Questions regarding Dist+/250/308

[danymal_X]

From a previous thread...

  Eventually, I just bypassed that gain pot. I use a pre-boost to adjust distortion...'above 10'...
  I used a 100k pot there, I find little use for the lower gain settings on the DIST+...not that they can't be cool, but I just use a different something for those type tones, and leave the DIST+ settings set up as hard distortion.
  Using a 100kL pot eliminates some of the lower gain settings but allows a 'finer tuning' to the remaining 'higher gain' settings..

Pete: (or anyone with input)
I am building the same circuit (actually based on the YJM308, but with various mods and changes as outlined in many posts on this forum)... I am planning to use this circuit in one of two ways, as an onboard effect on my strat or piggy-backed inside my crybaby chassis... either way, low profile is the key here... 1 knob max.
For my purposes, I dont need the lower gain settings either, like you, I prefer the high gain settings of this pedal, and use other effects for other sounds. If I wanted to bypass the gain and/or volume pots to their highest settings...specifically the gain... what would you suggest... the schem i worked from has a 4.7K resistor going into a 500K pot for gain, while the schem on GGG for dist+ has a 1M pot, but their DOD 250 circuit shows a 500K... whats the difference, the two being basically the same circuit?
I guess the main question is this... what do I need to put in place of the 500K gain pot to give me max gain? Same question: Volume?
(Volume I may keep, just to give me a bit of control when using with other effects....)

(Heres what I've tried so far... when I tried to bypass the gain pot, I put a 500K resistor from the 4.7K to ground... and then tried the same with just the 4.7K to ground. I didnt notice any real difference in sound either way. Both attempts gave me a lightly overdriven tone, more like a low setting on an old Alamo tube amp I used to have than any real distortion. *not at all bad, but not even close to what I was looking for.)

[danymal_X]

Just FYI here is a layout of what I have so far:
Its not very pretty...


Most values come from this or that mod/upgrade/change found here or on other DIY sites... except:
R1= 430R (instead of 470R)
C4= 22pF (instead of 25pF)
These were al I had available. (I found a 27pF in my parts so I may change C4 out)
The layout's not real tight or neat but it seems to fit OK.

[csmatt45]

This is very easy for you to do. Just put a 100k trim pot, available at almost any Radio Shack for around $1.00 (I know the schems say 500k-1M) in place of the gain pot. Mount it right on the circuit board. Mark Hammer explained to me that most of the "usable" range is in the last 100k of the gain, so you don't need a 1m, especially if you use it at high to max settings.

I've done it, Mark was right, worked like a charm.

matt