What cable/adapter do i need to split and record from a guitar amplifier?

Question

i really dont know how stereo/mono and all that happens inside the cables, so here goes. i have a guitar amp that has a headphone/line-out jack, so im thinking i want to split that with a Y cable (splitter) and have one end going to a headphone so i can use it as a monitor and the other into the mic-in on my laptop. its plenty plausible, but when i bought a stereo 1/4" to 1/4" Y cable today, i realized that the signal gets split and all that junk...so what would be the best way to do this? im assuming the signal from the amp doesnt have to be stereo, since it is just me playing the guitar in it. it'd be greatly appreciated if somebody could tell me when/where i would want to use stereo or mono cable (and do 1/8" and 1/4" cables work interchangeably when recording something like a guitar amp signal?) thanks!

Answer 1

Yes, a Y cable will work, but you're better off putting a mic on the amp itself & not using the headphones..  This preserves the sound of the amp, which is usually pretty important to the guitar player.  That's the way it's done in the studio.  You don't need a stereo 'balanced' cable.  They'll have what you need at guitar center.  Just a 1/4" Y, or splitter adapter.  Quarter and eighth cables work the same.. you just have to have the adapters.

Answer 2

sounds like you know enough about cables already... just make sure everything you run from a guitar amp is mono in/ mono out, generally speaking. but listen carefully, do not run a signal into the mic input of your laptop or computer. you can run a signal into the line-in of a desktop, or if your laptop has a line-in jack. the only thing you should plug into a mic-input is a standard microphone to not fry anything.