R/E/P Community

R/E/P => Recording - Engineering & Production => Topic started by: jetbase on January 20, 2011, 05:02:16 PM

Title: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: jetbase on January 20, 2011, 05:02:16 PM

Using a console, what's the best way to connect guitar fx pedals to use as outboard fx in a mix, achieving the best s/n ratio & tone? I would think possibly you could simply connect an aux send directly to the pedal & keep the level low, fine tuning the level with the pedal's input level (if it has one). Or maybe, like reamping a guitar, use a passive DI in reverse (or a reamp box - but I don't have one). For returns I guess just DI into mic pre into fx returns or into mic input on a channel. Is there a better or simpler way?

Thanks,
Glenn

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: MagnetoSound on January 20, 2011, 06:39:41 PM

That is exactly the way I would do it, although I wouldn't bother with the reverse DI in front of the pedal.

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: jetbase on January 20, 2011, 11:35:07 PM

Thanks guys!

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: jonoaustin on January 26, 2011, 06:27:26 AM

these things are fantastic:  http://littlelabs.com/pcp.html

Actually, all his stuff is fantastic.  You can occasionally find PCP's used...

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: jetbase on January 27, 2011, 08:15:33 PM

Thanks Jono, it likes like a pretty handy little unit. Nice to know what's out there.

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: Ned Ward on January 28, 2011, 02:49:48 AM

Radial's Pro RMP is $99, licensed from John Cuniberti, and is great for exactly this. I use it running an out from my 003 into this into a pedalboard when I want to reamp, but you could easily use this and a Radial JDI at the other end. Given that you're starting with a line-level signal, it's really what FX units you have - good ones will do well with a range of signals; cheaper ones will yield "interesting" results.

Title: Re: How do you hook up FX pedals as outboard fx?
Post by: drknob on January 28, 2011, 09:58:04 AM

Lots of good advice here.
Remember - with guitars, it's not that the level is low. The problem is the source impedance is high, usually in the 100k+ area. When you plug your guitar into a device, the source impedance of the guitar and the input impedance of the device you've plugged into create a voltage divider. This makes it impossible to drive anything but a high impedance device without changing the sound and level of the guitar itself. Think of a direct box as an impedance converter. This is why a passive direct box, in order to lower source impedance must also lower the signal level. An active DI does not have this problem. Ohm's Law strikes again!
Nerd alert.  :o