The diode-clipping mod is JMIL's most-discussed Jose option, but the physical position of the diode pair in the signal chain varies across documented Jose amps. Per Dave Friedman ([Panel #5 40:11]), three distinct diode positions appear in his ~100-amp documented Jose sample:
Position 1 — After the first gain stage (most common): - The canonical placement and the one JMIL models. Diodes sit across the MV wiper (which sits between the cathode follower and the tone stack), so they clamp the signal AFTER all preamp gain has happened and BEFORE the tone stack sculpts the result. - Produces the "vocal, compressed, sustaining" diode-clip character associated with Brown Sound territory.
Position 2 — Before the first gain stage (rare): - Diodes clamp the signal BEFORE V1's grid sees it. Friedman: *"doesn't make a lot of sense to me."* Effectively limits how hot the player can drive the front end; trades preamp drive for clipper-defined character. - Documented on a small number of Jose amps; not part of the canonical recipe.
Position 3 — Right before the cathode follower: - Diodes sit between V2a (cold clipper) and V2b (CF). The CF sees a pre-clamped signal; the tone stack then sees the CF's output. - This is a higher-gain variant — both V1a/V1b and V2a contribute preamp distortion, then diodes clamp before the EQ.
Why the canonical position matters: JMIL's diode-clipping mod models Position 1 because it's by far the most-documented and because the tonal results match the player references most users associate with the mod (EVH, Lynch, Sykes). The other positions exist but produce different responses; surfacing them as separate JMIL options would multiply the toggleable surface area without strong pedagogical payoff.
Combined position practice: Per Friedman ([Panel #5 151:44]), late-gain Joses sometimes had 250pF caps to chassis ground at multiple points in the circuit — V1 input, before the CF, etc. — to manage RF and high-frequency content as the gain stages compounded. This is a chassis-build technique adjacent to the diode-clipper, not a circuit-topology variant per se.