Through the use of a raised platform, effects pedals at the back of the board can be easily reached while performing. Once you have an effects board you can then attach your pedals in the following order as I do.
1)Tuners
2)Filters (Wha Wha etc.)
3)Compressors
4)Overdrive
5)Modulation (Flangers, phasers, chorus, tremelo etc.)
6)Volume
7)Reverb + Delays
There are no rules on effects order. You won't break any pedals by putting them in a 'wrong' order. In fact, experimenting is the best way to learn, and in doing so, you can come up with many unusual and interesting sounds.
Even though many players suggest compression should be first, there is benefit in placing it after filter effects. Filter effects can reduce volume at some settings (eg heel down on the wah pedal, notches in the middle frequencies from a phaser, etc), so placing a compressor after these effects can even out volume changes.
Level Control
Placing level effects such as noise gates, limiters, volume pedals, tremolo and panning before echo effects allows a natural echo sound. For example if you play a loud chord, but fade it out quickly with a volume pedal, you still want to hear the echo on what you played. The other way round, with echo first then a volume pedal, you would hear a loud chord with echo briefly, with both the main sound and the echo quickly cut out to silence. This sounds about as natural as turning the power off on your amp
Pedalboard Layouts
