There are always a heap of things that can go wrong with any guitar rig, but when it comes to using more than one amplifier, I’m going to focus on two of the most common problems: Ground loops That’s quite bag of technical cats to suddenly put amongst your experimental pigeons, so let’s take a closer look at some of the issues that such a device would help avoid. However, depending upon your requirements, you should ideally deploy a gizmo that caters for negating the load splitting of running into two inputs, allowing you to change the phase of one of the outputs, and which offers an isolated output to prevent ground loop issues. Stomp boxes that commonly feature stereo outputs include chorus, delay and reverb. A simple option is to add an effects unit with stereo (or dual mono) outputs at the end of your chain, with one output going to each amplifier. Dipping of proper toes in actual water is not encouraged whilst experimenting with amplifiers.Ī rather more sturdy method would be to buffer the signal with some intervening device. When it comes to splitting your guitar signal to feed the inputs of two different amplifiers, the temptation is to just take a $5 Radio Shack “Y” cable and MacGyver that bad boy in there. You will get some slight attenuation of the signal, similar to backing off the guitar volume a touch, but this method is probably the easiest way to dip your proverbial toe in the proverbial water.
That being said, it is an enterprise that is not without its challenges. How should one split the signal from the guitar? Which combination of amplifiers is best? What if the electrons get into a fight about who goes to which amp, causing widespread unrest and undermining your precious tone? Well, without getting too bogged-down in “science” and “facts” and “electricity doesn’t work like that, Nicholas”, let’s go ahead and examine some of the basic considerations for any guitarist looking to run more than one amplifier. In our unending quest to forge a guitar tone that sounds like somebody opening the Ark of the Covenant inside a tyrannosaurus, many of us will eventually find ourselves considering the possibility of using more than one amplifier.Īs the more mathematically astute amongst you will doubtless be well aware, employing just one additional amplifier will give you precisely twice as much potential to irritate people as you’d get with a single amp rig.