Question about background noise in Shin Ei Companion, and DOD 250?

[MonsterBass101]

Ok so I just build both of these pedals, and they both seem to generate a very large amount of hiss.  The DOD is relatively quiet until the last 3/4 of the pot range, but the Shin Ei is very noisy!  Is this normal for these pedals?  If not where would I begin looking to solve this.  Thanks so much.

[iCommunism]

Hi!

I have a shin-ei Clone that was one of my first, I have to say it is impressively quiet even using my noisy single coils.
Mine was the GGG clone, and I actually have it in right now and it sounds no more noisey than any gainy pedal.

Also I was VERY messy with the build.

anyhow, I would try a few things to quiet it down:
In my circumstance, it is quieter with the volume knob UP rather than down.
It is also quieter with the Guitar volume UP rather than down. Is this the case with yours?

I suspect the pedal is fuzzing the noise coming from your guitar. is your guitar particularly noisey? Since you have 2 you have deemed too noisey, i would check that. Make sure your guitar is properly grounded, and make sure your pedal wiring etc is up to snuff! Failing, make yourself a nosie gate!

Also work the EQ on your amp, these things seem to be noisier on the treble, so cut that and maybe it will be more handleable. The Shin-Ei can get a bit sharp in my experience. Also IIRC the volume and fuzz tone pots on the shin-ei are very interactive. Try to turn one up and the other down, and work your guitar volume knob to attain the right fuzz amount.

What I often do with the shin-ei is drop the guitar volume quite a bit and bump the pedal volume, in my case this cuts treble due to my guitar wiring, and reduces noise a bit. I set it to a minimal fuzz setting so I can still wring some articulation from this extreme fuzz.

Also note the tonal difference between Vol max - fuzz min and vol-min - fuzz-max.

Shin-Eis are super-fun, i really hope one of my suggestions work for you!

also investigate your transistor choice, that could have an impact on noise. Try swapping the two positions, or replacing both with a reputable source, if it comes to that.

Good luck!

[zombiwoof]

In the case of the DOD OD250, the classic version used a fairly primitive opamp, the 741.  There are newer opamps that would have better noise characteristics, but they can lose the original sound just because they will give an expanded frequency response.  That's why the RI 250 has an added cap to cut some of the high frequency response of the 4558 opamp they use in it.  If you want to keep the vintage sound but keep the noise at the minimum, I would just suggest using the 741 and quality modern components for the other stuff, like metal film resistors and good caps.   I think there is only so much you can do if you want the sound of the original pedal to keep the noise down at higher levels.  Just my opinion.

Al

[iCommunism]

In the case of the DOD OD250, the classic version used a fairly primitive opamp, the 741.  

Oh yes i just thought about this as well.

In my BYOC OD2 i have found that the "MOSFET upgrade" opamp is much much quieter than the JRC or the Burr Brown. I dont notice ANY difference in the opamp sources in this particular circuit (though surely some might), so spend 5 bucks on a bunch of opamps and give that a try, it is a good idea. you can always alter the circuit to regain the tone you like if the mosfet or whatever you settle on changes it too much. Also my opinion on the matter is different is good!

Also I would suggest investing in (or making!) an eq pedal to keep some of this under control. I have a bass yoda acquaintance who has made a noise gate and eq in the same box. Works for him, keeps the clutter down.