Two distortions in one enclosure - share pots?

[Wonderdog]

I was thinking of putting two distortion pedals in one enclosure.  Can I have them share one set of pots and would it be better to wire the distortion circuits in series or parallel?

[JKowalski]

You would likely need to get dual pots, if you want them shared.... The only situation I can think of where sharing pots would work would be one where parameters are controlled in the circuits using a CV from them...

[Wonderdog]

I suppose I could get dual concentric pots.  What about wiring the circuits in parallel instead of in series?

[Processaurus]

I suppose I could get dual concentric pots. 

It will unfortunately be extremely difficult to get concentric pots in the right combination of values.  Manufacturers like Boss can afford to get them custom made for them, and do, because they are married to 4 knob enclosures.  It'll be much more doable to just have separate pots, Small Bear Electronics has some high quality 9mm pots that you can squeeze close together.

What about wiring the circuits in parallel instead of in series?

Definitely! Parallel is more useful than series with distortion, as in series the first one kind of gets cancelled out by the second.  Here is a scheme I made for doing that, making a blend between the two distortions when both footswitches are on:

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=52927.0

[Wonderdog]

Excellent, thanks!