There are lots of old threads talking about modding the ODB-3, but most only offer loose descriptions at best, so I thought I'd document my upgrades. I wasn't as interested in the popular tri-gain kit because I actually like the fuzz sound of the pedal...I have other pedals when I want overdrive. So I did a few of Wampler's mods and made clips after each one so I could check the difference. I didn't do the diode mod because, again, I wanted to keep the saturation.
Background: My need is for a single fuzzy distortion pedal with lots of low end for a cover gig. I have a big muff clone that sounds great but needs an EQ pedal behind it to boost and sit in the mix. My ODB-3 has always had tons of beef for the mix, but I have to use a compressor/limiter in front of it to tame the sharp and spiky highs. I think the three Wampler mods will put me in a good place. I used to cut the pedal's High EQ and crank the Low, on top of keeping the tone on my bass dialed all the way off, but now I'll have more flexibility.
Audiophyle Caveat: This is purely for reference purposes on the relative tone enhancements of the mods for the curious. I'm not a good noodler or practicer, so expect these to be off time, unoriginal, and a bit sloppy. I also lack a good recording setup. The janky chain is as follows:
Squier CV 60sP > ODB-3 pedal > GK MB200 direct out > Behringer 2-channel mixer > Griffin iMic > GarageBand
Pedal Settings: Gain 10 o'clock / Balance (blend) 12 o'clock / HighEQ 9o'clock LowEQ 3 o'clock / Level (stock clip) 9 o'clock, Level (all mod clips) 10 o'clock (first mod that took out the spiky highs also affected signal strength)
ODB-3 stock
ODB-3 mod 1 (swapping c8, basically creating more low pass filtering)
ODB-3 mod 2 (mod 1 + swapping c10)
ODB-3 mod 3 (mods 1 & 2 + swapping r31)
Background: My need is for a single fuzzy distortion pedal with lots of low end for a cover gig. I have a big muff clone that sounds great but needs an EQ pedal behind it to boost and sit in the mix. My ODB-3 has always had tons of beef for the mix, but I have to use a compressor/limiter in front of it to tame the sharp and spiky highs. I think the three Wampler mods will put me in a good place. I used to cut the pedal's High EQ and crank the Low, on top of keeping the tone on my bass dialed all the way off, but now I'll have more flexibility.
Audiophyle Caveat: This is purely for reference purposes on the relative tone enhancements of the mods for the curious. I'm not a good noodler or practicer, so expect these to be off time, unoriginal, and a bit sloppy. I also lack a good recording setup. The janky chain is as follows:
Squier CV 60sP > ODB-3 pedal > GK MB200 direct out > Behringer 2-channel mixer > Griffin iMic > GarageBand
Pedal Settings: Gain 10 o'clock / Balance (blend) 12 o'clock / HighEQ 9o'clock LowEQ 3 o'clock / Level (stock clip) 9 o'clock, Level (all mod clips) 10 o'clock (first mod that took out the spiky highs also affected signal strength)
ODB-3 stock
ODB-3 mod 1 (swapping c8, basically creating more low pass filtering)
ODB-3 mod 2 (mod 1 + swapping c10)
ODB-3 mod 3 (mods 1 & 2 + swapping r31)
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