StarChild Posted September 13, 2003 Report Share Posted September 13, 2003 Yeah, what is it, exactly? And what are the ups and downs to both that and playing direct? Thanks! StarChild Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reaper Posted September 13, 2003 Report Share Posted September 13, 2003 An effects loop goes between the preamp and the power amp of either a head or a combo... direct? Like as in DI? That's a whole different story... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted September 13, 2003 Report Share Posted September 13, 2003 the effects loop generally is what you would use for an eq or any other rackmount type sysyem,including effects processors.i wouldn't hook up stompboxes to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syxxstring Posted September 13, 2003 Report Share Posted September 13, 2003 most stomp boxes are not set for the levels a loop puts out. maybe away to get wierd sounds and smoked pedals. personally i think different effects sound better before the amp. most actually thats why i dont have a rack rig anymore. running direct is a great thing if the sound system supports it well. basically you dont have to bring a poweramp or speakers just run a pod or rack or processor into the board. unfortunatley you dont get 100% accurate tone.(speakers and power amps have a lot to do with tone, especially dirty tones) and the sound guy greatly effects your sound.(eq level etc...) It really requires a PA with a good monitor ability and usually multiple mixes. I personally hated my attempts to record this way the magic of the speakers and amps just weren't there. The upside is low stage volume, small churches, coffe houses, practice etc... I see alot of local bands that i wonder how theyd sound if Angus wasnt on 11. Maybe they'd have vocals. For practice its great because your not make yourself, neighbors,spouses,housemates def. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedy McFeely Posted September 13, 2003 Report Share Posted September 13, 2003 also, a paralell loop is well paralell to the pre amp, but after the gain stages. it's like running on a clean chanell, supposedly sounds better, i can't really tell, very indistinct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reaper Posted September 14, 2003 Report Share Posted September 14, 2003 also, a paralell loop is well paralell to the pre amp, but after the gain stages. it's like running on a clean chanell, supposedly sounds better, i can't really tell, very indistinct. well, what you're supposed to be able to do in parallel, is mix how much effect the units in the loop have on the signal, by mixing the loop signal with the original signal. That could get kind of interesting with a wah pedal.... hmmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarChild Posted September 15, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2003 I'm asking because I saw a video from Boss about their stompboxes and in the video, it was said that "non-boosting" effects be placed in the effects loop and "boosting" effects be placed direct (or in front of the amp)... I haven't tried it yet because I don't have all the cables to do it with... The video said that hooking everything up in this way eliminates noise from effect pedals while maintaining the tonal integrity and bite of your distortion... Is this why an effects loop was invented? What exactly does an effects loop offer and how exactly is it different from running direct (running pedals in front of the amp)? I have all my pedals directs and it sounds fine... The pedals are a bit loud but other than that, it's all good... No "noise" that I can detect... Is there a way to "blend" a given effect with the distortion/clean sound so that it sounds like a genuine mix of the two? 'Cause when I turn on like say my phaser, it's kinda loud, especially with distortion... I tried putting the phaser before the distortion and it was a lot more subtle but TOO subtle... Any way to balance it out so that it's subtle but not TOO subtle... I have my flanger before the distortion because I like a real subtle flanger, though... I hope someone can take the time to answer my questions... Thanks everyone! StarChild Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob Posted September 15, 2003 Report Share Posted September 15, 2003 well when you get enough cabels try what ever you want, really theres no right or wrong, they may just sound a bit different, but in the end it's up to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the third eye Posted September 16, 2003 Report Share Posted September 16, 2003 the general rule (not meant to be followed strictly) is you don't put gain effects in the loop(wah, dist, OD...etc) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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