Effects Order/Placement Question

[Coque]

Hi All! I'm putting together a pedalboard and I wanted some advice on the best order for the chain.

Right now I have:

1- Wah (535Q)
2- Dynacomp
3- Bad Monkey
4- Big Muff
5- Chorus (CE-2)
6- Delay (DD-3)

I may add an eb voulme pedal as well but that comes later.

I suppose my big question is the about the dynacomp, wah and ods order.

Any thoughts?

[Offshore Angler]

Your signal chain is correct per conventional wisdon. That said, there is absolutely nothing wrong with moving stuff around and finding your own way. F'rinstance, I run a compressor after the OD's since I use it to level the output and add sustain without losing the dynamics of my OD's. Totally wrong "by the book" but it works for me. I do agree that time-based effects are last in the chain though.

[JJ Gross]

I've found that by using my home made Univibe at the very front of my chain in front of both my overdrives that it gives me the best Trower-type sound. Having it between overdrives gives me more Jimi and at the end it's more Gilmore.

Following convention would say it should be at the end but it lives at the head of my chain. I prefer to grease the throb than to throb the grease.

Cheers,
- JJ

[Rickenjangle]

Actually, I would put the Big Muff sooner in the chain. Even in bypass mode, it tends to limit the volume from overdrives that are placed before it...in my case both a Tube Screamer and a Super Overdrive. When I moved the Big Muff to just after the wah it sounded better...

[chuckocaster]

depending on how you use your comp, hard or soft, will determine where you put it. i use mine for soft compression so i put it first. i use the comp more as an attenuator than an actual comp.

so for me i'd go comp, wah, fuzz, od, the chorus and delay i'd fiddle with.

if however you use your comp for squish, then i'd try it in every spot imaginable, just not last in the chain.

compressors will always amplify noise, so you'd want to put them close to front of your chain.

but seriously, you gotta go with what sounds best to you. we can type all day long, but until you experiment with the placement, you'll never really know where it sounds best.

best of luck, and most of all, have fun.