The Gig Rig
Here's my current setup on my dual pedalboard gig rig. (Photo from a recent gig for reference)
Updated: 14th January 2025
VOX PEDALBOARD (right side)
Sitting on a Rockboard 3.0 board (with installed Mod 3 V2) is:
TC Helicon Play Acoustic
TC Helicon Switch-3
Stompbeat Aus XLR A/B popless switch
Swamp ISO-10 Power Supply connected to the 3 pedals (connected to the Mod for IEC power connection)My vocal mic goes directly into the Play Acoustic.
The Play Acoustic guitar input is perma-connected via 90 degree end TS cable (1m) as part of a twin cable loom, combined with a short XLR (also 1m) with the female XLR connected to the "B" output of the A/B Switch.
The Play Acoustic Voice Out is also perma-connected via a high quality low profile XLR Cable to the input of the A/B Switch.A short, flat TRS cable connects the Switch-3 to the Pedal control port of the Play Acoustic - set to 1=Tap Tempo, 2=Momentary delay, 3=HIT on/offThe "A" output of the A/B Switch goes directly into the mixer as my primary vocal signal.
The A/B switch is so I can switch between vocal looping or no vocal looping during performances. There are MANY times where I loop the song while singing or chatting to the crowd and I want to be able to do this without the vox hitting the looper. I cannot recommend this enough to people who vox loop as well.
*hint* - be sure to place this AFTER your vocal effects pedals but BEFORE you hit the mixer/loop station so you get the same vocal sound for both. I always believe in conditioning your sound BEFORE it hits the mixer, so regardless of where you play and what desk you plug into, your sound will always be the same. (ie - you will rarely ever need to change EQ or add reverb or delay from your mixer if you get it right at the source)
GUITAR PEDALBOARD (left side)
Sitting on a Rockboard 4.1 (with installed Mod 3 V2) is:
Guitar cable connects first to:
TC Polytune 3 Noir Mini tuner. This connects to:
Boss OC-5 pedal. I run a dual signal from this, with the OUTPUT going directly into the RC-500 Input 1 (L) so that it is not effected by any of the subsequent effects in the chain. I also run the DIRECT OUT into:
Caline Queen Bee overdrive pedal for my lead tone. This connects to:
Boss DD-200 delay. This pedal is connected via midi to receive the timing clock from the RC-500 so it automatically syncs the delays to suit. I have the memory set to single and dotted note options as well as standard and shimmer delays to suit 4/4 and 3/4 timings. This then feeds into:
Zoom BT100 HD Reverb - The EHX is having issues so I swapped it out. This then goes to the
RC-500 Input 2 (R).
Finally the switch is connected to the RC-500, with "A" programmed as a CLEAR ALL and "B" programmed as a quick UNDO.
I've also reprogrammed the RC-500. I found that I really only ever need/use 4 channels so I've rejigged it to be a 4 channel looper, with my main 3 channels being the 6 on the right side, but with the top row being all STOP buttons, and the bottom row being the REC/PLAY/DUB buttons. The button under the light is the ALL START/STOP and the last two on the left end are the REC/PLAY/DUB and STOP with that particular STOP button also doubling as a tap tempo if I decide I want to shift the currently recorded tempo faster/slower.
3 MONO OUTPUTS are being sent to the 3 TS ports on the MOD 3 V2 on this board so that they are accessible from the back of the board. One of these outputs connects to the VOX Board (via the twin cable loom) and another goes to the mixer. I have third as a spare, so when Taylor sings with me, her board (which is a replica of my VOX board without the switch) can also connect to detect the guitar signal.
Additionally, the XLR Input of the RC-500 is also connected to the MOD 3, which via the twin cable loom connects back to the VOX Board A/B Switch port "B"Powering this board is the Fender Engine Room 12. This is connected to the Mod 3 for easy power supply.
I've connected a 30cm IEC extension cable running from the POWER OUT of the Engine Room and to the corner of the GUITAR BOARD, so that when setting up, I connect this directly into the Mod 3 POWER IN for the Vox Board. This means I only ever need a single IEC cable to connect back to a powerpoint for the 2 pedalboards.
I have a USB-C perma-connected from the Engine Room for use to charge my ipad or fan or phone so I never go looking for a cable, plus a Micro USB cable perma-connected so if I want to have my mixer (Behringer Flow 😎 on the floor next to me, I can power this as well without needing to use it's power brick.Basically, these two pedalboards act as a single unit together, but can also be used seperately.
I hope this helps, gives you ideas and gets you inspired to tinker around with your own sound and setup.If you have any questions at all, hit me up! 😍
Left Side Pedalboard - Guitar FX & Looper
(B1): Built on a Rockboard 4.1 with a Mod 3, This uses a rechargeable power supply and designed to also be used as a standalone guitar board for small setups for a fast, simple and fully self-powered setup. It still works best when combined with the second board, though.
TC Polytune 3 Noir Mini
TC Polytune 3 Noir Mini tuner - I like this as it has a small footprint and the built in TC Helicon Bonafide buffer to bolster the initial signal from the get go.
Boss OC-5 Octave
I absolutely LOVE this pedal. It allows me to have a bassline playing while still playing chords or melodies. I send a split signal from here, with the processed bass signal directly to the RC600 and send the clean signal through the "middle" of the signal chain (comp > drive > trem) before it reunites in the RC600. This is so even if any of these 3 effects are activated, the bass signal comes through unaffected.
Caline Queen Bee Overdrive
When I first started playing guitar, I was addicted by distortion pedals and patches.
Now that I'm much older and a little wiser, I much prefer the silky smooth sounds of a low-gain overdrive.
This is my go-to for my lead tones with a real edge-of-breakup sound and heaps of room from clean to dirty if you need it.
Boss DD-200 Delay
This is such a powerful pedal and I LOVE the shimmer delay setting so much, it's my main preset. It also has MIDI so I've connected it to receive the tempo commands from the RC-600 so the delays are perfectly matched to the loops I have running.
When using both boards, the audio then connects to the Zoom MS-100BT on B1
Zoom BT100 (Reverb)
I started experiencing some weird power issues with my EHX Oceans 11 Pedal, so I've opted to switch to my old faithful Zoom BT100.
I have had this super versatile pedal for over 10 years now and it still is able to fill pretty much any gap in my board I need.
Right now, I'm just using it for a nice HD reverb.
Boss RC-600
I loved my RC-300 back in the day, moving to the RC-600 was a no brainer.
I've remapped every button to suit my needs, and even added two more, (see the Switch by Nux) allowing me to construct music in whatever way takes my fancy. From simple loops to something more complex to turn a guy and a guitar into a full sound production.
Nux Dual Foot Switch
This little 2 button switch is a definite MUST HAVE companion to the RC600.
Robust and reliable, it makes something as simple as clearing all loops quick and easy.
(The default way to do this on the RC-600 is actually terrible haha!)
Fender Engine Room 12
Now this is a BIG unit - probably a little TOO big, but that's my only criticism of this power supply.
I love the 12 ports, the IEC power and pass through IEC. The USB are also fast charging so this gives me everything I need.
The Engine Room 8 would probably be better for most, but if you can fit the 12, I recommend highly!
Right Side Pedalboard 2 - Vocal Effects
(B2): Switching to the Rockboard 3.0 with a Mod 3, I've changed this board to be just vocals only. However I also use the Play Acoustic as my DI OUT for both guitar and mic signal. Much less floor space than before so I'm loving not having to stretch out as much to tap a pedal.
This sleek black unit is super powerful when it comes to processing your vocal harmonies. Combined with a switch, tapping in and adding vocal delay makes a massive difference.
I have an RC600 aux send to the Play Acoustic, so I can kick in my harmonies whenever I need to - As long as there's a chord playing on the looper, it can read it and adjust accordingly.
Switches make life so much easier! This talks to the Play Acoustic to allow me to tap tempo in my echo, activate it, as well as act as the HIT trigger as the actual pedal is in a sub optimal position.
This replaced my previous Loopi pedal as I found those switches were too close together to hit reliably
This is a switch which I use to route the mic output from the Play Acoustic to either the mixer, or to the RC-600 if I want to loop vocals. This way I can loop guitar/beats whilst still singing, and still have the option to click over and loop vocals separately.
When looking for a second power supply, I was originally looking at the Fender Engine Room Lvl8. However after some shopping around and I came across this little beauty. The only down side is that ports are 300mA instead of 500 mA, Since this board is only running 1 pedal with couple of switches I didn't need anything bigger.
DJ Booth
DJing is so much fun and I love being able to bring the decks out for weddings and events!
It's all about creating a workspace that is easy to set up, manage and work through, as set and forget as possible. Convenience, Stability and Reliability are key here.
I'm not a scratch DJ, however I wanted something with easy to access stems controls, paddle FX controls, XLR outputs and less than $2000 AUD - this Hercules Inpulse T7 Controller really ticks all those boxes for me, for almost half the price!
Stepping up from the DDJ-400 and running Virtual DJ, this unit is a great value and impressive tool in my DJ booth.
4 Pack
I don't go to any gigs without at least one set of these on hand.
Bright, controllable, with built in Wireless DMX, full range RGBAUV colour pallette and a magnetic base, built in programs or can be used as recievers, these are my lighting workhorses.
I use them as uplights, spotlights, dancefloor lights - so versatile and the batteries last a good 6-8 hours.
Moving Heads
I wanted to move away from the lasers and derby lights - mostly because I wanted a lighting solution that was dynamic but didn't leave dots and spots and other strange colours on people's photos at weddings.
Moving heads are great for this, and the Panther 25's are controllable, directional, and small enough to cart around easily. I may upgrade these in future, however for what I need, they are perfect.
DJ Booth with Scrims
I never wanted to be in a situation where I was DJing a wedding on a folding table with a cloth, but I didn't want to have to use full on DJ furniture either.
This booth is the perfect size - big enough to be very usable but compact enough to be easily transportable and still be able to see and connect with the dance floor. The removable and washable scrims are a plus!
It too me a while to get into SoundSwitch, but I'm so glad I did - being able to control the light show at weddings without needing to micromanage it is a godsend!
There is a fair learning curve, but once set up, even at a very rudimentary level, it has elevated my event lighting to a brand new level!
I'm currently using the Chauvet Flarecon as my wireless tranciever (from an earlier setup) but you definitely don't need to spend that much to make your lighting rig D-Fi.
This Chauvet Hub works well, but I also know there's others like the Donner units that work just as well.
It's nice not needing to rely on meters of cable to make your lights work together.
I still prefer cables for the moving heads for smoother operation.