FX loops coming to Metro.

[Riscchip]

Oh, okay. I didn't realize (or read closely enough to see) that it was supposed to include the shielded wire. I'll look through the packing peanuts to see if it's in there. No biggie in any case, I have a bunch of shielded wire on hand, I guess I'm wondering if there is anything special about that particular wire as seen in the directions (with the two conductors) or if anything generally used for inputs / master volumes, etc. is fine for this application.

Thanks, Steve.

[SDM]

The kit uses the shielded wire from the Metro store. Chosen as George already stocked it and it's good for the job. The dual conductors are only doubled up to effectively increase the gauge, add strength overall, durability at the connections.

So no need for anything too extravagant here, just a decent shielded audio wire will do fine. Want a good shielding % (the Belden wire has 100%), able to handle a 100V or better, not a ridiculously high capacitance per foot, and say 22 gauge or thicker preferably for single conductor wire.

[Riscchip]

Thanks Steve.

I have a 100 foot roll of alpha shielded wire that seems to meet those requirements. 22 guage, 95%, 300v. So I'm good.

This stuff:
http://mouser.com/Search/ProductDetail. ... bvK8pFg%3d" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for the details Steve. Much appreciated.

I just drilled the chassis for the loop last night. Looking forward to getting the build done so I can try it out!

--C

[DPSharky]

To those reading this who are considering this mod but are concerned about tone degradation or noise, don't be. Grading this mod on a 10-point scale, I give it a solid 10 on every level ... material quality, ease of installation and performance.

Nice product, Steve and George! Thanks for making it available to us.

-Mike

I agree with Mike 100%.

I just finished installing Steve's board in my Metro 100watt Plexi build. Time will tell, but I can't imagine there being a better effects loop out there. I am running a TC Electronics "G-Sharp" unit through it, and couldn't be happier with the results. Great Job Steve, and Thanks George for supplying them and for the information you put in your post at the start of the thread.

Scott

[5150loveeddie]

STeve, I'm not sure if someone asked that question!! Can I use the power for the loop at the junction of the two 100k plate resistors at V1? I'll try it in a 50watter and the closest power source is there!!

[novosibir]

I'm not Steve, but to reply to your question:

No, you shouldn't do that, because the load at this spot would pull down the supply voltage to V1 & V2 too much.
What's the prob to take it from V3's supply - just a few inches more cable required

Larry

[5150loveeddie]

I'm not Steve, but to reply to your question:

No, you shouldn't do that, because the load at this spot would pull down the supply voltage to V1 & V2 too much.
What's the prob to take it from V3's supply - just a few inches more cable required

Larry

Ah ha!! of course that would draw some juice there..............thx Larry!!

[SDM]

Larry is correct of course. Loop draws less than 2mA, but that could still mean a change in supply voltage of 40 V or more at V1 if loop is fed from V1's supply. Plus voltages are low at V1 to begin with typically. So best to tap power at V3 or the screens, to have higher voltages to start with and at most only one resistor in the B+ line to tweak if desired (as per instructions).

Glad to hear you like the loop Scott!

[5150loveeddie]

Ok thx guys!

Qts! Will the loop loose transparency or will it still work at 100% if my voltage is just below 290V at that test resistor on the info pages? It is at 285v now (raison is I use the variac up and down a lot for tone control)

Amp seems perfect with no lost that way!!

[SDM]

Loop is just fine running at 285V or even less. Reason it is set up with no variac and high power switched in (in amps that have that option) to around 300V is to be sure that when run under those full incoming power situations, the board is never going to be fed too much voltage. This also makes sure the loop will have the proper amount of excess headroom under high power situations.

It is expected that people will switch to low voltage mode or use a variac after install, which will result in lower loop board voltages. No problem there for the board, was designed for that situation too. Loop headroom tracks relative to the signal strengths it sees at lower voltages too, so no problem at all there either (actually loop headroom increases a little bit relatively, which is a good thing).

[5150loveeddie]

Loop is just fine running at 285V or even less. Reason it is set up with no variac and high power switched in (in amps that have that option) to around 300V is to be sure that when run under those full incoming power situations, the board is never going to be fed too much voltage. This also makes sure the loop will have the proper amount of excess headroom under high power situations.

It is expected that people will switch to low voltage mode or use a variac after install, which will result in lower loop board voltages. No problem there for the board, was designed for that situation too. Loop headroom tracks relative to the signal strengths it sees at lower voltages too, so no problem at all there either (actually loop headroom increases a little bit relatively, which is a good thing).

Fantastic! thx Steve, your loop is awesome btw! Best I've ever had!!! Fantastic stuff!

[joshwilson3]

I forget if this is mentioned before or if it is in the instructions. But can you turn the loop on and off with the amp still powered on? Or do you have to put the amp on Standby?

[SDM]

Should not need to tun amp off or put in standby to use bypass switch Josh. There is a "level adjustment" section in the instructions that describes flipping switch back and forth while playing, just to be sure level doesn't need a little adjusting.

Glad you like the loop 5150loveeddie!

[skidbrake]

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I've installed this FX loop in my Metro JTM45 and am loving it.

Now I'm building a spanky little 5F4 Tweed. Any reason why I can't use the Metro Zero Loss FX Loop kit in this amp?

I'm building from the original schematic (attached). Since the chassis is going into a combo cab, I thought I'd use two of the four inputs for the Send/Return, so I can patch in from the faceplate. As I think about it, I will need to remove the Cliff jacks from the FX Loop PCB as there is not enough space in the chassis to accommodate the Metro kit as designed.

It would be real nice to have a lossless FX loop in my Tweed. Thoughts?

-Mike

[SDM]

Now I'm building a spanky little 5F4 Tweed. Any reason why I can't use the Metro Zero Loss FX Loop kit in this amp?

I'll get back to you on that after I've thought it over.