BASS! The Final Fun Tier.
There are a lot of us bass-playing-effects-fanatics here, the more the merrier — WELCOME/
BIENVENUE BURRIE!
Quite a few Canucks here, too.
I knew from my start in the hobby that I was going to go full-send, so I bought PCBs and parts and went through all the teething that entails — such as ordering 600v caps by mistake (used 'em in an amp eventually); I bring this up because like you, I wasn't happy with a lot of the commercial pedals I was getting — they sucked the low-end life out of my DB.
SO... I'm gonna suggest you either ...
- buy parts and PCBs, or
- buy parts and kits.
If you buy kits such as a Rat or Muff clone, they may not meet your expectations without some bass-tweakage; and to do that you'll need parts that are NOT included in the kit — sure, build that Russian Muff clone, but... a couple minor tweaks and it's also a Jumbo Tone Bender at the flip of a switch!
For your first build, I'll suggest a BAZZ FUSS, it's only a half-dozen parts but sounds great. Easy trouble-shooting, too (yes, I know you're experienced with wiring cars etc... speaking of which, an aside, I may hit you up for some wiring advice with my '66 Windsor). Nonetheless BazzFuss is a great fun little circuit and worth building at least once at some point in your DIY-journey.
RAT-a-tat-tat, goes the Raven on your door, saying "
Treble nevermore..."
Highly recommend
Gord Tranter's bass mods for your RAT build, he's a fellow Maple Bud from down east, ON, IIRC. I added one version of his bass mods (and some clipping options) to my Filigree Siberian Hamster build, and my DB sounds great through it.
If you search this forum, you'll find lots of good bass-specific info on the usual treble-some suspects and lots of suggestions for some off-piste plunging-of-depths type circuits.
The MusikDing kits are launched from Germany to your door, and the Moody Sounds kits hail from Sweden — so be prepared for expen$ive $hipping and the possibility of the courier-de-quoi charging you "brokerage fees" (I always aim for good ol' postal delivery, Canada Post won't screw you over even if you have to pay some duties or GST/PST. BTW, the limit Canadians have for receiving beyond-border goods w/o having to pay duty is CAD150. I've yet to determine if that's before or after shipping-costs are added, as I always play it safe and try to keep my orders under CAD150 gross expenditure.
Canadian-based Axe and Ye Shall Receive used to have BYOC kits, but BYOC recently shut down. Maybe check there to see if they're offering other kits in lieu of BYOC.
Parts Sourcing outside the USual sUSpects...
TAYDA: reliable, a good source shipping out of Thailand
TEMU: China-based — do your homework, check reviews. I've got very good Davies-style knobs, but I know crappy ones are out there, too.
NEXTGENGUITARS: Canadian-based, so you'll pay a bit more, but no hassles with importation fees etc so you may break even depending...
SOLO GUITARS: Another Ontario dealio, has some pedal odds and ends and bass-guitar parts/kits.
USual suspects
MOUSER: big gun, easy to get lost or order the incorrect part, but they have a Canadian Website, pay in C$
DIGIKEY: big gun, homework here, too. as can be overpriced on some things but can be a worthwhile resource too (Great resistor-code calc)
StompBoxParts
Love My Switches
Augh Brain Freeze, there's more but I imagine others will fill in the gaps in my ... what was I saying?
Yes, tell us more about your musical tastes! You're interested in a Rat & Muff so ... what about a really great OD?
Check out Chuck D Bones' amalgamation of bass-incantations for the highly-venerated possibly overrated Klon Centaur — post bass-modding, it's definitely not overrated or so I've read from the other Bass-brethren and Bass-sistren. Ah, I see Mentaltossflycoon has already mentioned it... Okay. So Bass-modded DOD250/Dist+. Bass-modded YATS... oh, and if your tastes lean to aggressive and offbeat, check out Parasit Studios offerings... ooohh so much to rec...
Okay, I'll shut up now.
Cheers,
FF
