Simple mod question?

[atff]

I read some where (probably written by some one on this forum) that a simple and effective way to make all your effects sound cleaner, create less tone sucking and to reduce unwanted noise is to change all resistors to Metal Film type and to upgrade all stock capacitors to high fidelity film type. Does this sound right?

I'd like to try this but I wanted to double check the value of doing this first.

Thanks
ATFF

[petemoore]

  Try it A/B one circuit with 'regular' parts, one with low tolerance 'high end' stuff..something big so the cumulative effect of the super small differences might be heard. Report back.
  I'm very certain it'd depend on alot of things, and that in certain applications some measurable difference could be ferreted out. Back and forth the discussion goes, try searching through say the last week or so, there's a thread 'for those who hear big differences in capacitor types' I think it was.
  There's also an article at GEO about cap type differences.

[Roobin]

Yeah, Metal film 1% (or better) sound like a good start. IT wont make a noticeable difference to the sound, but will clear noise up a bit (assuming the rest of the circuit is fine).

Obviously, better caps will produce slightly better esults, but there is a great debate about what type of cap sound best where... i think RG Keen has an article about Cap types, also there was a post a couple of days back about difference in cap types - have a look at it.. Ill try and find the url for it.

[PenPen]

It depends on if you are able to hear it. I know, bad answer, but its the truth. I've noticed people have different degrees of hearing tonal differences. Some people can hear differences in cap types. I sure as hell can't. Some people can't hear the difference from Eb, E, and E# (me, 5 years ago. Tuning was a bitch.) You can 'train' your ears to some degree, but some things you will never hear.

Now, from what I read, metal film resistors are lower in noise. So yes, if you replace them all, you may be able to hear a bit more clarity. Most likely, not a whole lot really. Some people will be able to notice, most won't. You'd have to be trying to hear the difference. If you spent all of the time to desolder and replace a bunch of parts, you will be more likely to think you hear a difference because you put all that work into it. Those in your audience won't likely care. You'd be better off replacing your speakers in your amp than replacing resistors and caps for a slight reduction in noise. Electrical noise picked up is probably going to drown it all out anyway.

I guess what I'm saying is, if you feel up to doing all of that, then do it. But don't expect a magic tone to appear. You may notice it helps a bit, but most likely not.

[toneless]

A simple and effective way to make all your pedals sound better is to know-how and know-why you play music. 
Just trying to help...it's very time consuming to ...consume ourselves with such type of questions.

Have fun and good luck anyway.

[atff]

Thanks for all your input.

I know this is a very subjective topic. Getting rid of unwanted noise is my main goal, if the sound gets a little sweeter, it's a bonus.
I have modded my TS9 and Dynacomp with great success, reducing hiss and buzz with out sacrificing tone.

As a test I think I'll swap all the resistors and caps out on a DS-1 to metal film / hi-fi film and hear what happens.

Toneless: Your absolutely right, I've been a guitarist for more than 30 years so I've got some of the know-how,
always learning thou, and I play for 1 reason - to serve the lord.

Thanks again guys,

atff

[Mark Hammer]

There are many resistors which will make no audible difference by being metal film because they are not part of the audio path.  Of course, they may still make an audible difference by being 1% tolerance and dependably close to what the value is supposed to be, but that's a precision, not a composition thing.

In general, if the circuit has any part where gain is added, you would obviously want to reduce any noise contribution of components leading up to where amplification is introduced.  Multiplying noise x100 just makes it 100 times more of a problem.  So, for instance, in something like a Ross/Dynacomp circuit, or a Tubescreamer (two of the most common things attempted here), changing the resistors leading up to the first stage (which is a gain stage in each instance) will likely yield greater returns on noise reduction than changing the resistors following that stage.  Remember, signal-to-noise ratio is a product of having big signal, relative to any noise added on top of it.  Once you make the signal big, additional residual noise is not such a big deal.  The problem occurs when you unintentionally make the noise big at the same time you make the signal big.

My buddy Tim, who makes the Retro-Sonic pedals, tells me that he simply uses 1% metal film throughout because in volume prices, they don't cost much more than regular 5% types.  For a guy like him (not to mention many other boutique builders), word of mouth is his greatest ally, and often his primary source of advertising. Under those circumstances, consistency of build is paramount, and sometimes even more important than noise.  All it takes is one unit where the +/-5% tolerances resulted in a so-so to mediocre outcome that someone mentions on Harmony Central and you can lose a lot of sales.  Better to spring the few extra cents per unit and have pedal #487 sound just like pedal #211 and pedal #729.

[phostenix]

and I play for 1 reason - to serve the lord.

Amen, brother. 

Grace and peace,

Steve