Effects: What order do these guy's go in?

[frannyb]

I have these effects and am wondering in what order should they occur in the effcets chain in my rack set up:
*Multi effects processers(2 Virtualizers)
*Compressor(2 Ch.)
*Graphic EQ(2 Ch.)
*BBE Sonic Maximiser(2 Ch.)
This is is for a 16 track analog home studio used for recording/mixing & mastering.

 

[zoetrope]

I'd do this . . .

Multi --> EQ --> Compressor

Or just skip the EQ and go Multi --> Compressor

I don't know what the BBE is.

 

[regebro]

Get a patchbay, and you can change the order easily. There is no fixed order to set up effects.

 

[Cyrokk]

if you are looking for a particular order for an instrument, then I would select eq then compression then multi effects so that any effects (esp reverb and delay) would be applied after the sound is shaped..

If you are just looking for a rackmount set up, then I would go the regebro route and get a patchbay..

that's my preference, experiment and see what works best for you..


Cy

 

[little z]

This may help, too.......

Another spin on it could be............................................................
Multi-FX------EQ-----------BBE Sonic Max.---------Compressor
Although you could experiment and switch out the BBE Max. with the compressor, just see which suits your music better.........
Good Luck!!!!! Steve

 

[Chriss]

my setup would be the virtualizers in the trashbin where they belong, then the EQ then the sonic maximizer or the compressor.
The BBE S.M. and the compressor do basically the same thing in two different ways, the BBE is way cool btw.

I don't think i'd use both the maximizer and the compressor at the same time.

 

[vulcanofga]

There is a good (free) recording course by Bill Gibson on www.artistPRO.com In it BILL says the compressor is best used at the earliest point in the signal chain for better control of the effected sound.I have really enjoyed the course,it also has tests and scores for all the material.

Monty Neese,

 

[keyesound]

If you put the compressor in the chain first, then it evens out the output level of the signal (so if you put delay or reverb into the compressor you get a big muddy mess, the compressor is bringing up the level of the lower attributes of the signal) (or if you run the EQ first and attenuate and boost frequencies the compressor may be avtivated by boosted freq's and then squish the signal, therefore unattenuating the attenuated freq's)
My sugesstion is: Compression== FX== EQ==Mad Max

Good sounds to you

 

[sonusman]

The BBE S.M. and the compressor do basically the same thing in two different ways, the BBE is way cool btw.

You are just kidding right? They do NOTHING of the same thing at all. The BBE is a "enhancer" that artificially add's low and high end to the sound without adding volume. It also does some time alignment things that seldomly works in real life, but here and there is an okay effect I suppose. I don't use these kinds of enhancers at all because they generally mess up the sound too much.

A compressor is used to modify the volume envelope of audio. Laymens terms: It helps keep the audio sort of at the same volume (this does not always SOUND like it keeps it at the same volume because compressors could care less about the Fletcher/Munson Relative Loudness Curves!!! The just deal with the level that is there).

fannyb - Each of these devices can have very many uses while tracking, mixing, mastering. I doubt very much that your best results are going to come from using all of them at once. The suggestion that you get patchbays for your setup is the best advice that can be given. This will allow you to easily insert one, or all of these units at anypoint in your audio chain.

WARNING!!! You are opening up a whole can of worms when you start using patchbays!!! The price to put all your mixers inputs and outputs, tape deck I/O's, effect unit I/O's, dynamic processor I/O's, really starts to add up in cable!!! You could easily spend $600 for all the patchbays and wire you would need for a 16 track setup to be on patchbays. This is assuming CHEAP wire and patchbays by the way. Proceed carefully....

Don't become a slave to your processors. If you are working hard at getting good mic placement and have good sounds to start with while recording, you will find that dynamic processors MAY not be needed at mix time. Effects are nice to have, but you can certainly just hard wire them to a fixed configuration via Aux Sends and Returns on the mixer. Dynamic processors are generally used between mixer output to recording machine input (while tracking) and/or the recording machine output to mixing board input (while mixing). Making it so that you can easily insert one of these processors on any channel to or from the tape deck gives you maximum versatility. This is where patchbays are convienent.

Again, I stress this, TRY to make your recordings sound good without dynamic processors of anykind first. Then, assess whether you really need them while tracking or mixing, then try to use them in very light doses. The quality of the processors you own are not known for their high quality sound by any means, and using them to try to fix stuff that you could have fixed while tracking will result usually in degraded sound. Use them sparingly.

Good luck.

Ed