General Tso: "Quail Quompressor"

rwl

Well-known member
Build Rating
4.00 star(s)
This is my build report for the General Tso's compressor, based on the Thorpy Fat General. This pedal was widely recommended across the forum on multiple threads, and I hadn't previously built a compressor, so I figured "why not?". It's a good pedal, but as a compressor that I like on my pedalboard, it's not as exciting as a fuzz or modulation.

quail_front.jpg

Inspiration

Initially I wasn't sure what to do with this design. I started thinking about fat birds and the quail came to mind. Fortuitously, I also remembered how much quail can stretch out or squash their necks, so it seemed a perfectly fitting bird for a "compressor." I'm really happy with this design. The meadow turned out great and I love the Tayda cream color, which feels subtle and sophisticated ("subtle off-white color. The tasteful thickness of the tone. Oh my God. It even has a watermark."

In this case I chose to use the California Quail, a local (but somewhat uncommon) bird in the Pacific Northwest that you can find in fields and meadows. They're adorable and make a cute little cooing sound. California Quail have a distinctive little feather tuft that hangs over their head and wobbles when they move. They're fun to watch, and behave a little like a tiny turkey, travelling as a family.

I also remember seeing quail ads in the back of Boys Life magazine as a Boy Scout (you'd send away and could get an incubator and some eggs - probably a poor prospect of hatching and an even worse life if they did... A recurring ad that was there for decades, but as a kid I didn't really know what quail were.

Gifts and Gimmicks.PNG

The Build

I was nervous before this build, since I hadn't used vactrols before. I can't recall the exact LDR or LED I used, I think I found some references on a forum thread.

The pedal has worked well, but I have had a bit of a challenge with it after the build, which is that it's sometimes stopped working. I noticed this when switching intovolume mode on the toggle switch, which is the mode where the actual compression is 100% active (vs blend, where it's a mix of dry and wet signals). So basically it was that the compressor part of the circuit wasn't functioning. There was some ambiguity where sometimes I could flip the switch with the pedal off, change to volume mode, and it would still work. Eventually I tracked the problem down to the IC (an OPA2134) getting loose in the socket. While debugging, I also tried running with a RC4558 and didn't really notice much difference between the two.

After the fix, when sitting on a table with a practice speaker and playing some heavy riffs, the IC seemed to come loose again before I reseated it. As a result I'm just kinda nervous playing with the pedal, which is unfortunate. I might try adding a dot of solder to a few legs.

The Pedal

It's mostly been an always-on pedal. But as a compressor... I'm not always sure it's on :). It evens things out and makes things sound better, but the effect is fairly subtle. And occasionally I'll turn it off and wonder if it sounds better turned off. I guess I'm not a compressor guy. But you know, if a pedal mostly makes things sound 5% better, and doesn't add noise, that's a pretty good deal!

I've since built the Oceanid compressor from AionFX, and don't like that one as much (some hiss and noise, and it's a bit more pronounced of a compression sound - I might try adjusting it). Right now, that compressor isn't worth using, but the quail has been good. I also had and sold a cheap Behringer compressor/limiter, which had even worse hiss.

Firsts
  • First pedal with a vactrol/LDR.
  • First compressor 🗜️
Build rating: 4/5 ⭐
Pedal rating: 5/5 ⭐
 

Attachments

  • quail_guts.jpg
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This is my build report for the General Tso's compressor, based on the Thorpy Fat General. This pedal was widely recommended across the forum on multiple threads, and I hadn't previously built a compressor, so I figured "why not?". It's a good pedal, but as a compressor that I like on my pedalboard, it's not as exciting as a fuzz or modulation.

View attachment 83511

Inspiration

Initially I wasn't sure what to do with this design. I started thinking about fat birds and the quail came to mind. Fortuitously, I also remembered how much quail can stretch out or squash their necks, so it seemed a perfectly fitting bird for a "compressor." I'm really happy with this design. The meadow turned out great and I love the Tayda cream color, which feels subtle and sophisticated ("subtle off-white color. The tasteful thickness of the tone. Oh my God. It even has a watermark."

In this case I chose to use the California Quail, a local (but somewhat uncommon) bird in the Pacific Northwest that you can find in fields and meadows. They're adorable and make a cute little cooing sound. California Quail have a distinctive little feather tuft that hangs over their head and wobbles when they move. They're fun to watch, and behave a little like a tiny turkey, travelling as a family.

I also remember seeing quail ads in the back of Boys Life magazine as a Boy Scout (you'd send away and could get an incubator and some eggs - probably a poor prospect of hatching and an even worse life if they did... A recurring ad that was there for decades, but as a kid I didn't really know what quail were.

View attachment 83512

The Build

I was nervous before this build, since I hadn't used vactrols before. I can't recall the exact LDR or LED I used, I think I found some references on a forum thread.

The pedal has worked well, but I have had a bit of a challenge with it after the build, which is that it's sometimes stopped working. I noticed this when switching intovolume mode on the toggle switch, which is the mode where the actual compression is 100% active (vs blend, where it's a mix of dry and wet signals). So basically it was that the compressor part of the circuit wasn't functioning. There was some ambiguity where sometimes I could flip the switch with the pedal off, change to volume mode, and it would still work. Eventually I tracked the problem down to the IC (an OPA2134) getting loose in the socket. While debugging, I also tried running with a RC4558 and didn't really notice much difference between the two.

After the fix, when sitting on a table with a practice speaker and playing some heavy riffs, the IC seemed to come loose again before I reseated it. As a result I'm just kinda nervous playing with the pedal, which is unfortunate. I might try adding a dot of solder to a few legs.

The Pedal

It's mostly been an always-on pedal. But as a compressor... I'm not always sure it's on :). It evens things out and makes things sound better, but the effect is fairly subtle. And occasionally I'll turn it off and wonder if it sounds better turned off. I guess I'm not a compressor guy. But you know, if a pedal mostly makes things sound 5% better, and doesn't add noise, that's a pretty good deal!

I've since built the Oceanid compressor from AionFX, and don't like that one as much (some hiss and noise, and it's a bit more pronounced of a compression sound - I might try adjusting it). Right now, that compressor isn't worth using, but the quail has been good. I also had and sold a cheap Behringer compressor/limiter, which had even worse hiss.

Firsts
  • First pedal with a vactrol/LDR.
  • First compressor 🗜️
Build rating: 4/5 ⭐
Pedal rating: 5/5 ⭐
The Tso, as with most optical compressors, is a more subtle limiting/evening effect. Mine is an "always on" pedal with just a little bit of a volume lift as the first pedal in my chain. I also use the treble control to subtly manage darker or brighter guitars. It's definitely one of those pedals that I wonder if its there until I turn it off but I absolutely love mine.

Having said that, when I WANT a more pronounced compression and more squish I'll sometimes use a VCA compressor or even stack it with the Tso. My current favorite is the @Guardians of the analog and @szukalski collaboration the Sheepy "Squishy" (Boss CS-2). I also really like the PPCB 401k Compressor (Keeley 4 Knob)
 
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