Pedal Board Order

[bexarametric]

I know there are going to be many different opinions on this matter. I put away pedals for the last eight years. I have recently just gotten back into them. So I want to post which pedals I have, then get your opinions on which order to put them in. Just to kind of give me a starting point.

Fulltone OCD
Electroharmonix Big Muff
Crybaby 535 Wah
Dunlop Tremolo
MXR Phase 90
MXR Carbon Copy
Digitech Whammy II
Line 6 Echo Park
Boss BF2 Flanger
Sansamp GT2
Boss CS3 Compressor

I'm thinking the distortions first and delays last. What are you guys trying that works?

[theGeek]

Originally Posted by bexarametric

I know there are going to be many different opinions on this matter. I put away pedals for the last eight years. I have recently just gotten back into them. So I want to post which pedals I have, then get your opinions on which order to put them in. Just to kind of give me a starting point.

Fulltone OCD
Electroharmonix Big Muff
Crybaby 535 Wah
Dunlop Tremolo
MXR Phase 90
MXR Carbon Copy
Digitech Whammy II
Line 6 Echo Park
Boss BF2 Flanger
Sansamp GT2
Boss CS3 Compressor

I'm thinking the distortions first and delays last. What are you guys trying that works?

I have always had success with the following order:\

1) Compression
2) Wah/Filters
3) Distortion
4) Modulation (phase, flange, vibe, etc.)
5) Time Based Effect (delay, reverb, etc.)

Never really used a whammy so you'll have to mess with that yourself.

[doorknocker]

Originally Posted by bexarametric

I'm thinking the distortions first and delays last.

That seems logical but everything else is a matter of personal taste and trial and error. Maybe place the Big Muff as last distortion pedal if you use say the Fulltone along with it for gain-staging.

If you use all the pedals you've listed then I highly recommed a buffer amp first in the chain. I use a Z.Vex Super Hard-On, it works great for retaining the hi-end and dynamics and also allows you to boost the signal if necessary (and without the annoying treble boost of say a MXR Micro Amp).

[dewey decibel]

Just think of it like a recording chain, with the OD/distortion pedals being the amp or preamp. So when you have this:

1) Compression
2) Wah/Filters
3) Distortion
4) Modulation (phase, flange, vibe, etc.)
5) Time Based Effect (delay, reverb, etc.)

It sort of makes sense with the way you'd record anything else. So for instance you could put compression before or after the preamp. But keep in mind that there are some cool effects that can be had by switching stuff up, like putting a flanger before the distortion, wha after the distortion, etc.

Also keep in mind that if you have an amp with an fx loop many of these will sound better in the loop, namely those that come after the OD/distortion.

[theGeek]

Originally Posted by dewey decibel

Also keep in mind that if you have an amp with an fx loop many of these will sound better in the loop, namely those that come after the OD/distortion.

+1... especially your delay.

[octatonic]

Originally Posted by dewey decibel

Also keep in mind that if you have an amp with an fx loop many of these will sound better in the loop, namely those that come after the OD/distortion.

Some fx loops are better than others though.

Sometimes just breaking that preamp out -> power amp in connection can result in a significant loss of tone.
Marshall are notorious for it and I am not much of a fan of Mesa's 'parallel' loop- you get a difference in level when switching it out/in.

The only loop I use is the one in the Fender Prosonic- but even then I had some significant upgrades done to the circuit to get it to perform properly.

My chain is as follows:

Guitar
Volume Pedal
Wha
Pitch/Octaver
Compressor
Distortion/Overdrive
EQ
Delay (or other time based- chorus/flange/phase), either in the loop or not.

[doorknocker]

Here's my chain:

Guitar
Booster/Buffer
Compressor
A/B/bypass for switching between 2 distortion pedals
Volume Pedal
Delays

Tremolo comes from the Fender amp, nothing comes close IMO.

I place the volume pedal after the distortion so that I can use it as a master volume control of sorts (as opposed to using the volume control on my Tele to get a cleaner sound)

[donsolo]

I put my wah at the end of my chain. I'd put anything related to pitch changing at the front as the overtones from distortion might make it mess up.

[feyshay]

The Geek is right on. Wah pedals and Autofilters can be placed before or after compression or before or after overdrive/distortion (or even at the end) depending on what you want.

[donsolo]

I like my wah after a distortion. It claims all of those overtones that are accentuated and really uses them in the filtering.

Wah before distortion sounds....goofy.

Compression is one of those things that you can put anywhere in the signal chain to smooth things out. Autowahs are especially good with comps after because sometimes, if you strike the string a little hard, they get a little loud in certain frequencies...

[feyshay]

Originally Posted by donsolo

I like my wah after a distortion. It claims all of those overtones that are accentuated and really uses them in the filtering.

Wah before distortion sounds....goofy.

Compression is one of those things that you can put anywhere in the signal chain to smooth things out. Autowahs are especially good with comps after because sometimes, if you strike the string a little hard, they get a little loud in certain frequencies...

Agreed. I have a wah after distortion. Same with autofilters. However, you have to move around. I've got two autowah's, one from MXR and then I have a QTron Plus. These are the hardest pedals to get a feel for (including where to place them).

[theGeek]

Originally Posted by donsolo

I like my wah after a distortion. It claims all of those overtones that are accentuated and really uses them in the filtering.

Wah before distortion sounds....goofy.

Compression is one of those things that you can put anywhere in the signal chain to smooth things out. Autowahs are especially good with comps after because sometimes, if you strike the string a little hard, they get a little loud in certain frequencies...

I really don't like wah after distortion.. but it all comes down to personal preference.

[Unclenny]

I hate threads like this!

Just when you think you are comfortable with your rig you get all of these damnable new ideas.

I don't do well with change.

Guitar
Wah
Comp
EQ
OD
Distortion
Delay
Volume Pedal
Amp Selector
Amps
Ears/Mics


Leave A Little Mystery

[Joe Silence]

sometimes a phase shifter before an overdrive/distortion sounds really good, worth trying out before the OCD to see if you like the sound or not.

i agree about the Whammy II before the OCD and Big Muff, it will behave better there.

[dewey decibel]

Originally Posted by octatonic

Some fx loops are better than others though.

That's true...

[Daedalus77]

There are so many ways to do this, and the typical order has already been articulated. I try to add a few caveats I usually stick to...

• I tend to put compression first, only because it tends to react best to the "loading" of the signal coming from the pickups, if that makes sense.

• OD comes next, generally, and I think it's important to put volume pedals after OD but before modulation or time-based effects.

• I don't generally use Wah, but if I did, I'd put it up front, before or after compression.

• I have a clean boost (Zvex SHO) on the very end (even after the delay), as I think it works best right before the amp. My particular pedal (SHO) tends to overload certain pedals coming after it, anyway, so having it up with the other OD units doesn't really work.

• Generally, I favor true-bypass pedals, but I think it's important in such a rig to have some buffered pedal near the front of the chain to "juice" the signal down the line—especially with larger rigs. (I use the ubiquitous Boss Tuner for this.)

So, my current rig:

Guitar
Keeley Compressor
Boss TU-2 Tuner
Crowther HotCake (OD)
Fulltone FDII (OD)
EB Jr. (Volume)
Empress Tap Tremolo
Diamond Memory Lane (Delay)
Zvex SHO (Boost)
Amp

Hope I added to the conversation.

[doorknocker]

Originally Posted by Daedalus77

• I have a clean boost (Zvex SHO) on the very end (even after the delay), as I think it works best right before the amp. My particular pedal (SHO) tends to overload certain pedals coming after it, anyway, so having it up with the other OD units doesn't really work.

That's interesting. I also have a 'Super Hard On' but always thougt that it should be the first pedal in the chain. I never had overload problems, even when pushing the gain quite a bit. I guess it depends on the pickups though and with my Tele I generally like a tad more gain anyway. But I'm gonna try it the oteher way round so thanks for the tip!

Right now I'm recording some electric 12-string overdubs (Dano 12-string + SHO + BiComprossor into the DI of the UA 2108) and the SHO is about half-way up without causing distortion. When using the DI, it acts more like another compressor stage. It's a really useful pedal!

[elambo]

Originally Posted by theGeek

1) Compression
2) Wah/Filters
3) Distortion
4) Modulation (phase, flange, vibe, etc.)
5) Time Based Effect (delay, reverb, etc.)

DEFINITELY no rules about pedal order, but the above is a good starting point. A home base. I alter my layout depending on the desired effect, but my pedals are, more or less, velcro'd into the positions above.

[theGeek]

Originally Posted by elambo

DEFINITELY no rules about pedal order, but the above is a good starting point. A home base. I alter my layout depending on the desired effect, but my pedals are, more or less, velcro'd into the positions above.

elambo has a point. Nothing is set in stone. You'll just have to try a lot of different setups. You'll find sometimes that certain pedals MUST be in the front of the chain because they add a lot of signal noise otherwise. My HAO Rust Driver is a perfect example. In the front its practically silent but if I put it after more than one or two pedals I'm done for...

[cpband]

Been adding and tweaking...just look for good blues rock tones, nothing too complicated...

Overhauled '87 Jap Strat
Boss Tuner
Boss CS-3 Compressor
Vox Clyde McCoy Wah
Fulltone Full-Drive 2
Blues Driver
Electro-Harmonix Memory Man
Boss Noise Suppressor
Fender NOS Blues Jr. (reverb used here only)

Any thoughts appreciated...

Question: what do you tend to do with the filter/tone knobs on chains?...I think most people tend to angle them towards treble, but like this, when a few are employed together like that I would think this would overly push towards an uneven signal lacking a low end. If I tend to leave the Fulltone and Memory Man on as general tone shapers, and the Compressor/Fulltone Boost/Blues Driver as the lead effects, does it make most sense to leave the general tone shapers in a relatively fixed/neutral position and have the lead pedals in a more treble prone setup?

Related question: anyone know where a Keeley type Mod can get done to the Blues Driver here in the states...? Or where I can buy one online new in the states (thinking of double stacking them)?

[IntenseJim]

Originally Posted by elambo

DEFINITELY no rules about pedal order, but the above is a good starting point. A home base. I alter my layout depending on the desired effect, but my pedals are, more or less, velcro'd into the positions above.

+ / -

If you put compression at the end you'll raise your noise floor and ruin your S/N.


Me? wah->compressor->OD/distortion->time delay fx if any

Compressor after wah smooths out the level if you do clean wah.

[Energie]

I also like wah before drive, I think it adds some nice character, and with some wah's you can drive the input a little more when using giving a slight push, and this also evens out some of the wahs' dynamics, which usually are too much from some pedals

depending on the amp, experiement with efx in the loop, or into the clean channels input. I hated using efx loop in my mesa, since it never was 100 percent wet in serial ?? what were they thinking?