Help with substitue components.

[Jumbosize]

So today I built an easy face circuit from this schematic:

http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/diagrams/easydrive.gif?phpMyAdmin=78482479fd7e7fc3768044a841b3e85a

Unfortunately, it is not working properly. I get sound through it but It is just a very slightly muffled version of the clean signal. I've checked over the circuit a dozen times and I don't see any mistakes in the circuitry. But I do think I know where the problem lies in this. To make this pedal I just used scrap parts from around my house and consequently ended up using a number of components with incorrect values as substitutes. Sadly I don't know enough about electronics to know what may be causing the problem. Here is a list of all the substitutes I used:

.47uf Cap in place of the upper-left .1uf Cap
560 ohm resistor in place of the 680 ohm resistor
82k resistor in place of the 68k resistor
Two 1N34A Germanium diodes in place of the 1N4001 Diodes
4.7uf Cap in place of the 22uf Cap.


Like I said earlier I don't know a lot about electronics but my guess is that it is either the diodes or the electrolytic cap that are causing my troubles.

If you have any ideas of what the problem is I would greatly appreciate your help. Thanks!

--Also, as I was writing this post I realized I actually do have another .1uf cap that I could put in this circuit. Would it make a difference to put that in?

[ubersam]

I'd suggest to double check the transistor pin-out. Download the datasheet and check if you have the transistor oriented correctly.

[LucifersTrip]

I would guess you should get more sound than you're getting since your values are not insanely off.

1st thing to do is find the correct voltages on the 3 lugs of the transistor in a working unit and see how close yours is. debug thread:
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=29816.0

Also, remember you can get closer to the values you want by putting the caps/resistors in parallel or series:
http://diyaudioprojects.com/Technical/Electronics/parallel-resistor-calculator.htm

you can put ge diodes in series to get closer to what a si would do in clipping, but not sure if that would help here

[Jdansti]

Here's my reply this morning to the same question you posted in the schematics forum:

Re: Help with substitute components.
« Reply #1 on: Today at 12:07:33 AM »
 
The substitutions might affect the quality of the output, but I don't see anything that would affect the volume. 

We often miss the simplest mistakes. The following might sound insulting but it's not meant to be.  Check the the battery or PS is putting out approximately 9v and that it is connected to your circuit.  Check that both cables work either in bypass mode or straight from the guitar to the amp if your circuit is not wired to the bypass switch yet.  Check that your guitar is plugged into the input and your amp is connected to the output.  Make sure your guitar volume is turned up.

After that, double check the polarity (direction) of the transistor, electrolytic caps, and in/out jacks (again if you already have ). Make sure that you have grounding where necessary. Don't forget to check the ground path between the in and out jacks.  The schematic doesn't show it, but I assume you've connected the negative side of the battery or PS to the common grounds.

Use a magnifier to check each solder joint for tiny solder bridges.

If you still have a problem after doing the above, read up and follow the Debugging Page (http://www.diystompboxes.com/wiki/index.php?title=Debugging)

If all of that doesn't help, then post some photos of your build and maybe we can spot the problem.

Good luck!