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VST amp into real speaker question


Senor Cleavage

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I want to do this signal chain:

 

bozo->guitar->computer->10101010101010101->computer soundcard out->Powerblock CD input->Valve Jr speaker cab->fame & fortune.

 

Here is my question:

Can I use a VST as a virtual standalone maplifier and run it through whatever type of speaker cab I want (in my case the VJ)?

 

For example, if I want to use a JCM 800 VST just as an amplifier and have the signal go into my speaker cabinet, am I getting just an amplifier signal to the Powerblock & VJ cab, or a JCM 800 w/a 4x12 cab, or 2 4x12s or whatever the person who made the VST decided to come up with?

 

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What you're describing should work....I think.

 

A couple of points worth mentioning:

 

I'm guessing the CD input on the Powerblock probably bypasses the preamp/EQ portion of the amp, and feeds directly into the power section. If so, it's possible that the power amp portion is designed for a flatter, hi-fi type response, as opposed to a tube amp which will impart some of its own character on the sound. This isn't necessarily a bad thing...just something to be aware of.

 

Also, if you're running it through a external speaker cabinet, then you'll probably want to avoid using any software speaker/cabinet emulation. Guitar cabs & speakers tend to color the sound a great deal; emulation software attempts to recreate that same type of coloring. Stacking them on top of one another results in a doubling of that coloring, which tends to give it a lifeless, squashed kind of sound. Disabling the cabinet emulation software will give it a much more open, natural sound.

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I'm guessing the ones that don't have it probably have an emulator going all the time.

 

Which ones are you referring to? I'm pretty familiar with all the amp sims out there, if there's a "hidden" way to disable the cab I may know of it.

 

But just to confirm, you can absolutely do what you want to do. Some people bypass a sim's amp and cab altogether, and just use the sim as a virtual pedalboard.

 

You can mix and match physical and virtual pretty much any way you want. Here's an article about how to go in the other direction - using physical amps with virtual cabinets.

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