Signal giving out few seconds after powered up.

[HTLButcher]

The cheap fragile compressor I was using for a boost to the front end of my amp quit working. I don't know what gave out, and I don't have a multimeter anymore so I can't really inspect. I'm low on money so rather than wait until i have the funds to build/buy a clean boost, i figured i might try to do what i can with something I have. I had an old Squier SP-10 amp laying around in the bottom of my closet that quit working for a friend of mine ages ago, so i figured I would isolate the first gain stage in it and use that as a clean boost. I modified the gain using other resistors on the same board and hotwired a battery connector to it. When I plug it up, it sounds pretty decent, not great, but it passes for now. The problem is that it produces signal for maybe 10-15 seconds and then it gives out. I found that if I disconnect the battery and reconnect it directly after, signal still will not pass, yet if i wait a little while before reconnecting the battery, when i do, it gives signal again, but still only for that 10-15 seconds. I really have no clue what causes this, none of the pedals I have made in the past ever did anything like this.

[Pyr0]

Sounds like some sort of problem related to an electrolytic capacitor charging up/down. But without a schematic and notes of changes you made it will be hard to debug. Try monitoring voltages at strategic places on the board as it is powered up to see what changes over time.

[pinkjimiphoton]

+1 on the capacitor. further, it's most likely in the power supply you cobbled together. go from your battery connection, and read the voltages on both sides of whatever electros there are. if you find one with the same voltages on both sides...

oh, shoot. no meter. i forgot that part. good luck, gonna be hella hard to debug without some kind of meter.