General Guitar Gadgets Distortion Kit(s) DOD™ 250™, MXR™, and ROSS™ Replicas Demo

[duffy123123]

Brilliant video!

[primeVibe]

Your videos are very straightforward. Easy to understand....you're a good communicator.

[jwyatt4]

@primeVibe: Thanks. I try to take it from the perspective of an interested player.

[rockerguitar77]

which one would sound best for acdc, van halen, slash?

[jwyatt4]

@rockerguitar77: I like the 250 and 250 '77 modded with extra clippers (which is an easy option with the kit and includes all parts to do it).

[monkeyxx]

the 250 (regular not 77) and Distortion+ sound really good to me, I'm going to have to build those for sure! the other ones are less aggressive and more overdrivey not quite as much to my preference

[jwyatt4]

@monkeyxx: Yeah. I love how there are so many options/combinations with one board to build the pedal of your choice.

[CaldaroneRyan]

So would the 250 '77 be as close to a vintage script Distortion + from the 70s as you can get without tracking one down?

[jwyatt4]

@CaldaroneRyan Basically any of the versions demonstrated are the closest to the originals as you can get without actually having to track one down and pay big bucks for.

[riclmusic]

I wish they'd make a Wampler Triple Wreck clone kit. I'd buy that for sure!!!

[jwyatt4]

@riclmusic Brian Wampler makes some killer pedals doesn't he? I know that he started a line of kits but I'm not sure if your suggestion is among them.

[shango02005]

@jwyatt4 What??! Brain's doing kits now? How did I miss that one??

[darrenw5094]

@riclmusic Lol. That will happen some day. I like the Wampler too. Savage gear!!

[alcoyot]

They all sound really good, the first 3 or so similar they could be interchangable.

[jwyatt4]

@alcoyot Yes. Very subtle differences but I'm like you in that I think they each offer a good sound. The Ross (with germanium diodes) offers a lot less output but I like its gritty tone.

[Bertziethegreat]

I was kinda hoping you'd run all 4 at the same time. That would have been epic.

[jwyatt4]

@Bertziethegreat I did that off camera.  It was noisy bliss.

[1337rofl]

Sorry if being dumb, but do they work with bass guitars?

[jwyatt4]

@1337rofl Not a dumb question. Though they may not be precisely tuned for a bass, there is no reason why you couldn't use them with a bass if you wanted distortion. The BMP is a popular bass distortion and the GGG tuned version is set up for that and it also sounds great with regular guitar.

[1W1LLALWAY5]

@1337rofl Hell Yeah Man!!! and for the record its not a dumb question, i thought the same thing for Bass pedals for guitar... i used a Dunlop Bass wah pedal for my guitar IT SOUNDS AMAZING!!!!

[lamborn55]

Great demo as always jwyatt4!

[jwyatt4]

Much appreciated!  I can't tell you how much fun this really is.

[valvenator]

Comparing the schematics of the 250 & 250 '77 at GGG I didn't notice any value differences in the parts. So what's the difference? I have the newer Yngwie version of this pedal and love it, though I'm no shredder. With a ton of reverb it captures the 60's Yardbirds sound nicely. I also owned the MXR+ years ago and hated it! The GGG version sounds sooooo much better, more transparent with more gain but cleaner, less fizzy. Thanks for the comparison...Nicely done!

My picks: 250 best, Ross last.

[jwyatt4]

Sometimes you'll run into that when comparing schematics of exact circuits (which these two are). There are actually quite a few differences with regard to values. Below are the differences though it's a little tough to read: 250 250 '77 R222K 20K R322K 20K R64K7 47K R11 - 1K C3 0.0022uF C525pF - C64.7uF22uF C70.001uF0.0022uF D11N9141N4003 D21N9141N4003

[valvenator]

@jwyatt4 Ooops, my bad! I was comparing the same schematic to itself...I'm such an amateur. There are definitely many differences between the two 250's. I should compare these to the Yngwie version and give this demo a better listen. There might be another project for me in the works. Thanks for taking the time to reply.

[jwyatt4]

No big deal...there's so much out there it can get confusing at times.

[dakanger83]

what pedals work with a bass guitar i have to do a DIY for my college Audio Electronics Class

[jwyatt4]

Well the Big Muff is cool for fuzz and the GGG tuned version is set up best for that. GGG now offers a Brass Master clone. It's a kind of complicated (but cool) build.

[Yngwie100Percent]

Nice, I'm gonna have to make the grey '77 version of the 250. Actually I'd like to make all the variants!

[jwyatt4]

Yeah...their all cool in their own right. the '77 version, however, should get you close to Yngwie's original favorite.

[jwyatt4]

Cool...have fun!

[Kitarist88]

I like 250 and Ross the most!!! Ross seems to be the most dynamic and the most transparent.

[guitarguru333]

can someone tell me like what makes distortion, like what little gadget does it, cause i wanna toy around with a homemade distortion and i wanna know what old devises i can take apart to find the little circuit or gadget

[jwyatt4]

Well its difficult to point to a particular component because lots of things work together to make a distortion circuit. Its the converting of the wave to square and the more square the wave, the more dist which is regulated by the drive or gain pot. Opamps, transistors, and diodes work together to create a distorted sound and the types and values of each shape the sound. Theres more to it but you cant simply pull out one component and make a distortion out if it (hope that makes sense).

[guitarguru333]

@jwyatt4 ya it makes sense, i knew the stuff about the waves and how different types of distortion to diff stuff to the waves, im asking is there is a way i can like take apart some clock radio or something and get a few important parts, like i wanna know more about the parts of what makes distortion, like this germanium thing, what is it?

thanks for replying btw

[jwyatt4]

Clock radios will have some transistors that might be useable but the signal path is what's crucial...just a lot of detail to explain. Germanium is a carbon-like chemical element that provides a signature sound as used in early devices. These are housed in tiny vacuum tubes and were replaced by silicon which provide a smoother sound. Germaniums are best known for their grittines though they generally offer less output. These diodes are making a comeback b/c folks like the original sounds.

[InThisStyle]

How could you resist turning them all on?

I would have loved to hear that nonsense.

[jwyatt4]

Ha! Yes...I have actually done that and it does make a lovely 'noise'.

[1984kevingriffin]

Cool Video, This is what ive been looking for, I use a mxr distortion+ as a booster, and I was curious what the differance in sound was compared to the dod. Thanks for posting this.

[jwyatt4]

Sure. What did you think of the differences?

[1984kevingriffin]

I own and use a 1980 mxr dist+ which I modded by taking out 1 germ diode and adding 2 silicon diodes, The mod increased volume and decreased dist, for me it makes a great booster in front of an overdrive. As far as your pedals, The dod 250 was ok, the dod 77 was a little smoother sounding(better) your mxr was also ok, but the ross was a little tinny, and lacked volume. The Mxr or the dod 250 77 were the winners. Your Green Ringer sounded really good as well.

[jwyatt4]

Right on. Yeah...the GRO is a cool pedal.

[rousejeremy]

I like the 250 '77.

The original Dist+ utilized germanium clipping diodes as well. The only issue is you have to have the volume pretty much dimed to get unity gain.

I'm working on a Tonepad Dist+ and it calls for Silicon diodes. Does the GGG kit as well?

[jwyatt4]

The '77 has a bit more punch than the rest. You're right about the volume issue with gemaniums but I'm going to mod the Ross(tm) and add more diodes (can add 6 more) and see if it gives it more punch. The BOM for the Dist + utilizes Silicon but the beauty is the kit comes with the ability to create any version you choose (gemaniums included). Therefore you can mix and match values and create a great sounding pedal of your own.