Harley Benton Custom Line Dual Loop Switch

There is so much in this to put to good use. It is essentially a small signal router. Yes, you can use it as a loop switcher, and also as an A/B/Y box, but even more complicated routing. This is how it works: when no button is pressed, input is routed to output directly, no crossover with the other jacks. When you press 1st switch, input is connected to both 1st send and output (you can add signals), unless 1st return is populated (then the output is connected to 1st return). This repeats for the second loop. Be careful when combining low and high impedance signals, it's not buffered.

Example with 2 inputs/2 outputs : I have a keyboard on the input, an acoustic guitar on the first return, the 1st send is connected to the 2nd return, the 2nd send i connect it to a different device. When I activate the 1st loop it switches the output from keyboard to guitar, but if I activate the second loop as well, then it will pass the keyboard to output and route the guitar to a different pedal, amp, channel etc.

Depending on the signal being switched, there might be a loud pop every time you press a switch, so that is annoying. That's why it only gets 4 stars. And because it's a bit pricey as it is "boutique style" (I couldn't care less).

Pros:
- looks great, good quality finish, the unit appears to be sturdy and robust
- does it's job with or without power (battery or external power needed only for LED indication).

Cons:
- not completely audio transparent (see below)
- not silent switching. My unit at least pops a little on switching the loops. This is probably "LED pop" as it doesn't seem to be an issue when power for the LED indication is removed.
- just a note. If only one of the LEDs comes on when you have both loops switched in, the unit isn't broken. It's just that the battery supply voltage is a little low. Replace the battery and all will be well again.

Details:
- Reliability-wise it's likely that the "generic" 3PDT switches will give out first. I've had no issues up to now.
- When I first got the unit I thought that the unit provided the proverbial "blanket" over my tone - reducing the high-end shimmer and sparkle. Even in full bypassed mode. This turned out to be my fault ( a faulty screen connection on a high-end, dual core audio cable that I had made up myself). But until I got there I did some investigations. I thought of modding the HB Loop Switch. However looking inside I see well designed PCBs and ribbon cable connections between them. Ok so I'm not going to touch that (I was expecting that it might be point to point wiring). I then modified an old ABY switcher I had - everything ordered from Thomann except the 3PDT switches which Thomann doesn't stock (a shame). I made my own 2 channel Loop Switcher but using point to point wiring and all signal traces at 90 degrees to each other at crossing points.
So what did all of this get me? It put me in a position to directly compare the two loop switchers with each other. In terms of capacitance and resistance the 2 units (HB and home made) were very similar. In terms of audio my unit was a little more transparent, I wouldn't say that the HB rolled off highs but there was a little "funkiness" in the high frequency response - sounded a little like some little phasing issue (capacitative or inductive crosstalk maybe?). The good news is that this effect was only really noticeable when A/Bing the pedals side by side (even though I could hear the effect "blind"). This was in a home studio situation. In a live situation or with a few fx either in the loops or before or after the device NOBODY would be able to hear or tell the difference. So really a non-issue and just noted here as a point of fact.
So in conclusion: great looking, working device at a good price point. I don't see that toggle switch that others have commented on as being the main point of annoyance, but potentially that switching pop. Seems to me to be a small price to pay. Recommended.

I already have one dual loop switcher which is excellent, but doesn't have LED's. That didn't seem important when I got it, but it really is good to have an unmistakable indication of what is switched in and out. The instruction sheet mentions the on/off toggle switch, but it really fails to explain clearly what this does. I still haven't quite worked this out. In one position the LED's never go completely off, just bright to very dim. I don't know what is going on there? The overall finish and style are excellent. The LED's show when each section is on or off and this switcher is only about half the cost of my other unit. There is no ground lift capability, but I did a direct swap comparison with the other unit and in my setup there is no performance difference between ground connected or lifted. This is with a fully isolated power supply, so loops through power leads don't occur. Update 27-02-16: I have now cleaned the toggle switch with 3 drops of methylated spirit dropped down the lever, flicked up and down 10 to 20 times, shaken out and the whole unit left touching a hot pipe overnight. Result = everything now works perfectly and the LED's go completely on and off as they should. So now the rubber feet have been removed and replaced with Velcro strips and the box is securely fitted to my pedal board. Complete success! The other reviewer accurately describes the way this unit switches. (Better than the instruction sheet).What this pedal does do - The input lead plugs in on the right side. The output lead plugs in on the left side. Channel A send and return sockets are on the back side (the side facing the audience) in line with footswitch A. Channel B send and return sockets are on the back side in line with footswitch B. I used an external 9V power supply for the LED's. With the toggle switch on:- Pressing footswitch A will bring channel A in. Pressing footswitch A again will switch channel A out. Pressing footswitch B will bring channel B in. Pressing footswitch B again will switch channel B out. With the toggle switch off:- Pressing footswitch A will bring both channel A and channel B in. Pressing footswitch A again will switch both channel A and B off. Pressing footswitch B does nothing.

What this pedal does do

The input lead plugs in on the right side.
The output lead plugs in on the left side.
Channel A send and return sockets are on the back side (the side facing the audience) in line with footswitch A. Channel B send and return sockets are on the back side in line with footswitch B.

I used an external 9V power supply for the leds.

With the toggle switch on:-
Pressing footswitch A will bring channel A in. Pressing footswitch A again will switch channel A out.
Pressing footswitch B will bring channel B in. Pressing footswitch A again will switch channel A out.

With the toggle switch off:-
Pressing footswitch A will bring both channel A and channel B in. Pressing footswitch A again will switch both channel A and B off.
Pressing footswitch B does nothing.

What this pedal doesn't do

I was hoping this pedal would switch between channel A and channel B and vice versa by repeatedly pressing footswitch A when the toggle was off, but it doesn't, so I returned it.

I didn't experiment long enough to tell whether the channels are in series or parallel when they are both switched in.

I think Thomann should maybe revise the product description to make the available functions clearer.

It works fine if the actual functions are what you are looking for and you are careful with your feet! The toggle switch should definitely have been sited farther away from the footswitches.