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Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 5:39 pm
by CALI68
I bought that OC81D MKII off ebay the other day. Honestly price was not an issue. I have lusted after one of these ever since I first saw 'em. I have plenty of other shit I can sell to pay for it so that's that. There's a bunch of sadly jealous people over on another forum who hide behind their avatars and say unkind things about "the buyer". :fu: Whatever.


Anyway, the pedal has problems. The on off switch is intermittent and the decay of the fuzz sounds like there's a built in noise gate. Also, when I back off the guitar volume all highs go away and it gets really muddy/woofy. My OC75 blows it out of the garage. So weird. So bummed.

Rather than get my money back I'd love to just get it fixed so I sent The Captain a PM, hopefully he will grant me mercy and take a look at it. Bummer huh?


-Chris

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 5:44 pm
by jimi_dylan
That sucks big time! For $1200 that thing better sound like the best fuzz on the planet. Hope you can get it fixed.

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 6:50 pm
by Cado
Bummer! In the end I'm sure you'll end up with 2 kick ass MKIIs. Cubba & I are still planning a MKII shootout, we've been putting it off while we wait for other goodies to arrive so that there will be other stuff to check out as well. A proper report will follow. In the mean time I'll offer this improper report: When I make a mental comparison of my OC75 MKII to my memory of the OC81D, I recall the OC81D as having more gain but less treble content. These differences weren't drastic and for the most part could be compensated for by the choice of guitar or amp. And fuck those douche bags on that other forum.

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 6:52 pm
by duende
That sucks.... is it super hot where in San Jose right now?? It's pretty chilly up here in SF. But what your describing sounds exactly how my OC81d sounds when it's hot.

We can do a comparison sometime if you want. I live in the mission.

Best,

Alex

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 8:39 pm
by CALI68
Thanks for all the help Guys! The tone is kicking serious ass now! It was hot in my garage yesterday. Man, I never knew that played such a role!

The switch problem is still there though. The original owner swears it was flawless when he shipped it but I can't imagine how it got damaged during shipping. :hmm:

Thanks again!

-Chris

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 8:43 pm
by CALI68
Cado wrote: When I make a mental comparison of my OC75 MKII to my memory of the OC81D, I recall the OC81D as having more gain but less treble content. These differences weren't drastic and for the most part could be compensated for by the choice of guitar or amp.


This post hits it right on the head!

-Chris

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:32 pm
by CALI68
He is a clip of the problem...watch the whole thing if you can. Certainly not one of my better clips but I threw it together really quick.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qotr3P3Tdpo


-Chris

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:52 pm
by jimi_dylan
CALI68 wrote:Thanks for all the help Guys! The tone is kicking serious ass now! It was hot in my garage yesterday. Man, I never knew that played such a role!
Whoo-hoo! Glad that it is sounding good. Thanks for posting the problem clip, I have never hear a Ge fuzz have weather problems, so it is good for me to hear what that sounds like in case I ever experience the same problems. Are you considering posting a sample of the OC81s in all their glory? If so, it could be like a before and after thing.

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:56 pm
by CALI68
jimi_dylan wrote:
CALI68 wrote:Thanks for all the help Guys! The tone is kicking serious ass now! It was hot in my garage yesterday. Man, I never knew that played such a role!
Whoo-hoo! Glad that it is sounding good. Thanks for posting the problem clip, I have never hear a Ge fuzz have weather problems, so it is good for me to hear what that sounds like in case I ever experience the same problems. Are you considering posting a sample of the OC81s in all their glory? If so, it could be like a before and after thing.

Oh yea I'll definitely do a clip once I get the switch problem fixed. I'll do a OC81D / OC75 comparison.

I regards to the problem, I really want to send it back to The Captain for repair...I don't want anyone else to devalue it ya know? I haven't heard back from him yet but I hope to soon.


-Chris

Re: Serves me right!

Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:56 pm
by Cado
I have the same problem with a Retro-Sonic Phaser. When I first bought the pedal, I would experience a slight flutter when engaging the unit. The problem progressed & became identical to your MKII. I emaild Tim at RS about this & said I could send it to him for repair. I wrote back saying that if there was anything I could do to fix the problem, I would rather do that than send the pedal off. He said to spray down the shaft with contact cleaner & another trick is to heat the solder connections. I sprayed it down, it didn't work. I didn't want to mess with the solder, so off it went. It's been gone a week & a half, I miss it.