Name:Batpuppy
Date:11/15/2009
Build Report:Apologies, the capacitor combo was 2.2uF and 4.7uF, not 1uF.

Name:Batpuppy
Date:11/9/2009
Build Report:Hi,

I built this with the mods suggested by Mojah and it was much better than the original spec. Max respect Mojah! However, I found that the bass was a bit too prominent for my ash USA Strat, especially with the 2.2uF Cap (C4) and 22kOhms resistor in the tone stack (R9). I didn't have a 1.5uF Cap for C4 so I put a 2.2uF and a 1uF in series to earth (close enough) and installed a 100kOhms trim pot. With the change to C4 I was able to drop the bass response and the trim pot (R9) meant I could balance the tone stack to suit my needs. I'm really happy with it now.

Cheers,

Battus

Name:J. Gifford
Date:9/28/2009
Build Report:So I did as Jack's website suggests and changed out D1 and D2 for red led's and changed out the resistors. The overall output is much better, but the dreaded "fizz" that everyone talks about is just too much for a simple guy like me to overcome. I am throwing in the towel.

Name:J. Gifford
Date:9/28/2009
Build Report:Well, this thing went together without a hitch, but the sound is anything but the warm overdrive I would have suspected, but its my own fault for not reading the build reports first. However the sound that it produces is still nice, but, at least in my case, it does not give much of a boost over my clean channel. I don't know if anyone else has had that same problem, but if anyone knows how I might be able to get a bit more volume out of this thing please let me know.

Name:Wayne
Date:9/13/2009
Build Report:Built this baby despite reading it had low output, i thought, low output from a distortion pedal?? What the .>>>?? Don't worry, i think the output is absolutely fine. Tried quite a few 8pin opamps in there to nail my favorite tone, and my results are therefore, as everyones, subjective. I preferred a TL072CN in there. I tried a regular TL072, a LM4558, a TL062, TL072IP i did try a NE5532 but it was dead and i only had one (thanks maplin) lol

If you want to try a TL072CN in the uk, maplin stock them (couldn't believe it myself) you cant get them from Banzai.

Other than this, in the clipping section i went with a switch for clipping diodes, i have a 1n100 and a 1n914 each paired with a 3mm low current led, perhaps this is giving me the extra output, i added them using sockets so i will play around, my favourite is the Ge diode, just sounds a little more rounded but edge and bite are more the si territory in my setup. I like the tonestack in this although as many users report, the control are of course, a little interlinked so be prepared to play, but hey, thats why we build these, right??

Name:Old Lucky
Date:1/24/2008
Build Report:I've been playing for over 30 years and I've built several Tonepad projects and every one has been successful with no problems. As usual, this project layout is excellent in every aspect. Thanks, Francisco!
I was not particularly happy with the tones produced by this pedal, even after numerous substitutions/mods to get it into a zone suits my ears. If a mythical fine-line exists between overdrive and distortion, then this pedal is definitely on the distortion side. I agree with other builders who have reported "ear-splitting" top end as well as a tendency to be "fizzy". These qualities may be desirable to many players, but it's not my cup of tea. The best tones I could obtain with the Overdrive Pro were with the following substitutions:
*IC = JRC4558D
*R2 = 220K
*R4 = 1.5K
*C4 = 2.2uF
*C5 = 560pF
*C7 = .047uF
*C8 = 470pF
*Switchable diode pairs (Ge, Si, LEDs) - there is a noticeable dB dropoff when using Si diodes and even more with Ge.

Name:ZED
Date:1/16/2008
Build Report:Builded in a 3 hours.. amazing tone , modded for R2 and R4 as specified, also added a dpdt for dual clipping with leds and diodes.For the opamp i've tried tl072 and jrc4558...which is the better solution for me. Now i can get cruch drive and a "wall" of disto.
Thnx Tonepad!!

ZED

Name:GCollier
Date:2/25/2007
Build Report:I put together the "Sober Drive" this weekend. I didn't have the recommended 2N5088 so I used a 2N2222 instead. It works fine but is a tad noisy with this particular transistor. I also followed the recomendations and switched R2 to 220K and R4 to 1.5K. I also swaped out the clipping diodes for red leds, this mad a huge difference in the output! Overall not a bad unit, but all those knobs can be difficult to dial in exactly the sound you want. I'm actually planning on putting this in front of an LM1875 and using it as an amp.

Name:julz
Date:10/19/2005
Build Report:I'm a keyboard player but i like building fx projects. Built the amz overdrive pro and it's pretty heavy. Used 3904 transistors and a higher value drive pot to increase gain. used 3 diodes in series paralled by a diode. The sound is really heavy. A great pad.

Name:Al Librero
Date:5/23/2005
Build Report:Finally got it to totally work after a long period of troubleshooting. Those six pots can be challenging for newbies like myself. Didn't really like the sound at first (a bit too fizzy for my liking). I did all the mods suggested by Jack Orman and replaced R2 and R4 with the values Mojah mentioned below. Now, it sounds awesome and I'm really digging it. This thing is really versatile and has taken its own place among my "essential pedals" board.

Name:edgar
Date:4/4/2005
Build Report:pedal de distorcion

Name:danny
Date:3/29/2005
Build Report:built it , playd it and thats no overdrive thats a killer distortion tweaked it some mainly from jack ormans list love it good for heavy playing.

Name:Mojah
Date:2/15/2005
Build Report:I've built it and have tried tweaking it for a while now. It sounds like Living Color "Cult of Personality" If you remember the song. R2 and R4 definitely should be adjusted to ear. I ended up with 220k and 1.5k respectively and don't be afraid to tweak C7 a lot. I've tried up to.1uf in there to tame down the ear splitting top. It does have a lot of bottom. The JRC4558 has some compressed mids and the TI4558 is clearer. Also on the schematic the treble and mid pots on the tone stack are switched. The values ARE correct but the lables are switched. Another mod that sounds interesting is to move the clipping diodes to across the drive pot a like a tube screamer.

Name:Crazy1
Date:2/11/2005
Build Report:easy to do.but some loose wiring keep me from finishing it earlier.the sound is heavy.the effect can give out like a delay n double effect when strum.cool fx.i change the 100pot with old vol. pot savage from trnsistor radio.good for heavy metal play style.bagus.danke.

Name:Tony
Date:12/28/2004
Build Report:I built this Overdrive by Jack Orman. I've been playing a long time and this is the best Overdrive/Distortion I have ever used. Very versatile, pretty easy to build (even for a beginner like myself) and it covers good OD tones all the way to the Pantera metal stuff. I can't say enough good things about it.

Name:Wilz
Date:10/23/2004
Build Report:hey guys! I build this one b'coz I was looking for effects that has many knobs to be able to blend to fit my taste of sound. but I was amazed when I test it. I like the way it sound, its more heavy than I expected. Anyway thank you tonepad and AMZ.

Name:leon cook
Date:5/14/2004
Build Report:I built this pedal mainly because u get alot of knobs for a simple board. for the parts i pretty much followed the parts list but sometime i will try out different ics (4558). becuase of the amount of knobs i used pots that had detents, so it would be easier to find that good setting. love it, very versitle.
board took a while to come but thats probably because i live halfway across the world. thanx tonepad

Name:Igor from Kaunas
Date:2/22/2004
Build Report:Just breadboarded the circuit. Sounds very cool! Sound exactly what I like! Best for heavy playing styles!

Name:Guilherme Borges
Date:9/27/2002
Build Report:My overdrive pro works fine, and i use jrc4558d,germanium diodes on the clipping section and put mpf102 for fet and bc549c on the input buffer. finally, i omited the output buffer, because he decrease the overall volume... problems? i think rebias the input and output buffers... sugestions? my eletronic homebrew page is www.geocities.com/fabricadetimbres visit!

Name:James
Date:9/20/2002
Build Report:First of all, I made this unit not for a guitarist, but a harmonica player. Sounds really good in fact. I really wouldn't know how it would sound played with a guitar, but I still recommend it. It wasn't too hard to make although wiring up all the pots was a bit of a bitch. Nice little unit.

Name:Donald
Date:8/11/2002
Build Report: I built one that looked pretty sloppy just to see if it worked. The sloppiness by the way was due to my wiring pref. and not to the layout.
I amended that situation on the second board. I didnt have 5088 so I used 4401 [radio shack] on the input and output buffers. I suppose if you dont use 5088 you might want to install 10k trimmer pots on the input and output buffers in order to tune out the hiss. note that when you go to tune the trimmer pots there is one place where there is no noise and max. vol. I found it and left it alone after some experimenting. I kept all other values as close as possible according to the parts available at radio shack. It is possible to hardwire this board if you layout the components properly.3904 works but they were a little noiser.....What can I say this pedal really kicks and the sound already rivals my boss pedals and I have seen and heard real tubesreamers while they sound allright I cant fig. out what all the fuss is about. This is my third AMZ build and all his stuff works great.On my neck p/u I get that ,well I call it my whoop whoop sound sort of a clapton or slash type of tone, on a tube amp played through a 4/speaker box ,you can really light it up.....one more thing I put an spdt toggle on the diodes in order to get a stock fuzz sound or diode clip.I think the muffer vol. would go well with this pedal ,using it in front as a vol. boost.















Name:matt
Date:7/25/2002
Build Report:nice and quiet,pcb was perfect(first time using blue peel).this was my first time building my own effect,very easy.the three band EQ has strong bass perfect mids and shimmy highs.awesome sustain when cranked.the only thing i did (probably diferent than everyone else)was used polystyrene pF caps instead of ceramic,this made the EQ come to life.this is by far the best overdrive i have ever heard.i am an overdrive fanatic and i own several store bought overdrive pedals that don't compare. fantastic site!!

Name:A Colman
Date:7/19/2002
Build Report:
Nice design and nice PCB. Lots of gain.Hard to dial a tone I liked quickly (for me at least) but once I did it's nice.After dooddling for a while I changed the IC for a 4558 and I like it even more.It took away some of the tendency the pedal has to sound grainy.Bass pot is abrupt.Treble is nice and good range,shimmering top end.Mids sounds like it adds resonace but good to have to work in combination with the other two.Both Saturation and Drive mute the pedal if turned down completely(series resistors should fix that but I'll let someone else pitch in for that one) but otherwise give you lots of versatility.I'm going to leave the 4558 in there,big difference in tone.The more I play it the more it grows on me.As I put it through different amps this pedal shows more versatility than I though at first.Never loosing it's own personality,it is more than a one trick pony.
You can go from a Spirit in the sky thing to La Grange type pinch harmonics and rythm to more metal but never harsh.Don't get me wrong,lots of gain and sustain and high end (if you dial it in with the treble) but there's a "hair,peach fuzz,grainyness quality to it that makes it warm.
If you crave something different,this is it.
A Colman