stereo

Jimmie Martin · Post by **Jimmie Martin** » 29 May 2005 10:21 am

what all do you have to have to get a good stereo sound and about how much do you have to spend?

Pete Burak · Post by **Pete Burak** » 29 May 2005 1:33 pm

Basically, most Stereo setups are done with a Steel with one pickup.
The output of the volume pedal goes to an effects unit (Like a Boss RV-3 or Peavey Profex II) that has stereo outputs (Left and Right).
You run the left and right outputs to 2 different amps, and that's it.
Many stereo effects units can be had for less than $100, and a second amp (typicaly should be something that can handle steel at gig volume levels) shouldn't set you back too much.
FWIW, there are always some good buys on good steel amps over in the Buy & Sell section.

Jimmie Martin · Post by **Jimmie Martin** » 29 May 2005 2:17 pm

thanks pete you wouldn't happen to know how to hook it all up say if a person had a fender steel king and a nashville 100?

Bill Hatcher · Post by **Bill Hatcher** » 29 May 2005 3:32 pm

Robert. In regards to a stereo setup, are talking for live use or for recording? If you are talking live, remember that unless you are running a true stereo PA system that really the only other persons that will even hear the stereo effect will be those that are in the perfect seat in the perfect place in the house. About 99% of all live sound stuff is mono at best and usually run by soundmen who are marginal.

If you are talking recording, you might just get a nice effects unit that has left and right output and hard pan those left and right.

If you are talking about sitting around in your practice area then do what Pete says.

Jimmie Martin · Post by **Jimmie Martin** » 29 May 2005 3:57 pm

oops i should have said but i really mean for home use. sorry

David Mason · Post by **David Mason** » 29 May 2005 4:14 pm

If you want a cheap but effective setup, you can get by with y-cords and splitters. Go to radioshack.com and look up part #274-892 or Musician's Friend, part #335228. The only problem with this kind of thing is "line loading" or "bleed", where what you have hooked up to one side affects what's hooked to the other side. Still, it's worth it to have an assortment of these kind of things around so you can mix straight signals in with stompbox signals, etc. To avoid the line loading, you can go to powered A/B-Y boxes and mini-mixers, which can still be had for $30 - $50 or so. Get enough of this stuff lying around and you can hook up anything imaginable - A CD walkman mixed in to practice along with, a cassette deck to tape your practice sessions etc. During football season I hook up a headphone rig so I can play my own steel guitar soundtracks to the college games.

Pete Burak · Post by **Pete Burak** » 29 May 2005 5:07 pm

Bill Hatcher is right about the stereo sound not reaching the audience.
FWIW, I use 2 amps with Stereo effects for all of my live gigs, but only because it gives me what I want to hear and feel from the Steel. I love that surround sound!!!
Usually only one amp is mic'd, or I use the XLR out if there is one. Whatever is easier for the given gig.

Robert, if you have a volume pedal with 2 outputs, just run from the steel, to the volume pedal, and out to the two amps.
I would try one amp close to dry, and one with your normal reverb level.

Do you have any effect units?

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 29 May 2005 9:09 pm

Robert, another route is to use a stereo pre-amp (Peavey ProfexII, Tubefex, TranstubeFex, Stereo steel or similar) amplified with a stereo power amp (Mosvalve, Mesa Boogie 50-50, Stewart, Peavey DPC models, etc.) then into two speaker cabinets. Many players have used these kinds of system with great success. One advantage is in weight over toting two large amps, another is that many more effects (included in the preamp design) can be used than just the reverb/delay of the stomp-box setup. I've used both kinds of rigs, and am very happy with the Walker Stereo Steel integrated pre/power amp I'm using now. I can only agree to some extent about stereo not "mattering" onstage- perhaps a third of the venues I play in have full stereo P.A. and the soundmen love to mix keyboards and steel in stereo- but more importantly, being surrounded onstage (or at home!) with lush steel sound can be very inspiring, and when we're inspired, we naturally enjoy and play better. Most of the above rigs are fairly expensive, $1000 and up, so perhaps you can find a way to try one out before committing.

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Stop by the Steel Store at: www.markvanallen.com

Scott Denniston · Post by **Scott Denniston** » 30 May 2005 2:01 am

One cool thing about the Alembic F1-X pre amp is that it has as one option to go out stereo but with a variable crossover to separate speakers. I've only messed with that once and must say it would be worth experimenting with. Kind of weird hearing the lows & highs coming out different sides but with some tweaking I might find some use for that. (The Alembic is the tube pre with the Fender Showman type circuit). I played stereo for years with different configurations and I guess my favorite was to use one amp as a "wet" amp with fx and the other one dry. I know that's not true stereo but it really maintained a good tone and "punch" while adding fx too. I've often felt that the true sound of the steel gets bunged up by fx units, so running one amp dry really helped.