Marshall Origin 50 footswitch

[cruisemates]

I just got a Marshall Origin 50 for a clean pedal platform. I plan on using the clean setting and adding a double-gained boost pedal for crunch rhythm plus a second stage for solo levels. I see a lot of people trying to add gain to the boost channel - which I know will not work, you need headroom in the preamp to get extra gain.

The problem is the amps don't come with a footswitch, it is dual switch TRS jack with "effects" left and "Boost" on the right.

I want to put a reverb in the loop so that will be one all the time, but I don't want to add any boost to the loop (everything else is upfront). I would build a footswitch just to make setup easy (and for resale value) but I can't find a schematic. I found the empty "TRS" jack insert trick at Headfirst which definitely looks like it will work for me, but if I can find a schematic I will be happier.

Thanks for any help community!

 

[fitz]

I just got a Marshall Origin 50 for a clean pedal platform. I plan on using the clean setting and adding a double-gained boost pedal for crunch rhythm plus a second stage for solo levels. I see a lot of people trying to add gain to the boost channel - which I know will not work, you need headroom in the preamp to get extra gain.

The problem is the amps don't come with a footswitch, it is dual switch TRS jack with "effects" left and "Boost" on the right.

I want to put a reverb in the loop so that will be one all the time, but I don't want to add any boost to the loop (everything else is upfront). I would build a footswitch just to make setup easy (and for resale value) but I can't find a schematic. I found the empty "TRS" jack insert trick at Headfirst which definitely looks like it will work for me, but if I can find a schematic I will be happier.

Thanks for any help community!

HNAD!
I'm assuming you got your O50 used?
New ones come with a footswitch.
Any latching 2-button generic footswitch will work - supports LED, but not required.
I've also often seen Origin boost/loop footswitches (PEDL-90016) on Reverb.

https://Reverb(dot)com/item/75839596-marshall-pedl-90016-2-way-footswitch-for-origin-series

p.s. I use gain pedals with the boost on ALL the time - works fine for me.

 

[Cal Nevari]

I just got a Marshall Origin 50 for a clean pedal platform. I plan on using the clean setting and adding a double-gained boost pedal for crunch rhythm plus a second stage for solo levels. I see a lot of people trying to add gain to the boost channel - which I know will not work, you need headroom in the preamp to get extra gain.

The problem is the amps don't come with a footswitch, it is dual switch TRS jack with "effects" left and "Boost" on the right.

I want to put a reverb in the loop so that will be one all the time, but I don't want to add any boost to the loop (everything else is upfront). I would build a footswitch just to make setup easy (and for resale value) but I can't find a schematic. I found the empty "TRS" jack insert trick at Headfirst which definitely looks like it will work for me, but if I can find a schematic I will be happier.

Thanks for any help community!

As Fitz noted above, the PEDL-90016 is the standard foot switch that comes with all Origin amps if you buy them new. If not, you should be able to pick one up used and it should not be that expensive. Not sure that any latching 2-button foot switch would work, though, as my Boss FS-7 does not work as one might expect with this amp. Weird. Others might work just fine. My guess is you don't have to get the Marshall brand foot switch to make it work.

Anyway, if you want to put a reverb in the loop and have it on all the time, that should work just fine. I have a chorus in the loop of my 50H and it works, assuming you can turn on the loop via a foot switch! Unfortunately, there is no way to activate the loop without the foot switch. This is contrary to the Boost function, which you can activate from the front panel of the amp by pulling out the Gain knob.

As for your plan to use the clean settings and adding a boost pedal for crunch or solos, that should work just fine. The Origins are well-known as "pedal platforms" and I can attest that they take gain and boost pedals really well, having tried a number of Boss overdrive and distortions pedals, as well as their new Booster/Preamp pedal up front. As for adding gain to the boost channel, that works great, although it's not clear exactly what you mean by that. If you mean using the Boost feature, you can definitely add crunch. In fact, for your purposes, using a dirt pedal out front for crunch and the Boost feature for solos should actually work just fine. I have not tried adding a boost or gain pedals in the loop because the common wisdom is that they work better up front before the preamp stage, but YMMV.

 

[fitz]

Ok, just ran some tests on my O20H:

No FS is obviously no boost, no loop.
TRS cable in the FS jack turns on both.
Short tip to sleeve - turns off boost.
Short ring to sleeve - turns off loop.

If you want to DIY a FS, there's your latching switch functions.
No clue about adding the LED indicators.

Also tried my spare Livewire generic 2-button (no LED) and it works fine.

Livewire FSW22 Dual Footswitch | Guitar Center

Shop for the Livewire FSW22 Dual Footswitch in and receive free shipping and guaranteed lowest price.

www.guitarcenter.com

 

[vivanchenko]

I just got a Marshall Origin 50 for a clean pedal platform. I plan on using the clean setting and adding a double-gained boost pedal for crunch rhythm plus a second stage for solo levels. I see a lot of people trying to add gain to the boost channel - which I know will not work, you need headroom in the preamp to get extra gain.

The Origin is a master volume amp, not exactly what I would term as a "clean platform". It doesn't need any pedals for crunch, it has tons of it, and it sounds better than any pedal that I've heard. One would need pedals for distortion though, but I would be careful about this, because not all distortion pedals will work well with it. For instance, my Fulltone Plimsoul pedal doesn't sound well with this amp exactly because it is not clean.

 

[cruisemates]

HNAD!
I'm assuming you got your O50 used?
New ones come with a footswitch.
Any latching 2-button generic footswitch will work - supports LED, but not required.
I've also often seen Origin boost/loop footswitches (PEDL-90016) on Reverb.

https://Reverb(dot)com/item/75839596-marshall-pedl-90016-2-way-footswitch-for-origin-series

p.s. I use gain pedals with the boost on ALL the time - works fine for me.

New Ones come with Foot Pedals - then I got ripped off. They should have specified no foot pedal. New ones look to cost well over $100. Maybe used it won't be so bad or Maybe Guitar Center will honor their sale and send me one. I won't need it, but I want it for resale value.

The TRS trick is easy. If you clip (not completely remove so it is reversible) two resistors the TRS jack switch works just fine, you the loop and the boost knob works. Good to know that you can add boost to the boost channel if you want, but I doubt I will go there. I don't like having to run an extra cable from my amp to my pedal board.

As Fitz noted above, the PEDL-90016 is the standard foot switch that comes with all Origin amps if you buy them new. If not, you should be able to pick one up used and it should not be that expensive. Not sure that any latching 2-button foot switch would work, though, as my Boss FS-7 does not work as one might expect with this amp. Weird. Others might work just fine. My guess is you don't have to get the Marshall brand foot switch to make it work.

Anyway, if you want to put a reverb in the loop and have it on all the time, that should work just fine. I have a chorus in the loop of my 50H and it works, assuming you can turn on the loop via a foot switch! Unfortunately, there is no way to activate the loop without the foot switch. This is contrary to the Boost function, which you can activate from the front panel of the amp by pulling out the Gain knob.

As for your plan to use the clean settings and adding a boost pedal for crunch or solos, that should work just fine. The Origins are well-known as "pedal platforms" and I can attest that they take gain and boost pedals really well, having tried a number of Boss overdrive and distortions pedals, as well as their new Booster/Preamp pedal up front. As for adding gain to the boost channel, that works great, although it's not clear exactly what you mean by that. If you mean using the Boost feature, you can definitely add crunch. In fact, for your purposes, using a dirt pedal out front for crunch and the Boost feature for solos should actually work just fine. I have not tried adding a boost or gain pedals in the loop because the common wisdom is that they work better up front before the preamp stage, but YMMV.

I don't want the pedals in the loop. I own a 1980s 2204 (JCM800) that I usually use on the clean channel for pedals (almost all players of these amps use the clean for gain pedals) but it is just too big and heavy for my current band. I have a nice AmpTweaker TightDrive Pro with two boosts built-in; stage1 for crunch, stage two for solos.

Here is the hack to make the loop work without a pedal.

Ok, just ran some tests on my O20H:

No FS is obviously no boost, no loop.
TRS cable in the FS jack turns on both.
Short tip to sleeve - turns off boost.
Short ring to sleeve - turns off loop.

If you want to DIY a FS, there's your latching switch functions.
No clue about adding the LED indicators.

Also tried my spare Livewire generic 2-button (no LED) and it works fine.

Livewire FSW22 Dual Footswitch | Guitar Center

Shop for the Livewire FSW22 Dual Footswitch in and receive free shipping and guaranteed lowest price.

www.guitarcenter.com

I didn't even notice there were LEDs, not sure it matters but of course, the amp looks like new so I want it to act like new. What I mean by "adding gain to the boost channel" I read many posts where people say "I don't understand why when I turn on my boost pedal in my O50 I don't get any more volume" - well the reason is they are in a maxed out gain channel already and your amp's gain potential is already maxed out, so by trying to add more you are just pushing it beyond its range of gain, you can actually lose volume pushing a high gain amp too hard with an overdrive.

However, if you don't have the boost on your amp maxed out it is possible to add a boost pedal and get more gain.

Thanks for the LiveWire tip.

 

[Cal Nevari]

New Ones come with Foot Pedals - then I got ripped off. They should have specified no foot pedal. New ones look to cost well over $100. Maybe used it won't be so bad or Maybe Guitar Center will honor their sale and send me one. I won't need it, but I want it for resale value.

The TRS trick is easy. If you clip (not completely remove so it is reversible) two resistors the TRS jack switch works just fine, you the loop and the boost knob works. Good to know that you can add boost to the boost channel if you want, but I doubt I will go there. I don't like having to run an extra cable from my amp to my pedal board.


I don't want the pedals in the loop. I own a 1980s 2204 (JCM800) that I usually use on the clean channel for pedals (almost all players of these amps use the clean for gain pedals) but it is just too big and heavy for my current band. I have a nice AmpTweaker TightDrive Pro with two boosts built-in; stage1 for crunch, stage two for solos.

Here is the hack to make the loop work without a pedal.



I didn't even notice there were LEDs, not sure it matters but of course, the amp looks like new so I want it to act like new. What I mean by "adding gain to the boost channel" I read many posts where people say "I don't understand why when I turn on my boost pedal in my O50 I don't get any more volume" - well the reason is they are in a maxed out gain channel already and your amp's gain potential is already maxed out, so by trying to add more you are just pushing it beyond its range of gain, you can actually lose volume pushing a high gain amp too hard with an overdrive.

However, if you don't have the boost on your amp maxed out it is possible to add a boost pedal and get more gain.

Thanks for the LiveWire tip.

That makes sense (what you say about the boost). If you bought it new, it should have come with a foot switch. My hope is that GC will honor this and send you one. If not, I would suggest returning it and buying one somewhere else that will include it, assuming all of this doesn't cost you more money, of course.

 

[cruisemates]

It's been a while since I posted. I now know the amp is supposed to come with the 90016 footswitch and mine did not, so GC gave me a $60 credit. I should have asked for $100 because that is what the pedal costs in new condition, but they asked me to see what a used one costs and I said $60, so that was what I got.

I now see a non-LED switch (of certain models) will work, but not all of them. I am trying to figure out how the 90016 powers its LEDs. It has to come from the amp, I am guessing down the shield. It is hard to find a schematic for these amps. Headfirst has a hack to make the footswitch redundant. I think I will do that, or buy a used one. BUT since I have no plans to use the footswitch I might as well just do the hack.

I did manage to get the pull-out boost feature to work once (something about whether you have a TRS in the FS jack on power-up) but I can't seem to make it work all the time. Any help here?

Yes, I can now see how pedals on the high gain setting (boost) could still work, but I am sticking to the cleaner setting, with maybe just a little bit of tilt. I like the amp a lot.

 

[guitardude57]

I would think to insert a 90 degree TRS plug in the fs jack with no wire… just the plug should work. If the plug breaks the contact or makes the contact you need to figure out easy enough. If the boost is the tip, and the ring is for the fx loop, if either need to be grounded for the function to stay on, a half inch wire to ground is all you need. Just leave the plug plugged in there.

And just for basic info, a jack is what a plug goes into. When trying to decipher what some folks talk about, calling a plug a jack is just not proper. The plug is male, the javk is female.

I have a used Origin 50, and really like it.
A pedalboard in front with various OD pedals and a detuner. Another board with modulation and time effects in the loop, which is always on. My heads are cased, so the foot switch just stays on for the loop, no boost.

Thinking about getting the combo version, for a grab and go. Either that or a DSL 40.
Deciding…

 

[fitz]

I would think to insert a 90 degree TRS plug in the fs jack with no wire… just the plug should work. If the plug breaks the contact or makes the contact you need to figure out easy enough. If the boost is the tip, and the ring is for the fx loop, if either need to be grounded for the function to stay on, a half inch wire to ground is all you need. Just leave the plug plugged in there.

And just for basic info, a jack is what a plug goes into. When trying to decipher what some folks talk about, calling a plug a jack is just not proper. The plug is male, the javk is female.

I have a used Origin 50, and really like it.
A pedalboard in front with various OD pedals and a detuner. Another board with modulation and time effects in the loop, which is always on. My heads are cased, so the foot switch just stays on for the loop, no boost.

Thinking about getting the combo version, for a grab and go. Either that or a DSL 40.
Deciding…

I always leave the boost and loop on, so I just stuck a TRS adapter in the FS jack on all 3 of my Origins.



Got 3 Origin 2-button footswitches on a shelf if anyone needs one...

 

[Edgar Frog]

I would think to insert a 90 degree TRS plug in the fs jack with no wire… just the plug should work. If the plug breaks the contact or makes the contact you need to figure out easy enough. If the boost is the tip, and the ring is for the fx loop, if either need to be grounded for the function to stay on, a half inch wire to ground is all you need. Just leave the plug plugged in there.

And just for basic info, a jack is what a plug goes into. When trying to decipher what some folks talk about, calling a plug a jack is just not proper. The plug is male, the javk is female.

I have a used Origin 50, and really like it.
A pedalboard in front with various OD pedals and a detuner. Another board with modulation and time effects in the loop, which is always on. My heads are cased, so the foot switch just stays on for the loop, no boost.

Thinking about getting the combo version, for a grab and go. Either that or a DSL 40.
Deciding…

Like ACDC says "She's got the jack"