can i get more out of my ea trem?

[foxfire]

i built it using ROG's layout, http://runoffgroove.com/eatremolo.html. it sounds awesome with going in to a clean amp but, it is all but completely lost going into a distorted amp. i know the EA Trem is a subtle trem but, is there a way to have it in front of a dirty amp?

[jlullo]

hey man!  i've built two of these guys.  there are a few mods you can do, i can't remember the thread, but dragonfly posted a bunch if you search for it.  I believe getting a higher gain transistor for Q3 helps.  Overall, putting the distortion first seems to work a bit better, or running this through an effects loop.  However, from what everyone says, the Heartthrob is way better at chopping up distortion.  Search for dragonfly's mods though, and i'm sure they will get you somewhere.

In my opinion, the EA is a fantastic trem

[burnt fingers]

I have a dunlop trem and if I use it in the front of a distorted amp it gets lost too.  

I don't think it's your build or the circuit in general.

Scott

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

Yeah, the thing is this:
if the amp is distorting by overdriving, then the signal is also being compressed.
Which smooths out the lumps the trem put in.
if you want distortion & trem, then you need to do the distortion BEFORE the trem..
which is unfortunate if it is the amp's distortion that you want.

[Fuzzy-Train]

I have the EA trem as well, and wish it could get that "choppy" sound. It's a fantastic trem, but it would be much more versatile if it could chop it up a bit.

What about increasing the depth and rate pot... would that be able to achieve this?

[foxfire]

i think i have a 500k depth pot on mine as i didn't have any 250k's and i don't think mine gets any choppier than the samples i've heard.
i'll have to look into the heartthrob and i think i have all the parts for a tremulus lune? i'll have to grab a couple of minutes and do that search you suggested jlullo. i got the idea to add a second rate control from his gallery so if he has more ideas on it then i can't wait to find them.

[Processaurus]

If you search for rEAgenerated tremolo by the user Transmogrifox, that is the only mod (more of a light re-design) to the EA to get way more depth.  The other mods out there may add a little bit of depth, but don't go to the heart of the limitations of the original design, which is that there is always a set minimum volume when the FET that does the volume changing is all the way off.  It works kind of backwards, the tremming (the FET turning on) only adds volume.  It sounds like it is making things quieter because you turn the volume down afterward so it isn't ridiculously loud.

But yes, for any tremolo, distortion (a volume compressing effect) is better before tremolo (a volume modifying effect).  Otherwise the trem is like a monkey turning the gain knob on the amp up and down, rather than the volume.

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

I havn't built it - I personally dislike fet based designs because, there is often FAR too much variation in results depending on the particular fet that is used (one reason, I expect, that the EA trem has such varied reports).
So I think the first thing I would do, is try swapping Q2 with other fets. True, it will never go silent - but it might get closer.