Guitar Tracking

I thought it would be fun to look at some other options for recording electric guitars this time around.  With so many options for using modeling-based units, solid state amps, tube amps, etc., the possibilities are already overwhelming.  What follows are some tips and ideas for trying something different and perhaps blending solutions from a real mic'd amp with a modeling-based approach.

Hybrids:  No, not the cars.  We're talking here about the method of blending an actual guitar amp with a modeling unit.  Instead of going a traditional route with a mic in front of your amp, why not try the line out from the amp direct into your DAW?  Many amps have FX sends or line sends.  If they're not available on your amp, try a device like the THD Hot Plate or a similar type of unit so that you can send a line signal from the amp or amp head.  The Hot Plate ensures that a load still goes to your speaker so that the amp (especially tube amps) see the correct load and don't overload.  Make sure to match the ohms properly when connecting in this manner though.  The goal is to record the line signal direct to your DAW.  Once in the DAW, you can then use something like the Line6 PodFarm plugin to try different cabinet simulations.  There are also many independent cab sim plugins and apps out there that can be utilized as well.  What you get is the ability to try different speaker cabinets with your amp within the DAW to change up your sound.  Even better, you can record the output of the amp normally with a mic along with the direct signal and that can give you even more options for the guitar sound.  You can also run a modeling unit into an actual guitar amp and disable the speaker simulation in the modeler.  By then mic'ing the speaker you'll get the sound of your own cabinet but the amp itself will be provided by the modeler.

Cab Sims:  Along with the mic on the guitar cabinet, why not try a variation of the above - take the direct out from your amp and use its built-in speaker simulation (if the amp has it).  Or, use a direct box that has cab simulation built in like the Hughes and Kettner Red Box.  This operates in similar fashion to the Hot Plate approach except that it provides a cabinet simulator output that you can run direct to the DAW while still using a mic in front of the speaker to get 2 tonal options from the same amp.  Palmer also make cab simulators and while they tend to be somewhat pricey, they can deliver some great results along with traditional mic'd amp approaches as well.

Stacking:  This is something that of course you could do in separate takes but how about doing it at the same time?  Split your guitar signal to different amps and mic each one or run one amp through two different speaker cabinets and mic both.  This is a fairly simple solution that gives you some tonal variety which you can blend during mixdown.  To work properly, you may want to obtain an amp switcher so that potential hum or imbalances are remedied.  Radial makes  a great A-B-Y switch that can address the potential ground loops that sometimes occur when you run signal to 2 amps simultaneously. 

The above techniques are fairly simple in principle but each one has a myriad of options within.  The goal is to look at a new approach to getting your guitar sound for recording by trying something different.  By utilizing one or more of these methods you might be quite surprised by the results (in a good way) and it could become your de facto standard when you record guitar from that point on.