i think it could be interesting for rythmic effects.
is this feasible? bonus points if it can be done while being passive.

This would be remarkably easy to do,

BUT

it would be SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper and more useful to add a killswitch to your guitar. A footpedal will be hard to get serious stuttering with.

If you don't mind either making a hole in the guitar or removing one of the existing controls (knob, switch, whatever), I would go for the guitar-based one, too. The only advantages of the foot-based one that I can think of are that it will apply to any instrument you play through it, and that you'll have both hands free for playing. The big drawback is, how good of control will you have with your foot, and how fast will you be able to do it?

I'd go for a switch on the instrument itself. You can get a pushbutton momentary toggle that will work perfectly. Something like this would be my first choice. It's normally open, so if you wire one terminal to the output jack "hot" and the other to the output jack "ground", when you push the button you'll be more or less shorting the amp's input jack, which is the equivalent of unplugging your guitar cable (the amp's input jack shorts itself when there's no cable plugged in).

You can use a floor box to do the exact same thing, but then you'll need a switch that's designed to be pushed with your foot. And yeah, momentary, not latching!

quite a few guitarists have a kill switch in their guitars that does the same thing.

also, ProCo made one for XLR mic cable runs called the Cough Drop.

scott wrote:You can get a pushbutton momentary toggle that will work perfectly. Something like this would be my first choice.

Digi-Key online catalog wrote:Switch Function Off-Mom

Ha!

Have you considered making a switch using a solar cell and a very bright led or maybe a lazer pointer if the solar cell can "see" the color. If it were set up to leave a gap for your foot you could block the light with your foot or top of the guitar. As well if you were electronics handy you could use a strobe light and get fast vibroto. Have to be careful about stage lights.

This would be a lot more work than the other suggestions though.

yes, the guitar option is one but basically, i will have my both hands busy, but it could work and it would be easier probably.
the solar cell or pointer idea is awesome!