Ge Diodes

[rocket88]

hmmm, something must be off if Si diodes have a voltage change too, because remember Si replaced Ge because it's not temperature sensitive like Ge. i think more investigating is in order .

the 1n270 does have a lot less volume drop compared to the typical 1n34a. in my experience they're like 3/4 the volume of Si diodes. i find them to be smooth, retain a lot of bass, but still sparkle a bit on the highs, no fizz, and is touch sensitive. i think they are my 2nd favorite after the SFD-112. in fact i put them in my modified bass rat. i freaking love them, and had bought 100 on ebay for like $30, and now i'm thinking i should buy more....

[Beaker]

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rocket88 wrote

hmmm, something must be off if Si diodes have a voltage change too, because remember Si replaced Ge because it's not temperature sensitive like Ge. i think more investigating is in order.

If I remember correctly Si replaced Ge because it's not as temperature sensitive. That does not mean that it is immune to the effects of temperature.

[rocket88]

you're probably right, i could just be exaggerating because with transistors i don't see any change with the Si when the temp increases, diodes could be a whole nother ball game.

[iggy]

hey rocket so you bought the SFD112's  i've been watching for those to return, no luck so far. I did see SFD111 for sale. but the specs seem different. unfortunately i have no idea have diode specs mean. are they close enough to work & sound the same?

[rocket88]

i'm not sure. i freaking love the sfd-112's and been waiting for them to show up again too. i'm thinking about grabbing some of the sfd-111's to see how they are, and i totally don't get diode specs either, because the Vf that's listed seems to be the max, and a lot of diodes have the same number listed. should i be the guinea pig for the sfd-111's?

[rocket88]

fyi, i ordered some of the sfd-111. i'll report how they sound when they arrive. fingers crossed they sound as good as the sfd-112's or better. i also ordered some d310 germanium diodes. when i say mayfair's explanation of the sound of some diodes he mentioned the d312 pulse diodes, and said they sounded similar to the 1n34a but looked crazy. the d310 diodes are also pulse diodes, and look like little bombs, i'm hoping these sound as good as they look.

[rocket88]

so the sfd-111 diodes and d310 diodes just showed up. i did a sound test with them and put them into my modified electra with switchable clipping diodes and they both sound fantastic. the sfd-111 is a real gem, similar, but not identical to the no magical mojotastic sfd-112 diode. i see there are a few still on ebay, so i would suggest getting them while you still can.

the d310's are an interesting. for one thing they look like little nuclear bombs, and have a nice, rich, warm distortion to them, close to some of the 1n34a's have. the only problem is that you really can't keep them in sockets because their leads are way to thick. i had to really shove to get them to hold there just for testing. now, not only do they sound good, they look crazy awesome inside a pedal, but more importantly i just checked ebay to see how available they are, and there seems to be tons, plush they're relatively cheap. here are the one's i got



i also ended up testing a bunch of different D9 diodes, and Midwayfair's descriptions are pretty accurate. some of them are still cheap, others have gone up in price, not sure if its because of availability or demand. definitely worth stocking up on these too if you can.