In this video, Eric gives a complete breakdown on how to split your guitar tracks. This is really useful to either record from two separate amps, or record a dry track along with your guitar amp.
How to Record Your Amp and Direct at the Same Time
In this video, Eric shows how to record your electric guitar both through a physical amplifier and directly into your DAW at the same time. This technique gives you the best of both worlds — you capture the tone and character of your amp while also keeping a clean direct (DI) track you can re‑amp or process later. (youtube.com)
What Dual Recording Is
What It Is:
Eric defines this method as splitting your guitar signal so one feed goes to your amplifier (captured with a microphone) and the other goes directly into your audio interface. This means you simultaneously get:
- AMP TRACK — the sound of your real amp and mic tone
- DIRECT TRACK (DI) — a clean, uncolored version of your performance
The direct track gives you flexibility in mixing and re‑amping later, while the amp track gives you the organic feel of your actual rig.
How to Set It Up
Step‑by‑Step:
- Use a Splitter or ABY Box: Split your guitar’s signal so one goes to your amp and one goes to your audio interface.
- Mic Your Amp: Place a microphone on your speaker cabinet to capture the amp’s tone and room character.
- Record DI at the Same Time: Send the split signal into your interface’s instrument input so Studio One records a clean direct track as you play.
- Monitor Both Signals: Use low‑latency monitoring so you hear the amp tone while tracking while the DAW also captures the DI signal.
This setup ensures you preserve your amp’s tone while still having a clean reference source for mixing or re‑amping decisions later.
Why You’d Do This
Benefits:
- Tone flexibility: You can blend the amp track and DI signal in the mix for the best balance of character and clarity.
- Re‑amping: The clean DI track lets you try different amp tones later without re‑recording.
- Backup: If the amp take isn’t perfect, having the DI gives you more options in editing and mixing.
By recording both at once, you safeguard your performance and expand your creative choices during mixdown.
Conclusion
Recording your guitar both through your amp and directly into Studio One gives you recording freedom and tone flexibility. Eric’s walkthrough shows how to split your signal, capture amp character with a mic, and keep a clean DI track — so you can mix with confidence and even re‑shape your guitar tones later in your production workflow.
Watch the full video here: https://youtu.be/HB9GAfgnetQ
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