I was on the SB site today and no tested transistor sets are available for tonebenders. Does anyone know anything about this? I wonder if this is temporary or has he actually run out? Does anyone have any other sources for tested sets?
They haven't run out. It's a labor-intensive process to test/sort transistors for the different circuits, and they've prioritized order fulfillment. With public health protocols, increased demand, and longer lead times on things, they've been selling practically right away when they go up. You can check for updates to see if things become available in the future. I'm not sure of another vendor that offers a similar service.
Pedalhacker sells tested germaniums when they have them. Your best value is to buy bulk transistors and a tester and sort your own. It will pay for itself over paying testing fees in just a couple of pedals and you will have more transistors than you will know what to do with. Hint: the culls can usually be used as germanium diodes.
Paul in Australia has these, he may have others but i didn't look beyond these.
https://www.diyguitarpedals.com.au/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3&products_id=6
be prepared to pay about $19 for shipping to the US for those little things... Hopefully you don't live in the states
they were in stock for a while but this definitely isn't the first time they've been sold out. I wasn't even planning on building a tonebender but the last time they announced sets I bought and now I have what I consider to be my favorite pedal in my collection
At ebay you can get whole heap of germanium western or russian transistors. I recommend "low noise" P28 or P29 - russian types. Cheap enough, so you can buy more and select your "favorite" ones. :@)
I have ordered from Paul in the past but shipping is now crazy to the states. Pedalhacker doesn't have much in stock at the moment either. Any tips on what buyers on eBay to buy in bulk from? I am going down this whole fuzz rabbit hole and have a bunch of variants I want to build and try and would be interested in doing my own sorting.
Look there for npn or pnp germanium transistors, Hfe min 30, general types for audio. Everyone will work, but with very special output tone. Tht's the best at this hobby - to play around sound with special features. Minimally for me :@)
I would just wait and keep checking back until Small Bear has them available again. It might take a few weeks since they have to hand test but you'll know exactly what you're getting. I used one of their Flying Dutchman PNP sets in a tonebender and it sounds great, well worth it.