And the Roadster Reigns SUPREME (Owners look)!!!

[ibanez4life SZ!]

Hey guys!

I've got a little tone story / advice for my fellow Roadster and Rectifier owners.

First of all, my Roadster has Tung Sol EL-34Bs in the poweramp, and a Tung Sol 12AX7 in V1. I run it into a Mills 4x12 with V30s.

My time with the Roadster has been a great, yet frustrating one. It is the most versatile amp I've ever played. ALL the tones are the best I've ever gotten except for the high gain ones. For me, the Roadster is significantly darker than most other rectifiers, and I've struggled with that. To compensate for this, I've always hit the front end of the amp with a Maxon OD808.

More recently, I grabbed a Bogner Uberschall, and it was really refreshing to get an aggressive and tight tone without any pedals. The amp was REALLY brutal...I felt like it put my Roadster to shame.

Two weeks later, I sat down with the two amps, and for the first time in a long time, I went back to tweak my Roadster. I ran straight in....no boost this time...I figured I was going to fail hard, as I usually got nothing but flub without the boost. I then tried something that I usually don't with Rectifiers, and simple pushed the gain higher than I ever have...3:00.

WOW! The amp completely woke up. Tight, aggressive, and FAT like I've never heard before, and this is all without a boost!!!! You have NO idea how happy I am with my tones right now. Some of this HAS to be due to my Mills Acoustics cab, as I'm running gain and bass at 3:00 with the PERFECT tone...I'm not sure a regular cab would handle this. Funny thing is, it put the Uberschall to complete shame.

So, my Mesa reigns supreme. The Roadster made the Uberschall sounds compressed and hollow. Funny, because after the first week of owning both amps, I thought the Roadster was going to go.

Now that I think of it, it makes sense....the Roadster is a darker smoother rectifier. To achieve this, they have less treble and gain in the tone stack. By pushing the gain and treble a little harder than usual, I have the perfect balance of the aggressive regular rectifier sounds, and the smoother more pleasant gain that the Roadster has become known for.

****So, my advice to Roadster owners****
-Push the gain harder on your high gain channels. My Roadster REALLY puts out at these settings....I'm a little in awe to be honest...I didn't know a rectifier could be this tight yet pleasant without a boost?
-Forget what you know about setting a regular rectifier. Use your ears, and not your prior knowledge on these amps. The more I own it, the more I realize that this amp likes REALLY unconventional settings.
-Mess with it. It's been a year since I bought it, and I FINALLY got this amp right. Mesa made no mistakes on this model...every channel has gold in it.

Enjoy!

Eric

 

[b0nkersx]

Is this on the modern mode, and do you still use the boost ever with the channel set up this way?

Glad you found what you wanted, man.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

This is on Channel 4 Modern.

I'm thinking about using a boost infront for 'crazy tight obscenely brutal' tones, but it doesn't need it at all :twisted:

 

[mikey383]

Don't you normally mess with all the knobs and try every variation before coming to a conclusion?

If that's not the case, I'd really hate to see you trying out other amps.

Every amp is different, even if they may be based off the same design. You wouldn't try to set a Soldano the same as a Recto, correct?

 

[b0nkersx]

Don't you normally mess with all the knobs and try every variation before coming to a conclusion?

If that's not the case, I'd really hate to see you trying out other amps.

Every amp is different, even if they may be based off the same design. You wouldn't try to set a Soldano the same as a Recto, correct?

I mean, to be fair, if you consider the settings 1-10 for gain, treble, middle, bass, presence, then there are 10^5 (10x10x10x10x10, or 100,000) different variations of five knobs on one channel alone. Then double that number every time you change tubes (A/Bing) or anything similar (the number isn't anywhere close to exact, since I've never heard of anybody using below 3 on treble, or above 7 on presence for example, but there's also all the points in between.. also, lol nerdalert). Also, I think he was trying every variation before he came to his final conclusion, or else he probably woulda sold the Roadster a week ago.

I know I'm being pedantic, but all I'm really trying to say is with the way the controls interact on a recto, it's worth mentioning to others when crazy settings work out well IMO.

 

[jdurso]

Don't you normally mess with all the knobs and try every variation before coming to a conclusion?

If that's not the case, I'd really hate to see you trying out other amps.

Every amp is different, even if they may be based off the same design. You wouldn't try to set a Soldano the same as a Recto, correct?

Yeah but Eric has come from other Rectos before and i would say most of us here would say MOST of the recto series turns to flub with the gain past 1. Plus Eric has had his Roadster for a while and has gone through the trying every variation mode.

 

[jdurso]

Hey guys!

I've got a little tone story / advice for my fellow Roadster and Rectifier owners.

First of all, my Roadster has Tung Sol EL-34Bs in the poweramp, and a Tung Sol 12AX7 in V1. I run it into a Mills 4x12 with V30s.

My time with the Roadster has been a great, yet frustrating one. It is the most versatile amp I've ever played. ALL the tones are the best I've ever gotten except for the high gain ones. For me, the Roadster is significantly darker than most other rectifiers, and I've struggled with that. To compensate for this, I've always hit the front end of the amp with a Maxon OD808.

More recently, I grabbed a Bogner Uberschall, and it was really refreshing to get an aggressive and tight tone without any pedals. The amp was REALLY brutal...I felt like it put my Roadster to shame.

Two weeks later, I sat down with the two amps, and for the first time in a long time, I went back to tweak my Roadster. I ran straight in....no boost this time...I figured I was going to fail hard, as I usually got nothing but flub without the boost. I then tried something that I usually don't with Rectifiers, and simple pushed the gain higher than I ever have...3:00.

WOW! The amp completely woke up. Tight, aggressive, and FAT like I've never heard before, and this is all without a boost!!!! You have NO idea how happy I am with my tones right now. Some of this HAS to be due to my Mills Acoustics cab, as I'm running gain and bass at 3:00 with the PERFECT tone...I'm not sure a regular cab would handle this. Funny thing is, it put the Uberschall to complete shame.

So, my Mesa reigns supreme. The Roadster made the Uberschall sounds compressed and hollow. Funny, because after the first week of owning both amps, I thought the Roadster was going to go.

Now that I think of it, it makes sense....the Roadster is a darker smoother rectifier. To achieve this, they have less treble and gain in the tone stack. By pushing the gain and treble a little harder than usual, I have the perfect balance of the aggressive regular rectifier sounds, and the smoother more pleasant gain that the Roadster has become known for.

****So, my advice to Roadster owners****
-Push the gain harder on your high gain channels. My Roadster REALLY puts out at these settings....I'm a little in awe to be honest...I didn't know a rectifier could be this tight yet pleasant without a boost?
-Forget what you know about setting a regular rectifier. Use your ears, and not your prior knowledge on these amps. The more I own it, the more I realize that this amp likes REALLY unconventional settings.
-Mess with it. It's been a year since I bought it, and I FINALLY got this amp right. Mesa made no mistakes on this model...every channel has gold in it.

Enjoy!

Eric

Eric what are the rest of your settings on channel 4? I know you said Modern and I'm assuming Diodes but how about the rest (especially your presence).

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

To mikey, ofcourse I tweak my amps. That's what the knobs are for. I'm just really surprised at how this amp reacted with the gain set so high. I always run my amps with lower gain for clarity. With the gain at noon, the high gain channels were nothing but mud. When I hit the 3 o'clock mark, the amp REALLY tightened up and came alive. I've owned 2 other rectifiers, and anything past 1 o'clock on the gain knob sounded like garbage. The Roadster is no the case.

Just sharing my finding with other owners...sometimes, crazy settings that don't make sense work out. I'm trying to make it easier for others using the amp.

Eric

Settings....btw...the amp is playing LOUD!

Channel 4: Modern
Diodes, 100W
Presence: 9:30
Gain: 3:00
Bass: 3:00
Mids: 12:00
Treble: 2:00

 

[YellowJacket]

Some of this HAS to be due to my Mills Acoustics cab, as I'm running gain and bass at 3:00 with the PERFECT tone...I'm not sure a regular cab would handle this.

I have found the same thing with my Dual hooked up to my Thiele 2 x 12. With my Rectocab, the amp can't handle above about 1:00 on modern mode, but with the thiele, it is much more clear, even with more extreme gain settings.

 

[jdurso]

To mikey, ofcourse I tweak my amps. That's what the knobs are for. I'm just really surprised at how this amp reacted with the gain set so high. I always run my amps with lower gain for clarity. With the gain at noon, the high gain channels were nothing but mud. When I hit the 3 o'clock mark, the amp REALLY tightened up and came alive. I've owned 2 other rectifiers, and anything past 1 o'clock on the gain knob sounded like garbage. The Roadster is no the case.

Just sharing my finding with other owners...sometimes, crazy settings that don't make sense work out. I'm trying to make it easier for others using the amp.

Eric

Settings....btw...the amp is playing LOUD!

Channel 4: Modern
Diodes, 100W
Presence: 9:30
Gain: 3:00
Bass: 3:00
Mids: 12:00
Treble: 2:00

Hmmm.... my settings are VERY similar minus the gain and when i run the gain that high it doesnt sound clear. i think it may have to do with your power tubes plus the mills because the only thing i'm missing from your equation is the el34s. I'll have to pickup a set and try this (or maybe some kt77s)

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

The Tung Sol EL-34s are amazing. Definitely give them a try.

I'm also using a Tremonti Treble birdge pickup...don't know if this setup just happens to be the first fit for my picking/technique, but the sound is just awesome!

Eric

 

[KH Guitar Freak]

I do use a PRS Tremonti USA I guitar with stock pickups, but I never run the gain that high up either, even with Winged C 6L6s. Perhaps your preamp valves are slightly lower gained???

 

[Rydock]

So you're saying that your new unboosted tone was better than any boosted tone you could've ever made? Recently, I've also been tweaking tones with my boost off. I've gotten some nice high gain metal tones, but that's because I really like the loose character of the roadster/recto. I've always played with a boost, but unboosted sounds really good too, and goes against everything I've learned about high gain tones.

I'm really unsure about the direction I want with my tone. I've convinced myself that I love the recto tone (and always have), but I've been considering EL34s lately. I really won't know what the results are unless I play a roadster with 34s. I play lead in my band, so I like lots of mid range and el34s seems to help with that from what I hear. But definitely I love the "recto" sound for rhythm, and I'm afraid I might lose that if I get el34s.

Are you able to post clips of your roadster? I like the direction you are going with your tone, but I think your rig is overkill for what I'm aiming for. I used to run a rack rig, but I've completely downsized and I'm just running the roadster with some pedals.

 

[siggy14]

I was thinking last night as I was playing my Roadking, how come if i crank the volume it gets a little flubby with the cab, then I started thinking to myself. The Pro's use more then one cab and I am wondering how much of a difference it would make if I start using two cabs since it will split the amount of wattage going to each cab. I am thinking I can go higher in volume without getting flub right away!

 

[budlovesaly]

Not necessarily. A lot of those cabs you see at shows are for looks.

 

[siggy14]

Yeah but most pro's I know use at least 2, alot of times it is a 4x12 and a 2x12.

Not necessarily. A lot of those cabs you see at shows are for looks.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

To KH Guitar Freak, it's definitely possible, but considering I have a high gain Tung Sol in V1, I'd have to doubt it a bit....

To Rydock, yes, I like this tone A LOT better than any boosted one I used before. The boosted tone was significantly more compressed and a tiny bit more fluid, but this new tone is just HUGE, and feels a lot more natural to me...it just feels like a REALLY ticked off recto :twisted:, and I really love having that behind my fingers. Much more aggressive and dynamic IMO.

With my setup now, the regular sound isn't really loose at all. It just comes down to the amount of compression in the sound. The Boosted sound is much more compressed and linear, while the unboosted one just sounds and feels more dynamic, and in turn, real IMO.

If you like your mids, and consider yourself a lead player, you should take a serious look at EL-34s. I use the Tung Sol EL-34Bs, and I can honestly say that I didn't loose anything in my Rhythm tone...if anything, I like it more now. The biggest difference was in the midrange, and I'm VERY happy with how things came out.

And to siggy, I've definitely noticed that amps react differently to more speakers. Each individual speaker isn't working as hard. With these Mills cabs, it's a whole different story though. All this is with only ONE of my cabs....gain and bass to 3 o'clock, with the output at noon....all I can say is LOUD and MEAN. The cab holds up without a problem. There is just something to the Mills design...it can handle anything you throw at it at any volume....I don't mean to toot my whistle by praising my gear, but the cabinet just stays together under any circumstances.....definitely worth the investment!

Eric

 

[Rydock]

For what reason did you choose diodes over tube rectos? I remember reading somewhere that EL34s work better with diode rectification. Also, how does the high end of the EL34s compare to the 6L6s?

It sounds like, from your last post, that you've still regained an incarnation of the "recto" tone with your rhythm tone. I'm seriously consider EL34s now.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

For my rhythm sounds, diodes have a kick in the low end that the rectifier tubes don't reproduce.

I lost none of the recto tone with EL-34s...IMO, it just got better.

 

[TFridgen]

Be careful with el34's with diodes, you're bound to blow one of them, try JJ gz34's as your rectifiers, they're alot tighter than the mesa rectifiers and they make it much safer to run el34's. I think it says in the manual that you're supposed to use them when running el34s, I had to replace a few of those Tung Sol El34b's before I realized I was to use tube rectifiers. Then I switched to kt77s and gz34's and have never even thought about looking back.