Omni Drive diodes sound less driven than without diodes

[auden100]

Just finished boxing up Hollis' Omni Drive:

http://www.geofex.com/PCB_layouts/Layouts/omnidrv.pdf

I've added the AMZ Presence Control (BMP Tone-Body Mod), and 6 selectable diode configurations. One of those options is no diodes, and when that is selected, there is appropriately a large increase in volume. Each of the other diode configs (LED, Ge, 914, Asym, etc.) sound different, but they each sound as if there is a cleaner signal blended in, or perhaps like there is more drive on the higher frequencies and less on the mids/lows. I didn't recall this being the case before it was boxed up, but I'm not sure.

Anyone else experience this? Is it normal? Everything else about the pedal functions normally.

[auden100]

*bump*

Any ideas? This is my first pedal build, and I'm not sure if there's something wrong with this outcome or not. 

[Bad Chizzle]

Hey, buddy

I'm going to try to talk about at least one part of your post. If the mod you are talking about is the one I've seen, then you have several diode clipping choices that are all the diode to ground type. It has been my experience that whenever the clipping method is used as apposed to the diodes in feedback loop kind, you get a extreme boost in volume when the clipping is switched out because none of the signal is being shunted to ground. It's a pretty normal reaction. As for the other issue, I'm not really sure about that part of things. I hope I have helped in some way!


Chuk

[Bad Chizzle]

I just read your post again and realized that there was no need for what I wrote to you.
Sorry about that!

[teemuk]

I've added the AMZ Presence Control (BMP Tone-Body Mod), and 6 selectable diode configurations. One of those options is no diodes, and when that is selected, there is appropriately a large increase in volume. Each of the other diode configs (LED, Ge, 914, Asym, etc.) sound different, but they each sound as if there is a cleaner signal blended in, or perhaps like there is more drive on the higher frequencies and less on the mids/lows.

Uh, perhaps that's because the entire circuit looks like to be based on a principle of blending clean and distorted tone. It even has a knob for it. 

[auden100]

Bad Chizzle: Thanks anyway 

teemuk: Thanks. That's a good thought, and the fact that the diodes with which this effect is most apparent (Ge 34a's) are the same ones that produce the  most volume drop makes sense too. But I was just looking over the schem some more, and realized that the 50K pot that controls blend wasn't working well enough for me on the breadboard, so I had replaced it with the only other pot I had, a 500K, which worked great in isolating both the dirty and clean sides at it's ends. My guess would be that this would reduce any noticeable blending of the dry signal even with the volume drop from the diodes. yes/no?

To clarify, the effect of this is similar to the way that the mode switch seems to work on this pedal. Though, while in feedback mode, this effect (clean low-end/fuzzed highs) is much more pronounced, I assumed this was normal.

Any more thoughts on this are much appreciated.