Amp/Cab Sim and Pre-amps - Does Signal Chain Matter? 

Just came to thank you for your article. Ampless boards were just meh for me until you suggested a preamp pedal. After I added that I was all in. Total game changer. Thanks for sharing your insights. Much appreciated.

That overdrive to preamp to amp sim tone is amazing

This is timely: I just recently put my wet effects after my amp sim. I really thought I couldn’t- that I would need a speaker sim (or something) after the effects. It sounds great and now I’m really exploring stereo for the first time so the lesson here is- don’t be afraid to experiment. Would have loved to see this video about three months ago. 😘

Putting wet effects after the iridium or any sim is basically the same as studio sound. Also I feel like running them into an amp there’s always going to be a form of compression, but having them after the amp it actually opens up more and you don’t have to use as much. It’s almost like driving up a large elevation like a mountain and popping your ears. You go oh I didn’t know I was missing this many frequencies.

I tried both wet fx before and after Iridium. I ended up putting wet (delay and verb) after Iridium. I feel like it acts somewhat like an FX loop on an amp. One thing I’ve noticed is that my reverb doesn’t get super washed out on some settings I have. I typically run a decent amount of verb and running the verb after the Iridium adds a little more focus on the verb. I personally liked it. Just have to work a little extra to get that washed out vibe I like sometimes. It is very true about clipping the wet FX though. I noticed as soon as I turned on verb my interface would start clipping because the Iridium acted as a boost into the verb and delay. Just takes some time to tweak and get it just right.

Excellent video and very well explained... Thanks for the details you shared. I happened to exchange IM messages (yesterday on 9-15-22) with Chippo from your website on a similar subject trying to get a modeler pedal to sound good for recording. I mentioned both my friend's Line 6 PodGo and my Valeton GP-200, both did not sound good going into an Allen Heath GL2400 desk. Yet, many videos on the two units sounded really great. A mystery. I am going to try recording directly into the interface via USB tomorrow and also try running the modeler pedal outputs into an external API clone pre amp (or a Neve clone) and see if that helps. Right now both units sound really bad and not usable. There has to be a solution. Chippo was very helpful and spent quite a bit of time with me, which I really appreciated. Thanks. Phil NYC Area

yo this is highly informative. thank you very much

love the video, explanation, and the sound sample you made. just what i need

Hi there. I know this is an old video. I play at the church. My chain is as follow. Tuner-Compressor- Drives- Amp sim- Delay- Reverb. This all goes via a D.I box to the mixer all the way in the back. I'm adding one or two off these pedals soon to the chain. A chorus, another delay, maybe a mini POC and/ or a clean boost pedal. Thanks in advance for your answer.

The main reason I run my amp sim (Iridium) last in my chain is that I can choose to turn it off and run into a traditional amp and get the same results from my effects. This way I don't need to have different wet effects levels depending on if I am using the Iridium or my Matchless, everything reacts quite similar and it's a seamless transition. Something for people to keep in mind if they are going back and forth between modelling and traditional amps.

I go Tuner>drives> leclean preamp > effect loop to verbs and delay > into cab M amp sim.

Interesting video. However in most live situations you would need to have XLR out (D. I.) to go from your gear to a mixing board. In that case usually cab sims have XLR out as opposed to reverb/delay effects. What do you recommend in thst case? Getting a di box or having cab sim at the end?

Thank you for this video!!! 🙌🏽

Would be interesting to see the difference with wet effects placement if actually using amp gain a bit more, or boosting the amp sim significantly from the OD’s.

I’ve always wondered about buffers with amp sims. Do you need one at the end of the chain still? None at all? Only on the input of the chain? Thoughts

the best sound on 0:46

very helpful thanks!

do signal chains go left to right in Australia? 🤔

Great info! Do you put the amp sim before or after the bass interfacer?

Any thoughts on the DSM Humboldt/Noisemaker Simplifier Amp and Cab Sim? It has the built-in effects loop which seems to solve alot of the problems with where to put your wet effects.

I wanted to use a cab sim pedal with my gain pedals that don't really sound nice with my VOX Pathfinder 10 amp (especially high gain), but without using an interface, just keep the (clean) amp in the signal chain. So a signal chain like this : Compressor --> Distortion --> Cabsim --> rest of pedalboard --> AMP (clean channel) Is there any harm I could do to the amp and any idea how it could sound ^^ ?

Please do something like this for the Simplifier 👍

I have a supro Delta 8, and a peddle board, I just got it, will I need to use an amp simulator before going into my mixing console, when recording, or can I go straight into the mixing console from the back of the supro without an amp simulator?

Hi, if i have comp+overdrive+chorus+delay+reverb. Where can i put my preamp pedal?

Thank you Goodwood Audio! A quick question: If I want to put Iridium at the end of the chain and the pre amp pedal in the middle of the chain, do I put it after or before the volume pedal? My current setting is: compressor --> overdrive--> volume pedal --> wet effects--> Iridium.

Would it be a good idea to insert the cab sim into the signal path of one channel on the mixer (channel insert) in order to benefit from the mixer preamp?

Thank you for this nice video. I am struggling right now, with getting sound out of my stereo pedals and into the Interface. I put the Iridium between a Boss Trem and the El Capistan and I am mono out to Dig and then Stereo out to Immerse, Big sky and Boomerang Looper going into 2 recording tracks in interface. Everything was working fine until I put the Iridium in the middle... My guitar goes into Boss tuner, then TC comp, EH Soul food, Sud and up then volume pedal (Morley) and into trem. I am trying to understand the fonction of the Iridium as a Amp Sim but I must be missing something. Maybe I can't do a stereo sound this way???

Thank you!

Thanks for this video. I run the Iridium with stereo inputs and would be keen to try a preamp in front. Kingsley's Squire is a great option, alas only mono. What would you recommend in terms of stereo preamps for such application? Thanks.

The amp sim before the modulation sounded muddier, messier, so I prefer it at the end in your demo.

Can I run my amp sim in the effects loop of my amp if I am running clean ?

What happens if you turn off the cab sim on irridium and just use the amp sim; then add a cab sim pedal at the end of the chain?

Forget signal chain. I wanna know what products you use on your hair.

Question, i ‘ve never used a cab simulator in my amp.. for experiment purpose , wheres better to connect, effect loop or front of the amp? I’ ve been playing for many years but never experiment with that

Please help me arrange this. Tuner, amp simulator, delay, chorus, acoustic simulayor, ultimate drive, reverb. Tnx in advance

Best video!

Any recommendations on the best pre-amp to get to put before the UA Ruby? The Ruby is in the middle of my chain.

hey if i have a preamp pedal not a simulator would i put that at the end of the chain

What about running an EQ before versus after?

if im direct to mixer, there is no need to use the 4 cable method?

SUBSCRIBED!!

If I want to used the iridium at the end what place do you suggest for the pre-amp, before or after the drives?

Hi, if I only need to choose one which is more essential to the pedalboard that will go well with an overdrive & distortion pedal, is it the cabinet simulator or an amp simulator? Also, do both sim need a DI pedal? Sorry, I'm still a newbie on the pedal world. Thank you.

I have the Squire preamp with the POD Go and there’s a hiss, I have it just before the units simulator. It’s in the effects loop that’s movable to any section on the signal chain. Is the hiss unavoidable? Thanks

I prefer running my amp sim (sansamp gt2) into stereo delays and reverb, but now I want get a cab sim, do I have to get two and put them at then end of my signal chain?

👏🙌🔥👍

Can you recommend a few (true) pre-amp pedals that you have played and verified work with amp sims? I have the ACS1.

The name of preamp ?

This was nothing more than a plug for one of the components used.