Speaker Jack Wiring Question

[arron_13]

Alright, I've been searching around for a while about this and it's really bothering me. I'm pretty sure I have it wired correct, but in my attached image I have the output jack wiring from a 5E3 circuit. I know that the shield and the black wire from the OT are grounded, but what about the signal line (the green wire)? It shows an arrow from the ground symbol pointing at the signal clip. I'm not supposed to ground this as well am I?

[Jag]

That is the schematic symbol for a shorting jack. The jack has a built in "switch" (the arrow on the symbol) that opens when there is a plug inserted into the jack. Since an open on the secondary of the OT is more of a problem than a short, if you forget to plug in a speaker cab the OT secondary will be shorted and will help to save the OT until you figure out why you have no sound and plug in a cab.

Note: this does not mean you can run the amp without a load.

[Jag]

BTW, you don't have to use a shorting jack, it's merely a "safety" measure so you don't blow your OT. If you never forget to plug in the cab you'll be fine. Even if you do forget, you'll probably be okay as long as you don't keep slamming chords wondering why there's no sound from your amp.