Question about pedal mods and chips...

[B Bent]

This might be a stupid question, but I'll ask anyway. I have noticed that there are tons of different kinds of chips I keep seeing in random electronic devices that are the same size as chips found in ODs etc. Assuming that the pinout is the same and the polarity is correct can I just pop in a new chip into the socket on my OD clone and try different things? That would be cool to find some random cool new sound(s). Any warnings or heads-up are appreciated too!!

[Guitar Toad]

Re: Question about pedal mods and chips...

That's probably the easiest and safest mods you can do. As long as the pin-outs are the same, they'll work. Another tweak you can do is to piggy back chips. Simply stack chips that have the same pinout. It can be the two of the same chips or mix and match different chips. Then let your ears be the judge.

EDIT:You do need to be careful when installing and removing chips, they can be easily damaged if not careful. But, those chips are usually only about $1 each. And you do have to pay attention to the pin orientation. You can fry a chip if put in the wrong way. but, they're easily replaceable.

When ErikH comes along, he'll be much more informed than me. He really know this stuff.

[ErikH]

Re: Question about pedal mods and chips...

Todd is right, as long as the pinout matches exactly what is in there now, swap away and use your ears. Some will make a difference, some won't. Some will be noiser than others. And don't get caught up in the JRC4558 stuff, it's all mojo. Yeah, they are cheap and sound good and do their job well, but they're not the end-all-be-all chip they're hyped up to be.

I highly recommend putting a socket in place of the stock chip to make swapping them easier. Also use a desoldering braid to help keep the heat off the PCB trace when taking the stock chip out. Some use the solder suckers but it's a lot easier to lift a trace with one of those than a braid.

[GuitarStv]

Re: Question about pedal mods and chips...

Don't forget to check the power handling of the chip . . . if your circuit outputs too much you can let all the magic black smoke out of the chip pretty quickly.