EVH flanger problem

[Dragoneti]

Hello everybody!!

I’m having some “problems” with my MXR EVH Flanger in my rig, and I’m looking for suggestions on how to get around them.

I like flanger to be placed after distortion (for those 80s style jet sounds). I’m using as my main amp a Marshall DSL50 and of course its drive so I have to place the flanger on marshall’s fx loop (along with an evh phaser, a boss DD20 and rv5) in order to be after distortion.

The problem is that when I engage the pedal, there is a noticeable loss in volume (not difference between 10db and +4db loop settings) and the pedal sounds somewhat compressed. When I’m using the pedal with a distortion pedal (such as my tonebone hot british) in front of the amp the sound is better, more open and without volume loss (the same with the line out of the hot plate to another amp along the line of EVH slaving amps). The thing is that I have tried to place it in front of distortion (amp’s or pedal’s) in hope that it will sound respectable, but the sound is way too muddy.

I thought of buying a boss line selector and placing the flanger there so I can boost the volume and engage the flanger in one action and tackle with the volume problem. Or even buy another modulation pedal (although I want to avoid it unless necessary) to cover all my fx needs in one pedal like t.c modulator or even eventide modfactor, but I’m not sure if that pedals can deliver the classic flanger and phaser sounds of the MXR’s.

Any other suggestions?

Thank you in advance!!

Stelios

[Will]

What power or batteries are you using?

[Pete24v]

didn't Ed place his pedals before his cranked Marshalls, therefor before distortion?

[Catalyst77]

Don't think there was any other way back then!

[Dragoneti]

I'm using a dunlop 18v power adapter but i have also tried with batteries which also yield the same sound results.

Yes eddie used for VH1 the flanger before and then for the unchained sound he used it after the amp with a line out load to another power amp. The thing is that when i try it in front of the amp and by using it with amps gain, the sound is like broken, i can hear artifacts, just like if i use reverb or delay in front of a high gain amp. Maybe eddie with his plexi and low gain preamp was better for the flanger, but for a dsl50 on od1 for 80s hair metal gain preamp gain is too much.

[BigB]

Don't think there was any other way back then!

Well, there obviously was (and still is) another way : adding all time/delay line fx after the whole guitar/preamp/poweramp/cab stack - that is, on the mixing board.

But that's indeed not how EVH did by that time, and won't solve your problem anyway  :?

[martinw]

Your two best choices I reckon are:

1. Accept that the pedal you've got, being a stompbox, is not best suited to use in a loop, so get a more sophisticated unit (rack?) which is designed to be placed at line level and try and get the best flanger sound from that. Shouldn't be too hard.

2. Accept that you will need to use stompbox distortion before the EVH flanger to get the best out of that pedal. No great loss, I wouldn't have thought as the DSL50 preamp is fairly generic IMO, so not hard to find good pedals that will do a good job there, and you get the valve warmth from using your DSL clean. I've managed to set up a Guvnor pedal to sound almost identical to standard Marshall Red channel driv, for instance.

I'd go with #2.  :)

[Dragoneti]

thank you for your answers!!

the thing is that i have not found yet a pedal that can produce the sound of an amp's gain, although i do have a tonebone hot british and a crunchbox, as well as a ocd v4 for boosting the dsl50, which they sound pretty good on my dsl50 (but not on my tsl60..strange is ain't it?) and i have my dsl modified with mercury OT and nos tubes (telefunkens in pre and Ei 6ac7 power).

so, the option #2 is covered for when is needed, now how about the option #1, i already have an dd20, which as a digital pedal and as one, works good on the loop (so does the rv5, on which i don't actually care much), should i go with a single digital modulation pedal (and "retire" the flanger, phaser, chorus pedals) such as the t.c or the eventide ones, to be incorporated to my pedal board or go to a multifx solution such as a g major 2 or nova system and retire my entire pedal board? i'm interested in the best sound possible solution given the choices (which means no racks that costs 1000 euros :P )

Thank you again for your answers!!

Stelios

[sjwebb90]

I had the same issue when I used the EVH flanger in the series loop of my Cornford MK50 II, there was a noticeable drop in volume. This is the only pedal I have come across that I have experience this issue with. All my other modulation pedals work fine the the loop. Needless to say I have since dumped it and got something else. Ho hum

[FELINEGUITARS]

Is trhere not some way to use some kind of buffer/impedence changing device  that you could place before the Flanger in the loop to improve how it responds when it is in circuit