Using analog guitar pedals for digital instruments?

J

jconradi

New member
Is this possible in any way? I've used some of my guitar effects units with a few of my analog synths, this is no problem. But, I want to use my DM2W delay effect pedal with a Juno 106 digital plug-in replica that I play through my MIDI keyboard. Would there be any way to do this with a specific cable // interface setup?

thanks
 
You play your MIDI keyboard through the VSTi. That plugin isn't sending anything to the keyboard. The keyboard sends to the plugin, the plugin sends to the audio interface, the audio interface sends to speakers of headphones or something. It's nitpicky and pedantic but lots of people seem to completely misunderstand signal flow. Just plug it in and it works and nobody cares how or why. Until things go wrong, and when it suddenly becomes extremely important to understand. Try to fix your plumbing, but get confused about which pipe is an input and which is an output...

It's also important when start trying to do more complex things. Like, you know, running a VSTi through a guitar pedal. But I actually skipped a step in the chain above which is the DAW. The keyboard sends MIDI to a track in your DAW. That MIDI then goes into the VSTi which spits audio back out to the DAW (in the downstream direction) which sends it to an output on your interface.

For specific instructions, we need specific information about what DAW and interface you're using. In general though, it's usually as easy as telling the DAW to send the audio to one specific interface output, plugging that into the pedal, and then plugging the pedal into an input on the interface. Assign that audio input to another track, make sure that it is not also being sent to the same output (unless you want feedback :) ), and then record it.

That gets weird if all you've got is a single stereo pair for DAW outputs, but it can be done. I begin to wonder, though, what this pedal does that you haven't found in plugins yet.
 
ashcat_lt said:
For specific instructions, we need specific information about what DAW and interface you're using. In general though, it's usually as easy as telling the DAW to send the audio to one specific interface output, plugging that into the pedal, and then plugging the pedal into an input on the interface. Assign that audio input to another track, make sure that it is not also being sent to the same output (unless you want feedback :) ), and then record it.

That gets weird if all you've got is a single stereo pair for DAW outputs, but it can be done. I begin to wonder, though, what this pedal does that you haven't found in plugins yet.
Click to expand...

im using reason 9.5, with a scarlett 20 input interface. the pedal is a dm2w delay, i just like that nice and dirty analog delay sound versus a digital.
 
I'm not familiar with Reason, so I can't help with that side, but if you're talking about the Scarlett 18i20, well it's got plenty of ins and outs to get the job done. Just figure out how to make Reason send the output from your instrument plug to an output other than the main L/R that your speakers are plugged to, and record from an input, and plug 'er up!
 
That article goes into some other stuff, but it still boils down to just plugging the damn thing in. Out>In>Out>In and you're done.

Note that SOS article says nothing about "reamp" boxes because you don't need them for the kind of patching they discuss. You don't need them for pedals either. Somebody's likely to come along and say "But...Impedance..." and we're just going to laugh at them and go on using our pedals as outboard effects.

jconradi - can you figure out how to route the instrument to a hardware output (other than the main L/R) in Reason?
 
ashcat_lt said:
That article goes into some other stuff, but it still boils down to just plugging the damn thing in. Out>In>Out>In and you're done.

Note that SOS article says nothing about "reamp" boxes because you don't need them for the kind of patching they discuss. You don't need them for pedals either. Somebody's likely to come along and say "But...Impedance..." and we're just going to laugh at them and go on using our pedals as outboard effects.

jconradi - can you figure out how to route the instrument to a hardware output (other than the main L/R) in Reason?
Click to expand...

Thanks, all this info is super helpful. But, my MIDI keyboard (novation launchkey) uses a straight USB cord, so I have the MIDI keyboard connected directly into my computer, and my scarlett interface box connected into another USB input on my computer, so the keyboard and interface are seen as two separate entities to my DAW. does that effect the situation?
 
Nope.

The keyboard tells the software instrument what note to play and how hard. Then it tells it to stop playing that note when you pick up your finger. The instrument makes the sound and that comes out one of the holes on your interface.

What might trip you up is if focusrite has some fancy routing/mixing software between Reason and the interface itself. I can't help with that either cause I won't put up with that kinda crap.
 
As was said, your keyboard only sends note data to the DAW. It doesn't make any sound of its own. The VST instrument takes that note data and applies it to the sounds.

You need to route the VST instrument to an extra output on your interface (not the main output that the monitors/headphones are hooked to). Then you plug that output of the interface to the pedal. Then you come out of the pedal into an input on the interface and set the DAW to record that input.
 
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