Effects loop - does it matter?

[DrVenkman]

I'm very new to this and curious about the pros and cons of an amp having an effects loop.

Didn't amps all used to be built with no effects loop so all the effects were instead just routed to the instrument in jack? Couldn't you still do just that for an amp with no effects loop? So what's the big advantage to having an effects loop?

Thanks.

[Bongolation]

Originally Posted by DrVenkman

I'm very new to this and curious about the pros and cons of an amp having an effects loop.

Well, I'll tell you this much, they sure have produced a lot of mysterious amp problems with their unused I/O jacks getting grubby.

[Rick Auricchio]

For pedal-style effects, you're correct; they're just routed between the instrument and the amp input.

Rackmount effects, however, prefer line-level audio. Most send/return jacks provide this higher level signal. (And it's neater to wire up in a rack.)

[georgestrings]

Originally Posted by Rick Auricchio

For pedal-style effects, you're correct; they're just routed between the instrument and the amp input.

Rackmount effects, however, prefer line-level audio. Most send/return jacks provide this higher level signal. (And it's neater to wire up in a rack.)

That, and they're handy if you want to just use the preamp, or poweramp sections, or slave one amp off another...


- georgestrings

[K2000]

Effects loop allows you to get a 'clean blend' with pedals that don't have that ability (I believe).

'Clean blend' allows you to mix your effected/non-effected tone, giving you additional tone control.

[bongomania]

Only parallel loops allow that. Many loops are "series", and do not allow blending.

For more info about loops and when/how to use them, check the FAQ linked in my sig.