adding a clean blend to a tubescreamer?

[mindwave_21]

Hi everyone!  This is my first post about my first pedal.  I'm going with the tubescreamer from ggg and wanted to do some mods to it before building so I don't have to change that later.  Firstly, I'm going to try to add assymetric clipping in the feedback loop, so what diodes do you think are best for a cleaner sided pedal (more tube, less fuzz)?  Also, I was thinking about replacing a pot for more bass, but I think that's already done in the schematic on the site (the .1uf cap after the distortion I believe, but I'm just learning to read schematics).  Finally, I was playing around with a Voodoolab Sparkledrive, and found that the clean blend pot is a really cool idea.  Is there a way to incorparate this into the ggg schematic without too much trouble?  I know this seems a little too much for a first build, but I kinda want to make my first one, and then not mod it up later on.  So...any comments, suggestions on mods would be helpful!  Thanks for your help in advance!

Musical influences and expectations of this pedal:
SRV, Trey Anastasio sound.  Bluesy (to break up a tube a little early) and clean boost.

[R.G.]

The USA tourist in England was impressed by the smooth, green, even acres of lawn at one of the castles he was touring. He asked the tour guide "Say, I'd like to get my yard back home to look like this. How do you guys get the lawns to look so nice?"

Without batting an eye, the tour guide said "Well, sir, you prepare the ground, level it, fertilize it and rake in the seeds, and once the grass is established, you roll it for 200 years."

Some things take time.

[smoguzbenjamin]

Welcome to the forum

I'd say build it as-is first, and then think about modding it Seriously it's the better way to start

[petemoore]

To get some ideas to kick around, look at Runoff Groove's Splitter-Blend.
 putting a TS on one side [channel] and a wire on the other side would get something like that.
 I have built the Splitter-Blend, it's a good thing to have, I have the blend pot on a volumepedal type drive.
 Using a TS in a Splitter-Blends channel would mean two buffers in a row as well as the Jfet in the mixer being added, it might be good sounding, but the TS will sound different even when the Blend knob is set 'all the way to that side.
 Building them separate allows you to find out what's what [with re-routings of the effect chain patches] without it all being hardwired.

[WGTP]

Check out the Sprinkle drive in the Schematics section.  Same think, except it is modeled after a Distortion + rather than a TS.  I'd suggest you try some Jfets for the clipping diodes in various combinations with Si diodes.  Welcome and good luck.

[petemoore]

What Brand name it the Sprinkle Drive under?
 I thought that was VooDoo Labs...

[mindwave_21]

Thanks for the advice everyone!  I think I might just build it the way it is, although the assymetric mod looks really easy to do, so that might be the first thing to try out.  A stupid question, but does the board deteriorate if you keep unsoldering and soldering parts to it?  Thanks again everyone.  I guess I'm trying to cut the grass before it's even there.  :lol:

[WGTP]

The Sprinkle is a sort of clone of the VL Sparkle Drive, but with diodes to ground.  Someone posted a VL Sparkle Drive the other day that I prented out, but don't know where it came from.  I'ts a little more compllicated using a 4558 and 5532 op amps.  The 4558 is for the TS part and the 5532 is the buffering, sort of, a MPSA018 is the input buffer.

[smoguzbenjamin]

I don't think the board will deteriorate much, just don't overheat the tracks. When they get too hot they let go from the board which is obviously not a good thing.

[Joep]

Hi WGThickPresence

Did I understand you right? Do you have a schem for the Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive? I'm very interested to see that one.

Bye,

Joep

[WGTP]

Yes, but I don't know where it came form.  It's unmarked and I don't have a scanner.  Maybe it's in Schemtics 2.  Sorry.  Do a site search.  If I didn't get it here, I don't know where it came from.

[Joep]

Thanks! I found it already, it is indeed in Schematics 2 (see link on top of the page!)

Bye,

Joep