What does A/B mean?

deefstes

So I see people referring to amps with A/B tone or you get A/B switch pedals. Seeing as I don't know what it is and you do, let's hear about it please?

Warren

With regard to amp classes, this is a good read that's not crazy technical:

http://www.duncanamps.com/technical/ampclasses.html

AlanRatcliffe

Channels...

Amps often have more than one channel, often named things like "Channel A" or "Channel B". They will often be voiced differently (like one for clean, one for drive), hence "Tone".

An A/B switch switches a signal between two source or output channels (strangely enough, either A or B ?). So can be used to switch between guitars or the output of a guitar or pedalboard between two amps. You also get ABY switches, with the "Y" splitting to both simultaneously (notice the clever symbolism of the "Y" ?).

ezietsman

A/B means you compare two or more things in a controlled way. For instance, to A/B guitars people usually set up an amp, plug a guitar into it, play something, plug in another guitar and then comment on the difference.

You get A/B pedals too, they are just devices that redirect your input signal to one or both of two outputs (Running one guitar into two amps) or redirect one of two inputs into a single output (Running two guitars into one amp).

There is also a thing about Push-pull amplifiers running in Class AB, this is something different altogether and refers to the way the amp is biased. This is usually not the A/B technique being referred to.

Warren

ez wrote:
There is also a thing about Push-pull amplifiers running in Class AB, this is something different altogether and refers to the way the amp is biased. This is usually not the A/B technique being referred to.

This is what I understood deeftes to mean about an amp with "AB tone". Sorry if I've muddied the waters deef, but probably a good thread to demystify some confusion around "A/B" related things. ?

AlanRatcliffe

So A/B means many things to many people... ?

deefstes

Thanks guys, and yes, it is indeed the fact that there is A/B switching and class AB amps which caused my confusion. A/B switching seems straight forward enough and now, having read Warren's article, I know what a class AB amp is as well. Great place this is!

Norman86

dont even get started with amplifier classes!!!
WAAAAY too many and so many are similar!!
Class A, AB, D, G, T and on we go...
Class A and AB are the most loved types of amplifier, be it guitar, home, car!