wich is the best sounding pedal? wich r your favorites?

[samzeppelin]

wich is the best sounding pedal? u can build? who has available shematics or/and layout?

do u guys have any favorites that u r real satisfied with?
wich r really worth building?
plz reply

[WGTP]

Your just going to have to look around here.  Everyone has favorites and they change from time to time.  The BSIABII is very popular, I like the Vulcan myself, their are several dual op amp designs around that are great, some folks like the time honored Fuzz Face, the Tube Screamer/Boss SD-1, Rat/Boss DS-1/Distortion+, Big Muff Pies, etc. etc.  

Alot depends on personal taste and the rig your running thru; tube or solid state, the type of guitar you play, the music your playing, the phase of the moon, etc.  

[al3151]

The AMZ MiniBooster is the most usefull box I've built and the one I use the most,either as a boost or a buffer its always coming in handy.

[petemoore]

Best' means by proxy that anything not so is 'lesser' I try to think they're all good, at least good for something or somebody.
 Worth building?...
 Boosters...Jfet too
 Mini-Booster...see 'al's accolade above.
 Liquid Drive [Dist+] for harder clipping sound
 Tube Reamer/Screamer [OA Feedback loop clippers] for softer Dist.
 These should get you going with alot of gain/clipping/boost possibilities.
 Basically the question ... I'd like to rephrase.
 The best sounding pedal is the one you tweeked to fit your likes and your equipment.
 Use of some socketted components [testbed board] or breadboard is recommended for optimum results.

[aaronkessman]

my DIY rat, my new Tremulus Lune, and my EH memory man.

[R.G.]

"Best" effects are like ... um... noses. Everyone has at least one, and everyone either thinks theirs is the best (or worst...). Everyone is correct in this, and as such, their opinion of "best" is worthless to anyone else.

Never, never, never trust anyone else's opinion of what is the "best" sound. Your ears are the only worthwhile guide. Learn to trust them.

[Paul Marossy]

I wholeheartedly agree with RG. Ask 20 guitarists this question and you will definitely get 20 different answers!

[BD13UK]

RG's answer does it again for me, sound is sooo  sooo subjective and we all have opinions and noses to match, just imagine if there was only one make of car to choose from !!!!!!!!!!

[Paul Marossy]

just imagine if there was only one make of car to choose from !!!!!!!!!!

Hmmm... that is something that Goebbels probably dreamed about. Actually the "people's car" (aka Volkswagen) probably came the closest to such a propaganda dream come true. Of topic, I know. :oops:

[Hal]

you didn't even say what kind of effect.  I love my fuzz face and univibe like children, equally and differently :-D

[george]

I think there are as many "best" pedals as there are individual guitar players ... some pedals even sound different with different amps.


If you're a zep fan maybe a Tonebender MkII is worth looking at - apparently Page used this a lot on the first 3 zep albums.

you can find a schemo by searching this site or even just by googling.  www.smallbearelec.com even sells a kit (not sure if they're open at the moment though)

[Gilles C]

It's the one I hear in my head, but just can't build...,  :cry:

If only I could translate what I hear to electronics. :cry:

Gilles

[Sic]

There are so many good and different pedals to choose from. Depending on personal tatse, style of music, and what OTHER gear you use with it also effect the total sound.

One thing i know, start simple so you don't get overwhelmed.

Joe Davison's Easy Drive was really a milestone for me... I had build a metronome and an A/b/y box before that... and some noise makers... but after building that pedal i felt like i had taken that next step.

Its a really good pedal considering the few parts, if you are trying to learn pedal building, i would suggest this 100%.

I've seen some people come and say "im gonna build-Massive-Super-Vintage-Pedal" as their first pedal. Sometimes they get it right, but alot of times they are faced with problems...

Once you see the kind of problems, and the little things we as humans overlook because we assume we did it right... ANY pedal you build will sound AMAZING =D

Good luck my friend

Links

GGG
ROG
Those places have alot of good information with perfboard layouts for alot of their projects

[mojotron]

wich is the best sounding pedal? u can build? who has available shematics or/and layout?

do u guys have any favorites that u r real satisfied with?
wich r really worth building?
plz reply

The fooldrive I built is pretty nice - I don't need that blue thing anymore!
I really like the Tube Driver though - with an EI or Mullard 12AX7 in it the tone can't be matched... but it's a little limited.., there some high voltage to watch out for and a good Mullard costs about $60.

[Paul Marossy]

Yeah, that Easy Drive is a very cool sounding circuit for being so simple.  

[WGTP]

Has anyone tried 2 Easy Drives in series?  

[RDV]

I love them all equally. Some are just a little prettier than others.

RDV

[samzeppelin]

sounds like i should try easy drive as a first build

thanks for the reply´s

/sam

[brian wenz]

Hello Hello--
    A fine-tuned  [bias, etc...] Tonebender MK II is one of my faves.
    AMZ Mini-Boost is great, too!
Brian.

[jmusser]

I have a different favorite after every build! All the way around, I like RDVs version of the Si Tone Bender Mark II about as well as any I've built. They all have different aspects about them that make them my favorite for a certain song or a certain feel. They are ALL my favorites for different reasons. The Bobtavia because it was my first pedal build. The Ugly Face because it was my first optoislater pedal. The Gargletron because it was my first "talking" pedal. The Phuncgnosis because it was my first Auto-Wah and non-fuzz type of pedal. It just goes on and on.....