# Mach 1 Overdrive C2 what kind?



## frankenteletron (Jan 1, 2020)

Nearly done with my Mach 1 build. When populating the board I realized that I had ordered an _electrolytic_ cap for C2. When I noticed the pcb has no polarity I got confused so I looked at google images of other Mach 1 builds and saw that no one else using an electrolytic cap in this spot. 

I robbed a box cap from another project to avoid using an electrolytic here but couldn't help but wondering what the difference would be? Are they interchangeable?

Hoping to fire this up later today!

Happy New Year


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## Chuck D. Bones (Jan 2, 2020)

You could use an electrolytic cap for C2, but then you would have to observe the correct polarity because there is 4.5VDC across C2.

Film caps are better, they behave more like an ideal capacitor than an aluminum electrolytic.  Would anyone hear the difference if you used electrolytic for C2?  Probably not.


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## frankenteletron (Jan 2, 2020)

Thanks for the info! 

Glad I had one to steal. I'm loving this pedal. I have an original Lightspeed and they are virtually identical. Stacking them sounds even better!


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## AngelArm777 (Feb 3, 2020)

Glad I had one to steal. I'm loving this pedal. I have an original Lightspeed and they are virtually identical. Stacking them sounds even better!
[/QUOTE]

Just wondering, what Diodes did you happen to use?  (1N914 or 1N4148)


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## Chuck D. Bones (Feb 3, 2020)

1N914 and 1N4148 are interchangeable, no difference.  Here's proof.


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## K Pedals (Feb 3, 2020)

I knew all those were the same but I heard the 1n4448 was different... apparently not... 
good to know.!.!!


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## frankenteletron (Feb 3, 2020)

AngelArm777 said:


> Glad I had one to steal. I'm loving this pedal. I have an original Lightspeed and they are virtually identical. Stacking them sounds even better!



Just wondering, what Diodes did you happen to use?  (1N914 or 1N4148)
[/QUOTE]
1N4148


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## Signpost (Feb 28, 2021)

So, I started building this today (as my first build) and had the same issue. Being this is my first build, I didn't have other caps of the same value to use instead. Let's say, 'hypothetically', that I went ahead and put the electrolytic cap in C2. Which direction would be the correct direction? As a noob, I don't quite know how to figure that out from the schematic.


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## Barry (Feb 28, 2021)

I believe the negative side (with the stripe) would go to the right side looking at the component side of the PCB, but you might wait for one of the resident gurus to confirm that


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## Robert (Feb 28, 2021)

That's correct.   Positive on the left, negative on the right.


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## Signpost (Mar 1, 2021)

Thanks!


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