NickCormier
New member
So I finally have the main pieces of my rig completed! It is a 2-piece that was custom build by some guy in Ontario, although his prices are very good and can do whatever you want, There was some issues that made me somewhat disappointed, so I will not mention who the company is, but if you are interested PM me and I'll give you the details. I don't want to slander the guy, since overall im pretty happy, but there was some big oversights.
Back-story;; For the past 2 years, I have been playing gigs with a 4U rack (with a Carvin T100 and Pod X3) and a 1x12 cabinet mic'd. It was an awesome sounding rig, but I got the craving for a combo, thinking how easier it would be to lug around one piece of gear instead of a rack and a cabinet. Combos always seemed cool to me, but you can't get the diversity that a rack gives you.
So I bought a Carvin XV112 and customized it up the only way I know how; Blue tolex and lighter-weight cabinet. It was a good project, but it left me wanting more diversity, along with my sudden switch to playing Bass more often, I decided to go back to Racks.
(here is the famed blue Carvin XV112 for reference, I'll try to keep it forever, its still quite cool)
So, Around July of last year, I had this crazy idea of having a 4U rack space with a 1x12 cab underneath it, basically making a rack combo. I figured I would try that out in the future, but it wasn't until March that I finally decided to nail out the exact dimensions and send them to the builder. I figured that a 6U rack spacing would work better, despite being even more awkward looking, but having that extra 2U is extremely beneficial if I do decide to change my setup. Someday I wouldn't mind putting a Mesa Mark IV in here, along with an effects unit (GSP1101) and a power conditioner, so 6U would give me the space to do that.
Right now, the rack contains the following:
1U Furman M8 Power conditioner (bought used for $35)
2U Vented Rack Panel with 4 Blue LED lights in a cross-pattern ($20)
1U Digitech GSP1101 (used for $350)
Not quite a unit, but Carvin BX500 Bass head ($450)
Eminence Basslite 12" Speaker ($100, handles guitar surprisingly well)
(The BX500 is basically the same as the Carvin DCM poweramps, with a 12ax7 tube to warm it up abit. I go direct into the BX500 for bass, but go GSP1101 into the return for guitar, and it sounds solid)
The End plan for this rack when its completed:
1U Furman AR-1215 Voltage Regulator (~$300)
2U Vented Rack panel with LED lights (have)
1U Digitech GSP1101 (have)
Hughes & Kettner BATT (bass preamp that has EL84 power tube, ~$400)
2U Carvin DCM, or maybe the new Carvin BX1500 (~$300 or ~$500)
That would warm up my SS section with the EL84, giving me some nice power tube saturation yet still keeping everything lightweight and small enough to fit in the rack.
Also made by the same guy, is my Vertical 2x12 bass cabinet on the bottom. Its modeled after the Genz Benz 2x12 vertical bass cab, exact same dimensions with the exception of the top-corner handles. It does sound pretty damn nice, although I am currently looking for some PA-style speakers to handle guitar and bass. Im quite happy with it though, despite the huge ports looking kinda funny.
Anyways, As I was saying, while the RackCab was completed, there was a few issues. First off, the guy didn't measure the rack width and it ended up being around 19 3/4", which is quite a large oversight since I sent him the Vented rack panel to test it, but he ignored that request. It was fixed with some washers, but bleh. Second, I got some Rack screws from JJ Rodriguez, standard ones (we all know hes a rack whore), but they didn't fit in the threads! So I had to go find some other screws, my dad had some but they are chrome, so it doesn't match exactly great. Will have to replace them later.
And now the point you've all been waiting for.. Pictures!
My camera really blows, so I couldnt really get a good "In the dark" shot.. This is the best I could get. I have to measure and reposition the lights so they are even, but thats just a test. Its cool how it is now, because the two sides of my walls are all blue vented lighting, It will give a really cool effect on stage I bet.
Here is the back of the Rackcab, As you can see the Speaker input jack is inside the rack, making cabling very tidy and transportable. It also has the ability to be a open-back or half-open back cab.
Back-story;; For the past 2 years, I have been playing gigs with a 4U rack (with a Carvin T100 and Pod X3) and a 1x12 cabinet mic'd. It was an awesome sounding rig, but I got the craving for a combo, thinking how easier it would be to lug around one piece of gear instead of a rack and a cabinet. Combos always seemed cool to me, but you can't get the diversity that a rack gives you.
So I bought a Carvin XV112 and customized it up the only way I know how; Blue tolex and lighter-weight cabinet. It was a good project, but it left me wanting more diversity, along with my sudden switch to playing Bass more often, I decided to go back to Racks.
(here is the famed blue Carvin XV112 for reference, I'll try to keep it forever, its still quite cool)
So, Around July of last year, I had this crazy idea of having a 4U rack space with a 1x12 cab underneath it, basically making a rack combo. I figured I would try that out in the future, but it wasn't until March that I finally decided to nail out the exact dimensions and send them to the builder. I figured that a 6U rack spacing would work better, despite being even more awkward looking, but having that extra 2U is extremely beneficial if I do decide to change my setup. Someday I wouldn't mind putting a Mesa Mark IV in here, along with an effects unit (GSP1101) and a power conditioner, so 6U would give me the space to do that.
Right now, the rack contains the following:
1U Furman M8 Power conditioner (bought used for $35)
2U Vented Rack Panel with 4 Blue LED lights in a cross-pattern ($20)
1U Digitech GSP1101 (used for $350)
Not quite a unit, but Carvin BX500 Bass head ($450)
Eminence Basslite 12" Speaker ($100, handles guitar surprisingly well)
(The BX500 is basically the same as the Carvin DCM poweramps, with a 12ax7 tube to warm it up abit. I go direct into the BX500 for bass, but go GSP1101 into the return for guitar, and it sounds solid)
The End plan for this rack when its completed:
1U Furman AR-1215 Voltage Regulator (~$300)
2U Vented Rack panel with LED lights (have)
1U Digitech GSP1101 (have)
Hughes & Kettner BATT (bass preamp that has EL84 power tube, ~$400)
2U Carvin DCM, or maybe the new Carvin BX1500 (~$300 or ~$500)
That would warm up my SS section with the EL84, giving me some nice power tube saturation yet still keeping everything lightweight and small enough to fit in the rack.
Also made by the same guy, is my Vertical 2x12 bass cabinet on the bottom. Its modeled after the Genz Benz 2x12 vertical bass cab, exact same dimensions with the exception of the top-corner handles. It does sound pretty damn nice, although I am currently looking for some PA-style speakers to handle guitar and bass. Im quite happy with it though, despite the huge ports looking kinda funny.
Anyways, As I was saying, while the RackCab was completed, there was a few issues. First off, the guy didn't measure the rack width and it ended up being around 19 3/4", which is quite a large oversight since I sent him the Vented rack panel to test it, but he ignored that request. It was fixed with some washers, but bleh. Second, I got some Rack screws from JJ Rodriguez, standard ones (we all know hes a rack whore), but they didn't fit in the threads! So I had to go find some other screws, my dad had some but they are chrome, so it doesn't match exactly great. Will have to replace them later.
And now the point you've all been waiting for.. Pictures!
My camera really blows, so I couldnt really get a good "In the dark" shot.. This is the best I could get. I have to measure and reposition the lights so they are even, but thats just a test. Its cool how it is now, because the two sides of my walls are all blue vented lighting, It will give a really cool effect on stage I bet.
Here is the back of the Rackcab, As you can see the Speaker input jack is inside the rack, making cabling very tidy and transportable. It also has the ability to be a open-back or half-open back cab.
