using both amps?

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Jordan Shapiro
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using both amps?

Post by Jordan Shapiro »

i know there is a way to run my 74' twin and my nash 400 at the same time. is the a tried and true method to using both amps at the same time? i play steel as well as switching to lead guitar and was hoping i could get the combined sound of both amps because they have such wonderful and totally different tone. i know i could work some elaborate a/b setup, but my real question is: can i actually hook these amps to one another and have the combined tone coming from one or(preferably) both amps? i guess its a blessing and a curse to have two great amps and two great guitars(a gretch nashville and a 71 tele). i can never decide what sounds and plays better 'cause it all sounds so good! god help me if i get a second steel!! i imagine i'll just sort of spontaneously combust when i start thinking of all the possibilities of that! so lets hear it what do you all think about the amp situation, (other than the fact that i am obviously insane for thinking about carrying more equipment to every show).
thanks in advance,
jordan

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wishing they made volume controls for drums......
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Bill Moore
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Post by Bill Moore »

The simplest way is to plug the guitar into one amp, then plug a second cord into the other input jack of that amp, then plug the cord into the imput of the second. Adjust the amps to suit your ear. Some like to use a delay effect going into one of the amps to get a little of that "stereo" sound. <FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Bill Moore on 21 April 2003 at 02:22 PM.]</p></FONT>
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Erv Niehaus
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Post by Erv Niehaus »

If you use a foot volume control with two outputs, just plug in a cord for each amp.
Some effect units also have stereo outputs, one for each amp.
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Eric West
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Post by Eric West »

Yup, and something I JUST learned.

You can come out of your volume pedal with a T, and choose which amp you wish to have go through the PA. Turning your unmiked amp up, down, toward, or away from you, can adjust how much of this you want to go "out front".

If you wish, and you have a Fender, you can also do one that's "fantastic". You can mike or line-out each amp to a different side and using the tremolo on the Twin get a KILLER Leslie effect that's the width of the PA stack.

Session 500s had a "bi-amp" feature that can have the twin handle the highs.

It does open up a lot of possibilities. You can make your "stage sound" any way you like it.

EJL
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b0b
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Post by b0b »

Moved to 'Electronics'
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Mike Perlowin RIP
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Post by Mike Perlowin RIP »

Another way would be to hook the steel up to a stereo chorus and connect each output of the amp to the different amps. When the chorus is off you get the blend of the 2, and when it's on the effect is very nice. (Caution: you don't want to overuse the chorus. It's like seasoning in food. A little goes a long way.)
Jesse Harris
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Post by Jesse Harris »

ok Ive got one for you all.

I have a session 500 and a rivera 55-12
the session is obviosly the primary steel amp and the rivera the primary guitar amp, but I love what the stereo sound does to both instruments, but both instruments need different amp settings (blend between the 2 and EQ) so one thing I was doing was using a stereo chorus pedal to split the signal and used the hi/low cut feature on the pedal to get the eq changes, but I still have the blend problem. So I keep the rivera pretty low and switch channels when I go to guitar but them I have to turn down the session manually. Any thoughts/ideas? Also food for thought, I have an a/b y switch and a goodrich stereo volume pedal, Is an eq pedal the solution,? because it can change level and EQ? but I would like to eliminate a lot of switches because I have to change instruments a lot, and I always forget a switch here and there which is not fun on the bandstand.

thanks in advance to any thought you put into this setup.