General FAQs

This section will expand as and when I have time, if you have a question then please Email it to me, and it may well get added here.

Categories
General amp questions
Valve questions

If you haven't already, please read my Valve Primer page, as it outlines several key principles that make valve amps a lot easier to understand.

1) Why can't I plug my cabs in with a guitar cable?

Guitar cables are made to carry low voltages at extremely low currents. Speakers are driven by many times more current than a guitar cable is ever meant to handle, so if you do this for any length of time, the insulation in the cable will melt, and the output of your amp will be shorted. This often leads to the power tubes in your amp arcing out.

2) What should I make speaker cables with?

I use iron flex. The fabric sheath makes it extra tough (more than enough to pass the cymbal test), and it is rated for at least 13A at 240V, which gives plenty of safety margin with guitar amps. I use Neutrik plugs with this, as they are solidly constructed, and I have never managed to break one short of setting about it with a lump hammer.

3) What should I make guitar cables with?

This is a bit of aquired knowledge from the folks at MonkeyFX
For plugs I like Neutrik, either from Studiospares or CPC or Rapid. Klotz La Grange for long cables, Sommer Spirit for shorter. They're both clear sounding, but the Sommer is more flexible and the Klotz more tangle-resistant, again from Studio Spares.