Do i need a Reamp Interface box?

I’m connecting a guitar FX pedal to a Poly D synth. Output to a Zoom R24 mixer. I’ve read that impedence will be different causing distortion on higher volume. The interface like Orchid Electronics Amp Interface Reamping Box seems to solve the issue. But the Zoom R24 has an Hi Z input switch on track 1. Would this do the trick of any distortion meaning i dont need a reamp box? One other question is it seems Fx pedals have stereo output. But these re amp boxes appear to be mono only. Cheers guys.

Bumping this as i dont want to blow anything before i try. Or maybe its a crap shoot anyway :slight_smile:

It depends on the pedal mostly. A lot of fx pedals (especially the big name ones – Strymon, Meris, Red Panda, etc.) work just fine with synth sources. What pedal are you using?

It’s good that you’re investigating your signal path, but sometimes, you can be good without any additional devices. If you’re starting with a mono source, you could look at some kind of DI box before the pedal and then running the pedal out into your mixer. You would need to use a channel (or channels) with preamps though, as the DI box will take your level down. Don’t quote me on this, but you would only need to activate the hi-z part of your preamp if you’re starting with a hi-z signal (i.e. a guitar or similar). Ultimately, the simplest solution is usually the best one.

Thankyou. I am using a Strymon Deco and a Zoom CDR 70. They work fine on guitars but ive read that the problem with synths is the distortion. These little re-amp boxes are cheap but am i wasting my money worrying. Yes your right about the Hi Z switch. Its for guitars only. I pass everything through a mixer into my speakers as ican record at the same time. Thanks again.

There are lots of people that use the Deco with synths. I believe all Strymon pedals are built to support line level inputs, although a few will will react slightly differently than with instrument level sources. The Poly D is already outputting line-level, the Deco should be fine with line level, and then you would have it go into the Zoom without the Hi Z switch. Try that, and there shouldn’t be any distortion.

You will get distortion if you amp an input that is already at line level (at the interface, not the effects pedal), so make sure that Hi Z switch is off.

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Cheers for that. So its just the FX pedals that don’t support line level instruments that have these distortion problems. Am i reading what your saying correct?

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I’ve used a lot of pedals with synths and never used a DI or reamp box. Some of my older ehx pedals were a bit temperamental and would either distort really easily or just need a much quieter volume going into them. I’m pretty sure the Strymon and zoom will be ok though, both should handle line level without issue.

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Thanks for the reassurance. I got caught in the moment with reading about reamp boxes and all. Now it makes sense why this is rarely discussed anymore. cheers :smile:

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Usually you only need a re-amp or DI box when using an actual guitar. The pedals handle it fine. If things get too hot, turn down the source a bit.

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You won’t blow anything up, it just might not sound great. I like various radial boxes for this. I have a few passive reamps, rmp i think it is called, an extc, and an x-amp. They all work fine. You can use them to go from a synth to pedals or from an interface out to pedals. I also recommend a DI after the pedals before you go back into your interface but like others have said it depends on the pedal and it won’t hurt to experiment.

It’s worth considering the pedal’s output impedance as well. Using a DI or instrument input on your mixer could be an easy solve. I use a Little Labs redeye for interfacing with pedals and it works great no matter what the pedal.

Reamp boxes (and DI boxes) are more for handling mic levels to line or instrument levels.

Reamp boxes are for…Reamping! Like if you record a dry guitar signal into your DAW, so now you take the output of your interface/console (usually xlr) and then you plug that into a reamp box, then the signal is converted to instrument level (I believe?) and you plug that into an amp…then you mic up the amp and record it.

I will note I’ve actually done this process without a reamp box and it was fine. Interfaces these days are line out so i basically took a line level signal into a tube amp that is supposed to get instrument level signal. Afaik, line level is just louder than instrument level :man_shrugging: Either way, my blues jr was okay with this and I recorded the reamped signal just fine. It’s my impression that with modern interfaces reamp boxes may be a thing of the past, or at least not really necessary for the average home studio.

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Cheers guys. I will try out without a amp box first and see how far i can push the signal without distortion(if any). I guess the internet articles i read are from peeps who have a lot of older FX pedals.

Check the Deco manual, for line level you should turn on Studio Mode and then you’ll have no problem.

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DI takes line level down to mic for XLRing into preamps/desks. Reampers take line level down to instrument level for feeding into guitar pedals or an amp.

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