Stereo anyone???

[the guy who invented fire]

I have been thinking about doing a small stereo rig lately, does anybody here do that...without being rack? I was thinking about something kinda small...maybe 2 Deluxes (either BF...maybe Tweed if I can find some good DIY kits), maybe 2 smaller Ampeg combos, 2 Princetons, Super Champs, or mayben even 2 Vibro Champs something along those lines, and then just having a stereo chorus or flanger or maybe a delay split things up and running a small stereo set up. Anybody have any feedback for me.

 

[Curly]

Re: Stereo anyone???

Lew runs something like this - 2 tweed Deluxes hooked up in stereo through a chorus

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Stereo anyone???

Lew runs something like this - 2 tweed Deluxes hooked up in stereo through a chorus

Yep...that's why I have a pair of tweed Deluxes and pair of Deluxe Reverbs.

On the rare occasions when I play out I take a pair of one or the other and split my guitar signal with a Kendrick A/B/C box or some sort of stereo effects pedal: Boss Reverb or Delay or Danolectro Cool Cat Chorus.

If I'm playing through my tweeds I'll use the stereo reverb or delay...if I'm playing through my DR's I'll use the Kendrick or Dano.

The chorus does not have to turned on to split the signal...it'll feel both amps anyway. But when I do stomp it on the sound is gorgeous and wide.

If I can I'll try and raise the amps off of the floor maybe 15" or so and spread them out maybe 3 or 4 feet apart.

Man...does that sound good! :dance: And I can play with a cleaner tone than through one amp and still get great sustain and a fat tone.

Lew

 

[B2D]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I saw Eric Johnson live on 1/20/05 recently and for his clean sound he had two vintage Fender Vibroluxes or Vibro-King's (couldn't see exactly what it was) that were running in stereo with some delay and chorus on them... man when he whacked one of those big chords my whole BODY felt it! The sound was HUGE. Expansive, deep, wide, 3-dimensional even!

I always run stereo effects in live situations or recording for bands I help out when I wanna make something really fill up some extra space or stand out without altering the tone too much.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I go stereo, but it is a rack. You may want to try what steve morse does, which is direct thru 1 amp, and the delays/effects thru another.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I go stereo, but it is a rack. You may want to try what steve morse does, which is direct thru 1 amp, and the delays/effects thru another.

I used to have a set up like that, and several years ago I ran a rack as well...it's cool but just not for me.

What Lew is talking about sounds pretty sweet, and it pretty much what I was thinking about. That would be perfect for some of the places we play. I think 2 Deluxes would be about the perfect size for most places...

 

[MikeRocker]

Re: Stereo anyone???

It strikes me that the decision to go stereo should mainly be based on the size of the ensemble you play with. If it's a small band, especially if you're the only guitarist, it's a better idea than say a band with 2 guitars and a keyboard. With a bigger band, I find that it's a good idea to take up less sonic space. In these situations, a thinner, less dense tone seems like a better idea, otherwise you end up competing for frequency space with the other guitars and keyboards, which results in a lot of audio mud. Also, would it go stereo through the PA, or basically just be for your own purposes on stage? Some club engineers may get annoyed at having to mic two guitar amps for one player and then try to pan and EQ everything properly. Just some thoughts.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I used to play in church alot where you have to rock a little but somehow keep the volume down. I found that playing in stereo through two Fender Deluxes was the ticket for getting a great tone at a fairly low volume that doesn't blow away the folks in the front pew.

Lew

 

[NecroPolo]

Re: Stereo anyone???

Works pretty well with bigger 4x12"s as well. I use mis-match stereo (2 different heads&cabs), the guitar signal is split with a Rocktron Tsunami (ambient delay mode). It sounds pretty thick and defined, like 2 extremely accurate guitarists playing together thru 2 different rigs. I got used to it pretty much and it mworks pretty well so for fattening up the sound I'd rather get an another amp than an another guitarist...

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I've recently begun playing around with doing some stereo stuff with my rack rig ... it's interesting, but I have found that I prefer to go mono into a full stack. It just has more focus (to my ears).

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Stereo anyone???

I'm running a Custom Vibrolux Reverb and a Mesa Blue Angel in stereo, though at the moment I'm still only taking the fender to gigs. I'm playing a decent-sized venue on friday, so I may deploy the whole rig for that...

I thoroughly recommend using two different amps. The trick is finding two that compliment each other. My vibrolux carts the mids while the blue angel brings the sparkle.