Comments on: How do you wire guitar effects pedals passively and not actively? http://www.jokerverox.net/guitar-effects/how-do-you-wire-guitar-effects-pedals-passively-and-not-actively Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:15:59 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Ken C http://www.jokerverox.net/guitar-effects/how-do-you-wire-guitar-effects-pedals-passively-and-not-actively/comment-page-1#comment-146 Ken C Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:08:59 +0000 http://www.jokerverox.net/guitar-effects/how-do-you-wire-guitar-effects-pedals-passively-and-not-actively#comment-146 If the effect pedal has a battery in it, then it's active. Period. End of discussion. There's no such thing as hooking up effects passively or actively. I think your buddy has his terminology confused. You can hook effects up in series or parallel. In series, you just plug one into and another, and then to the amp. In parallel, you have to have a way to split the output of the guitar signal, send it to all of the effect inputs, then send all of the effects to a mixer to recombine the signal. You normally only see a parallel effects setup in big rack systems. As to whether you run the effects in front of the amp or in the effects loop...that depends on the effect. Time based effects (delay, reverb, chorus, phasing and flanging) tend to work best in the effects loop. Gain modifiers (distortion, fuzz, boost) should be in front of the amp, between your guitar and the amp input. Wah pedals should be there as well, but other tone modifiers (like and EQ) can go in either location. Compressors and pitch shifters need to be in front of the amp. Noise gates can go in either location. Good luck. Greetings from Austin, TX Ken<br><b>References : </b><br>40 years of playing guitar and bass 35 years of live performance 30+ years of audio and broadcast engineering If the effect pedal has a battery in it, then it’s active. Period. End of discussion.

There’s no such thing as hooking up effects passively or actively. I think your buddy has his terminology confused.

You can hook effects up in series or parallel. In series, you just plug one into and another, and then to the amp. In parallel, you have to have a way to split the output of the guitar signal, send it to all of the effect inputs, then send all of the effects to a mixer to recombine the signal.

You normally only see a parallel effects setup in big rack systems.

As to whether you run the effects in front of the amp or in the effects loop…that depends on the effect. Time based effects (delay, reverb, chorus, phasing and flanging) tend to work best in the effects loop. Gain modifiers (distortion, fuzz, boost) should be in front of the amp, between your guitar and the amp input. Wah pedals should be there as well, but other tone modifiers (like and EQ) can go in either location.

Compressors and pitch shifters need to be in front of the amp. Noise gates can go in either location.

Good luck.

Greetings from Austin, TX

Ken
References :
40 years of playing guitar and bass
35 years of live performance
30+ years of audio and broadcast engineering

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