Using Pedals as Outboard Gear in Reaper?

WinterWinter

New member
Hello, I’ve been researching how to use pedals as outboard gear, and find some of the info to be just a bit unhelpful, especially as someone that uses reaper. I understand I need to use Reainsert, but I was wondering what the settings should be at if I were to say, record reverb for vocals.

My setup is a laptop, reaper, a Moog grandmother with reverb (which I believe should work, if not then I could get a reverb pedal), and a focusrite 2i2. I was wondering what other gear I may need, do I need a DI unit? Or a reamplifier? Or none?
 
Read the manual for the Moog to see what it requires on the input. You should be able to go from the 2i2 Out to the Moog In, then Moog Out to the 2i2 In. I'm guessing the input on the Moog can handle line level voltage. If so, it is an easy connection. If it requires a Hi-Z input for a guitar (an instrument input), then you'll have to figure out how to go from the line level Out of the 2i2 to the Hi-Z In on the Moog.

Is the reverb on the Moog better than the plugs in Reaper?

Don't know how to set up Reaper to handle the signal flow. I'm sure there are others here who know.
 
Read the manual for the Moog to see what it requires on the input. You should be able to go from the 2i2 Out to the Moog In, then Moog Out to the 2i2 In. I'm guessing the input on the Moog can handle line level voltage. If so, it is an easy connection. If it requires a Hi-Z input for a guitar (an instrument input), then you'll have to figure out how to go from the line level Out of the 2i2 to the Hi-Z In on the Moog.

Is the reverb on the Moog better than the plugs in Reaper?

Don't know how to set up Reaper to handle the signal flow. I'm sure there are others here who know.

Thank you, the reverb is very nice and I'll check the manual, what would I need to do if I were to use a reverb effects pedal?
 
I think you can try this without a D.I. or some sort of impedance converter.

In Reaper, you can achieve this by sending the track you want to process to a free output on your interface.
As you don't have a free output on your 2i2 interface, you can temporarily change routings to use one output as a send channel to the effect pedal.

Use the routing window to disable the master send on the track you want to process, then add a mono hardware output to the chosen channel(let's say the right output). (disable direct monitoring on the interface!).
Start off with a low gain setting on the sending track, so you don't hit the input of your effect pedal too hard. (line out is a higher voltage than the output signal of an electric guitar. Lower volume -> lower voltage)

On a second, empty track for the return signal, choose the input you will use for the return signal. Set record monitoring to off and turn on 'record arm' for that channel.

You will want to monitor the sound returning from the effect pedal. For that, open the routing window on the master track, remove the stereo hardware output and add a new mono hardware output to the channel where you still have a speaker connected (left output). Then set record monitoring on the receiving channel to on and hit play. Set the gain levels on sending track, effect and input gain. Turn the dry/wet knob on the pedal all the way to 'wet', you can mix reverb and dry signal later in the DAW.

When satisfied with the sound, hit record to print the return signal from the reverb pedal onto the new return track.
There will probably be some latency on the recorded return signal, but that is easily solved by nudging the recorded sample a bit. (or not if you like some extra pre-delay)

Good luck! And let me know of anything is unclear ;)
 
Please do not confuse impedance with level. They are only kind of coincidentally related.

We never want to actually match impedances. We always want to go from a lower source or output to a higher receiver or input. We should for a 1:10 or better ratio. 1:10 is good enough, 1:100 won't be much better, but also won't likely be any worse either. The line output on the interface is plenty low enough to drive a typical line input, which is much lower than any "Hi-Z" instrument input. It can easily provide more current than any guitar amp or pedal could ever want, but it doesn't so much push as get pulled. The instrument input draws less current than the output can provide, and the output is perfectly happy to do it all day long.

Volume/level is a completely different thing. Most things made for guitars do tend to "expect" less level than a line output can provide. Usually it's operating limit is lower, and a too loud input could cause distortion. Luckily, most line level sources have some way of controlling the level they send. Just turn them down! Then what comes back out of the pedal will still be quieter, so you'll maybe need to turn that up. That's usually pretty easy too, and most of the time you can just do that in Reaper too. This is not exactly ideal gain staging, and will probably add some noise, but if you're not willing to add noise, you shouldn't be going out to analog in the first place.

You don't need anything special or fancy. You need a pair of guitar cables.
 
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