# Delegate Compressor (Boneyard Edition)



## Brett (Aug 22, 2021)

Went together without a hitch and worked on the first go. This is a nice-sounding, but very subtle compressor. The enclosure used for this project is a Tayda Matte Black Sand 125B (undrilled) using Tayda's UV printing service with a double pass of white and a gloss varnish over all of the printed artwork. The Power I/O from PedalPCB (https://www.pedalpcb.com/product/powerio/) worked well, but I really should have waited until the jacks were mounted in the enclosure before soldering them to the board.


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## SYLV9ST9R (Aug 22, 2021)

Looks awesome, love the color scheme and the use of negative space on the "optical" coupled with the black sand texture (might be inspired by it on future builds  )!
Good job!


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## Grubb (Aug 23, 2021)

This answers all of my questions about printing on black sand. Definitely going to try it out. 

Great looking pedal mate!


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## SYLV9ST9R (Aug 23, 2021)

Grubb said:


> This answers all of my questions about printing on black sand. Definitely going to try it out.
> 
> Great looking pedal mate!


You can also see some examples in the Tayda UV print thread. I ordered a full print on a black sand enclosure, should have it in a couple of weeks, but now I’m wondering if I should have taken the additional pass of white on the underlay 🤔


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## Brett (Aug 23, 2021)

One thing I'd add about the Tayda Matte Black Sand is that I don't think the UV printing is as resilient on the textured finish. It's hard to tell in the pictures because the knobs hide it well, but the UV printing in areas close to the fasteners actually peeled off with this enclosure. In Tayda's defense, I may have placed graphics too close to the fasteners for the potentiometers but it's something that I think people should be aware of with this particular enclosure finish.


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## ADAOCE (Aug 23, 2021)

I’m not sure how I feel about this compressor. I built it and I like it for the sustain and tone control it has a very subtle compression effect but a good boost but makes me think maybe just a boost is better. Maybe I need to try another comp. I have a dyna comp and for how simple and cheap it is, it really is just a great comp pedal.

I like it for a way less noticeable compression effect compared to the DC but it has me questioning if it’s really necessary


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## Brett (Aug 23, 2021)

ADAOCE said:


> I’m not sure how I feel about this compressor. I built it and I like it for the sustain and tone control it has a very subtle compression effect but a good boost but makes me think maybe just a boost is better. Maybe I need to try another comp. I have a dyna comp and for how simple and cheap it is, it really is just a great comp pedal.
> 
> I like it for a way less noticeable compression effect compared to the DC but it has me questioning if it’s really necessary


I've not spent a lot of time with it yet, but I have found it to be quite subtle so far. I have a Origin Cali76 Compact Deluxe that I've been using for a while and my immediate impression of the Delegate is that it's not going to kick the Cali76 off my board, but it may prove itself useful in other parts of the effects chain. The verdict is still out.


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## ADAOCE (Aug 23, 2021)

txvaporguy said:


> I've not spent a lot of time with it yet, but I have found it to be quite subtle so far. I have a Origin Cali76 Compact Deluxe that I've been using for a while and my immediate impression of the Delegate is that it's not going to kick the Cali76 off my board, but it may prove itself useful in other parts of the effects chain. The verdict is still out.


Heard good things about the Cali I’d find it hard to believe if it kicked that off your board.


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## Brett (Aug 23, 2021)

ADAOCE said:


> Heard good things about the Cali I’d find it hard to believe if it kicked that off your board.


There was almost zero expectation that it would. Once in a while, you have to justify to yourself why having such an expensive piece of gear on your board is worth it. I think it's unlikely that @PedalPCB will ever release a DIY clone of the Cali76, it'd be nearly impossible to do in a through-hole 125B-sized project. I'm not even sure that it would fit into a 1590BB in a through-hole format. I'm sure I'll find a good use for the Delegate Compressor, I hope that you do too!


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## Feral Feline (Aug 23, 2021)

Horses for Courses, of course.

The small and nimble 550 Spyder was great on short and winding tracks, and while it did quite well at LeMans winning its division, it was a bit stretched to be in contention for Winner Over All, taken by the larger more powerful Jaguars and occasional Ferraris.



I've got a large-box Cali, I see no reason why we shouldn't be able to build the large box (1590XX or so) if Mr PedalPCB sees fit to produce a PCB for it — barring obscure hard-to-get parts or other hurdles.


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## MichaelW (Mar 22, 2022)

Reviving an old thread there with a question, I've been looking for a DIY project to replace my Keely full size compressor on my pedal board. I was looking at the Delegate and @Brett's comments about it being a very subtle compressor has me re-thinking it.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a compressor pedal worth building? I just ordered the PCB from Aion for the Pete Cornish OC-1 but I have no clue what that's supposed to sound like. I found a YouTube vid comparing it to the full size Cali76 and it seems to compare well.




But the controls look a bit limited to me.

The Keely does the job but in a "pedestrian" kinda way. Plus I'm on a quest to repopulate my board with all my own built pedals

M-


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## almondcity (Mar 22, 2022)

MichaelW said:


> Reviving an old thread there with a question, I've been looking for a DIY project to replace my Keely full size compressor on my pedal board. I was looking at the Delegate and @Brett's comments about it being a very subtle compressor has me re-thinking it.
> 
> Does anyone have a recommendation for a compressor pedal worth building? I just ordered the PCB from Aion for the Pete Cornish OC-1 but I have no clue what that's supposed to sound like. I found a YouTube vid comparing it to the full size Cali76 and it seems to compare well.
> 
> ...


I'd recommend the AionFX Meridian over anything. The PedalPCB Milkbox is maybe my 2nd choice


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