How to destroy a amp

True Marshall effects loops have never been that great.
The levels are always retarded.

On several models, there is an effects level control.
Turn the control one way...the send increases and the return decreases at the same time. It's built that way.
Turn the control the other way...
the return increases and the send decreases at the same time.

In other words, it's impossible to set the send and return to the correct level, no matter where you turn the knob.
Somebody at Marshall thought this was a great idea.
Stupid.
I have an amp with this feature that is adjusted by a flathead screwdriver: the JCM900 2500 SLX. And you arent lying! Its basically useless and i dont use FX on that amp for that very reason
 
I have an amp with this feature that is adjusted by a flathead screwdriver: the JCM900 2500 SLX. And you arent lying! Its basically useless and i dont use FX on that amp for that very reason
When you turn that pot:
the send increases and the return decreases at the same time...
or the return increases and the send decreases at the same time...
genius design.
You can never get the levels correct no matter where you set the pot.

I can't imagine the logic behind the way that was built.

But the only way to set all the levels correctly is using a mixing board.
There doesn't seem to be a single guitar amp that allows the right levels on any / all effects units.

Hence the need for a new type of effects system in guitar amps.
Set send independently
Set return independently
Set series / parallel mix/ or bypass (user selected) user adjustable on the fly.
In other words and effects loop that does the same thing that a good mixer will do, built in to the guitar amp.
Why not?
It's like the need never occurred to anyone.

And when you do have that:
the effects become (not only super hi fi clean) but user friendly for a change.
It's like your effects suddenly become 5X more versatile than before.
You can get all kinds of sounds that you could never get before. The effects become much more useful.

I have built an effects loop like that experimentally, and it was a new world.
The effects sounded like a recording studio instead of a stinker in a bathtub.
I used a Metro effects board, which I modified. (it's an FET loop)
I used a dual pot for the series / parallel mix / bypass control.
It was pretty simple but wow what a difference.
 
When you turn that pot:
the send increases and the return decreases at the same time...
or the return increases and the send decreases at the same time...
genius design.
You can never get the levels correct no matter where you set the pot.

I can't imagine the logic behind the way that was built.

But the only way to set all the levels correctly is using a mixing board.
There doesn't seem to be a single guitar amp that allows the right levels on any / all effects units.

Hence the need for a new type of effects system in guitar amps.
Set send independently
Set return independently
Set series / parallel mix/ or bypass (user selected) user adjustable on the fly.
In other words and effects loop that does the same thing that a good mixer will do, built in to the guitar amp.
Why not?
It's like the need never occurred to anyone.

And when you do have that:
the effects become (not only super hi fi clean) but user friendly for a change.
It's like your effects suddenly become 5X more versatile than before.
You can get all kinds of sounds that you could never get before. The effects become much more useful.

I have built an effects loop like that experimentally, and it was a new world.
The effects sounded like a recording studio instead of a stinker in a bathtub.
I used a Metro effects board, which I modified. (it's an FET loop)
I used a dual pot for the series / parallel mix / bypass control.
It was pretty simple but wow what a difference.

Whatever @syscokid did to the Metro style FX loop in my Origin 50, it totally transformed the quality of sound in the loop.

Could not ask for anything more....
 
Whatever @syscokid did to the Metro style FX loop in my Origin 50, it totally transformed the quality of sound in the loop.

Could not ask for anything more....
I didn't do anything special. Even though your amp's new fx loop board is built by Headfirst, it's supposed to be very similar to Metro's Zero-Loss FX loop board. According to Metro, these boards need between 270v and 320v to operate properly. Yours is operating at 300v. I also made sure that that the pair of signal wires traveling between the amp's main board and the fx loop were shielded through their entire length as much as possible. And finally, I set the signal return level to unity plus a few pubic hairs for good measure... :giggle:
 
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