Delegate (not boneyard version) question and pictures of my build

[Nacht]

Hello!
So i finished my Delegate (not boneyard version).
I'm pretty happy how it looks (art printed on glossy paper and epoxy on top) and sound but i still wanted to make sure i'm not going crazy or deaf lol because it sounds like the compression is kinda subtle compared to my mxr compressor. All the knobs seems to work, i like it, it's not going into crazy compression with the pumping effect but it also feels like the effect is still less than the demos of the warden on youtube. It's normal to be more subtle than the mxr comp pedal? Like the effect is clearly there but i just can't make it sound like the pumping effect when a compressor is compressing too much, that's normal? I used the 5516 ldr like mentioned in the bom but i also put it in front of the 5mm cool white led in a heatshrink like a vactrol.
Thanks!

 

[Nacht]

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

You should hook up the grounds on your IN & OUT jacks.

There are a whole lotta knobs on this pedal and not all combinations produce good results. Start with these settings:
RATIO = 5:00
SUSTAIN = noon
ATTACK = 9:00
RELEASE = noon
TONE = noon

Are you sure the LED is oriented correctly? Cathode (short lead) goes to the square pad.

If the LDR is getting too much light, then turning RELEASE up should increase the compression effect. If that's the case, then you want a less bright LED. A standard brightness 5mm diffuse green LED is what you want. You can also put some distance between the LED and LDR to reduce the number of photons hitting the LDR. I would also recommend testing the LDR out of the circuit with a DMM and room light. Some LDRs are very slow to increase their resistance when they go dark. Slow LDRs will not produce satisfactory results in a compressor.

Nice graphics!

 

[Feral Feline]

Usually LED's Anode (long leg) goes in the square pad, the flat side of the LED (short leg) goes in the round one — is the Delegate board switched around for some reason?

Very nice graphics.

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

I'm just going by this:

 

[Nacht]

You should hook up the grounds on your IN & OUT jacks.

There are a whole lotta knobs on this pedal and not all combinations produce good results. Start with these settings:
RATIO = 5:00
SUSTAIN = noon
ATTACK = 9:00
RELEASE = noon
TONE = noon

Are you sure the LED is oriented correctly? Cathode (short lead) goes to the square pad.

If the LDR is getting too much light, then turning RELEASE up should increase the compression effect. If that's the case, then you want a less bright LED. A standard brightness 5mm diffuse green LED is what you want. You can also put some distance between the LED and LDR to reduce the number of photons hitting the LDR. I would also recommend testing the LDR out of the circuit with a DMM and room light. Some LDRs are very slow to increase their resistance when they go dark. Slow LDRs will not produce satisfactory results in a compressor.

Nice graphics!

Hi Chuck, thanks for the help.
Yes i wired the ground to the sockets, this picture was before i tried it and i noticed that quickly hehe.
Problem i describe is after i wired the sockets grounds.
I tried today again, i replaced the led and ldr for the same as in the bom (i was using the same before too) GL5516 LDR (500K Dark).
How much time is considered slow ldr? It's about 3 seconds before it reach high resistance when i put the ldr in dark.
I used a diffused 5mm green led as you said now.
I used sockets for led and ldr to play around...
The compressor effect feel the same as before, it's compession but really subtle, no matter what knob settings i use.
I noticed the output level is a lot higher and somewhat distorted if i put release and sustain knobs at max clockwise.

Here's an audio sample, first is without, then i activate the pedal after the chord near the middle you even hear me using the footswitch.
Knob settings on the picture below is what you hear in the audio sample

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

Here's a few pics, i can see the waveform is a little bit compressed but its very subtle, no matter what settings i can't get the compressed effect like when you push a compressor hard.

 

[Nacht]