Dual Amping - The best way to go about it?

Big-G

So, as the title suggests, I'm looking into dual amping my guitar. I'm not so much looking for 'stereo' guitars per se, but more wanting to run one amp as a pedal platform to have all my effects run through, and the other amp would remain relatively clean, and free from ALL effects other than its perhaps a bit of natural tube break up form its valves.

This is a technique I've been considering for a good while, but got boosted when I read an article someone here shared about 'improving your tone'.

The point of it is to still retain decent note and chord definition, so as not to loose it in the wall of sound that can often be experienced with FX.

So I suppose I have two main questions....

1) Anyone else here use dual amping?

2) what would be the best (and most economical) way of splitting the guitar signal, before the peddles, without causing any issues with cross-talk etc?

Thanks in advance for any help.
Regards
G!

AlanRatcliffe

You can use a simple splitter cable after a buffer, but using a DI box is most common (parallel out and unbalanced out).

Me, I usually do it a little differently by either splitting pickups to different outputs (my bass) or using piezo saddles. ?

Big-G

Thanks for the reply Alan. The guitar I'm most likely to be using in this setup actually has piezo saddles as well, which I will also run out to a DI or a better suited amp, but I'm just wanting to split the magnetic sound before the pedals so as to send the unprocessed sound to one amp, and then to the other amp via the pedal board.

Would adding a buffer before the pedals, whether it be a DI or some other type, not affect the sound quality and tonality at all?

I have a few DI's lying around, so I'll see if any of them can be used?

Regards
G!

AlanRatcliffe

Many DI's, the parallel out is unbuffered, just a pass through/mirror of the input. Anyway, I don't have a problem with buffers, as long as they are good quality.

Also, the moment you put the signal through an active effect (even a true bypass one), it's buffered. So pretty mich of a muchness IMO.

singemonkey

Then you get all the extra fun of hauling an extra amp to every gig. Bonus points if both weigh over 40kg.

Man it just sounds like a huge pain. Why not just have a master switch to turn all your effects off. If you want it clean for the effects, turn the guitar volume down a bit, and replace the level drop with a boost from a pedal. Then turn everything off (super clean amp) and then turn up the guitar volume for some amp dirt.

Big-G

Mr Singe sir. You are forgetting that I'm predominantly a bassist. Lugging two relatively small amps around doesn't phase me after many years lugging a rig the size of a small car around. ?

Having said that, this is mainly for recording, as I'm not actually gigging at present. Its also an experiment to see what impact a second amp has on the tone and clarity, especially for recording.

Regards
G!

RobRam

I have also been interested in this. I was told to use a pedal with a dual output and input (in my case a hardwire delay) and a line switcher. So the two amps go into the the two output jacks and into the line switcher. Hope this helps :?

Warren

I don't see the point in having two amps running together unless you're actually looking to blend those amp sounds live (which can be glorious, ah la Joe B or John Mayer)...

ezietsman

I was thinking of building a splitter thing so that I can run multiple amps loudly in my room when I've had a wee drop a whiskey and feel like playing blues at the neighbours. On the stages where we play usually, there just won't be space for two amps. There's hardly space for one of my amps is it is and I get to stand right next to it, unable to hear the sound so gloriously hitting my legs. I guess I'm not the only one with this issue.

No sir, You suffer from GAS worse than most of us around here, my advice is to get another amp, just for sh1ts and g1ggl3s, if you want one. You don't have to make up a reason and you certainly don't need 2 amps at once for playing a gig ?

Big-G

ez wrote: I was thinking of building a splitter thing so that I can run multiple amps loudly in my room when I've had a wee drop a whiskey and feel like playing blues at the neighbours. On the stages where we play usually, there just won't be space for two amps. There's hardly space for one of my amps is it is and I get to stand right next to it, unable to hear the sound so gloriously hitting my legs. I guess I'm not the only one with this issue.

No sir, You suffer from GAS worse than most of us around here, my advice is to get another amp, just for sh1ts and g1ggl3s, if you want one. You don't have to make up a reason and you certainly don't need 2 amps at once for playing a gig ?

Haha! Good to see I've gotten a reputation round these parts in such a small space of time! ?

As I say, pretty much most of it will be for recording rather than 'live', so that's where my thoughts are going. It may not happen anyway yet, as I'm not sure I'll be able to afford it, especially once my hopeful two additions arrive (more about them when they get here) but I thought I'd ask about the best way to make it happen if it becomes a reality!

Thanks for all the replies so far folks!
Regards
Big 'Addict' G!

AlanRatcliffe

Big G wrote: Haha! Good to see I've gotten a reputation round these parts in such a small space of time! ?

Oh, I think we had your number in the first week of furious NGDs... ?

ShreddySmurf wrote: I don't see the point in having two amps running together unless you're actually looking to blend those amp sounds live (which can be glorious, ah la Joe B or John Mayer)...

More often found in the studio - the reasons against live (for most of us anyway) ez pointed out.

Kalcium

Another option without the need for an extra amp would be to split your signal before the pedal board and then have another pedal to combine the signals and mix them after your pedal board. Something with a blend knob which would be entirely signal 1 on the 1 side and slowly blend in the other signal until its entirely signal 2 on the other side of the pot

Psean

If you're doing it in studio, why not track each amp separately - one take for the clean amp and one take for the one with all the effects and dirt?

AlanRatcliffe

Psean wrote: If you're doing it in studio, why not track each amp separately - one take for the clean amp and one take for the one with all the effects and dirt?

Because that sounds different to dual amping. Two takes sound like two takes and there are times when you want the tightness of a dual amped sound.

arjunmenon

ShreddySmurf wrote: I don't see the point in having two amps running together unless you're actually looking to blend those amp sounds live (which can be glorious, ah la Joe B or John Mayer)...

And Eric Johnson, Jeff Beck... ?

Warren

Arjun Menon wrote:
And Eric Johnson, Jeff Beck... ?

Yeah, I think most of my favourite tones are from multi-amp setups ?

Psean

Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
Psean wrote: If you're doing it in studio, why not track each amp separately - one take for the clean amp and one take for the one with all the effects and dirt?
Because that sounds different to dual amping. Two takes sound like two takes and there are times when you want the tightness of a dual amped sound.

Ah, okay. Thanks.

Big-G

Gosh! How I'd love a Kemper! But that just ain't gonna happen on my limited budget..... Unless someone wants to buy one for me! ? My Birthdays coming up soon... I reckon if each GFSA'er put in R50, between you all, you could make up enough to at least make a big dent in the cost of one! Hehe! Just sayin'! ?

Cheers
G!

Kalcium

Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
Psean wrote: If you're doing it in studio, why not track each amp separately - one take for the clean amp and one take for the one with all the effects and dirt?
Because that sounds different to dual amping. Two takes sound like two takes and there are times when you want the tightness of a dual amped sound.

Re-amping could solve that though...

Greg

Right now I'm running my Strymon Brigadier stereo into my Styrmon Bluesky which goes left to my Laney VC30 210 and right to my Blues Junior.

I set the VC30 to have a Blackfaceish tone with no mids and I roll the bass off the junior entirely to get a "scratchy", "radio" tone.

They blend together REALLY nicely and I can either use them as STEREO or as a mono, single, richer amp tone.

I think you have a couple of options.

I'd recommend something like the Radial Bigshot (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/radial-engineering-tonebone-bigshot-aby-passive-switcher).

It's an AB/Y switcher. So you have amp A with FX, amp B without and you have the option to use both amps with or without FX on amp B.

You could also use a loop switcher like the Carl Martin Octaswitch and have the amps set to 2 loops (with send and no return) and then you can select which FX/FX combination go to which amp/amp combination with the dip switches. The Octaswitch, as the name suggests, offers 8 preset options.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/carl-martin-octa-switch-mkii-effects-switching-system

You probably also do it with a clever MIDI rig too.

I really like mine in stereo and (right now) I'm not interested in doing any A/B/Y work because then I have to take 2 amps to gigs. My stereo setup is easily set up for recording though and in the case of playing at festivals they often have a couple of amps spare. I think stereo only really has its uses in studio/recording environments where it's really perceivable.

What would be killer is a Princeton for clean, a 57 Deluxe for dirty and a BigShot for switching. Never need an FX pedal again?

EDIT:

I forgot to mention that my Rickenbacker 620 has stereo capabilites and the tone and uses from using a different PICKUP for a different amp is quite a different thing. For one thing, you can have your bridge pickup always on an overdriven tone and your neck pickup on a pristine clean, reverby sound. Or visa versa. Also the combination pickup setting sounds really interesting between two amps. I'm also suspicious of splitter cables sucking tone. Would love to find a good quality stereo cable and then get a 1x stereo to 2x mono box made for splitting purposes.