Newbie with question on mod - (not building yet)

[chezvoz]

I wanted to dig into some mods on the path to building my own. I started with what I thought would be a very easy mod for my DS-1. I changed these parts:

D5    to LED
C3    to .022µF (was supposed to be .033µF. closest I could find at Radio Shack)
R16    to 1k
C11    to .001µF

Unfortunately, I didn't check the pedal after each change.

First no signal, dead quiet, when the effect is on. When effect is bypassed, I have signal. I checked all my solder joints and they look OK. Doesn't appear to be any sloppiness that could cause a short, either.

Then I pulled out the LED in D5 and left it empty. I read that some people just disconnect R5. But still no signal.

Next I replaced C3 with the original capacitor, viola - signal. Now it sounds pretty harsh and seems to have a weak signal compared with the bypass - with the level full, the volume is actually a little less than at bypass.
Anyone know the reason for this?

Thanks

[askwho69]

you LED maybe inverted? try checking it

A2

[chezvoz]

Yes, thank you. That is the kind of knowledge I don't have yet. I didn't think about polarity at all. I'll try it tomorrow and report back.

[BadIdeas]

You shouldn't have parallel diodes going opposite directions, but I don't think that's the issue. Obviously there was an issue with the capacitor, either how it was soldered or the shape it was is. Perhaps you fried it?
If D5 is still out, only half the waveform is being clipped. That should make it sound louder, I think.
Be sure R16 is BROWN, BLACK, RED (10x100), not BROWN, BLACK, ORANGE (10x1 000). That mistake would change the Low-pass filter in the tone network from 1600Hz to 160 Hz.

If C11 has the same problem that C3 had, that is most likely your problem.