Question:
Ok, so here's my problem and posed solution. I've got 8-10 pedals that I normally gig with. For the most part I've got a few that I use for clean pretty much all the time (light chorus or phaser, maybe delay..to thicken the tone a bit) and then my dirty channel (J&H, big muff, noise suppresor, eq..). It's pretty much impossible to turn two pedals off and turn another two on to go from say verse to chorus in a particular song. Maybe i'm just retarded and need to work on my foot speed..or maybe there's an easier way:
I'm thinking of picking up an A/B/C switch. I'd run my tuner through A (so it won't suck tone) my clean channel through B, and my dirty channel through C. I would still have control over individual pedals but this way my 'norm' would be set. Plus, at any given time I would only be running through 4-5 pedals instead of 10. Here's the rundown:
Guitar->Wah->A/B/C->Volume pedal->Delay->Amp
A) Tuner
B) Compressor->Chorus->Phaser
C) Big Muff->J&H->EQ->Noise suppresor
Does this seem like it will work? Or am I missing something?
-shane
Answer:
Another option would be to pick up a loop switcher, like the ones sold by Loopmaster or Ryan Speer, or build one pretty easily. Figure out which pedals you might like to run together, and put them in loops together.
Answer:
Originally Posted by LWatford Another option would be to pick up a loop switcher, like the ones sold by Loopmaster or Ryan Speer, or build one pretty easily. Figure out which pedals you might like to run together, and put them in loops together. and just for reference, Ryan Speer's company is www.pacificcustompedals.com
I think a loop switcher is probably what you actually want, not an A/B/C pedal. I'm trying to think of how you're going to get the sound back to one signal at your volume pedal if you've got two signals running in an A/B setup.
Answer:
Originally Posted by thesteve and just for reference, Ryan Speer's company is www.pacificcustompedals.com
I think a loop switcher is probably what you actually want, not an A/B/C pedal. I'm trying to think of how you're going to get the sound back to one signal at your volume pedal if you've got two signals running in an A/B setup.
You could run an A/B/Y in reverse and just keep the Y selected. That would be a pain though.
I combine two signals to one for my current guitar set up. I run out of my computer and stereo with a distorted signal panned hard left and clean panned hard right. I run into an a/b/y to select between each signal or both then out to my volume pedal.
Answer:
Originally Posted by Crstngtrplyr77 You could run an A/B/Y in reverse and just keep the Y selected. That would be a pain though.
I combine two signals to one for my current guitar set up. I run out of my computer and stereo with a distorted signal panned hard left and clean panned hard right. I run into an a/b/y to select between each signal or both then out to my volume pedal. I was thinking about that too...wouldn't you still need a y-split somewhere else to run the guitar signal into the two pedal chains?
Answer:
Yeah... it would have to have a switch at the begining to split the channel, then put a second one at the end to combine the signal into the volume pedal.
Answer:
*cough*podxtlive*cough*
Just kidding with you. Though I honestly don't miss pedal hopping at all now that I've got my XTL.
Answer:
Originally Posted by thesteve and just for reference, Ryan Speer's company is www.pacificcustompedals.com
I think a loop switcher is probably what you actually want, not an A/B/C pedal. I'm trying to think of how you're going to get the sound back to one signal at your volume pedal if you've got two signals running in an A/B setup. yah, I agree. I think you are looking for a loop switcher.
Answer:
loop switcher is the way to go.
Answer:
So, dumb this down for me. Someone explain to me a loop switcher. With the pedals listed above, how would this work? I think I get the general concept but I'm not exactly following how the signal path flows.
-shane
Answer:
Originally Posted by snizzle So, dumb this down for me. Someone explain to me a loop switcher. With the pedals listed above, how would this work? I think I get the general concept but I'm not exactly following how the signal path flows.
-shane ok...this is how it'd work...You'd have a switch that has the following jacks: In/Out, Loop 1 In/Out, Loop 2 In/Out and Tuner Out. You'd also have three switches. Loop 1 on/off, 2 on/off and tuner on/off.
So you'd put your effects in your groupings.
A) Tuner
B) Compressor->Chorus->Phaser
C) Big Muff->J&H->EQ->Noise suppresor
A) would go in the tuner output
I'd put C) in loop 1, and B in loop 2 (Gain before modulation I suppose).
Now, with neither loop "on" you get a clean signal through the switcher as all pedals are being bypassed. If you want to have the pedals in group "B)" active, then you'd hit the loop 2 "on" switch and the signal is routed as follows. Guitar-->switcher in-->loop2 out,-->loop2 in--->switcher out--->amp.
If you wanted to activate group "C", then you'd hit the loop 1 "on" switch. and turn loop 2 off. You coudl even have both loops "on" to use all the effects at once.
Answer:
Can I loop one pedal in more than one loop? For instance, say I have a delay I'd like to have in both loops. Or if I add additional loops, can I use some of the same pedals twice?
-shane
Also, in this setup all pedals would be on all the time correct? So there's really no way to make changes w/out adding a new loop right? Say I have a U2ish delay that I only use in the intro to one song..the only way to make that work would be to make a seperate loop for it, correct?
-shane
Answer:
Originally Posted by snizzle Can I loop one pedal in more than one loop? For instance, say I have a delay I'd like to have in both loops. Or if I add additional loops, can I use some of the same pedals twice?
-shane in the original setup you indicated, the delay pedal would be after both loops...so you'd have guitar-->loop switcher-->delay-->amp. I don't know any methods off hand for using the same pedals twice unless they were outside the loops.
Also, in this setup all pedals would be on all the time correct? So there's really no way to make changes w/out adding a new loop right? Say I have a U2ish delay that I only use in the intro to one song..the only way to make that work would be to make a seperate loop for it, correct?
-shane Each pedal will still have it's own "on/off"...the loop switch just determines the signal path. For example, if Loop 1 has a delay, phaser and distortion in it, each of these can still be turned on or off individually just like you would if they weren't in the loop. The loop switch just determines whether or not your signal is going through those pedals.
Answer:
Thanks for your help Steve. Do you think it would be beneficial to get a 3-4 loop pedal to be able to save different 'presets' or that 2 would be fine with the ability to manually turn off/on pedals within a loop. I want to make sure my basics are covered w/out overkill.
My rig for the last few years (up until about 8 months ago) was a Spider 110 with 4 saveable presets. I had a pure clean, clean w/ chorus and delay, overdrive (ala tubescreamer), and distortion/delay for lead lines.
I hated the sound of the Spider but liked the different 'presets' i could have and would like to have something like that with my current pedals. I guess the pure clean would be going straight through and then I'd need a 3 looper pedal, plus tuner?
-shane
Answer:
Originally Posted by snizzle Thanks for your help Steve. Do you think it would be beneficial to get a 3-4 loop pedal to be able to save different 'presets' or that 2 would be fine with the ability to manually turn off/on pedals within a loop. I want to make sure my basics are covered w/out overkill.
My rig for the last few years (up until about 8 months ago) was a Spider 110 with 4 saveable presets. I had a pure clean, clean w/ chorus and delay, overdrive (ala tubescreamer), and distortion/delay for lead lines.
I hated the sound of the Spider but liked the different 'presets' i could have and would like to have something like that with my current pedals. I guess the pure clean would be going straight through and then I'd need a 3 looper pedal, plus tuner?
-shane it seems like for what you're wanting now, a two loop with tuner out would be fine. I'd probably just put the overdrive in the main signal chain and not in any of the loops.