I've never used my FX loop...am I missing out?

imalrightjack · July 2014

I set up my pedals as follows:

IN - Boss TU-3 (non-true bypass);

Jim Dunlop Crybaby Classic (true hardwire bypass);

MXR Custom Badass Modified O.D. (true bypass);

JHS Morning Glory overdrive clone (true bypass);

Boss OC-3 Super Octave (buffered);

MXR Carbon Copy digital delay (true bypass) - OUT

Would I benefit putting any of this through the Engl Gigmaster 30's FX loop? If so, what? I have never, ever used an FX loop and don't really know where to start.

Any advice welcome.

Yours ignorantly.

not_the_dj · July 2014

Only the delay, but that's not essential, especially if you're running the amp cleanish and getting dirt from your pedals.

not_the_dj · July 2014

...I'd also put the octaver earlier in the chain, before the drives. I know the previous version (OC-2) I had tracked much better with a clean signal going into it.

Deijavoo · July 2014

I've tried fx loops on all sorts of amps and never find it to suit me at all. Delays, reverbs, all in front for me.

I feel like such a heathan.

imalrightjack · July 2014

Not as much as me, Dave. Plus, you're clearly a lot less lazy than me

I'll try switching the Octaver, thanks.

Danny1969 · July 2014

Delay in front of amp dirt isn't as clean a sound as delay in loop with amp dirt. Chorus in front of amp dirt can be a bit strange too. Basically you generally want time based effects after the dirt

But if you get the dirt from pedals you don't need a loop.

dunstanmus · July 2014

Generally delay and reverb in the loop unless you are using darker delays. The CC is cool front end.

mike_l · July 2014

You can get some cool effects by putting phase/chorus/flange in the loop. I put dealy in the loop if I'm getting my dirt from the amp, otherwise (IMO) the dealys sound crappy. I know there's people who put delay before dirt (Drew_fx I think does this).

Some pedals (I'm thinking MXR) don't have the headroom to work in the loop, and clip and sound crap/weak.

Bidley · July 2014

I don't think I've met another guitarist, IRL, who uses an fx loop. I do but it doesn't seem to be the done thing at all.

Drew_TNBD · July 2014

I don't like timebased effects after dirt. I keep trying, but to me it always sound too 'studio' and 80's sounding, even with the best gear. I like it all in front, and I adjust the mixes to compensate for the dirt. It keeps the character of the amp and the pedals imho.

Actually I'd say I use delay pedals in the same way that people use drive pedals in front of a distorted amp. They use it to smack the front end hard, and to bring out the saturation of the amp. I do the same with a delay pedal, like in this song...

1:02 onwards... those lead lines during the break, followed by the rhythmical chord that echoes out over the chuggy stuff, then followed by the higher melody.... it's all two delays and a reverb into the front of my highest gain channel on the amp. You just cannot get that sound with having those effects in the effects loop.

Drew_TNBD · July 2014

And this one....

5:39 onwards.... those melodies on top of the strummed chords and the synths... you cannot get those undulations and pulsings in the amount of gain when you've got delays after the dirt. It just doesn't sound the same. This particular song is one of my favourites, because the notes of the guitar cut through... and then the delay kinda fades in afterwards. And that's all done by using a certain amount of gain on the amp, and setting the mix amounts of each pedal so that it doesn't overwhelm the amp as much as some of our other songs.

shuikit · July 2014

Years ago, I used to always put my delay through the fx loop, probably because I read it was 'better'. Then one day I decided to try it out to see what the difference was and there was a difference, I thought the delay was clearer in the fx loop which I did prefer BUT not enough for me to be bothered running two more cables all the time so since then I'm just a plug everything in the front kinda guy and have never missed the difference. Sometimes get my drive from my amp sometimes using pedals and again never thought it sounded bad or anything, though I do have a lot more free time with less cables to run and coil up etc!

BadlyDrawnBoy · July 2014

If you have a loop and a delay pedal, just try out. Your ears will let you know the benefit. It much depends on the gear (amps and loops can vary a *lot* in how they take pedals) and also what sounds you want for your playing/music. The fx loop is also a very good place for clean boost pedals, if you need a volume boost function.

Dave_Mc · July 2014

not_the_dj said:

Only the delay, but that's not essential, especially if you're running the amp cleanish and getting dirt from your pedals.

+1

SRich · July 2014

^ agreed with the above

I put tremelo + reverb (Strymon Flint) + Delay (TC Nova Delay) into the loop on one amp....but all others including a DL4 in front of the amp, but I do run them clean.

I do use the 4 cable method for my HD500 into a Peavey Classic 30 and that works a treat. I never can work out which cable goes where though and have to label the suckers to get it right every time.

imalrightjack · July 2014

Lots of food for thought. I'll try the loop while I have my amp at home then it's easy to fart around with cabling, etc.

57Deluxe · July 2014

me too - I just can't be arsed to set it all up each time I want to a different pedal arrangement... I don't get long enough as it is to thoroughly explore and catelgue all the best tones/setups/combinations as it is...

ThePrettyDamned · July 2014

Drew_fx;294145" said:
And this one....

5:39 onwards.... those melodies on top of the strummed chords and the synths... you cannot get those undulations and pulsings in the amount of gain when you've got delays after the dirt. It just doesn't sound the same. This particular song is one of my favourites, because the notes of the guitar cut through... and then the delay kinda fades in afterwards. And that's all done by using a certain amount of gain on the amp, and setting the mix amounts of each pedal so that it doesn't overwhelm the amp as much as some of our other songs.

Love that sound, I spent ages trying to get something similar and failed! Miserably!

Did you use a reverse delay or reverb to get the pulsing ones that seem to increase in gain?

xSkarloey · July 2014

I've just got a new amp with an fx loop. I chose it among other things because it had one. Nice to have the option.

So far I've put my reverb pedal in the lop. I just like the sound of it that way. Makes it sound more like I'm in a big room or hall, but that's only my preference.

The digital delay sounds great through it as well, although I fully understand what others have said about that sounding a bit too 'studio clean'.

Flanger goes straight into the front end of the amp.

Analogue delay as the mood takes me goes there too. But then for me that's a whole different thing to digital delay.

The only problem (if it is a problem) is that I'm so happy with the drive sounds so far, I might just ditch the drive pedals for a while and just use the guitar volume and amp's channel switching.

Drew_TNBD · July 2014

ThePrettyDamned;295110" said:
Love that sound, I spent ages trying to get something similar and failed! Miserably!

Did you use a reverse delay or reverb to get the pulsing ones that seem to increase in gain?

Well the increase in gain comes from the volume of the signal hitting the amp. I have the amp set to channel 2, with just enough gain to break up on very loud strums.

Then I hit the amp with guitar > reverse delay > regular delay > reverb ... and the extra gain comes from the amount of notes I play. So when I play the single note bits it's cleaner than when I play the little runs/fills, because the extra notes cause the delays and reverb to hit the amp louder.

At the time I used my old Fryette Sig X. This was my board back in the day:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc3/t1.0-9/521299_10151329257126737_879843292_n.jpg

DL4 + DL8 + RV7.

The "bouncing around the stereo field" aspect of it comes from recording two passes and panning them hard left and hard right. For this I didn't resync the delays, so they're off by a certain amount, and it's not exactly a musical note value... something like 30ms roundabouts. So it kinda tumbles around and syncs up in a strange way...

ThePrettyDamned · July 2014

Very nice, thanks for the explanation.

Bookmarked!

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I've never used my FX loop...am I missing out?

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