# Sugarbag - Sound no overdrive



## Flashheart (May 1, 2021)

Hey guys, I’m pretty new to trouble shooting, but the Sugarbag overdrive has very little to no overdrive. It has plenty of sound but no dirt. I’ve socketed the transistors and switched the J113s with 2N5457s. So I’m not sure if that’s the issue or not. Any suggestions?


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## BuddytheReow (May 1, 2021)

Show some pics. This will help us.


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## Flashheart (May 2, 2021)

Not sure you can access this link.









						Photo May 01, 8 23 06 PM.heic
					

Shared with Dropbox




					www.dropbox.com


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## BuddytheReow (May 3, 2021)

Check the pinouts to make sure the trannies are in correctly. If you've got an audio probe test the different pins. Does the sound change when you move the gain pot?


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## Flashheart (May 3, 2021)

Yep the sound changes with the gain pots. I'll make sure transistors are in correctly. Thanks for the suggestion and I'll let you know how it turns up.


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## kidchemical (Jul 16, 2022)

Any update on this? Did you ever get it working? I just built one, and I have the same exact issue. I swapped out all my ICs and transistors with ones from knowing working builds, so I don't think it's an issue with fake components. I'm barely getting any breakup from the signal even when I'm banging on the strings.


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## jesuscrisp (Jul 16, 2022)

kidchemical said:


> Any update on this? Did you ever get it working? I just built one, and I have the same exact issue. I swapped out all my ICs and transistors with ones from knowing working builds, so I don't think it's an issue with fake components. I'm barely getting any breakup from the signal even when I'm banging on the strings.


You may want to consider posting your own thread including pictures of your build


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## kidchemical (Jul 16, 2022)

jesuscrisp said:


> You may want to consider posting your own thread including pictures of your build


For sure. Just figured I'd check and see if they had any luck with their build before making a new thread.

In case anyone, like me, stumbles onto this issue later, it's addressed in this thread: https://forum.pedalpcb.com/threads/sugarbag-project-issues.5809/

tl;dr the original pedal is low gain, and the YT demos are deceptive.


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## jesuscrisp (Jul 17, 2022)

kidchemical said:


> For sure. Just figured I'd check and see if they had any luck with their build before making a new thread.
> 
> In case anyone, like me, stumbles onto this issue later, it's addressed in this thread: https://forum.pedalpcb.com/threads/sugarbag-project-issues.5809/
> 
> tl;dr the original pedal is low gain, and the YT demos are deceptive.


I built one with the PCB from PCB Mania. It definitely isn't high gain but it does a medium crunch/slightly fuzzy sound without problems. What you and OP were describing sounds like a faulty build to me.


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