Some pedals incoming

[EOengineer]

On the subject of analog vs digital, is the advantage of a full analog chain (sound and "feel" or whatever aside) that there are no AD/DA conversions?

I went through this last year and that was a driver for me. I love Helix but there are times I just don’t connect like I do with my analog chain. I attribute it to latency but it’s probably also dynamic range and my brain making things up.

 

[dbagchee]

Phaser in front is where it’s at. I don’t like it in the loop unless it’s for a very exaggerated special effect.

 

[EOengineer]

Phaser in front is where it’s at. I don’t like it in the loop unless it’s for a very exaggerated special effect.

Big agree here but I tend to put all my mods out front, which kind of flies in the face of convention.

 

[metropolis_4]

It's such a slippery slope to put the FM in the loop and call it good. I want the pedal experience whenever I feel like it so if I do need to throw something standalone digital in the mix from time to time; I'm gonna do it.

Yeah, I get that. I’m in the same place with my setup.

For the chorus have you thought about a tc electronic SCF? It’s been a long time since I used one but I remember thinking tc chorus in general is less phasey

Big agree here but I tend to put all my mods out front, which kind of flies in the face of convention.

Same. I always put all modulation out front and I usually keep at least one before overdrive/distortion as well

 

[JiveTurkey]

Ok yeah I think I’m caught up. As you already found out, stay away from anything resembling the Boss Chorus Ensemble. It’s both phasey and lumpy, which some of the clones over represent those qualities too.

If you’re looking for something more studio pristine the fractal is probably hard to beat. I’ve always thought the Boss BF-2 did a fantastic chorus, but you might not be far off with the Boss dimension. I’d keep an eye out for a Boss Super Chorus too.

Yeah the FAS is ULTRA pristine and just beautiful sounding. The lack of a mix on the Dimension does concern me mainly because I know I would probably overdo it all the time

On the subject of analog vs digital, is the advantage of a full analog chain (sound and "feel" or whatever aside) that there are no AD/DA conversions?

Yeah. Mainly just something in my head thinking I am keeping the signal chain "pure" going all analog which is obviously a bunch of self generated BS (that I've already broken my "oath" to by buying the MXR reverb)

Phaser in front is where it’s at. I don’t like it in the loop unless it’s for a very exaggerated special effect.

I LOVE phaser in front or behind the amp. Both trip my trigger for different things. The CE clone I am working with no in front of the Boogie (dirty at least) is almost non-existent sounding.

 

[JiveTurkey]

Yeah, I get that. I’m in the same place with my setup.

For the chorus have you thought about a tc electronic SCF? It’s been a long time since I used one but I remember thinking tc chorus in general is less phasey



Same. I always put all modulation out front and I usually keep at least one before overdrive/distortion as well

I have thought of the SCF. I was digging around for them over the weekend unsurprisingly

 

[Mikael Dez]

Yeah. Mainly just something in my head thinking I am keeping the signal chain "pure" going all analog which is obviously a bunch of self generated BS (that I've already broken my "oath" to by buying the MXR reverb)

In my very short time researching fully analog pedals, it seems reverb is the one that you kind of have to accept as digital, or deal with a spring reverb which is not my taste at all. I'd have done the same

 

[dbagchee]

In my very short time researching fully analog pedals, it seems reverb is the one that you kind of have to accept as digital, or deal with a spring reverb which is not my taste at all. I'd have done the same

One good thing is you can get lots of reverbs that are at least analog dry through, so you still have your analog path intact for the most part.

 

[metropolis_4]

One good thing is you can get lots of reverbs that are at least analog dry through, so you still have your analog path intact for the most part.

That’s a good point, and it does make a difference. Especially makes sense with time based effects where the latency on the effected signal doesn’t really matter

 

[JiveTurkey]

The "dry through" rabbit hole is one I can't quite muster the stomach to go down. I'm not Steve Vai so I feel like I'm safe on this one

 

[metropolis_4]

The "dry through" rabbit hole is one I can't quite muster the stomach to go down. I'm not Steve Vai so I feel like I'm safe on this one

The big thing I notice about dry through is the dry signal not having the coloration and sounding more natural. When I tried running my FM in front of my amp I didn’t like the way it colored the sound, even when I had all effects off, because it’s never really “off”

I notice that way more than latency

 

[JiveTurkey]

The big thing I notice about dry through is the dry signal not having the coloration and sounding more natural. When I tried running my FM in front of my amp I didn’t like the way it colored the sound, even when I had all effects off, because it’s never really “off”

I notice that way more than latency

Yeah I don't like digital anything in front of an amp at all. In the loop for post or into the FX return; I am much more about it.

 

[JiveTurkey]

Looks like the $100 MXR pedal had signature delivery required so it won't be there when I get home. Of course; I'm not going to be able to pick it up during business hours without shenanigans and the schedule for delivery option for USPS isn't currently working.

 

[JiveTurkey]

Grabbed it from the PO as the truck was back in time. I can see the normal modes (spring, plate, room) being very solid bread and butter. I liked the PAD setting despite it being shimmer crap. Epic and Mod mode are good with some delay spicing it up as well. It arrived in Wet only mode (a mode I wasn't aware of) so I had to do some interneting to figure out the fix for that. Lots of advanced functionality for a simple looking pedal.

 

[Blix]

In my very short time researching fully analog pedals, it seems reverb is the one that you kind of have to accept as digital, or deal with a spring reverb which is not my taste at all. I'd have done the same

Most good delays and reverbs has analog dry-through so your core signals still stays fully analog, so it's not really an issue.

 

[dbagchee]

Most good delays and reverbs has analog dry-through so your core signals still stays fully analog, so it's not really an issue.

Including the MXR M300 Reverb!

Grabbed it from the PO as the truck was back in time. I can see the normal modes (spring, plate, room) being very solid bread and butter. I liked the PAD setting despite it being shimmer crap. Epic and Mod mode are good with some delay spicing it up as well. It arrived in Wet only mode (a mode I wasn't aware of) so I had to do some interneting to figure out the fix for that. Lots of advanced functionality for a simple looking pedal.

Yeah the PAD mode does an actual pad chord type of octave sound which sounds much better than those individual note style shimmers - way more usable especially in moderation.

 

[the swede]

Even my old crappy TC Trinity T2 Reverb has dry through, and i would say its vital for me now that ive heard and tested the difference.
As i am running every pedal in front of "amp" its very noticeable. There is just a better quality of the mix with, for example the T2. No volume issues, the reverb blends in perfectly with the dry signal and even if there's a buffer/trails active, the dry still maintains its quality.