Bought my first compressor, where to put it in the signal chain?

Okay, so I got me a used Boss CS-3 Compression Sustainer, just to see what the effect is like and if I have any use for it. Figured I should probably start off with something sturdy and inexpensive, rather than shelling out the big bucks for a 4-knob Keeley that I wouldn't know if I'd even use.

So I've got my Boss CH-2 Chorus, Xotic AC-Booster, Guyatone MD3 Delay, and the Decimator noise reduction. Where does the compressor fit into all of this, and what would be a good order to place these pedals in? I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to pedalboards, often just using one or two at a time, but I wanna put a proper board together now that I've got a bunch of pedals that I'm happy with.

Another thing, if someone suggests putting some of the pedals in the FX loop, how do I go about doing this? Can the pedals still be on the board, or do they have to be hooked to the amp with separate cables? And how would I power them? I've got a Cioks power supply on the board, and I'm not a fan of batteries.

Any help would be appreciated.
 
I'm headed to bed right now do I'll write a more detailed response tomorrow but I run my compressor first in the chain....


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I've never actually had a sustainer pedal, so I can't be a whole lot of help on how to set it up on your board.

As for the FX loop question, yes, you can have pedals in front of your amp and in the FX loop on the same board and running off the same power supply. You'll just have to run 3 cables to the amp instead of 1. One cable will run from the last pedal in the chain that goes in front of the amp to the amp's input. One cable will run from the FX loop send into the first pedal in the FX loop chain, and the last cable will run from the last pedal in the FX loop chain to the FX loop return of the amp.
 
Actually I should mention that it's actually after my wah pedal, but I never use the two pedals together, it's just where it fit on my board. I also like it with the RC Booster and a little slap back for a rockabilly sound. Other than that I don't use it a ton unless I get a wild hair and start using is for a lead tone.
 
wouldn't you put it before a volume pedal? would seem to me that after would minimize the effects of the volume pedal.

Unless you're wanting to use the volume pedal as a gain adjustment more than a volume adjustment, I think you're right that it would make the volume pedal less effective.
 
Unless you're wanting to use the volume pedal as a gain adjustment more than a volume adjustment, I think you're right that it would make the volume pedal less effective.

right. it makes more sense to use your guitar's volume as a gain adjustment. i mean, that's what it's there for.
 
I have one of those CS3's too, currently replaced by a Barber Tone Press. Tone Press is a far better compressor, but that's just my opinion..... it sounds a lot better in my rig. YMMV, or at least I hope it does. I have my own sound & tone. I've found that the tired old cliche works true when it comes to getting a pedalboard set up. You have to change the order around a bit and experiment with each pedal to find out what sounds good for what you play. It's all about the chain, and what works where. Prages gave me a great tip a few years ago about using my EQ unit. I have a BOSS GE7. I was getting all sorts of noise and other crap running it after the dirt pedals and before the signal went into the amp. He suggested that I try it in the FX loop. More or less, the noise and junk went bye-bye after I did that. I gradually figured out that the EQ was not only tweaking what sounds I wanted, but tweaking any hiss or unwanted noises from any other pedals before the signal hit my H&K's tone stack. The EQ hasn't seen action before the tone stack since, and my tone is that much better for it. I would try running the chorus & delay in the FX loop, and the Decimator post dirt.... right before the amp.
 
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