Question about voltage regulation and compressors

[BernieRunns]

I built a Bear Hug compressor and posted about debugging on here when it didn't fire up right away. A fella mentioned in a reply that when I do get it working that I should probably run it off a nine volt battery because it is pretty sensitive to current and voltage fluctuations. Is there a solution to regulating voltage and current with a voltage regulator? Am I way off base?

I would run it off a nine volt but it is stuffed in a box with a Big Muff and there is just no room for it. The BMP sounds great but the compressor spits and farts. Maybe I don't have the circuit worked out yet. Although it sounds pretty nice when tested with a nine volt.

[R.G.]

A 9V power supply is likely to be regulated and provide a more constant voltage to the circuit than a battery.

[midwayfair]

I'm pretty sure running a pedal with MOSFET biasing will always be more reliable with an adapter.

Where's the troubleshooting thread you're referring to? I don't Dee it in your post history.

[BernieRunns]

Sorry the thread was over at tagboardeffects (I copy/pasted the question here) and after a review of it, it was for the orange squeezer circuit. The same problem is occurring with both circuits though. It sounds spitty and farty.

[BernieRunns]

I'm going to search for MOSFET biasing and do some reading. Is there anything you can tell me about it?

[midwayfair]

Post your voltages. Check your pinout against the data sheet. Take pictures of both sides of the board. Once you've done that, I'll be able to help you start troubleshooting.

Also, in general, it's a bad idea to put a circuit in a box before you've tested it. You can make a test rig for a couple dollars with a breadboard, a couple jacks, and some wire.

There is nothing in common between the orange squeezer and the bear hug except that a FET is the variable resistance element. If the FET was bad in the bear hug, you'd probably get distortion or over compression, but sorting is unlikely.

Jack Or man's article on the MOSFET booster is relevant. The bearhug's dry path is almost identical.

One last thing: several parts values in this build have been updated since the tagboard effects layout was posted. You might want to keep that in mind when you get it working.