- Build Rating
Very straightforward build, @Robert said it’s a little tight, and it is, so you should definitely put the 3PDTs in first, solder only one leg of each pot, and then get everything test-fit first before tightening all the nuts and soldering all the pots (which I guess technically you should do for *every* build but who’s got time for that). I’m not sure an outie DC Jack would easily fit on this build (you probably *could* get it in there but the “Tone” pot might make it tricky) so keep that in mind.
*BEGIN PERSONAL THOUGHTS*
The drive side is fine. I mean, it’s good, a polite and articulate OD, not miles off from like a Mach 1 (the Fordable is a bit meatier in the lows and mids but not really in a way I dig) or a Powder Blue (which is probably my favorite op-amp OD), but eh. There are better polite and articulate ODs out there.
The boost on the other hand is *excellent*, I see why the Arche/Heavy Water exists. Like my favorite boosts it adds some hi-fi-ish sheen but the “Lows” is really useful and well voiced. It was apparently designed to add some thickness to single coils, and it excels at that, but pulling it back is a great way of tightening up later drives without going nasal.
I made the “grit” switch internal so the outside control set matched the original pedal, but I’d just as soon leave it off. The “grit” added was neither here nor there for me, it wasn’t transformative, just a bit of fizz and buzz around the edges (might’ve been the 1N34As I used, they had slightly higher-than-normal Vf of around 0.41V according to my multimeter)
*BEGIN PERSONAL THOUGHTS*
The drive side is fine. I mean, it’s good, a polite and articulate OD, not miles off from like a Mach 1 (the Fordable is a bit meatier in the lows and mids but not really in a way I dig) or a Powder Blue (which is probably my favorite op-amp OD), but eh. There are better polite and articulate ODs out there.
The boost on the other hand is *excellent*, I see why the Arche/Heavy Water exists. Like my favorite boosts it adds some hi-fi-ish sheen but the “Lows” is really useful and well voiced. It was apparently designed to add some thickness to single coils, and it excels at that, but pulling it back is a great way of tightening up later drives without going nasal.
I made the “grit” switch internal so the outside control set matched the original pedal, but I’d just as soon leave it off. The “grit” added was neither here nor there for me, it wasn’t transformative, just a bit of fizz and buzz around the edges (might’ve been the 1N34As I used, they had slightly higher-than-normal Vf of around 0.41V according to my multimeter)
