Axis Face Silicon Rev 3 build report.

[formerMember1]

Hi,
I successfully built the Axis Face Silicon Rev 3 from Fuzzcentral.  I love it.  First i tried it stock, but with a 500K volume pot, I liked it but still wanted something else out of it.  SO i started swapping input caps, no avail, better but not right, so then i tried a 100Kaudio pot for the volume instead of the 500K.  WOW!! THat "fixed" it.  The .22uf boxed metal film cap was too small for my tastes, so as Phillip suggested on his site, i tried, .47uf, .68uf, and 1.0 uf.  I like the 1.0uf, just perfect.  I tried swapping the highend rolloff cap to a .033uf and even tried it with out the rolloff cap, but it does sound closer to Germanium fuzz tone, when using the .047uf highend roll off cap as Brett suggested on phillip's site.

For a early hendrix tone, i crank the fuzz on full, volume on full or very near, and i use the smooth pot turned just a tiny bit, just enough to get rid of a little squashy bass. To my ears the smooth pot doesn't smooth the tone much, but it focuses the tone.  Makes it tighter and more trebly and compact,(which i like sometimes compared to the woofier bass of the stock fuzzfaces)
Sounds more like a "Texture" pot to me.

One problem i do have is, when using any BD139 for Q2, when i have my guitar volume completely off, i get a really loud radio stations. Usually i got radio stations from acroos the ocean, like japanese and german and french stations, but in this pedal i get local stations.  I heard Kenny Chesney in their mixed with Mariah Carey.  Anyway, it is only with the BD139's, if i swap it for another tranny in Q2 like say a 2N3904.  It doesn't sound as good as the BD139 but it gets rid of the radio noise.
BUt, if i use the BD139, the radio station disappears if i turn the smooth pot a little, like if i keep the smooth pot fully off the radio is there, and as soon as i turn the smooth pot, the radio is gone.

Then again, the fuzz is mounted in an old fuzzface enclosure, and since i am "tweaking" it i don't have the bottom plate on, so when i put the bottom plate on that might shield out the radio. 

I have the transistors socketed, Is it worth it too try different transistors of the same type, even though they all measure almost the exact same gain?  Is it possible to get a better tone by swapping the same type transistor with the same gains?  here is my tranny gains:

PN2369A

(2) 64hfe
(5) 62hfe
(2) 63hfe
(1) 65 hfe
------------------------------
2N3904

(1) 125hfe
(1) 107hfe
(1) 113hfe
(1) 95hfe
(1) 110hfe

-------------------------------
BD139

(2) 123/124 hfe
(6) 123hfe
(2) 122 hfe

I only tried one BD139 and that was the a 123/124 hfe Q2
I only tried one PN2369A and that was a 65 hfe  Q1
I didn't like the 2N3904 in the Q2 spot.

I also notice that if i have the volume of fuzz on full, fuzz on full, and smooth near off and volume on guitar cranked and amp cranked, i could tap on the fuzzface container with my fingernails and hear it in the amp.  Is this a grounding problem or something?

Mojotron, if you read this, Why did you settle on a .1uf output cap instead of a .01uf output cap,(because of the '69) and why did you change the .047uf  cap to a .01uf  cap.  Did you get closer to hendrix?  I still want to pick up some more caps to try for the input cap.  Unfortunatly, i didn't socket the output cap,

After i decide my final values i am gonna remove my sockets,  I don't like them their for permanent use.  Maybe hotglue like petemoore suggested....

sorry if i bored ya, I just wanted to share my experience with my new favorite pedal.



PS: What can i do too get the pedal to clean up better via guitar volume knob.  It goes from heavy fuzz on guitar volume 10, to a less heavy fuzz tone on guitar volume 9, then less at 8, less at 7, and then any lower all the way to 1 get just gets thinner and thinner with out cleaning up much.  It stays slighty overdriven/fuzzed, but just a little to much, to be able to play clean.

I have the transistor biased at 4.56volts.  It tried 5.00volts but didn't like it as much as 4.56volts

I could post up all my transistor voltages if need be. 

[formerMember1]

i am gonna go search about the radio frequency problem,(i think i saw something about this before on the forum) i didn't mean to post that with out searching. 
If you could give advice though please do.

[Stevo]

Usually a small 270pf cap right after the input cap to ground will help this
Or even if you want to try somethong else that may help it clean up too is a 100k resistor before the input cap

[formerMember1]

Usually a small 270pf cap right after the input cap to ground will help this

Yeah i read this on the forum already, but will that change the tone?

Or even if you want to try somethong else that may help it clean up too is a 100k resistor before the input cap

Isn't this the same as my smooth pot?  Becuase like Vanessa said in another thread, the radio comes in when gutiar volume is off, in that thread they tracked it down to the low gain silicon transistors, i guess i could add a small resistor in series with the cold lug of smooth pot, so that instead of the smooth pot being at 0ohms when CCW, it will be a little above zero, this should stop the radio, since when i turn the smooth pot slightly, it goes away.

I wish i could get it to clean up via the volume on guitar though, I have a smallcap and resistor across the volume pot lugs in my guitar to stop treble loss when the guitar is turned down, but it is not the treble that i am losing, it is the fact that the fuzz doesn't clean up well, yeah it cleans up better if i turn the smooth pot CW, but then my full on fuzz sound isn't as good,  I think it cleaned up better when i used a 500K volume pot in there, becuase when i first tried the pedal, it cleaned up better than it does now,
I don't know,  I am just gonna tweak it more.

Phillip changes the 330ohm resistor to a 1k2 so that the pedal is louder, i have the 1k2 in there, but i would rather the pedal not as loud, If i swap out the 1k2 resistor back to 330ohms will that change tone?  Or only output volume?  Becuase in a stock fuzz i like to turn the volume pot down to around 3/4 or 1/2 way, becuase it regulates the volume compared to my other pedals, but it also drops some treble,  With the 1k2 resistor in there, the pedal is too loud at around 3/4 way, let alone on full!

thanks for your replies,

hey stevo Why the rolling of the eyes smileys?

[guitar_199]

formerMember1,

Great news!!!   I'm glad that worked out for you.

If I could ask a favor though.

You said that you built it up stock first ( w/500K volume)......
Wanted something else....
And you essentially found the answer to that in the 100K volume pot.

Can you characterize the difference between the two....
i.e.   what was it about the 100K version that you liked better?

To add,  I appreciate the detail in your report.  Thanks for taking the time.

Have you got any way to do a sound clip?

[formerMember1]

Thanks!

Well the difference in my opinion when using the 100K audio pot instead of the 500k audio taper pot, was this:
The 500k pot had more of the traditional fuzzface bassy woofyness. Also when playing lead, it didn't track as well as using a 100k.
The 100K made it more trebly, punchier and in your face.  I actually got closer to Jimi's studio version of  Purple Haze.
The 100K sounded better to me.  It was easier to play lead with also. 

first thing tomorrow, i am gonna try a 2.2uF electro input cap, and a .01uf and .1uf output cap, and see if that makes it closer to Jimi.  Then i am gonna try a 250K pot for volume.
I actually am making an order to smallbear soon, so i am gonna order a 250K audio pot to try.  Analog mans' sunface uses a 250K pot.

Think of it this way, the 500K was a bassy woofy(but not bad by no means) more like a traditiona heavy fuzzface. 
The 100k pot was more of a searing lead tone, more focused and trebly and punchier.  It kinda of sounded like you turned the smooth pot a little.

I don't have a way to make a soundclip that is recorded good, My digital recorder is at my other location.  PLus i have more "mods" to try,

BUT, when i finally get it the way i want, i am gonna post up soundclips of the way i like it, then with different caps and volume pot values.
I should be done with my Axis face soon,(this week), then i am gonna start making my Vox Clyde Mccoy wah board.

thanks for the help you have given me over at fuzzcentral's forum, I actually went back and read your/our posts a few times in order to make sure i was building it right.




How far are you on your Axis FAce build?

[vanessa]

formerMember1-

Your issue seems a little different than the one Brett and I had with the radio interference. Ours was caused by removing the input 'smooth' control and running it normally with a PN2369A in Q1. I found that my favorite setting with the 'smooth' control was about 10k. I experimented with this circuit bread-boarded and found a 10k resistor in series on the input got my favorite setting but also removed the noise I was getting. You are saying that you have a 'smooth' control in your circuit. Hummmm.... ? I don't know what to tell you. But your smooth pot should be doing the trick.

Also I agree with some of the mods but to me this thing really needs that 2.2uf input cap to sound like the original (Hendrix). When you get into lower input-cap values it loses the original character and becomes another pedal. I may be off but I would guess that Phillip plays through darker amps, I have found a lot of his choices in tone-scaping seem to lean towards the treble side of things. This circuit with the mods seems to lighten up my Marshall over a stock 2.2uf input cap circuit (and does sound good) but running into my (black face) Fender Super Reverb it does not sound like a stock FF, more like a different type of distortion pedal (which one I don't know). With the 2.2uf it sounds like a ge FF with both setups. It may be “woofier” with my Marshall but it still sounds like a Fuzz Face and gets me closer to that Jimi vibe.

[formerMember1]

Cool thanks!!

I was just making a list of what parts to pickup at radio shack tomorrow.  I am gonna try the 2.2uF for the inputcap, and try a .1uf for the output cap instead of .01uf.  I was also thinking about changing the 15uF  cap to the stock fuzzface 22uf(or 20uF if you could find one) Becuase it says on Phillip's site that when using a 15uf instead of 22uf(like the tonebender did) it will reduce the fuzzyness, so i am gonna pickup a 22uF also.

I agree about the smallish caps taking away the fuzzface character.  So far my sound is very close to Purple Haze, Manic Depression, almost sounds like "Let the good times roll" from electric Ladyland, but not quite.

As per the Radio noise, I think it is the same problem as your and Brett's was,(except for the transistor part)  Because i noticed that when i turned the smooth pot off there was radio, when i turned it on there is no radio.  Isn't that the same as when you put a fixed 10K resistor in there instead of the smooth pot?

I'll post up my result tomorrow.

hey Vanessa i got a Question:
Does your fuzz clean up via guitar volume well? 


thanks for your input...

[Stevo]

Sorry formerMember1 about the eyes..i didnt know if i would or could help so i just put that in there...

[formerMember1]

Sorry formerMember1 about the eyes..i didnt know if i would or could help so i just put that in there...

Oh...Gotch Ya, thanks.... 

[formerMember1]

I just noticed that the fuzz "pops" when i bypass it.  I do have a 1M pulldown on the input.  None at the output since there is a volume pot taking care of that.  Do I need a 2.2M pulldown possibly?  Not too loud of a pop but loud enough to bother fixing.

I further tested the pedal with my Wolfgang custom, loaded with a SD-59 bridge pup.  Using the Smooth pot is essential in making the pedal work with a humbucker guitar.  Better than swapping input caps.   

What i am hoping to be able to do is get a hendrix tone with my strat, then be able to get more of a jimmy Page tone with the Wolfgang.  Or i probably just need to build a Tonebender MKII for that. (perhaps i will get closer when i try the other parts tonight)

[mojotron]

Hi,
I successfully built the Axis Face Silicon Rev 3 from Fuzzcentral.  I love it.  ...

Mojotron, if you read this, Why did you settle on a .1uf output cap instead of a .01uf output cap, and why did you change the .047uf input cap to a .01uf input cap.  Did you get closer to hendrix?  I still want to pick up some more caps to try for the input cap.  Unfortunatly, i didn't socket the output cap,
...

PS: What can i do too get the pedal to clean up better via gutiar volume knob.  It does from heavy fuzz on guitar volume 10, to a less heavy fuzz tone on guitar volume 9, then less at 8, less at 7, and then any lower all the way to 1 get just gets thinner and thinner with out cleaning up much.  It stays slighty overdriven/fuzzed, but just a little to much, to be able to play clean.
...

Hey formerMember1 - this is a great fuzz isn't it - by far one of my favorite projects too...
I thought that the stock version was pretty close to a an early Hendrix sound, but I'm guessing that the 500k pot would need one of Jimi's Marshalls to sound just right. I really like the 100k output pot a lot more.

I tried many things when tweeking mine. And, I guess I wasn't looking for a Hendrix sound as much as perfecting the mild fuzz sound I get when I put the smooth (which I used a 50K pot) at 50% (12 oclock) fuzz at ~60% (1 oclock) and volume just high enough ~70-80% (2-3 oclock) - when using with the neck pickup this sound is awesome! So, that's why I use the .1uF cap on the output - I wanted that fat sound without a lot of base loading.

So, when I started looking at finding what I wanted as I built my own "perfect" Ge fuzz I bought a '69 pedal (among others) and I duplicated that sound, then took that to the next level with a few tweaks - one of those tweaks was using a .2uF output cap with NTE102 (Q1) and NTE102a (Q2). I really liked that sound, both as a fuzzy-boost and also as a straight up Ge Fuzz, but Ge transistors are too much for me to deal with stability wise... so I built Phillip's Axis Fuzz with the "bias" knob as well - just like on the GGG Boutique Fuzz (which was mentioned in another thread.. which is where I mentioned my mods). But, and I guess I will call it, "texture" of the sound was not quite right - I wanted a little more low end and a little more high end. So, what I did was to not change the input cap, but rather notice the 2 cap combo on the output where Brett suggests an impeadance (voltage divider) with the output cap and the cap across a 1k2 resistor... This is where I made the output cap .1uF to boost the lowend and the cap bridging the 1k2 resistor .01uF to boost the high end. This created - IMO - the best of both worlds; not only a great NKT275 Ge Fuzz like sound - but also using a PN2369A and 2N3904. However, and I'm really glad you mentioned it, I have always thought that other transistors sounded better than the 2N3904 - but had not settled on the right one. I kept using 2N3904 and 2N5088 parts for Q2 - the change is very subtle, but one I notice... I will get some BD139s and check them out - Thanks for the report!

BTW, on strats the volume pot is sometimes audio tapered - changing the pot out for a linear tapered pot should give you a bit more range between heavy to med. fuzz - kind of like stretching that 9-10 range on your volume knob down to 5-10...

[petemoore]

  Ouput pot value.
  Can be a bit tricky to figure out.
  on a 500k pot, if you turn it down much you will also be attenuating highs 'more' than the rest.
  Even a 100k pot does this, but to a lesser degree.
  So the voicing of the fuzz is also altered with use of the V Knob.
  Another thing to consider is how much your amp likes getting 'hammered' [having the fuzz output help it distort], the effect can be tuned in nicely to make the amp 'like it', or not tuned in so nice for not so nice a Fuzz IME.
  I use two or more FF's to get this right for me.
  I get a feel for what the amp likes, and what the fuzz is doing by adjusting output level and amp volumes, etc.
  Then I mess with...volume pot value, that 470/1k [this resistor is like 'another volume control], also one can put a HF bypass across the volume pots input to wiper, but I just try to hit a 'target voicing/output level] generally with the fuzz volume set at around 7-8 [this will roll off just a touch of highs, I settle on 50k-100k for this knob], and adjust the output volume with the '1k', 470ohm is a bit weak IMO.
  This way I can leave the Fuzz Volume with the chosen 'voicing/setting', and have the FF hammer my amp 'just' so hard.
  I find a 100k volume pot set at around 7 rolls off a touch of highs and when used at '*lower overall volumes' can be 'upped' and adds that touch of *highs back, kind of like an automatic 'loudness' control.
  Basically just diddling with the resistor between the 33k and the 8k2 [it's marked usually between 470ohm and 1k2 in various FF type schematics], using a 100k volume pot, turned down a bit, and voice it to my amps liking.

[formerMember1]

cool thanks for your reply/advice  

IN my opinion, when Swapping BD139's for 2N3904's.  There was this difference:

The BD139's seem to be more consistent with gains staying around 120-125.  THe 2N3904's i have, are not as consistent, as you could tell in my previous posts to this thread. (from 93-125 or so)

Soundwise, to me the BD139 was more of a Fuzzy character.  It also had more oomph or heavyness.  The 2N3904 was squishier, and more trebly.
Actaully when using the BD139 on full on fuzz(guitar on 10) the sound is better to me than the 2n3904,and the BD139 is fatter and warmer when you turn the guitar volume down.  THe 2N3904 sounds more spanky and trebly and thinner(but not too thin).  With the BD139, If you roll your guitar volume down, and really pick the notes  hard, you get a more trebly sound, closer to the 2n3904.  (the BD139 seems to be more touch sensitve than the 2N3904, but that is debatable.)
The BD139 sounds more like Ge, and the 2N3904 has more of the highest high end of a silicon fuzz.  Again, the difference was subtle, but enough for me to pick the BD139 over the 2n3904 for a Ge sound.

oh yeah,... the BD139 seems to be more consistent with tone, i swapped a bunch and couldn't tell much of a difference if any, but with the 2n3904, there seemed to be more variability in tone when swapping.(this could be do to the hfe variation though, i don't know)

did you try a 100k for the smooth pot?  Or did you just use a 50K  becuase you had it lying around?  Becuase i notice that the smooth pot sounds good with my strat, when the smooth pot is barely on, and i turn the smooth pot about a 12:000 or further for a humbucker guitar.

I thought the original fuzzfaces used a 2K linear pot.  How come Phillip suggests the 1K audio pot?  (is it becuase of the reverse taper not being made in a 2K linear pot?)


EDIT*** thanks Petemoore, that is good to know, (i didn't see your post, i was posting while your posted) 

Mojotron: i forgot to tell ya, the BD139 are a little bigger than a normal silicon tranny.  It also has a ECB pinout. (works for me since i used the axis face layout, i don't know if you could bend the leads to make them work or not) The leads are thicker than a normal lead, so it barely rests in the sockets. Even if you push real hard it won't fit in the socket.  It holds enough to try it, but if you bump it or tip the pedal upside down it falls out.  If you can't find them, or you don't want to make place an order to Mouser just for them and pay all that shipping, I could send you a few.  I bought ten of them and only need it for the Q2 spot, and i am not gonna build ten fuzzfaces.  Are you in the United STates?  PM me if you want some....

here is a picture of it,

http://www.st.com/stonline/books/pdf/docs/5238.pdf

[formerMember1]

i picked up a 2.2mfd electro cap for the input cap to try.(couldn't find radial so i got axial)  anyway, it is not polarized.

Is there any advantage if it was polarized?

I also picked up some polyester film and metal films of different values, to see if i could hear a difference compared to the"hgh quality" avx boxed metal film caps from mouser. 

thanks...

oh yeah, i picked up a cheap NPN silicon 2N4401 to try, but it ended up being 219 hfe, oh well.....

[petemoore]

 "I thought the original fuzzfaces used a 2K linear pot".
  That gain value makes enough difference.
  Try this once, get a pot from SB for the gain, I forget the taper but it's perfectt, no affiliation, but I like SB and that pot.
  Then, put enough resistance 'under' it [between it and ground] so that you have your max gain like presettable, such as socket.
  Here's how I started doing it.
  dont' wire the gain pots ground connection, add a temporary 1k pot as V/R in there.
  turn the SB gainpot all the way up, adjust the temporary 'trim/value find' pot so you have max gain or whatever you want there, if your'e using SC's to test and might use HB's...consider that, [I like to 'overmax' just a touch sometimes for 'severity'] , pull the trimpot wiring without touching the setting, read the value, insert fixed resistor of measured value ~.
  If you have really high gain Q's you may need to trim the 1k to something like 880 across lugs 1&3, or whatever.
  I have one FF like Sili Face, [eliminating the gainpot with a fixed value] and use the pots place instead for pregain, works a little different, I like it, ultimate DIY thing would be maybe two fixed gain settings using SPST Switch [one for SC one for HB], options options options....once you get a good sound [full on guitar and rolled off] after all the Q swaps and tweeking bias, and viocing, and...getting the gain controlled isn't hard to do.
  Some setups for high gain do sound good with a larger gainpot though, theys a thousand and a half Fuzz Faces at any given moment.
  I never set a pregainpot and gainpot FF side by side and tried A/Bing lower gain settings...I do use the gain pot set near full, if it's there, no matter where it's placed in the circuit.
  'Intersecting', the gain pot values, and transistor gains should be considered 'together'.

[mojotron]

...
IN my opinion, when Swapping BD139's for 2N3904's.  There was this difference:
..

Great... thanks for the description, sounds like I need to try the 139's

Mojotron: i forgot to tell ya, the BD139 are a little bigger than a normal silicon tranny.  It also has a ECB pinout. (works for me since i used the axis face layout, i don't know if you could bend the leads to make them work or not) The leads are thicker than a normal lead, so it barely rests in the sockets. Even if you push real hard it won't fit in the socket.  It holds enough to try it, but if you bump it or tip the pedal upside down it falls out.  If you can't find them, or you don't want to make place an order to Mouser just for them and pay all that shipping, I could send you a few.  I bought ten of them and only need it for the Q2 spot, and i am not gonna build ten fuzzfaces.  Are you in the United STates?  PM me if you want some....

Yep, with the way I did mine (from the GGG Butique Fuzz) that ECB thing could be challenging. Thanks for the offer I really appriciate it, I'm in the Seattle area - but I won't have too much time to check it out in the next month of so (demanding day job right now )... so in the mean time, I'm doing a large mouser order (will add some 139's) to get ready for the Christmas period when I will have some time. I'll put this on the agenda with some other stuff (Llama, tube stuff, trem lune...).

The other thing I was going to try around turkey day was to "ToneBender MKII"-ize an Axis Face by adding a booster stage.. I thought that would be pretty cool too.. I'll report what I end up with.

[mac]

i built my Si FF using some of Phillip's ideas. See my post at fuzzcentral forum.
Previously in this forum a read a topic about RF interference. I wrote that the 2369A is a good choice but now I don't think the same. I've been using 2369A in other projects and found out that they pick some RF signals.
So I tried different transistors for my Si FF, mpsa42, 2n2219a, etc. They sound almost the same. Almost...
My choice is a pair of BD139, or any of the BD class.
Also It seemed to me that power transistors have some mojo.
About the input cap, I used a 2.2uF poly NP. It sounds better to me and I dont have to worry about replacing a dried electro in the future.
The rest of the circuit is like the original FF except for the 100k vol pot and a 1K instead of the 0.47k.
NOw I am working on a higher input impedance version, by adding a 1k pot at the first emitter with a 10 - 22uf bypass cap, and resize the bias. If I understood RG article about impedance that will put a hFEx1k resistor at the input, 100k + or -. Didnt try a wah in front of the FF yet.

Want to try but dont know how to resize bias? http://geocities.com/guitarfxs/english/download_eng.html

mac

[formerMember1]

I thought the original fuzzfaces used a 2K linear pot".
  That gain value makes enough difference.

I worded that wrong, i meant that didn't hendrix use a 2k linear pot in there for fuzz becuase that is what i heard R..Mayer did?  I heard it stops Q2 from becoming saturated or something.  I would be interested in this since i also heard it makes the fuzz crunchier and fuzzier....

Try this once, get a pot from SB for the gain, I forget the taper but it's perfectt, no affiliation, but I like SB and that pot

I think i have that one, is it the 1K audio reverse taper pot? I have that... I don't really turn the fuzz knob down though, so that doesn't really help me.
Could the pot being audio, Have anything to do with the fuzz not cleaning up?  I thought if i stuck a linear 2k(or even 1k) pot in there, it would sound better... i don't know....

Then, put enough resistance 'under' it [between it and ground] so that you have your max gain like presettable, such as socket.
  Here's how I started doing it.
  dont' wire the gain pots ground connection, add a temporary 1k pot as V/R in there.
  turn the SB gainpot all the way up, adjust the temporary 'trim/value find' pot so you have max gain or whatever you want there, if your'e using SC's to test and might use HB's...consider that, [I like to 'overmax' just a touch sometimes for 'severity'] , pull the trimpot wiring without touching the setting, read the value, insert fixed resistor of measured value ~.

What does the above accomplish?  I am confused...I understand what you mean, but i don't understand what will happen becuase of it...Will it change the pot to 2K or so, while still having that great taper? 

Wait i think i got it,...You mean instead of having the fuzz pot, only variable to 12:00 then there is no fuzz, by adding a fixed resistor, you could make the fuzz more controlable over more of the pots rotation?

thanks...


MOJOTRON:

"ToneBender MKII"-ize an Axis Face by adding a booster stage <<<<<sounds cool.


EDIT** i tried the 2.2uf input cap, it is much better, and closer to JIMI.  Better clean up too,(not as trebly)

MAC:Is that 2.2uf metal film cap big in physical size?

[formerMember1]

Final mods i decided on are:

2.2uf electro cap,  = sounds better, more like Jimi (still looking for a 2.2uf metal film though....)
.01uf output cap,=sounds good, tried the .1uf but thought it was too bassy, maybe not though..sounds closer to montery pop with a .1uf ouput cap
swapped the 15uf cap for 22uf cap,  the 22uf cap is more fuzzy, the 15uf is less fuzzy and more overdriven or something,
(barely a difference between the 15uf or 22uf, though)

i couldn't tell a difference between the poly film and metal film caps, i thought i heard a difference that the metal film was better, but think it is a psychological difference, if that...(but i only tried swapping one cap like this,)

i went back to the 500K pot, i thought it was closer to jimi,

I still can't get it to clean up via the volume on guitar, and that is the main reason why i like fuzzfaces,... 

When comparing my sounds with a jimi record or video, his sounds is better obviously,  i think it lies in the fact that he is using a 100watt plexi and i am using a 5 watt tube amp... even though i am pretty close,...

I am trying to get better clean up via volume on guitar, probably swap out Q1 for a different low gain silicon transistor to try, and get more of a clearer sound,  Jimi's sound has more of a clearer overdrive quality to it...Mine is more of a high gain distortion/ really fuzzy....I am trying to get Montery POP, or the marquee club purple haze sound from the film about Jimi DVD,


PS:i tried some BC108's and BC109's and liked it, but i want this pedal to be Germanium sounding, another one i build will be the normal silicon sound.....

any suggestions for my wants?  I am gonna continue to search the internet....

thanks