How to Determine Gear Order on Pedal Boards

Although the order in which you place the gear on your guitar pedalboard has a lot to do with personal preference, there are a few guidelines that you can follow so that your pedals work together to deliver the best tone possible. Use the following suggestions when determining how to place the gear order on your guitar pedalboard.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Place the wah pedal and envelope filter on your pedalboard before any of the effects pedals to preserve the tone of your guitar. Placing these pedals after the effects pedals results in an overly-manipulated sound.

2. Arrange the gain based effects pedals following the wah and envelope pedals, as the gain based effects determine the volume of the guitar signal. These pedal effects include distortion, overdrive and fuzz. Of these three types of gain pedals, place the fuzz pedal first. However, you can also experiment with this order to achieve the sound you want.

3. Set up the modulation based effects last. These effects pedals include the phaser, flange, chorus and reverb and their purpose is to modulate the guitar's tone.

Tips & Warnings

• Arrange other effects pedals in various spots on your pedalboard according to the tone you want to achieve. Place volume pedals before or directly following the distortion, overdrive and fuzz pedals. An optional boost pedal works best when placed before any pedal that needs extra power, such as the tremolo, distortion, overdrive and fuzz pedals.
• If your amp has an effects loop, place the modulation, chorus, flange, reverb and delay pedals in the loop.
• Experimenting with the order of your pedals will create a subjectively unique sound.

[JAB1021]

on 12/25/2008 I just put together a pedal board.The 1st pedal afetr the guitar is a crybaby wah,next is a boss metal zone,a boss ds1 and a boss reverb,then the amp.When I shut the reverb power off I get no sound.How can I play with out the rverb on all the time.Thanks