Three Rigs, One Pedalboard: Mono, Stereo, and Wet/Dry/Wet Without Rewiring
- Rich Cattell
- Jan 19
- 3 min read
Updated: Jan 20
Most pedalboards are built around a single assumption: this is how the rig will always be used.
One amp. One room. One way of playing.
The problem is that real-world use rarely stays that fixed. Players move between:
Home practice
Rehearsal rooms
Small stages
Larger stages
Recording environments
And each of those contexts quietly asks for something different from a rig.
The friction comes from trying to force one fixed pedalboard to behave like several different ones.
Short version:
Most pedalboards are designed for one output configuration. Parallel routing allows the same board to adapt to mono, stereo, or wet/dry/wet setups without changing connections. This article shows what that flexibility looks like in real-world use.
The Usual Way This Problem Is Solved
Traditionally, players deal with changing contexts by:
Rebuilding boards
Repatching outputs
Adding temporary splitters
Owning multiple pedalboards
Compromising and “making it work”
None of these approaches are wrong — they’re just inefficient.
They treat each setup as a separate problem, instead of recognising that the signal flow itself is what needs to be flexible.
The Shift: One Board, Multiple Outcomes
When routing is handled properly, the pedalboard stops being tied to a single output format.
The same pedals, same order, same settings can support:
A simple mono rig
A wide stereo setup
A wet/dry stage rig
A full wet/dry/wet system
The difference isn’t the pedals. It’s how the signal is distributed at the end.
Scenario 1: Mono (Practice, Recording, Small Gigs)
In a mono setup:
All effects are blended together
Everything feeds a single amp or input
Parallel routing still matters here.
Because effects are mixed alongside the dry signal rather than stacked on top of it:
Reverb adds space without blurring attack
Delay sits behind the note
Modulation adds movement without reshaping the core tone
The rig stays simple — but more controlled.
Scenario 2: Stereo (Space Without Losing Focus)
In a stereo setup:
Effects can be spread across left and right outputs
Stereo delays and reverbs finally behave as intended
This is where many pedalboards claim to be stereo — but quietly aren’t.
With proper routing:
Left and right paths remain independent
Spatial effects don’t collapse back to mono
Width feels intentional rather than accidental
The result isn’t just “bigger.” It’s clearer.
Scenario 3: Wet/Dry (Punch and Space Together)
Wet/dry setups separate responsibilities:
One amp carries the dry core tone
The other carries the effects
This gives you:
Immediate attack and feel from the dry amp
Spacious effects without washing out the note
It’s a powerful approach — but traditionally awkward to implement on a pedalboard.
With parallel routing, it becomes a natural extension of the same board you use in mono or stereo.
Scenario 4: Wet/Dry/Wet (Maximum Separation)
Wet/dry/wet builds on the same idea:
Dry amp in the centre
Stereo wet amps left and right
This setup delivers:
Clarity
Width
Depth
Consistent feel under the fingers
Importantly, it doesn’t require a different pedalboard — just an additional output.
The routing logic stays the same.
What Changes for the Player
When one board supports all of these setups:
You stop rebuilding your rig for every context
Settings translate reliably between environments
Effects behave consistently
The board feels finished rather than provisional
The pedalboard becomes infrastructure, not a temporary solution.
Where the Parallelarator Fits
This kind of flexibility requires routing that:
Keeps effects independent
Preserves the dry signal
Adapts automatically to the number of outputs in use
The Parallelarator was designed specifically for this role.
It isn’t something you switch in and out. It sits on the board, quietly handling distribution so the rest of the rig can behave predictably.
The same pedals. The same settings. Different outcomes.
Why This Matters Long-Term
Most pedalboards don’t fail because of bad pedals.
They fail because they’re built around assumptions that stop being true.
A routing system that adapts with you:
Reduces friction
three-rigs-one-pedalboard-mono-stereo-and-wet-dry-wet-without-rewiring
Extends the useful life of your board
Lets you add or remove complexity without rebuilding everything
That’s not about excess. It’s about durability.
Next step
At this point, it’s reasonable to ask whether this level of flexibility is genuinely useful — or just unnecessary complication.
That question is worth addressing directly.