Blending amps for recording? (330 watts of Mesa action)

[GJgo]

Hey guys. So in the past I've tried X patterning 4x12s and I tend to not prefer it. I've also used different cabs when recording and I usually think one cab with a couple different mics sounds better. Then, I've tried using two different heads for recording and it's hit & miss on the blend- to me anyway.

Anyway, I'm working on a new song for my band and I decided to double up with a Mark & a Rectifier. I pulled out a clip from the riff to post because I wanted to see what it looked like if I only did the Mark, only did the Recto, then did a blend. I've been showing the clip to a number of my friends and acquaintances. So far it's about a 50/50 split on "I like the Mark better" or "I like the Recto better". What's really surprised me though is. NO ONE has said they like the blend better!

What do you guys think? Note this is 2 channels straight in, no post or anything. Today I worked on quad tracking & a little reverb, and OOOF!

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I liked the blended better. Cool tune..kind of had a Megadeth vibe

 

[PBGas]

I like both of them individually but through my interface and monitors, but the blended sounds off.
The panned left sounds fine but it is almost like the panned right sound has some kind of artifact in the mid that is....how do I explain it...."rattling".

Is this just one time playing through and just hard panning it from each cab mic? Or have you played 2 different times and hard panned those?

 

[Racerxrated]

Both blended sound great, complement each other nicely.
Great job! The Recto is a little more congested, but in a good way and the Coli sounds more open and organic.

 

[BeZo]

I like the blend better.

The trick with blending amps is not to dial them both in to sound good by themselves. The trick is to accent what you want the amp to bring to the mix, the character of the amp, and rely on the mix to get the tone. Dialing the EQs in differently to complement each other, and letting frequencies combine to get a total sound is better than trying to run two amps that sound good. If the amps are dialed in to sound the same, the frequencies that combine will overwhelm, and the lacking frequencies will get buried. Try dialing the bass back on one amp and up on the other, and evening out the mids, and highs. Play them both in mono and see what they do together. Then when you add them up, they sound a little off by themselves, but huge together.

 

[GJgo]

I like both of them individually but through my interface and monitors, but the blended sounds off.
The panned left sounds fine but it is almost like the panned right sound has some kind of artifact in the mid that is....how do I explain it...."rattling".

Is this just one time playing through and just hard panning it from each cab mic? Or have you played 2 different times and hard panned those?

This is just one time playing. I have it split out of the guitar post-boost & going independently into each amp. FWIW the Recto is on tube rectification so the attack is a little lazier than the Mark which is on pentode.

 

[GJgo]

I like the blend better.

The trick with blending amps is not to dial them both in to sound good by themselves. The trick is to accent what you want the amp to bring to the mix, the character of the amp, and rely on the mix to get the tone. Dialing the EQs in differently to complement each other, and letting frequencies combine to get a total sound is better than trying to run two amps that sound good. If the amps are dialed in to sound the same, the frequencies that combine will overwhelm, and the lacking frequencies will get buried. Try dialing the bass back on one amp and up on the other, and evening out the mids, and highs. Play them both in mono and see what they do together. Then when you add them up, they sound a little off by themselves, but huge together.

Good point, thanks, I'll have to spend some time with that. Much learning to do!

 

[Rex Rocker]

I think the blended tone would work well in a quad-track scenario, but as it is, I feel it shifts the center of the stereo field too much towards the Mark side.

On its own, I prefer the Recto. Hard to tell without a full mix going on, though.

 

[Beyond Black]

Blended
Recto
Mark

 

[PBGas]

I like both of them individually but through my interface and monitors, but the blended sounds off.
The panned left sounds fine but it is almost like the panned right sound has some kind of artifact in the mid that is....how do I explain it...."rattling".

Is this just one time playing through and just hard panning it from each cab mic? Or have you played 2 different times and hard panned those?

This is just one time playing. I have it split out of the guitar post-boost & going independently into each amp. FWIW the Recto is on tube rectification so the attack is a little lazier than the Mark which is on pentode.

That explains it! Good stuff!