Hello!

I recently picked up several old Small Stones with pot date codes indicating 1980.  Red and black color on the top with white lettering.  I believe these are considered “version 3” Small Stones.  They do not have a status lamp.  I have three of them and they all have the circuit that uses the five single chip OTAs.

Then I picked up another old Small Stone, pot date code indicates 1982… I believe this is also considered a “version 3”, the case looks the same as the others.  But this one has the circuit that uses just the dual OTAs - two LM13600AN and one LM324N.

So, in sum, I have several old “version 3” Small Stones here, but one has a very different circuit than the others.  From the best I can tell, none of these units have been tampered with, but I guess anything is possible, I did receive them all second-hand.

I did come across this article (link below) that shows the “version 3” circuit as being the one with the dual OTAs - two LM13600AN and one LM324N.  If this article is accurate, then this means that my 1982 Small Stone is “correct”, but then why do my several 1980 units have the 5 single chip OTAs?  The article also shows newer “version 4” units using the 5 single chip OTAs. (???)

If any of this info is accurate and if all my units are stock (as they appear to be, but?), then it would mean that EHX used the 5-chip configuration in the very early `80’s then switched to the dual-OTA configuration in 1982-ish then reverted back to the 5 chip configuration for version 4…???  Either that or my units have been severely messed with by previous owners.  Either that or maybe my pot date codes are not accurately dating the units, maybe EHX had a huge batch of 1980 pots that they used for years later, maybe my units with 1980 pots are actually newer than 1980…???  Either that or maybe EHX had a large stock of extra circuit boards of both styles and just used them randomly over the years…???

Any help figuring this out would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you.

http://www.pedalarea.com/small_stone.htm

————

Actually there are 4 versions of the vintage Small Stone.  Yours would be a vintage V4.  Ignore that page.
EHX may start making them like that again if they haven’t already.

Thanks EH Man!

So then, would you say that my “1980” units (with 5 single chip OTAs) are actually from 1980?  And do you think that my “1982” unit with dual-OTAs is actually from 1982?  Just curious.  Are you saying that ALL of these are vintage V4, or…?

Thanks!!!!

BigStone - 21 February 2012 07:59 PM

Thanks EH Man!

So then, would you say that my “1980” units (with 5 single chip OTAs) are actually from 1980?  And do you think that my “1982” unit with dual-OTAs is actually from 1982?  Just curious.

Exactly

BigStone - 21 February 2012 07:59 PM

Are you saying that ALL of these are vintage V4, or…?

Thanks!!!!

Just the one with the dual OTAs,  The others are V3.

Thank you!!!

Wow, very interesting.

So this means that the 5 single chip OTA configuration is the true “version 3” configuration… and this is what is used in the later “reissue” units that came with the status lamp on the top, yes?

Interesting how they did indeed revert back to the version 3 innards for the later “reissue” and sort of “skipped over” the vintage V4 configuration (dual OTAs).

So you say that EHX will likely start making the “reissue” type Small Stones again soon?  That would be sweet!

Thanks again, I greatly appreciate the help!

EDIT: is the 5 single chip OTA configuration considered “superior” to the dual OTA set-up… or vise-versa?  Just curious as to what the general consensus is on this.  I have not studied the sound of them too carefully yet (just an el-quicko low-volume listen through a cheap, crappy amp) but my initial impression is that they both sound good and not TOO different from each other.

Probably so since the CA3094E is discontinued.

I don’t think there’s that much difference in sound.

Thanks!!!