Stratus DeluxeOverdrive

From the vendor

A premium upgrade to the classic SD-1 circuit, featuring a high-quality buffer along with a new “Custom” mode that adds gain and shifts the midrange frequencies.

The Stratus Deluxe Overdrive is loosely based on the BOSS SD-1W Waza Craft Super Overdrive, released in 2014 as an upgraded version of the classic SD-1. In addition to higher-fidelity buffers, it also includes a new “Custom” mode that adds gain and shift the EQ. The IC op-amps were also replaced with discrete op-amp stages similar to other BOSS circuits such as the Blues Driver and OD-3.

The original SD-1, released in 1981, was BOSS’s response to the Ibanez Tube Screamer. While the circuits are very similar, they have a very different sound due to the parts selection. But with a handful of component swaps, you can modify a Tube Screamer into an SD-1 and vice versa.

The Stratus Deluxe is a similar project to the Halo Deluxe, which wraps the classic Big Muff circuit in Cornish buffers so you can build a Cornish-flavored version of your favorite Muff.

Likewise, this project wraps the Stratus circuit in the Waza Craft buffers and enables an optional buffered bypass mode. We did not go so far as to replicate the discrete op-amp, and the Custom mode is different in implementation, so it’s more of an adaptation than a clone.

There is also an internal DIP switch to select symmetrical (Tube Screamer) or asymmetrical (SD-1) clipping modes, and another that disables the steep treble cut capacitor in the stock SD-1 that many people remove in order to open up the sound.

Note: This project uses a type of capacitor that has been temporarily discontinued by WIMA. Please see our news article about the issue and the substitution spreadsheet for project-specific recommendations. The build document has not yet been updated to reflect this.