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Let us talk about Guitar rig types! – There are so many different types of guitar rigs!
Introduction
This is an interesting topic for an article. I have played many different types of guitar rigs and thought it would be interesting to go through them all and talk about their pros and cons. Having a guitar rig isn’t as simple as just a guitar and an amp nowadays. For many reasons! This isn’t a bad thing! There are many reasons in modern guitar for different guitar rigs. You have to play through a rig which suits the situation! However, they can get confusing! How do you know what is right for you?
So I will go through some different types of guitar rigs and rig types and talk about what they are and how they are set up. Then I will talk about the good, the bad and the ugly points of each rig! As there are many for each one! I have played most of these guitar rigs for a while and have some experience in all of them! So let us find out which one I prefer!
Guitar, pedals and an Amp (maybe a Mic)
This is probably the most basic and old-school you can get! This is where it all started! Just a simple rig of a guitar, some pedals, and an amp! Roll up, plug in, turn up, and play! Can it get more simple? Little to go wrong, little to need!
Maybe if you are playing in a larger venue, then you might have a mic on the amp. However, the rig will stay the same! This is pretty much what everyone will learn to play on (in my era anyway). It has both good and bad points, which I will cover more shortly.
Pros
The massive pro for this type of rig is that it is so simple! People have been doing this for years for good reasons; it works! A good amp and some good pedals will get you a good sound! Even when they look complicated, they are still fairly simple at their root. If we were to look at John Mayer’s current rig, it may look a lot, but at its heart, it is just a bunch of pedals and an amp. However, there are a few major changes to his rig, which we will get onto shortly.
Look at any gig from the 60s to the 00s, and you will find that most guitarists will be using rigs of this variety. This is because it is super effective. Even if you remove the pedals, you will be shocked at how versatile a good amp and a guitar are! You can get a huge amount of usable tones from a single amp and single guitar. A mega simple and effective rig!
Cons
Depending on what kind of amp you have and pedals you have, you could find that your tonal options are small. If you are wanting to expand your options and boost your tonal options, then you will have to bring in extra gear. This not only makes it more to carry but also makes it more expensive.
As I just said, you can find that these types of guitar rigs can be a lot to carry! Especially to a gig where you might have a few guitars, a decent-size pedal board, and your amp. You might have to make a few trips to and from the car. You can try to condense this down, but likely you will have a minimum of three items to carry.
Dual Amps in Various Formats
For those that love the traditional guitar rigs, this is the ultimate step up! A dual rig set up! This means you have your guitar into your pedals and then a split will occur and it will go into two amps! You will need an Amp Splitter like the Bright Onion Splitter (Review Here) for this to work and there are some issues that arise but it is fairly simple to set up! The split can occur at any point in the rig. This leads to a few variations of this rig. Dual mono, wet dry and just a straight-up dual amp rig!
Pros
As with the first rig, this is a fairly simple rig! Only an extra amp and something to split the signal! Just a simple amp, pedal and guitar set up. Sending some pedals to one amp will vastly expand your rig but on the whole it is super simple and easy to set up!
If you see a guitarist live and they are using on-stage amps, there is a high chance that they are using a dual amp setup! Most guitarists will use two more amps to fill the sound space and make their sound huge! And believe me, it works and is so much fun! I have an article coming out about dual amp set-ups soon.
Cons
Running two amps can bring in some issues! Mainly phase and noise! You need both speakers working together and going the same direction at the same time! Otherwise they will cancel each other out and make the sound thin and horrible! The second is noise! Ground noise will be an issue and can be really distracting and loud. The good news is a good-quality splitter will solve both these issues!
The biggest issue with this is the sheer amount of gear that you need! Everything that you need in the first rig and then a whole other amp! If you are using combos it might not be that bad, but if you are using amps and cabs then you will have lots to carry. Also worth mentioning that it will also have a huge footprint on stage! If you are short on space then this is not the rig for you!
Load box and straight to desk
This is a great option if you are looking to go direct but already own a rig you like the sound of. It involves taking the speaker out of your amp and running into a load box, then using the direct out (with a cab sim) and running it into the desk. This is very popular if you do multiple different types of gigs but do not want to have several guitar rigs. There are several types of load boxes out there that range in price and features, so finding one to suit your needs should be simple.
Pros
There are a fair few pros to this type of rig. Mainly that it is simple and much the same as just running an amp in the traditional format. Of course, you need to work the load box, but this is just one extra piece of gear. It also allows you to run just a head if you need to. There have been times where I have taken my little Spirit of Vintage amp head (Review Here) and run that!
You also have the versatility to have the same rig for many different reasons! If you are doing a small pub gig, then you might just run your amp; however, doing a large festival? You can take the same rig and the same sound but just run it into the front desk! Such a nice option to have if you do various types of gigs.
Cons
You will need to be able to hear your sound! You won’t have any cabs on stage, which means that you have to make sure you have a good monitoring option! Wedges or IEMs. However, if you can’t hear yourself, you will be lost!
Also, there are several types of load boxes out there, but they range in prices and features! Some have loads of features, and some have minimal features. It all depends on what you are going to use it for! My favourite is the Two Note Captor range; these can go from £200-£400. So it is an extra expense to output.
Load Box with a split
If you are after versatility, then this is the one to pick. The options you have for this are massive! Using a traditional amp and pedal but then splitting the signal with a load box so one goes to an on-stage cab and the other goes to the front desk (with a cab sim). This allows the sound guy to get a clean signal while you still get on-stage volume! Plus, you have a handful of backup options if needed! However, it doesn’t come without its downsides!
Pros
This is hugely versatile, and you will find that so many sound guys will love you for this type of rig! It will give you that chunky on-stage volume; however, they won’t need to worry about mic’ing up the amp. They will get a direct and clean signal! Best of both worlds! This also means set-up time can be shorter and easier! Which everyone always loves!
With a lot of “straight to desk” options, you need to make sure that you have good monitoring. Otherwise, you won’t hear yourself as you have no on-stage volume. It isn’t as important with this rig. You still have your amp on stage, so you will have that on-stage volume for you to hear!
Cons
This rig has a lot to carry! You are carrying a normal full rig and then the extra bits for the load box! Which not only adds on to your carry but also the cost! Is it cheaper just to buy a SM57 and mic it? Well, that is another option!
Depending on how much you like to control your tone, mainly what the audience hears, then you might not like this rig. Being that you will have to use a cab sim for the direct send, then it will sound different to the one-stage amp. So they will sound slightly different!
You will only be able to do this with certain load boxes. You will have to make sure that they have a “pass through” option so that you can still go to a cab and a desk. They will be more expensive than lower-featured load boxes.
Amp Sim and Pedals
This is personally what I am using 80% of the time now. I have a traditional pedalboard, with all my standard guitar pedal effects, then at the end of the signal chain I have an amp and some pedal of some kind. Currently using the Neural Nano Cortex (Review Here). I’m using it purely for its amp sounds. I don’t use any of the built-in effects (except for a bit of reverb).
Pros
Same sound! This is the biggest positive for me! I plug it in and it will sound the same as the previous time I used it! I know that when I switch on the pedalboard what sounds I am going to get out of it. Along the same lines as this, it also gives me some freedom to swap pedals in and out for different sounds! I can chop and change the rig around fairly quickly and easily!
The main reason I use this is due to space and portability! Being a function band, our stages tend to be small or cramped. This just helps free up some space. Also, it means I can carry less! If I have a walk from the car to the venue, then I can carry my whole rig in one trip! It is super portable and takes up such a small footprint!
Cons
This can be an expensive way to set up. It isn’t too bad if you already have all the pedals and you just need the cab sim pedal. I would suggest you get a decent pedalboard as well, as this will be your main “amp”. So it will take a look of abuse! There are plenty of amp sim pedals around, for example, the Nano Cortex (Review Here), or the Boss IR-2 (Review Here), or even something like the DemonFX Simple (Review Here). They all range in price and have different features. You have to decide what features you need and buy the one that fits that.
There is no backup option! This is something I am trying to work out with my rig currently! If the main amp sim pedal was to break, I would have no sounds! If a pedal breaks, I can get over it, but if the amp sim goes down, then I would be lost! Do you bring a backup amp? Do you bring a back pedal? This then expands the gear and cost. Something to consider!
FX return and Modeller
This guitar rig is getting more and more popular now! I am seeing a lot more bands (even the big touring bands) using this kind of rig! Using a modeller but running it into the FX return of an actual amp. This allows you to use the preamp on your modeller with all the effects but use the power amp to amplify your sounds through actual on-stage cabs. This gives you on-stage volume and the versatility of a modeller.
Pros
This gives you the best of both worlds! The flexibility of a modeller with all the effects and preamps and then the onstage volume and tone of an actual amp and speaker! Giving you that sense of volume that us guitarists love but also every effect and rig under the sun! Surely this is the perfect option for 99% of guitarists!
Ah huge selling point of this type of rig is that you have a few backup options! If the modeller breaks, you have the amp for backup sound and if the amps break, you can always go straight to the desk! It can feel you with comfort knowing that you have these back-up options at a gig!
Cons
This is one of the guitar rigs with the most to carry! You basically have a full rig! Except you are replacing the pedal board with a modeller! So much the same as the rigs are the start! Pair this with the fact that there is a lot to set up, lots of cables to run and inputs and outputs required, then it leads to a complex and big set up! Of course, it also leads to a bigger stage footprint!
You will have a full amp on the stage as well as your modeller! So again, it is much the same as the guitar rigs at the start! As mentioned, you can also run a dual rig like this! Leading to even more options but also even more gear. This also leads to more weight and also more expense to get it set up! You do need to buy a lot of gear to get this rig set up!
Full Modeller
This is the last type of rig that I am going to cover. A full modeller rig! These are getting more and more popular due to the rising cost in touring and space issues. This is the type of rig where you would use a Helix or Quad Cortex to run your whole rig. Either using it at your feet or running it off timecode. Everything is contained within that box!
Pros
There are two huge selling points for modellers. That is that they don’t take up much space and the constancy. Put a Quad Cortex on the floor and you will see the tiny footprint it takes up! It removes any amps from the stage, and if you run the bass through one as well, then you can free up the stage so much!
The second huge pro is that they are fairly consistent! You save your preset, and then every time you recall it, you know what it is going to sound like! Nothing to warm up, nothing that will fade or break over time! The room doesn’t even affect the tone from the device! It is the same every single time! This is so useful when touring and travelling around for gigs!
Cons
The biggest con for me about full modeller rigs is that to use them effectively, you need a good monitoring solution. I understand there are FRFR cabs, but to me, they are a bit pointless! Why not just take an amp at that point! If you are using a modeller, I am going to assume you will run it straight to the desk, so therefore, you will need to use IEMs really!
There is also a huge learning curve to these devices! Learning the signal flow, controls, inputs, and outputs. This all takes time and makes people a bit scared to try out new things due to the big learning curve!
The bit that I fear about this kind of rig is that there is no backup! If you want to be sure you have a backup, you need to run two of them. If any part of a modeller breaks, that will make it useless, and you have no other option! It isn’t like you can just remove a broken pedal and continue!
Which one is my favourite?
For me, picking a favourite is very hard. If I am doing a wedding or function gig, then I will lean towards the amp, sim, and pedal format. This gives me a huge amount of flexibility and sounds while keeping the rig as small as possible! The issue with wedding and function gigs is floor space, so keeping the footprint small is important!
However, I will always love just plugging into an amplifier, cranking the volume, and playing through that. If I could, I would prefer a dual amp setup, but a single amp is fine! It is just so nice to place an amp on the floor, plug your guitar in, and just rock out! No headphones or mics, just simple and easy to set up!
It is important to realise that not every rig type will suit every situation! If you are playing a simple blues gig, then a full modeller set up might be a bit overkill! In a perfect world, you would want to be able to play and be very comfortable with all kinds of rigs! However, this can be tricky, so I would say get comfortable with an amp and guitar rig and also a modeller rig. These will be the main two kinds of guitar rigs you will need.
Conclusion
Which rig type do you prefer? Do you have a preference when it comes to these different kinds of guitar rigs? Let me know which one you think is the best and also which one you play through? Do you think the points we have made above are true or do you disagree? It was great to list all these different types of guitar rigs and have a think about them all. Some of them I haven’t played much (for multiple reasons).
Some of the links in this article are affiliate links, so if you click them and end up buying anything, then I get a small commission! Helps keep this site running and allows me to bring content to you all.
As I mentioned at the start of this article, it all depends on the situation! You have to think about what you need your guitar rigs for and pick from there! I believe it is important to become familiar with playing all kinds of guitar rigs! Make sure you are comfortable with several types of rigs!
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