If you’re using more than one guitar effect, you have a choice in how you’re going to connect these pedals. In other words, is there a correct order of guitar effects?
Do you place a delay pedal before or just after a overdrive pedal and where do you place an fuzz pedal if you also used a wah wah pedal? Where do you place your chorus pedal and other modulation pedals. What about true bypass and buffered bypass pedals. Does that affect my sound and what should I take into account? Do I have to place all my pedals one after the other or are there more options? The answers to these questions are in this article.
Traditional sequence of guitar effects
The answer to the first question ‘Is there a correct order of guitar effects?’ is simple, namely no. There is no correct order. The order depends on the sound you’re aiming for. There is one order that is often used, a traditional order. This is based on maximizing your signal and minimizing noise and other unwanted noises. The figure below (click to enlarge) shows the traditional signal chain. You read these from right to left, just like connecting guitar pedals. Effects with a red box are part of your basic signal. Guitar effects with a blue frame are embellishments to your sound, which are, as it were, on top of your basic guitar signal. All effects in a black frame can be placed flexibly in this example.
Experiment with the order of guitar effects
As you can see in the figure above, there are still quite a few choices to make, even within a traditional order. Boost pedals, for example, can be placed almost anywhere in the chain. These have a different function depending on the position in the signal chain. For example, you can use a boost as an ‘always-on’ pedal. In this case, place the pedal as close to the beginning of the chain as possible. If you’re using a boost for more volume, for example on a solo, move it a little further back in the chain. And a boost can also double as a pedal to create a little more overdrive. Then place the pedal directly in front of an overdrive or distortion pedal.
Some audio clips
To hear what the sequence of pedals does to the sound, here are three examples. In each example, the first audio clip is the clean sound with no effects. In the next two sound clips, the effects are switched each time.
Example 1 Reverb and Chorus
Example 2 Tremolo and Delay
Example 3 Overdrive and Delay
Guitar effects in my amp’s effect loop
Until now I’ve assumed that all the pedals are placed one after the other (also called serial – the pedals are thus ‘in series’) and then connected to the input of your amplifier. You don’t have to, there are more options. One of the options is to use your amp’s effects loop. This is located on the back of your amplifier and has two connections: a send-out and a send-in. First, connect the send-out output of your amplifier to the input of the first pedal and the output of the last pedal to the send-in of the amplifier. You have now created an effects loop that comes after the preamp of your amplifier. You place the pedals between the preamp and the power amplifier.
Tip
EXPERIMENT AND PLACE EFFECT PEDALS IN THE MOST UNUSUAL PLACES. YOU WILL BE SURPRISED WITH THE ORIGINAL SOUNDS YOU WILL CREATE WITH THIS!
Advantages and disadvantages of using an effect loop
Many guitarists use an amp’s effects loop because it’s the most ideal solution for using both amp overload and effects pedals. If you’re using the amp’s overdrive and you connect all the pedals to the amp’s input (and not to the effects loop), you’re placing all the pedals in front of the overdrive. Also modulation, reverb and delay then go ‘through the overdrive’ and that sounds different than when these pedals are placed after the overdrive. Give it a try and see if it appeals to you.
A disadvantage of using an effect loop is that some loops don’t sound right. The signal that has been so carefully amplified in the preamp is attenuated in an effects loop to pass through the pedals. Then the signal is amplified again and goes into the power amplifier. Sometimes things can go wrong in the design, so that your guitar suddenly starts to sound thin. If your amp has a parallel effects loop, it’s a good idea to use it. You do not affect the basic signal of your guitar with this and you add the signal from the effect loop to this basic signal.
True and buffered bypass guitar pedals
When determining the order of your pedals, it is wise to check whether they are true or buffered bypass. In a previous article I explained what the differences between true and buffered bypass pedals. An effects pedal with a buffer ensures that the signal remains strong and intact even when the pedal is turned off. The signal is still going through (a portion of) the pedal’s circuitry.
A true bypass pedal will not affect the guitar signal when it is off. True bypass pedals therefore seem to be a better choice. An important disadvantage of using multiple pedals with true bypass is that a long cable is created. All cables have a certain capacity which especially affects the highs in your signal . This is also known as ‘tone sucking’. A good buffer ensures that you no longer suffer from tone-sucking.
In practice, this means that one or more, strategically placed, buffers help to keep your guitar sound in optimal condition. Experiment with a buffer at the beginning of your signal chain, but don’t place it in front of a fuzz pedal. You can also put a buffer at the very end of your chain, or both. There are buffer pedals designed for this specific purpose, for example the Xotic Super Clean , Wamper dB+ or JHS Little Black Buffer.
Using a loop switcher to connect pedals
Another possibility to connect pedals is to use a loop switcher. Loop switchers give a lot of flexibility to switch pedals, or even change order. In addition, loop switchers also provide a short signal chain. Only switch on the pedals you need and the rest is not part of the signal chain. This solves the problem of tone-sucking. Some loop switchers offer the option to program the order of pedals as well, giving you flexibility and lots of experimentation with the order of your pedals. In this article I give an overview of the possibilities of a loop switcher.
Whatever you choose, have fun hooking up your guitar pedals and let’ss start experimenting!