ISP Decimator G-String II

[Toe-Knee]

I did see someone recommend as a last resort placing the G-string first in the chain and then all the noisy pedals after it (e.g., overdrive, distortion) and then into the DEC IN and out the DEC OUT on the G-String again before the amp.  This is only one small step up from the standard Decimator in front of the amp and hardly worth the extra $100+ just for that tracking feature if it doesn't handle the pre-amp hiss as well (as placement in the loop should).  In any case mine seems to working okay until the battery wears down (which doesn't take long at all).  I will probably just put it aside until I can get a powered board, as $10 an hour for batteries is not so cool.

Well thats normal. I have a reverb pedal that as soon as the voltage drops below 7v just starts to hizz and fuzz the sound up. And that only takes about 5 minutes. Some pedals pull a lot of power.

[Dave Sloven]

If you're looking into a power supply, I highly recommend the T-Rex ones. I've got one of the small ones and it really is bombproof! I used to use a cheapo one for years that was really noisy and dodgy. Its really worth investing in one, like a decent tuner pedal, they last forever!

Paddy

Cheers, I'm looking at getting a T-Rex Chameleon, is this the model you have?  At the moment I'm not using my ISP pedal as it goes through batteries too fast.  I'd like to hook up an MXR 10 band EQ in the effects loop so I like the 18V capability on the Chameleon.  Even though it only has five usable outputs at any given time the mA rating for each output is high so I guess you can daisy chain them, although I wonder how much depends on the quality of the leads and lead placement in the daisy chain in terms of any noise that it might introduce.  I had a look at this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgJLx3cL9JQ

Most of my pedals are low in mA and go before the amp so could be daisy-chained like on that board.  The tuner for example is quite happy running on batteries and the battery in the Maxon OD-9 seems to last a good while.  The Metal Muff does chew batteries but I'm thinking of replacing it with a 6-band EQ.

[Dave Sloven]

The T-Rex Chameleon arrived today and has made a big difference.  My rig is now noiseless with tube screamer engaged on the lead channel with plenty of gain and the ISP pedal set at 12 o'clock.

The Metal Muff though is not so great as an EQ pedal.  Hopefully I will find someone here in Adelaide who wants to swap an EQ pedal (e.g., Boss 7-band or MXR 6-band) for it.  It is fine as a distortion pedal but with a Peavey 6534+ you don't need any distortion besides what you can get from the amp or by overdriving the amp via boost pedals (e.g., OD-9 with drive on 0) or an EQ before the pre-amp.

I just have my pedals set out like this at the moment.  Later I want to add some EQs, a wah, and a delay.  There are a lot more cables in the T-Rex box that I am not using at the moment, including a daisy chain.

[Dave Sloven]

I just ordered a Dunlop DB-01 Cry Baby From Hell Wah pedal from the USA via ebay, and I am wondering if I should set up my chain as follows when it arrives:


GUITAR-->TUNER-->WAH-->ISP GUITAR IN/OUT-->OD-9-->[EQ?]-->6534+ INPUT-->ISP DEC IN/OUT LOOP SEND-->[EQ?]-->[DELAY?]-->[REVERB?]-->6534+ LOOP RETURN

I don't have any EQs, reverbs, or delays as yet but I am wondering if they would go in the places indicated?  Maybe the delay and reverb positions should be reversed?  Anyway the TC Polytune tuner is a good thing to put first, as it cuts output signal altogether when in use, and I'm thinking the wah should probably go at the far right of the board where there's likely to be more room (I haven't made a board yet)

[Dave Sloven]

UGH.  This pedal is really straining my patience.  Tonight the amp seems extra noisy and the pedal doesn't seem to be making any difference.  It was working fine yesterday when I turned it off.

Not sure what's the issue.  I'm hoping that the effects loop hasn't done something to pop a diode in the pedal.  I guess I could have a look inside but I'd have to find out the procedure for discharging any voltage inside the pedal first.

It really has been a pain in the @ss!

[Dmoney]

The signal from the amp won't have broken it. If anything goes in pedals to stop them working it's usually that someone has put a wrong polarity power supply into it by using the wrong power supply cable or something. some pedals have protection against that happening. Other will just stop working at all.

[Dave Sloven]

It still has power to it, so I'm guessing there was no problem with the polarity, and it worked properly on the power supply yesterday.

Actually after this problem arose I removed the batteries from all my pedals and then plugged them into the T-Rex Fuel Tank again, so that they could only be running on that and no power could be coming from a bad battery.  The rig sounded exactly the same.

I thought about the loop blowing it as I saw that someone had a problem with the loop in a Marshall blowing a diode in one of these pedals.  Thing is she replaced her Marshall with a 5150II (which I assume has the same loop circuit mine has) and she's had no issues with that.

Anyway here's that conversation as it has some useful info in it for anyone using these pedals.

DO NOT USE A 9 volt Battery. It eats them like some people eat pizza and burps afterward. You need to use your 9 volt power supply. Open up the G-string battery compartment when you get it and remove the battery -- it's only there for test purposes.

Don't worry about the buffered bypass. It's an always on thing. Adjust the threshold so that your hum, hiss, and high gain squealies just stop when you mute the strings. Too high and you'll kill your sustain. I run mine at 11:30 with a 5150 II on the Lead Channel. If you're higher than that and start complaining Smiley It should not at all kill your sustain.

The FX loop signal out of the Marshall was too hot @ the - 10 dbv setting, and that popped a diode on it once causing the entire signal chain to fail. I called ISP Tech support and they sent me a return barcode for UPS. I had a brand new unit in a week.

I'm sure if Boss pedals weren't built as well as they are they would have been destroyed too. My MXR EQ used to flash due to signal clipping.

http://www.guitarists.net/guitar_forum/view_bb.php?forum=6&thread=88861

Anyway, cheers for all your help

[Dave Sloven]

I'd better add a post here to say that it is all non-problematic now.

The drip drip noise is a bad earth somewhere in the house.  It isn't there when I use the amp elsewhere.

The T-Rex power supply works brilliantly.

No problems with the G-String pedal now.

I use it the following way:

GUITAR -> WAH -> TUNER -> ISP GUITAR IN/OUT -> FRONT END PEDALS (dirt, compressor, etc) - > AMP INPUT -> EFFECTS LOOP SEND -> EQ -> ISP DEC IN/OUT -> FLANGER/CHORUS/DELAY/REVERB -> EFFECTS LOOP RETURN

All sweet.  Great pedal. Don't use batteries!!!

[CommonCourtesy]

TLDR

afaik ISP recommends using their products at the end of a gain pedal chain

http://www.isptechnologies.com/manuals/Decimator%20II%20G%20String%20Manual.pdf


You should go guitar > tuner > od9 > muff > decimator > amp input > amp send > decimator loop > time based effects (for future reference) > amp return

Don't understand the bit where it says "For best performance place all gain pedals in front of the amplifier and DEC IN." If i'm using a tubescreamer, where does it go out to? The send of the amp or the front? Guitar in is pretty clear, but is it i like the X shape of an NS-2 layout?

[Dave Sloven]

When it says 'place the decimator' somewhere, in the case of the G-String that refers to the DEC IN/OUT jacks.  The GUITAR IN/OUT part should go as far forward in the signal chain as possible.  I like it just after the tuner, as I found that I was getting some funny noises while I tuned with it after, but I have it at the front, after the wah and the tuner, and the only reason the wah is right at the front is because it is easier to plug the guitar cable into the side of the wah pedal when everything is on the board if you are a right-handed guitarist like me.  The DEC IN/OUT should go after all of the things that create distortion and noise but before the modulation and time based effects.  If you have a noisy chorus pedal that kind of sucks, but otherwise you chop the chorus effect off.

With a high-gain amp like a Peavey 6065 series amp it should always be placed in the effects loop.  If you have an EQ pedal in the effects loop I'd recommend putting that before the ISP too.

Easiest way for you to set it up (if you have a simple set up) is as follows:

GUITAR -> TUNER ->ISP GUITAR IN/OUT -> TUBESCREAMER -> PREAMP -> EQ -> ISP DEC IN/OUT -> DELAY -> POWERAMP

You know that the loop is between  the preampp and the poweramp, right?  With that in mind the diagram above should be pretty simple.  When your pedal arrives plug it in that way.  It should put a smile on your face.  Just remember to use a power supply otherwise that smile will disappear in around 20 minutes when the tone starts to suck big time with the loop on and you can't work out why

[CommonCourtesy]

Lol i have a T-rex fuel tank junior so no worries about power supply there!

So as an idiot check, these are the pedals i have: Boss TU-2, Line 6 Relay G50 Wireless receiver, Ibanez Tubescreamer and the ISP obviously. I don't use choruses/delays which probably makes it easier.

So..Guitar goes from wireless receiver into tuner. Tuner goes into Guitar In on ISP. Gtr Out goes into Tubescreamer? Out of tubescreamer into send of the amp?

Gtr out into front of amp,  dec out into return?

This should cut out pre-amp noise, i would hope?

[Dave Sloven]

Line 6 Relay G50 Wireless receiver ->Boss TU-2 -> ISP GUITAR IN/OUT -> Ibanez Tubescreamer -> PREAMP -> ISP DEC IN/OUT -> POWERAMP

So everything in the front-end (before amp) with a cable from the Peavey effects loop send to the ISP dec in and then another cable from the ISP dec out to the Peavey effects loop return.

I wish my setup was this simple!

Seems like you spent all your money on the wireless.  You must jump around a lot

[CommonCourtesy]

Preamp is the front of the amp yes? I just noticed there's a "PRE-AMP OUT" input at the back of the head.
 
Power amp is?

I like the 'less is more approach' haha.

Reason why i'm checking is i've just tried the 'X configuration' with my NS-2. Totally useless. No noise reduction and I've just spent an hour working out different combinations. I've probably plugged one of the cables into the wrong input but yeah i lost patience with it very quickly haha.

Definitely getting the ISP now! I've ordered today and chosen express delivery cos I need it for 25th!

And yes apart from my 6505+ head the wireless was a worthy investment, i like to run around and cross sides of the stage with my band members!

[CommonCourtesy]

*UPDATE*

Tried the X configuration again with the Boss NS-2, i realised last time i didn't step on the effects button on the footswitch! Cuts out pre-amp noise very well now it works properly, but i noticed when i was playing the volume dropped low at certain points, i'm hoping this is something to do with the pedal and not the amp or anything else. The ISP Decimator G string is on its way and I sincerely pray it slots into my set up like a dream, no amp noise, pure tone.

Anyone else had experiences with volume drops or even popping noises when you change channel? I experienced this also when plugging in another guitar.

[Dave Sloven]

You might have the threshold set too high. I'm assuming it has an adjustment.  This is most likely. A noise reduction unit will clamp the sound if too high.  You just want to eliminate the noise floor.

Otherwise there might be an issue with the loop, but that is usually an all the time thing.  You are not running batteries, right?