Amp switching 101 - two amp heads....one 4x12 cab possible?

luther · #1 01-01-2001, 12:44 PM

I played a Mesa Rectoverb the other day, *and was pretty psyched on its sound. *I have a Marshall DSL 2000 that I play thru a Marshall 4x12.

I'm thinking that it might be cool to run both the Marshall and Mesa and footswitch between all the available sounds, *but I'm uneducated on what the possibilities are, *and what gear would be required. *I'm interested in simple switching, *and also a switching system that would change midi patches on my effects units at the same time.

Can someone explain the setup of an amp switching rig? *Is it possible to run two amp heads thru one 4x12 cab?

As a side question, *how does the Rectoverb compare to the Nomad as far as tone goes?

Luther

**jemsite** · #2 01-01-2001, 01:26 PM

See this thread on the old forum for a discussion. Followup here w/ more questions, etc.

http://jemsiteforum.com/discus/messages/32/2710.html

jay ratkowski · #3 01-01-2001, 06:17 PM

I've come to a few conclusions on the easiest ways to go about this...

One, you can call Bob Bradshaw, order an amp selector from him, wait a pretty long time, pay a good amount of money, but end up with an amazing product!!! (I'm going to do this once I move)

Two, you can get a stereo cabinet that handles enough watts per side to take both heads... toss an ABY box inbetween your guitar and amp... watch your ohms!!!

Three, you can do what I'm doing for now, use two seperate half stacks and an ABY... not the best way, but it gets the job done.

I might have forgotten about something, but I think that covers it. *If you don't need a solution immediately, I would recomend getting in touch with Bob.

steve · #4 01-02-2001, 09:26 PM

Jay,
In following up on this, I just found that in the last VERY short while, Bob's own CAE website (not the CA-Japan one) has finally shown up, so there's more info, and in ENGLISH!
=]
Check it out.

Custom Audio Electronics - Bob Bradshaw

jay ratkowski · #5 01-02-2001, 09:34 PM

Steve -
You ROCK! *I was worried I'd have to bone up on my Japanese to read the old site.

On a side note - I called Bob today and placed an order for an amp selector. *It will allow switching between two heads, which is exactly what I need for my Legacies. *He should have it built in about 4 weeks. *

bammbamm · #6 01-02-2001, 11:44 PM

Cost?
Mesa boogie has one too
Bamm

steve · #7 01-03-2001, 10:59 PM

Jay,
Glad to help - I've been keeping an eye on that URL for quite a while now... and all of a sudden, BAM! A nicely-done RS10-style homepage shows up... =]
I'd be curious about the cost of that as well...

jay ratkowski · #8 01-03-2001, 11:02 PM

Unless the Mesa one is new (they don't seem to update their site) it is one that goes BEFORE the input of the amp... like an ABY box.

This goes between the amp and the speakers... which is a LOT to ask of a single rack space.

Cost is $450. *Built for you by Bob (who is a real cool guy) and sent out to your house... Might sound pricey to some people, I think that it's great for all that it does.

steve · #9 01-04-2001, 11:02 PM

That doesn't really sound pricey when you consider what it's doing; it's completely switching the speaker-level outputs in and out, which means also safely switching in a load to keep the amps from cooking themselves when they're not connected to the speaker cab.
And you /know/ that it'll do the job safely.
This is, after all, Bob (or rather, Robert, as on his site) Bradshaw. He wouldn't do anything half way, to be sure.
=]

wyzenhymer · #10 01-06-2001, 09:42 AM

Thanks for the Bradshaw link Steve. Very cool site. Check out the photo section for some drool-worthy rigs!

steve · #11 01-06-2001, 06:56 PM

Sure thing. And, there's an even larger gallery currently on the Custom Audio Japan site, if you want to see that as well. I'd posted that link for Jay before (and shall repeat it here for convenience.)
Just check out the Clients section, and click the flashing red dots - that'll go to some pictures.
Interesting stuff, to be sure.

Custom Audio Japan
Have fun.
=]

oooo · #12 01-06-2001, 08:45 PM

anybody have any idea what the Bradshaw 2x4 audio switcher costs?

jay ratkowski · #13 01-06-2001, 09:32 PM

Why don't you call Bob up and ask? *Someone is usually there, and if anything, they actually return your phone calls. *

I know that they currently don't have all the parts available for the 4 amp version... probably run you around $500+ ???

I want to know what his preamps run, that thing is supposed to be KILLER!!!

oooo · #14 01-07-2001, 03:36 PM

Bob wants three pints of blood, your first born son, and your left Kidney for the pre-amp... SOLD!