The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

O

OlinMusic

New member
Everyone here is mostly a tube head junkie. Esp vintage-y sounds.

In the 90s, racks sucked if you ask me. But now they can be pretty amazing.

anyone use a rack system? TC Electronics? Mesa TriAxis? Rackmount heads? Bradhsaw systems? Bogner Fish pre? Soldano Caswell?

What did you think?
Do racks look "dates"?
Do you feel they are versatile?
Is the tone comparable to a great tube head?
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

I still use a Kasha Rockmod preamp for some sessions. Now with my Atomic amps, it gives me a smaller portable unit to run it through rather than bring a whole rack setup, which I don't have anymore due to downsizing.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

The most impressive rack setup that I've seen belongs to TattooedCarrot.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

I do..
in my 6 space rack i gots:
boss gt-pro (guitar preamp/effects)
furman power conditioner
echoplex digital pro looping device
roland xv-5050 synth (triggered by guitar)
boss vf-1 (piezo signal of guitar)
roland gi-10 midi interface.

these signals get mixed with a mackie 1202vlz mixer.

this is controlled by a behringer fcb1010 midi pedal, and a few boss fs-5u unlatching pedals.

I don't care how it 'looks', btw. And I like tube amps, I just can't use one with this setup without bringing out a lot more gear and it would color the sound too much, so this works for me. i am not particularly trying to get tube amp sounds though- in fact i am looking for pretty weird ones, i guess. some of it sounds nothing like a guitar. but for guitar sounds, yes, i have cloned a few tube amps' sounds after a lot of recording and tweaking, so it works just fine for me.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Im not one for rack amp rigs, Im using a TC GSystem now though, and just loving it, very versatile, very controllable, im a big advocate of them,
Ty
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Well, they couldn't have sucked in the 90's, because everything you mentioned came out in the early 90's! LOL

I went through a bit of rack-itis in the early 90's, and came to the conclusion that a having 100 midi mapped channels wasn't worth breaking my back, lifting a 200 lb rack and 2 cabs. Then, I stripped it down to a 8 space SKB, pre, power, 1 FX unit, and a power strip. Then, I realized it didn't even sound as full and immediate as a simple head. The signal just loses all it's dynamic range and harmonic content, running through all that spaghetti. I ended up going to single channel amps for tone, for 7 years. And finally, I realized I needed some of the versatility of racks, but still wanted a head that sounded as good as the single channel amps......enter the Ecstasy.

How's that for inducing more GAS on you!!! LOL
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Gearjoneser said:
Well, they couldn't have sucked in the 90's, because everything you mentioned came out in the early 90's! LOL

I went through a bit of rack-itis in the early 90's, and came to the conclusion that a having 100 midi mapped channels wasn't worth breaking my back, lifting a 200 lb rack and 2 cabs. Then, I stripped it down to a 8 space SKB, pre, power, 1 FX unit, and a power strip. Then, I realized it didn't even sound as full and immediate as a simple head. The signal just loses all it's dynamic range and harmonic content, running through all that spaghetti. I ended up going to single channel amps for tone, for 7 years. And finally, I realized I needed some of the versatility of racks, but still wanted a head that sounded as good as the single channel amps......enter the Ecstasy.

How's that for inducing more GAS on you!!! LOL
Click to expand...
That would be me as well. I had a tri axis in a skb rack with power strip and multi effects processer all midi setup with all kinds of presets in stereo running between 2 cabs. The stereo cleans were very cool but I still like the percusive response I get out of a 50 watt head for distortion. I miss the stereo effects and the presets but I found the more simple the setup the more I like the tone. Its a tradeoff honestly.
:beerchug:
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Technology has moved on such that amps are much more versatile now. 2,3 and 4 channel heads/combos are the norm and some (Laney, Engl, Hughes & Kettner, Diezel etc) are fully midi controllable. The only advantage I see these days (unless your a pro musician with roadies!!), is that a rack is pre wired ready to go.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

I ran a

VHT 2/50/2
VHT GP-3
A handful of pedals (I don't care for effects units, in general)
Marshall 1965A 4x10
Marshall 1966A 2x12

Very versatile & massive tube amp sound. :bigok:
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Rocker35 said:
Technology has moved on such that amps are much more versatile now. 2,3 and 4 channel heads/combos are the norm and some (Laney, Engl, Hughes & Kettner, Diezel etc) are fully midi controllable. The only advantage I see these days (unless your a pro musician with roadies!!), is that a rack is pre wired ready to go.
Click to expand...

Pre wired and ready to go is something a rack definitely isn´t... At least not until it´s "finished"

It´s all about flexibility / tonal pallette.... if like me you run a dry, bass heavy, all aouund powerful signal on one side and a clearer more cutting signal on teh other side with light effects, then you´re either carrying 2 heads, 2 effects processors and 2 speakers, or one rack and 2 speakers ;)

In my case, using a rack is necessary because I don´t have roadies but refuse to compromise on tone by leaving half my rig at home....

I went from a huge rack to a single head with 0 effects now back to a 10 space rack.... my racked tone and my head sound nearly identical...
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Some of the best tones I've heard live came from a mesa triaxis --> g force --> mesa power amp setup. If I had to start from scratch, I'd probably save up for that. I have never been a fan of mesa until I heard that.

I guess it just doesn't feel as natural as having a real amp in front of you that you can tweak as you go... but I guess you'd get used to it and I'd say the versitility is worth it.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

At the moment, I have an eight space rack loaded with:

Furman
Korg DRT-1
Lexicon MPX 500
Mesa/Boogie Mark IV rackmount head

My pedalboard consists of:
Mark IV controller
ADA 4x4 (four button midi footswitch)
Morley Bad Horsie
Boss OC-2

It's not the huge rack rig I ran in the mid 90s, but it is very effective. My reasons for a rack are simple. I wanted professional "in the loop" effects, without having to run 40 feet of cable from my pedalboard. I have yet to find a chorus, delay or reverb pedal that touches my Lexicon. I keep it racked up for simplicity. I only have to run four chords from my pedal board. Everything in the rack stays put. By using the Mark IV, I still have a dedicated amp. I'm just running it all through the FX loop. If I want it completely dry, I just shut the loop off.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

I run a rack setup. I find it to give me a tone that I like over the tones I've gotten from combos and amp heads.

My rig is:
- ADA MP-1 3TM
- Rocktron Replifex
- VHT 2502

For floor pedals, I use:
- Dime Wah DB-01
- Boss NS-2
- MXR Microamp

The many shows i've played, I've had atleast 1 or 2 people from each show compliment my tone.

Dont let "looks" fool you. Just because rack setups were used back in the 80s and 90s, doesnt mean they wont sound just as good today... and possibly less expensive than most amps sold now days.


Good luck!
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Well JOE, I meant from the 80's ADA MP1 sound all the way to now I think it's come a long way...lol

I am impressed with the TriAxis, but YES YOU GOT ME... YOUR PM GOT ME, I want an Ecstasy. I love every amp and rig I have played as of late, but it's like Lexus vs Bentley.

I have always found racks thin, but some people nail the tone. I just feel it's too much work, and like you said, lacks immediacy.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

My main power is a '68 Fender head, and I think that's the often weakest link in people's racks. The power section is what takes it from a "sum of parts" to truly a "head" sound. I have a rack because I want to have access to all the goofy fx sounds, but that's not really it. I can do that in an effects loop of a head. I use stereo more as a "dual mono" in most cases, and I have about 7 different preamps I can choose from or blend. So I'm really creating an old-school, real live version of a modelling amp, with two discreet channels at all times. I blend a lot like what Zerb was describing. I'll have a lo/hi huge sound coming out of my 15" and 2x10 cabs, while a fat midrange comes out my 2x12.

Everything is wired so it can be bypassed, too. So I can pare it down to something like the Mesa Quad tube preamp into the Fender head, or maybe with a little EQ and reverb. So if you approach a rack like you're making your own head, then they can sound good. But two or three multiFX boxes, or the lack of access to a totally dry signal is where racks start to sound like racks. That's why all of that gear is looped in and out, so when not in use, it's GONE!

This is NOT for gigging anymore, just recording. Although if I ever do take it out, it's just a couple cables to hook up, and I'm ready to go. My portable rig is still a rack, basically a rack tube pre/power and one fx box, and is a very easy hookup, too. I can also pull out any preamp I want (Marshall, Boogie, vintage, shred, blues, whatever) and travel with that into the Fender head for an instant hot-rodded head. I want more versatility than I can get from one head, and I have an allergy to modelling amps. I'd probably only keep a head for a year or so, but with the rack, I have kept lots of gear for over a decade.
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

OlinMusic said:
Well JOE, I meant from the 80's

I have always found racks thin, but some people nail the tone. I just feel it's too much work, and like you said, lacks immediacy.
Click to expand...

I kinda figured you meant the 80's. Some of that stuff didn't even sound as good as a modern day modeling amp. In the early 90's, everyone was going the rack route, and Mesa, Marshall, and VHT really spearheaded that, and that stuff DID sound better than modern modelers.

I'd never knock high quality rack rigs, because if you know how to hook one up, they sound awesome. Less is more, is the key. Unfortunately, we kept seeing these impressive monster racks from guys like VH, Petrucci, and Vernon Reid, and got conned into thinking it was better. Like some of the other posters in this thread have learned......the tone is much more immediate and clear when you just used a pre, 1 FX, and power amp. Everything else just clutters the sound, except maybe a BBE Sonic Maximizer.

Sometimes, I wish I still had every single rig I've ever used, so I could compare them. In my mind, I think I know all the differences. I wish like hell we were in the computer age with digital cameras back then. I need to get a scanner so I can digitize some of my pictures. :smack:
 
Re: The MODERN RACK setup - good or bad thing?

Ha! How funny. I just started to set-up a rack rig. It is even 90's style! I use all the stuff I can find.

Dale
 
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