THE PROCESS

Our process of modding pedals is based on three key considerations: tried and tested design, very careful implementation and final thorough cleanup.

We read the schematics, if one is not available we construct one, we understand how the pedal works. We don't just randomly fit components like some other modders have been known to in the past, a component change is undertaken to achieve a predicted result.

The design of the mod is based on our own research and development and customer requirements. Some mods can have a significant change on the pedals tonal characteristics, other mods simply clear up the signal path by removing cheap and noisy components and replacing them with the best available that are still suitable for the intended application. We try to keep capacitors in the 25v to 63v region, many high voltage caps simply don't function that well in a 9v circuit.

We use a combination of Metal Film resistors, stacked metal film capacitors certified for Dolby noise reduction circuitry, expensive Silver Mica caps to further reduce background hiss, sometimes we'll even fit one of the best capacitor types out there - polystyrene, often avoided by many as they are so easy to damage during soldering but worth it to the serious audiophile!

Does every capacitor change make a huge difference? - No, but it all adds up.

 Above: Bucket loads of Silver Mica used on this mod, not every upgraded cap on this picture is essential for noise reduction but was requested by a customer who wanted the absolute best.

The implementation is done in a way that is sympathetic to the original hardware, components and sometime fragile PCB. For example if lead solder was used originally, then rather than sit and remove all lead solder from the areas to be re-soldered, and risk damaging the tracks on your 30 year old pedal we simply de-solder what is necessary and use lead solder accordingly. The same goes for the more recent pedals that either use 'lead free' solder or Silver solder. We use whatever was originally used.  Any fly-leads or wires that are added to the circuit and at risk of shock loading are hot melt glued onto larger physical components to stop fatigue of the solder joints.

The cleanup is the most overlooked aspect of pedal modding, we don't want unhappy customers coming back two years after the original sale telling us that all their modded pedals are failing! Therefore we take the time to ensure a successful and permanent mod by removing all traces of flux from the board, cleanse it thoroughly and re-lacquer when appropriate to prevent any corrosion.

"What happens if I dont like a particular aspect of a mod?" Simple - depending on the pedal type you can return it for addition tweaking, if you want more or less bass, more or less gain etc, then we can usually accommodate these requests. THERE IS NO CHARGE FOR THIS SERVICE (other than postage costs). All mods are based on customer feedback and preferences, some mods were designed alongside professional musicians to give them a particular tone they were after, 90% of our customers are more than happy with the results of our regular mods, but we accept that not everyone wants the same thing, and many customers don't really know what it is they want from the mod in the first place, they just want it to sound 'better', but if you feel that there is something you want changing, don't worry, we'll do out best to help you out.

  PLEASE EMAIL: sales@pedal-mods.com for all requests and detailed pricing.