Looking for help with pedalboard issue

M

Mikeyprs

New member
Sup People,

As the thread title suggests I'm looking for help in regards to the pedal-board issue.

The pedal-board I currently use is a custom/home built project which is strong but also very bulky and heavy :S (i'll attach a pic or 2 of it towards the end).

The signal chain I currently have is as follows:

Wireless > Crybaby wah > Digitech whammy > Tuner > Boss Octaver > Boss OD/DS > Boss MT-2 > Boss GE-7 > Boss NS-2 > Boss Phaser > Boss Flanger > Boss Chorus > Mxr Dyna comp > Marshall Half-Stack

I power my pedals using a Godlyke powerall and daisychain with the exception of digitechs own power supply.

N.B I also use a Boss RV-3 using the FX send and return on the amp head

I'm looking to build or buy (which ever is cheaper) a pedalboard that is strong, stable but reasonably light to transport when gigging/ heading to rehearsals. it would also need to be accessible whilst gigging too (can't be doing with fumbling around on stage trying not to knock the pedal settings when changing effects can we??)

As always any and all comments, suggestions and tips are greatly appreciated!!!

Huge thanks in advance for your time!!!
 

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Furman makes some boards of different sizes with incorporated AC and 9VDC distribution. The one I use isn't big enough for all your toy... er, I mean tools, but they make larger ones. Mine has a zip up carrying bag with a shoulder strap for easy transport. Pedals attach with Velcro.
 
I have a Pedal Pad I no longer use. Big heavy thing and attaching pedals with velcro sucks out loud. The velcro is stronger than the glue and half the pedals fall off and bang around in the bottom of the rig in transport.


lou
 
You've got a lot of Boss pedals that could easily be replaced by a single multi-FX box, and that would radically reduce the space and power distribution requirements. Just a thought.
 
Sky Blue Lou said:
I have a Pedal Pad I no longer use. Big heavy thing and attaching pedals with velcro sucks out loud. The velcro is stronger than the glue and half the pedals fall off and bang around in the bottom of the rig in transport.


lou
Click to expand...
That's the trouble with Velcro in general - the vel clings to the cro more strongly than the adhesive sticks to whatever it's attached to. My solution is to reattach whatever comes unstuck with stronger glue.
 
hey guys

First off thank you for the suggestions and comments they have been most helpful.

In answer to the multi-effect suggestion Zaphod B I have had bad experiences with multi-effects in the past and have always felt the stompboxes produce a better sound imo.

and in answer to the the question of if i'm going to stick with the stompboxes TeyserBlue the answer is Yes I am mainly because they all do the job i want them to do and I like that i have the ability to individually change settings at will. I currently looking at that link now thanks.

After taking some measurements of my current pedal-board it turns out it is 3ft long and 13" deep and Judging from my search for the furman products GGun suggested I can't seem to find any that well accomodate the effects I have (unless im looking in the wrong places).

The other option I was thinking of is if there was a way I could rack some effects that are permanently on and be put through the effects loop of the amp head such as EQ, Delay/Reverb and a tuner for example?

Could this be an option?? what are your thoughts/opinions and suggestions for this?

Thanks in advance for your time and advice!!
 
Mikeyprs said:
After taking some measurements of my current pedal-board it turns out it is 3ft long and 13" deep and Judging from my search for the furman products GGun suggested I can't seem to find any that well accomodate the effects I have (unless im looking in the wrong places).
Click to expand...
One thing you might consider doing is getting a Furman board for all your compact stompboxes and outboarding your wah and the digital processor. They would fit in the carry bag on top of the stompboxes for transport.
 
Hey guys and girls,

Now that you mention separating the wah and the digitech from the stompboxes which are on a pedalboard of some description is an intriguing idea. something to think about lol

The next part to the pedal-board issue is the signal path?
Am I getting the best tone or signal with the way I have it configured at present which, as a reminder is....

Wireless > Crybaby wah > Digitech whammy > Tuner > Boss Octaver > Boss OD/DS > Boss MT-2 > Boss GE-7 > Boss NS-2 > Boss Phaser > Boss Flanger > Boss Chorus > Mxr Dyna comp > Marshall Half-Stack

Altho in the pictures you only see from the crybaby to the dyna comp respectively what changes might people make??

Would putting some effects that are always on through the effects loop (e.g a good idea?

what are your thoughts/opinions and suggestions!?

Thanks in advance for your time and advice!!
 
Mikeyprs said:
Hey guys and girls,

Now that you mention separating the wah and the digitech from the stompboxes which are on a pedalboard of some description is an intriguing idea. something to think about lol

The next part to the pedal-board issue is the signal path?
Am I getting the best tone or signal with the way I have it configured at present which, as a reminder is....

Wireless > Crybaby wah > Digitech whammy > Tuner > Boss Octaver > Boss OD/DS > Boss MT-2 > Boss GE-7 > Boss NS-2 > Boss Phaser > Boss Flanger > Boss Chorus > Mxr Dyna comp > Marshall Half-Stack

Altho in the pictures you only see from the crybaby to the dyna comp respectively what changes might people make??

Would putting some effects that are always on through the effects loop (e.g a good idea?

what are your thoughts/opinions and suggestions!?

Thanks in advance for your time and advice!!
Click to expand...

There is no hard and fast rule, but I always put the compressor first.
 
Mikeyprs said:
Am I getting the best tone or signal with the way I have it configured at present...
Click to expand...
Do you want to delay your flange or flange your delay? With the number of pedals you have the possible combinations must run into the hundreds at least. There are certain favored orders as far as type of effect; pitch, time, etc. but beyond that who knows?

As far as the loop goes some pedals don't like loops and vice versa. Try 'em.


lou
 
I agree compressor first. Then I do modulation effects like phaser, flanger, chorus, wah. Fuzztone. Delay.

But, I don't do that shit anymore. I actually just use delay into my tube amps which are just barely distorted. The distorted delay sound is totally that rockabilly twang I want.

My "pedalboard" is a flat that a case of coke comes on. Similar to a milk crate, but more like a tray. I have all the effects zip tied to it. I use a hot spot (or something like that) to power it. That thing is great. I paid like $120 for a noisy 6 outlet dod power supply in 1987 (and that was alot of money). This thing is just a little wall lump thing with a splitter cable on the end for all the other effects. I use it by itself when I just use the delay.

My effects that I don't bother dragging out anymore are:

Cry baby Wah, DOD or some other cheap envelope filter, Ibanez flanger/chorus, distortion+, Rat, Boss volume pedal, Ibanez digital delay.

I found that most gigs, I just had the rat box and delay on all night and never messed with anything else. That envelope filter thing can be alot of fun, though.
 
Hey Guys,

After several hours (staying up till gone 4 am...) of youtubing.. researching and general playing around with the signal chain itself I think I've come to a few decisions but then new questions have arisen,

First off I have decided that i am going to take the phase shifter and super octaver out of the effects chain mainly becuase i don't use them... so whats the point in them being there right?

Secondly I have decided on a different trying a different signal path but then there is the power issue.. but first the signal chain.

Wireless > Wah > Tuner > Comp > OD > Dist > EQ > Whammy > Chorus > Flanger > Noise Suppressor > Amp

The RV-3 digital delay and reverb is put through the effects loop of my Amp Head.

This is could be a good signal path but what i need some help working out is how to supply power to all the pedals. At present the majority of the pedals are powered by the godlyke powerall with the excemption of the whammy.

That being said what other power supplys could I use?

In an ideal world i'd like to have just one power supply for the whole thing but i get confused with polarity this and polarity that or w/e electronic jargon companies like to use.. frankly.. its a tad annoying lol

Once the power issue is dealt with i can then move onto effect placement on the board.

Thanks for all your help so farr!

Mikey
 
Mikeyprs said:
Hey Guys,

After several hours (staying up till gone 4 am...) of youtubing.. researching and general playing around with the signal chain itself I think I've come to a few decisions but then new questions have arisen,

First off I have decided that i am going to take the phase shifter and super octaver out of the effects chain mainly becuase i don't use them... so whats the point in them being there right?

Secondly I have decided on a different trying a different signal path but then there is the power issue.. but first the signal chain.

Wireless > Wah > Tuner > Comp > OD > Dist > EQ > Whammy > Chorus > Flanger > Noise Suppressor > Amp

The RV-3 digital delay and reverb is put through the effects loop of my Amp Head.

This is could be a good signal path but what i need some help working out is how to supply power to all the pedals. At present the majority of the pedals are powered by the godlyke powerall with the excemption of the whammy.

That being said what other power supplys could I use?

In an ideal world i'd like to have just one power supply for the whole thing but i get confused with polarity this and polarity that or w/e electronic jargon companies like to use.. frankly.. its a tad annoying lol

Once the power issue is dealt with i can then move onto effect placement on the board.

Thanks for all your help so farr!

Mikey
Click to expand...
Well, if you go with a Furman board, you'll have the integrated 9VDC supply.
 
Mikeyprs said:
Secondly I have decided on a different trying a different signal path but then there is the power issue.. but first the signal chain.

Wireless > Wah > Tuner > Comp > OD > Dist > EQ > Whammy > Chorus > Flanger > Noise Suppressor > Amp

The RV-3 digital delay and reverb is put through the effects loop of my Amp Head.
Click to expand...

I'd run it like this:

Wireless > Tuner > Wah > Whammy > Comp > OD > Dist > Amp

Then in the effects loop I'd run :

EQ > Noise suppressor > Flanger > Chorus > RV-3
 
I can't quite make it out in the pic but it looks like you have the Boss NS-2 Noise supressir which you can also use to run effects in a loop before the amp to get a clean signal into the amp which could be like:

Wireless > Tuner > Wah > Whammy > Comp >NS2

NS-send> OD>Dist>EQ>NS-2 Return

NS-2 out

and then Flange>Chorus>Verb either after the NS-2 or in the fx loop of the amp
 
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Mikeyprs said:
Secondly I have decided on a different trying a different signal path but then there is the power issue.. but first the signal chain.

Wireless > Wah > Tuner > Comp > OD > Dist > EQ > Whammy > Chorus > Flanger > Noise Suppressor > Amp

The RV-3 digital delay and reverb is put through the effects loop of my Amp Head.
Click to expand...

You're going to get a wide variety of questions when it comes to this question, but I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring. First off, I'm a Boss fan myself. I've replaced a couple of their pedals with some slightly more high-end stuff but always find myself coming back to them. Also love the GE7. Anyways, here's how I'd do it:

In front: Wireless > Tuner > Wah/Whammy > Whammy/Wah > Compressor > NS2 Send > OD > Dist > NS2 return > GE 7

In the loop > Chorus (not a deal-breaker) > Flanger (not a deal breaker) > Delay/Reverb (pretty much always a deal-breaker)

I don't have a whammy but I like to run any harmonisers as close as possible to the start of the loop. Experiment by switching it with the wah. I find the send/return on the NS2 is great for keeping things in check when running multiple OD/Distortion units. I use the GE7 to smooth out the distortion or set neutrally as a boost for solos. I'd keep it out front unless you dislike the fundamental tone of your amp. I'd keep the modulation in the loop unless you rely solely on pedal drive.
 
Hey Guys,

Thanks for the signal path suggestions

I shall try all three of them out tomorrow and see which will work best for me in terms of accessability, power supply and sound.

for the mean time I have taken a picture of the pedal chain I was thinking of originally changing it too. let me know what you think.. other then it looking a lil tidier of course =P lol

*Since I took the pic I changed few FX around I.e after the whammy the signal path goes Dist > NS > EQ > Chorus > Flanger > Amp*
 

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Fuckin' tap dancin' fool.

I assume this is a live set-up, yeah? I mean you'd never need to daisy-chain all that shit for studio work. Are you playing a regular setlist? Have you ever looked into an amp with onboard FX and selectable presets?


lou
 
Yes I plan to use my the effects for both live and studio work.

It looks messy at this moment in time because this is a work in progress thing.
I'm trying to organise my signal chain first before i commit it all to a pedal board of some description.

I am in two projects atm both metal bands, one being covers another is originals.

In answer to whether I "Have ever looked into an amp with onboard FX and selectable presets?"

The answer is no and the reason why is that I prefer stompboxes to any form of multi-FX becasuse 1) I have had poor past experiences with multi-fx pedals and 2) because of the ability to change the settings at will without havin to go through any menus or anything like that.
 
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