So - I just thought I'd throw-out this semi-rhetorical question:

Despite attempts to provide stereo effects, is guitar just meant to be a mono signal... PERIOD...?

It seems that over the years, the "modern" guitar is amplified via a single, mono source... fed into a mono signal-chain that MAY include effects that can OUTPUT to stereo... but for the most-part, aren't very useful.

First-off... the guitar itself. With very-few exceptions (yes, I know exceptions exist) MOST guitars have a single 1/4" mono output.

On the SIMPLE end of things... this 1/4" mono signal usually gets fed into a mono amplifier.

Now, some players desire the use of pedals in-between the guitar and the amp... thus inserting a break in the chain.

If this pedal has the ability to provide a stereo result, it is rarely useful in a situation where you're running it between guitar and amp. The amp (no matter how many channels are on it) is (99% of the time) a MONO signal chain. So, it will "sum" your inputs and defeat any stereo separation.

Okay - let's go EXTREME... you have an electric guitar. You run your mono signal into a stereo chorus pedal. You run EACH Left & Right output into SEPARATE AMPS on stage and you get a wonderful sense of space with your setup. GREAT...!

Ummm... but what if you want to run a stereo delay AFTER that Chorus...?

In the MONO world, you just line-up your signal-path to your taste.

But in the stereo world... those pedals are almost always Mono IN, Stereo OUT... very rare do you see a "Stereo IN" on pedals.

Great... so NOW how do you keep a stereo signal path...?

Well... I know that some pedal-boards (built to hold & power 3rd-party pedals) have routing to allow you to "patch" the pedals into a panel... my guess is that you end-up running your effects PARALLEL... not in series. Thus, you cannot put chorus on your delayed signal, but you CAN run chorus AND delay on the dry signal side-by-side.

I know the "benefits" of going Stereo in any live situation are minimal - if ANY benefit at all. But I'm just surprised that the industry hasn't figured-out a way to make the guitar signal-path of most products "stereo-friendly"

The reason I bring this up is, I'd LOVE to be able to run Joe's acoustic in stereo... but there's just no way to do so using the current gear he's using.

He's using a Fishman LoudBox (GREAT amp, by the way) and running his effects through the effects-loop of the amp... but it's all mono.

I'm just surprised that by-now... there hasn't been attempts to standardize guitar gear to allow stereo in AND out on guitar gear to allow stereo signals to CONTINUE-ALONG the signal chain... allowing for FOH to be stereo even if the player's amp is only sum'ing in mono...

Know what I mean...?

Meh - it's really not that important... just thought it might be fodder for a decent discussion.

My point was - there's no way for my guitarist's signal to remain true-stereo from the first pedal, through his other pedal(s), into the amp, and out to the board. At each, point, there is something knocking the path back to Mono.

In my opinion, a stereo mix is not practical for live performances. Even if you could get stereo guitar output into your Live PA set up, which I'm pretty sure you can, I don't like to set up my PA in stereo because it means people sitting on the right side will only clearly hear half of your mix, and the same goes for the left. If you're in the center of the room, a stereo mix can be very cool.

Do many bands here use a stereo mix when playing live?

I don't get it, how does this get more chicks to the shows?

The way I setup my PA for gigs, is I cross-fire the mains across the dance-floor - the nexus is usually dead-center on the dance-floor. I don't do "hard panning" - but I will say... when I switched to STEREO samples (backing strings and keys) it made a HUGE difference... MUCH richer and fuller. Also, I give a slight pan of the vocals toward the side of the stage they are standing... giving a slight auditory cue to where the sound is coming from. It actually works-out very well.

i get it. you want to be in your imaginary world, where things that you can actually do today, can actually be done.

thats cool man!

i've been running stereo with my guitar since i started.(94) would'nt do it any other way. i have no amp. i run my signal to an art sgx-2000. out l-r,,to a stereo channel on my mackie. out to my jbl eons. much more of a balanced mix with pre-recorded music. my eons are pretty close to me. i usually get a nice stereo mix.

On my solo and duo gigs I go from my guitars to the pod xt live which has some stereo delays choruses and reverbs- into 2 seperate guitar inputs on the board. I pan those hard left and hard right. Most of the rooms I played in were every small so you could hear the stereo effects. Vocals are going through a stereo delay and reverb and I give them seperate channels too the same way.
But it's usually been just me and one other guy, so it's an easy thing to do. With a band it's a giant mess and would probably turn into mush.
For a solo guy it makes you sound a little fuller.

We're a trio. The acoustic guitar is a prominent melodic instrument that's not competing with much, and the rooms we play would allow for the stereo separation to be noticeable... like I said, switching the samples from mono to stereo made a HUGE sonic difference.

ski has it right, as does kennium, its really easy to do if that s what you want to do.

your posts sound like this:

I have this really great flatop acoustic, but it doesnt have a floyd rose on it - i really want to wheedeely deedelly and dive bomb all day. it sucks that if i want to do that, AND play my pre-war martin, i am out of luck.

think about it fetters - stereo chicks is like a 3-way.

don't you want one on each side?

Good one Mill.

There's nothing to stop anyone from having independent, identical effects chains for each stereo side. The only issue to be solved is how handle switching of the same effect on both sides of the chain.

Not cheap, and possibly not very elegant, but certain do-able.

Drive safely man, have a good weekend.

ACME
"I guess I didn't convey my point very well. I don't want a 30-year old pedal to be backwards compatible. I was saying that I'm surprised that over-time, the industry did not adapt and allow for stereo pass-through of all components..."

Your question has already been answerd.
Modeling amps and modeling pedals have addressed what you are asking about individual pedals.

Furthermore if you simply leave the effects processing at the mixing board you will be able route a stereo output from mono inputs via buses.

I think your trying too hard focusing on a pedal that doesn't grant you those features in stead of seeing the many other devices that do accomidate stereo processing.

Not to mention even if you take chorusing effect (and they do make mono chrous effects) you will get a much fatter and richer sound even though it's still a mono signal because it stretches out the initial sound by taking it in, delaying it and putting it back together so it sound like two instruments but still coming out as mono.
The Aphex Aural exciter did almost the exact same thing only it include frequency boosts and I belive that was where the term AM stereo was first coined.

I like to plug my guitar into my Line6 POD Stereo effects effect and then run the two outputs into 2 seperate compressor units, then back thru via a Y cable to Di Box.

I mean, this is a simplistic answer... but

The reason the industry hasn't done what you are looking for is simple.

No one wants to do it that way.

Now, you can do what you are looking for, with old school pedals.

mono signal into stereo output
L into mono input of Box A1
R into mono input of Box A2
L output of Box A1 into next effect
R output of Box A2 into next effect

Other possibilities are using rack mount effects and using a master control swtichboard to control the effects from up front (which is what guys like Satriani and Vai do)

Maxx,

Yeah, that would work as well. Two identical chains of pedals, etc.

"I don't like agreeing with Juice OR talking about music."

Resistance is Futile.

It's also the quickest way to shut me up.
Just ask my wife. :-)

I have a rack mountable line 6 and another Something Pro? It's blue...wow I smoked to much when I was younger.......

I've messed around with splitting my guitar input at the patch bay to each unit inputs and the outputs seperate to each side of the rack amp so the different affects comes out of each speaker.

I was able to get a tremendous amout of different affects by mixing them this way.

Why not just play one guitar with your left hand and another with your right? Presto - stereo guitar

I have a tech question for you. I have a Delta 1010. I dissembled my set up and then put it back in my jam room but I can't get any sound out, everything else works ok and I am pretty sure that I have everything wired back the same. I don't recall which lines out of the 1010 was the sound output and I can't find my manual for the 1010. I was using Cakewalk but have a couple another programs and one specifically that I am using now, but can't remember the name……again to much indulgency as a teen.

Every time I look at it I get frustrated and give up and it's keeping me from recording some new stuff and finally posting some recordings online. It's been 8 months. Any computer savy's out there want to spend 1/2 hour or so looking to help me figure it out and then jam afterwards? I need Help? I'll provide all the beer you can drink............

Back in the late 80's early 90's I ran a stereo rig on stage. I had a pair of Peavey amps (Triumph and Bandit) both single 12 and tube amps. I ran through a ART processor to dived the signal and kept the 2 amps a few feet apart right behind me. For my stage sound it was HUGE however the soundman never ran the system in stereo therefore it was only through my stage volume that the true stereo mix came out.

Running a PA in stereo isn't normally done especially in wide setups. People in the room hard right and left would tend to miss some things.

Also Kramer put out a guitar in the 80's that was sterao capable. Each string had it's on pickup and pan knob. I remember demoing this git and you could get some wild stereo effects and panning effects with that git.

Why not more stereo guitar setups?

People don't want to lug more stuff than necessary to a gig.

I don't run stereo, but I do run more than one amp. I use an amp for my leads, and amp for my dirty rhythm, and an amp for cleans. Then I augment everything with pedals.

So, I guess what I consider necessary is bit more than the usual.

Back in 92 I ran a Peavey 120W with a 4/12 Marshall slant on my side and a 100 JMC with 4/12 on the bassplayers side using a multi-effect processor, harmonizer, Scholz Octopus and midi pedal to switch everything. It was a HUGE sound and real easy to run. I actually bought a pickup (with cab) to lug it around. I would have never bought a truck otherwise. Too much work! I'm trying to make my setup easier.

Scott,

The answer to your conundrum.

Get a stereo delay/processing unit

Hook it into the amp's effects loop. It sounds like all the sounds he generates comes from his pedals. Take the outputs of the stereo processor and run them to the board. Use a stereo effect that is *very* subtle like a chorus.

A Yamaha SPX90 would be perfect.

Viola.

BTW - SPX-90....? ;)

No offense, but when I had the studio up and running and had one of those in the rack... I would jokingly refer to it as our "Analog White-Noise Generator". :)

Angus young is getting pissed off with all this non-guitar-cable-amp talk.

i wouldn't piss off that dude.

ima gonna pretend you didnt say that.

I hear he has big balls. Quite possibly the "biggest of them all"...

actually... technically... isn't it Bonn Scott (or however the #$@% you spell it?)

dude bonn scott is dead.