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Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 4:16 am
by RumoRazzi
Hi, I'd like to have some advice about my fx chain. The pedals are:
Eventide Pitchfactor
MXR Phase 90 vintage 74
MXR Flanger
Oto Biscuit
EHX Memory Man + Hazarai
EHX Cathedral
amp it's a Roland Jazz Chorus 120, guitar a cheap Hagstrom Viking (soon I'll get a Tele).
I'll probably add an overdrive too.
Thanks.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 4:22 am
by Hypnodrone
I find your lack of fuzz disturbing ... You need some dirt in that chain to create harmonics and overtones. You have a potential spaceship in those pedals, but definately more dirt before it shines.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 5:16 am
by RumoRazzi
Oto biscuit can create very extreme distorsions.
After that, you're absolutely right, I need some dirt
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 8:11 am
by fcknoise
This might be just me, but I like having the cathedral early in the chain, given that there are other reverbs at hand. I've also done the super simple infinite mod (latching switch instead of momentary), which is great for drone making. A nice infinite drone through the pitch factor and the modulation a could be really awesome. Maybe that + another reverb could be something? Of course it depends what music you play and stuff. Tell us what inspires you and stuff and I bet people will be able to assist you better
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 10:30 am
by Jwar
Hypnodrone wrote:I find your lack of fuzz disturbing.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 11:42 am
by jrmy
If you want really solid advice on pedal setups, knowing what kind of styles you play or recorded / live tones you enjoy would be helpful. Album or youtube links are encouraged. Everyone does it differently!
And this is required reading for anyone seeking advice on setting up an fx chain, written by our one and only Aen (of Dwarfcraft Devices fame):
http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/2 ... g-it-wrong
In the end, only you can decide what sounds good to you - we can (and will) give tips, but at the end of the day, the one ironclad rule is: experiment, experiment, experiment.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 12:19 pm
by doommeow
Brandsmannen wrote:This might be just me, but I like having the cathedral early in the chain, given that there are other reverbs at hand. I've also done the super simple infinite mod (latching switch instead of momentary), which is great for drone making. A nice infinite drone through the pitch factor and the modulation a could be really awesome. Maybe that + another reverb could be something? Of course it depends what music you play and stuff. Tell us what inspires you and stuff and I bet people will be able to assist you better
Cathedral, predirt, using it for texture and drone, is where it's at.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 12:32 pm
by resincum
I agree with what's been said about the cathedral; I would also throw the Hazarai upfront. you might not notice it while you aren't running a load of dirt, but it cuts some serious tones no matter where the filter knob is IMO. it's also rad to have a loop up front that you can manipulate with your pedals down the line.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 12:50 pm
by zRobertez
Wow that's awesome. This line is pretty much how the world seems to work! (if taken out of pedalboard context)
AEN wrote:Everyone says that there are no rules about how to arrange your pedalboard, right before they tell you their five rules, and why everything else is wrong
Makes me want to think of my rules.
1. Modulation FIRST. I can't play with dirt > modulation. It sounds fine for everyone else but it's not for me
2. At least one dirt after a delay/verb. In my case, all my dirt is after but
3. Tremolo absolutely sucks to place! I want it after comp, but before reverb, sandwiched in dirt, before delay, after flanger. But none of those work on my board so I have it before dirt, after modulation/time/pitch/comp
4. Brighter dirt pedals first. So the later ones can take out the pierce.
5. Pitch before dirt!
Those were hard to think of! The first 3 are always true for me, the rest I guess just recommendations. But this is generally what I stick to when putting everything together even after fucking with different orders.
Topic: Derailed! sry
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 1:57 pm
by jrmy
zRobertez wrote:5. Pitch before dirt!
This one has DEFINITELY worked well for me, too, though I've certainly found that some dirt pedals don't jive well with pitched inputs. That's one reason why experimentation is key: some pedals can be really picky about where they fit in a particular chain.
Also, I don't think that post was a derail at all - you were giving your opinion on how to order broad genres of pedals - the poster could certainly get a sense of how his fx could be ordered based on those suggestions...
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 4:21 pm
by Tristan
What I usually do is start from my main sounds / pedals for the board and I start combining them one by one.
A -> B then B -> A which combo sounds best for what I'm going for?
A -> C then C -> A which combo sounds best for what I'm going for?
If B sounds better after A and C sounds better before A then part of the signal chain will look like C -> A -> B
If B and C both sound better after A then I need to descern B -> C or C -> B
I always do this, with every pedalboard I'm building and I usually don't completely end up with the by some people said to be most logical order.
In fact, when I get a new pedal in I always completely try every option with the pedals I'm going to use it with, usually even with all my main drive pedals.
Makes for some fun afternoons!
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 4:45 pm
by Jwar
For me I find that certain things work for my chain and for my taste. I agree. No right way. Except if you put compression somewhere weird. I think that shit needs to be at the front.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 5:19 pm
by zRobertez
Ty jrmy!
Reverb > Comp rules. It's like the bloomy trails from verb > fuzz but clean and more intense.
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 5:39 pm
by RumoRazzi
Great reading, thanks!
Re: Optimize my fx chain?
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2015 5:43 pm
by RumoRazzi
I definitely need more time to experiment