So, here’s the deal with the Octavix. Of course it’s an Octavia clone, but according to Roger Mayer, the creator of the original Octavia, it should really be thought of as a copy of a [em]Tycobrahe [/em]. He says:

But, not so fast. Yes, the EHX can also run at 24 volts, [strong]BUT [/strong]it is also switchable to “work optimally with 9 volts.” I think the original reason for running at 24 volts was the use of transformers in the circuit. Roger Mayer had begun to move away from Transformers by the time Tycobrahe had begun selling Octavias running at 9 volts. 9 volt circuits are going to respond differently to dynamics and gain than 24 volt circuits, so even early Tycobrahe clones will not behave the same as the original Roger Mayer circuits.

So what about the Octavix. The “problems” with moding it, and the main reason you don’t see mods out there, are twofold. First, it’s already “modded” in just about any way anyone would want to tweak it. It’s already more flexible than the original circuit and about as tweakable and Roger Mayer’s current offering. The ONE tweak that might make sense is actually expensive and difficult to do. That is replacing the silicon transistors in the EHX Octavix with germanium.

The very first, never sold, Octavia circuit didn’t have a drive in it. Hendrix would use it AFTER a germanium overdrive. When Roger Mayer first put a drive and octave in a single unit, he used germanium transistors. I don’t know what he uses now, but my guess is germanium transistors for a more traditional sound. EHX uses silicon.

For a while, a pedal mod company called “Pedal Morpheus” was offering a Morpheus mod for the Octavix. Gearmandude, a.k.a. Jack Black, does a demo comparison of the mod here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ul8KcvBqFVU&ab_channel=gearmanndude

One member of the Pedal Morpheus group who did the mod had this to say about modding the Octavix:

So, there are a few things to learn out of that post by a professional modder. First, he said, “EHX stuff didn’t hold up well to alot of modding.” That’s for a couple of reasons. One might be the use of surface mount technology and the fact that there’s not a lot of extra space in there for wires and extra components in the nano enclosures.

Second, most EHX pedals already have either external or internal switches or internal trimpots for anything that’s worth tweaking. EHX mods usually turn into adding a jack for a remote trigger or adding a toggle switch for something. What useful change would you make to the Octavix?

Third, he learned that the most “Hendrixy” sounds came from using germanium distortions. This just corresponds with what Roger Mayer said about his own invention. The modder says, “I have wondered if Jimi did this,” and Roger Mayer tells us that’s EXACTLY what he did.

Fourth, the mod he did that actually worked is to swap out the silicon transistors for germanium. I imagine that finding and matching the parts could be tricky. Then mounting the germanium transistors on the surface mount board will be tricky. Tricky = Expensive.

Finally he says, “try running the Octavix into your favorite FF/BB fuzz.” I would agree, but with a “correction.” Roger Mayer specifically said that Hendrix would run the Octavia AFTER his germanium fuzz and that the additional harmonix created by the fuzz would light up the Octavia.

You should try running it both before and after your fuzzes to see what you like best, but I think you will get the most authentic results by running the Octavix AFTER a germanium fuzz. I don’t have the Octavix (yet!), but I suspect you’ll get the most “Hendrixy” results like this:

1. Strat
2. Wah
3. EXH Germanium OD or EHX Germanium4 Big Muff with VOLTS low for sagging
4. EHX Octavix 24V with low boost
5. Amp

Set the Octavix
9-24 Volt switch to 24V. If you’re using the Octavix boost for your distortion set it to 9 volts to get the sag, but if you’re using it after a germanium distortion, set the Octavix at 24V and clean for the headroom. Get your OD and sag from the distortion instead.

OCTAVE to Maximum. Don’t forget that all of thes analog octave pedals have sweet spots where you should play.

BOOST – Minimum. Get your incoming gain, harmonics, and sag from your germanium OD.

Volume – to taste. This will determine how much this pedal drives those after it.

Finally. Don’t mess with the mods. They’re difficult, not worth it, and they void your warranty.

Hm. Sounds possible, and interesting, but I don’t have the pedal to look at it, and like you I haven’t seen the schematics for it online anywhere. If the pot is just a volume or mix pot, then it seems doable. You should just be able to jump it, but if the pot is instead a voltage controller for the octave section, then it might not work the way you imagine. I know that these analog octave circuits are a bit unique because the first ones used transformers and the Octavix uses lots of caps which have to charge up when you switch from 9V to 24V. The instructions say that there will be a slight temporary drop in volume when you first switch to 24V because the caps have to charge.

The bottom line is that there is a chance that a remote switch for this might not be as easy to set up as say a tone bypass switch for a simple distortion. I just don’t know.

However, if you take my advice (and the advice of the guy from Pedal Morpheus), and try stacking the Octavix on top of some other distortion, then you’ll essentially be using the footswitch just to kick in the second octave. In other words, don’t think of it as an octave PLUS distortion box. Instead, try to set it up as just an analog octave up effect that adds an octave to any distortion you have in front of it. If you use it that way, then you wouldn’t need a remote to turn on the octave circuit.

Quote:

The reason I would do it is that I like the pure fuzz sound, it’s spongy and vintage-y and… right. For my tastes, obv.
Doing some research I found out that the sound I was figuring in my mind is the one that come from an octavia without the octave up, so to me it would be two bird with a stone
Anyway I’ll watch out for a used one and I’ll see what can be done on it

Interesting. Let us know here if it works. The Octavix will probably be my next fuzz purchase. I still need to get the Crayon, the Lumberjack, and the Octavix to round out my collection, and of those I think the Octavix adds the most to what I already have. In particular, I’m really eager to stack it with my Germanium⁴ Big Muff π.