B.Y.O.C. vs. GGG

[CaptBeefheart]

I'm new to the whole DIY thing and I was wondering if anyone had any insight into which kits tended to perform better Build You Own Clone or General Guitar Gadgets. In terms of a specific pedal I'm looking at the B.Y.O.C. Envelope Filter against the GGG EF440.

Thank you.

[fixr1984]

If it were me I would Support GGG. JD has done so much with providing the community
all the free project files and board layouts on his website. So If I was looking at buying a
ready to solder board or a complet kit GGG would be my choice.

[nordine]

GGG all the way

[jonathan perez]

depends on the flavor of paint-by-numbers you like....

[Mark Hammer]

I know that BYOC kits come with a box, etc.  Do GGG kits also come with "everything"?

[Krinor]

I know that BYOC kits come with a box, etc.  Do GGG kits also come with "everything"?

Yes they do. Everything is included, and if something is missing or if you loose or destroy a component JD sends you another free of charge. His service is second to none.

depends on the flavor of paint-by-numbers you like....

JD also provide labeled PCB's now.

[MetalGod]

I've never ordered a kit from anyone, but the GGG site is a great free resource that deserves support.

[rpjones]

I bought a pcb from JD and it is beautifully done.

[theundeadelvis]

GGG without a doubt for me.

[beens]

Never ordered kits from GGG, but 6 or 7 of his PCBs and they were great. Also ordered a fuzzface clone for my first build at byoc, and I cant say anything negative about that, but I guess I would go for GGG because I kind of grown to like them/him. I'm also kind of skimpy(is this the correct word?) so I would probably look at prices as well if I did'nt have a preferance
out of these two..

[theundeadelvis]

JD has definitely contributed to this site and our community. BYOC, I don't know if they have or have not.

[the recluse]

I am very pleased with kits that I have built from both GGG and BYOC.  I have ordered from both several times have have always been happy with the result.  I can say that JD provides some of the BEST customer service I have ever encountered, he will go above and beyond to make things right (or better).  I don't mean to say that Keith at BYOC wouldn't do the same, I just can't speak to it from experience.

Ultimately, the quality of the pedal you end with will depend more on your skills and patience than it will the products that either company provides.  If it came down to ordering a kit that both offered, I would probably lean towards GGG.

[Hanglow]

I have got pcbs from both. Either will provide you with a great pedal.

Looks like GGG is winning 

[boogietube]

GGG all the way!
The reasons being: The awesome support, the quality, and as already stated, JD's contributions.
Another VERY important factor is this site!
All of his pedals (ar at least most) have been built by people on this site. There are a wealth of debug threads on many of his layouts, and the community here is very open to helping someone debug GGG's pedals. Not so much with BYOC. Many people have complained about the relative lack of support on BYOC'S message board, and have had to come here seeking advice when their pedal didn't fire up first time. From the threads that I've read, most people haven't been much help with the BYOC kits. The reason being that there's no schematics on the BYOC site pertaining to the pedals. Schematics are essential to the debugging process. Plus, they give you knowledge beyond the "paint by numbers" approach to BYOC'S kits.
Hope this helps with your decision!
Sean 

[96ecss]

I have never ordered a kit, but when I got started in DIY, I bought PCB's from GGG. They were all great. Since I started etching my own PCB's, I've used the layouts at GGG. They were all great. I have never bought anything from BYOC so I can't comment on them.

I would rather support JD Sleep from GGG because of his contributions to the DIY world. You don't get layouts or schematics from BYOC. Also, like has already been mentioned, if you have a problem with a GGG project, it's very easy to get help here. From what I've seen, it's not so easy to get help from BYOC.

That just my 2 cents.

Dave

[R.G.]

A fair number of GGG's boards are licensed from me, so you get my support on them if they don't work.

Of those, most have been in production for people to make pedals from for about six years now, so the bugs are pretty well worked out.

[The Tourist]

Just to clarify, BYOC do provide schematics for their pedals.

[foozertone]

Jerry is a super guy who has helped me above and beyond. He will do you right and his products are great.

Jeff

[tcobretti]

I have bought a few PCBs from GGG, and every one was very well made.  As well, because he hosts so many schem and layouts that he freely shares, I'd support him.

There's another site called olcircuits.com that sells kits, and he offers ROG kits, which is very cool.

[Ed G.]

I can't comment on BYOC, can't say I've ever heard anything negative, but I know JD and he is a class act all the way.
You have to understand, when the whole DIY thing started on the net, there were few layout files available. JD made a lot of this information available. He's one of the guys who have advanced this art, along with RG, Jack, Aron, Doug, Mark and many of the other guys who have been around.
Seems to me he's not one of those guys who initially went into this to make money, unlike the many fly-by-night 'new-tweakers' who go into business, he was very generous with his time and talent in making the layouts available to everyone...but he's put so much into it, he deserves as much success as anyone.