I'm looking for some recommendations for some high-gain germanium transistors for my Cesar Diaz square face build, I heard someone got their NTE103s to read in between 250-300hfe and wondered what I could find that was close to that since I've heard the NTE's are too leaky. Are 2n1308s my best choice?
Recommend me some high gain NPN Ge transistors
- Thread starter stinkfeet
- Start date
Nostradoomus
Well-known member
can I see a schematic you're basing it off?
Nostradoomus
Well-known member
using a 2K pot on a regular fuzz face will probably do more than trying to find high gain/hyped up npn transistors that will cost an arm and a leg, don't fall down that expensive rabbit hole haha
I honestly find the HFE on Ge transistors makes less difference than you'd think. In silicon yeah you hear a difference - probably. But I've built the same pedal with various HFE Ge trannies and the leakage seems to make more different than HFE.
FWIW I'm not a huge fan of the 2N1308. Good transistors but kinda thin sounding to me. You can't go wrong with some Soviet MP38s IMO even if they are low HFE.
FWIW I'm not a huge fan of the 2N1308. Good transistors but kinda thin sounding to me. You can't go wrong with some Soviet MP38s IMO even if they are low HFE.
JohnnyCreepy
Member
Care to share your observations what changed with leakage? It would be intressing as I just build FF variant and have some lowish hfe Ge’s with leakage varying 50-300uA.
My observations are not particularly scientific! What I have found through experimentation is quite simple - higher HFE Ge transistors as measured by my Peak Atlas DCA55 generally seem to have more leakage - at least in all those I have tested. The higher HFE means nothing because the excessive leakage has rendered them noisy, difficult to bias and unpleasant to listen to. With the MP38s I have I can use some with an HFE of 40 and some with an HFE of 125 and as long as the leakage is similar and low they have sounded remarkably similar. This goes against everything I have read but it's my experience! As far as sound is concerned the Soviet transistors may be lower gain if you go by HFE but they bias more easily, have lower leakage and sound fat and full. I've used them in some BJF designed pedals, Tonebenders, Skreddy pedals and Fuzz Faces.
Most of the 2N1308s I have (and I have been through a lot because they are specced in a lot of pedals I have built) have been difficult to bias and if they have a higher gain they are unusable because of leakage. And as I mentioned before they just don't sound very good to me!
On the rare occasion that I have found a good AC127 I have been very impressed with the sound. But they are expensive these days and not all of them are usable.
I shy away from Ge circuits these days. I even use a silicon transistor in my Broadcast and actually prefer the sound. I use the Si that is used in the AP Broadcast and it sounds great.
Most of the 2N1308s I have (and I have been through a lot because they are specced in a lot of pedals I have built) have been difficult to bias and if they have a higher gain they are unusable because of leakage. And as I mentioned before they just don't sound very good to me!
On the rare occasion that I have found a good AC127 I have been very impressed with the sound. But they are expensive these days and not all of them are usable.
I shy away from Ge circuits these days. I even use a silicon transistor in my Broadcast and actually prefer the sound. I use the Si that is used in the AP Broadcast and it sounds great.
JohnnyCreepy
Member
From what’ve read so far, I wouldn’t say what you’re suggesting isn’t even far away from it. I’ll give a test for the ”germistors” with the lowest leakages and see how compare to the ones on the FF circuit. It’s easy to observe how sound changes when not moving tone shaping knobs on pedal or amp. Gonna record it too, so I’m not fooling myself.
Feral Feline
Well-known member
"Germistors" 
I'm stealing and using that.
I'm stealing and using that.
