The Signal Chain

Effect pedals ("stompboxes") sit between guitar and amp and shape the signal on the way. Their order often changes the sound more than any single pedal — a common beginner mistake is to underrate that. There is no mandatory order, but a proven base order you can deliberately break out of.

The typical order — Guitar → tuner/filter (tuner, wah) → dynamics (compressor) → gain (overdrive, distortion, fuzz) → modulation (chorus, phaser, flanger) → time (delay, reverb) → amp. Roughly: shape first, then distort, then add space.

Why order matters — A delay before the distortion smears the repeats inside the drive; after the distortion they stay clean. A fuzz often wants to be right up front, straight after the guitar, or it reacts poorly. Knowing the rules lets you break them on purpose.

Effects Loop (FX Loop) — Many amps have a loop between preamp and power amp. Time-based effects (delay, reverb) often sound clearer there because they land after the amp's preamp distortion rather than before it. Gain pedals usually stay up front before the amp.

The "right" chain is the one that sounds the way you want. The base order is a starting point, not a law — and just swapping two pedals is a free tonal experiment.