Squidward Help

Tanner30

New member
Hi, I just built the Squidward and I'm having a few issues. the pedal passes clean audio in bypass, and a light overdrive sound (not the fuzz it's supposed to have) when engaged. it sounds like the circuit is being starved for power. I have photos of the build and my voltages at every point. Can someone help me root out the problem?

- I checked each resistor with my multimeter before installing.
- I checked to make sure the transistors, diodes and the electrolytic cap were installed in the correct orientation.
 

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Did you match the diodes? Maybe clean off the board with some isopropyl alcohol and a toothbrush and see what the result is. This device is not really a fuzz pedal per se and the sounds you describe kinda sound like what it does normally haha. With your neck pick up on do you get octave sounds above the 12th fret?
 
the diodes match and are reading the same value on my multimeter. I cleaned the board and had a bit of improvement. I am getting the octave sound starting around the 12th fret. The distortion/fuzz sound is just a bit weak. it sounded much larger on videos that i've seen online. I have a dying battery simulator that a friend made for me. You supply 9v power and through a potentiometer and a resistor, it supplies lower voltages to any pedal, simulating a dying battery. this pedal has that same type of sound. a bit thin and unreliable. It really sounds like a low gain overdrive.
 
I know you said you compared to the videos. But to me, your description doesn’t sound to dissimilar to my experience with the circuit. Others may disagree but I don’t find it to have a strong fuzz sound by itself, more of a glitchy light od sound. Sounds awesome with a fuzz in front!
 
hmmm...well it may be correct then. I expected a bit heavier sound but it does seem to be responding appropriately. I'll try it out with a fuzz in front. I'm digging the octave sound. Thanks
 
hmmm...well it may be correct then. I expected a bit heavier sound but it does seem to be responding appropriately. I'll try it out with a fuzz in front. I'm digging the octave sound. Thanks
What you’re describing sounds like it’s working correctly. The green ringer octave up is usually an add-on to a fuzz. It needs some gain of some sort to do its thing. But as folks have said, 12th fret and neck pickup will give the most pronounced glitch, gated octave up noises. I still love it.
 
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