Any reviews? New Multi-Watt Recto's vs. early 2 Ch. Recto's

[Force]

Just curious if any of you with early 2 channel Recto's for reference amps have had a chance to do any test drives on the newest Recto's; the 3 ch. Multi-watt "Reborn Recto's" as Mesa refers to them.....

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

It's still a rectifier.

VERY close to the 3 channel tone IMO, with a slightly better clean channel, and the Roadster/Roadking rectifier and wattage switching.

If you ask me, the whole 2 vs. 3 channel debate can really be blown out of proportion sometimes. If you dial them correctly, either can sound great. They will achieve slightly DIFFERENT iterations of the rectifier tone, but to say that one is entirely better than the other is silly...tone is subjective.

If you need the additional versatility, I'd just go Roadster, and not cut yourself short.

If all you need is the general rectifier tone, keep what you have.

Eric

 

[Heritage Softail]

^^^^

Agreed.

Have put hands on a Reborn a few times. The ammount of better clean is subjective. It is no Divided by 13, Matchless, or Zinky.

Still a good old Rectifier. They did not screw up the amp that lays the golden eggs.

 

[YellowJacket]

Far more hype than truth. Like others have said, the overall 'voice' of the recto is the same.

My observations:

two vs three channel recto

2 channel recto has channel cloning. The orange channel has either Clean or Vintage High Gain as modes of operation. The red channel has vintage high gain or modern high gain as modes of operation.

On the 3 channel head, there is a dedicated clean channel that does Clean or Pushed, and channels 2 and 3 do raw, vintage, or modern.

On both amps, there are differences between the channels, even when they are operating in an identical mode. For instance, on the 3 channel, channel 3 has the presence voiced in a more aggressive way which can add more fizz or cut to the tone, depending on how you look at it.

Comparison: Cleans: Cleans on the 2 channel can go from squeaky cleans to blues breakup depending on how the gain is set. The cleans on the 2 channel Dual (rev F and G) seems fuller and more vibrant than on the 3 channel. THe cleans on the 2 channel rev c - e are abysmal as I understand it.

Vintage high gain: In my opinion, the BIGGEST difference between the 2 and 3 channel duals is the vintage high gain on the orange channel of the 2 channel version. Somehow it works well as a dedicated lead channel. Channel 2 of the 3 channel dual is voice VERY CLOSE to the red channel on the 2 channel dual. They are actually very close to identical. The weird thing is that the vintage high gain more on the orange channel is just warmer, richer, and more elastic while vintage high gain on the red channel is more stiff and brittle, perfect for rhythm.

In my opinion, the vintage high gain mode on the orange channel is what is missing from the 3 channel heads. This is what makes the amps different. Everything else is fairly similar. Changing a speaker enclosure and / or tubes will have a FAR more drastic effect on tone.

Recto Reborn: It is overall sweeter than its predecessors. The clean has this vibrant bounce to it and the gain tones sound great, even at low volumes. I didn't spend a whole tone of time with it but the additional options and refined tones make for a mighty attractive package. I wouldn't get one if you have a dual already, but if you don't THIS is the version to get!!

 

[Force]

I really appreciate all these posts, I actually do NOT own a Rectifier, but have heard a bunch of them. I own a MkIV and a Stiletto I Trident head. I am a pretty big MKIV fan, and frankly, though I am considering a MK 5 Head, I played one of the new Multi Watt recto's recently in the store and I was very impressed. yeah the Mark and Recto are very different indeed, but both have amazing, yet different tones. I would not feel deprived owning either of them, yet I am not as intimately familiar with the Recto's.

I remember playing a few of the older Recto 2 channel versions in the stores new, back around '98 and really liked them, though I don't know what "version" they would have been that year, but I do think they sounded better as far as I can recall than the more recent 3 Channels of the last couple years.

To my ears, something DID seem different about the brand new Mesa Dual Rec Multi Watter. I believe the only way I can describe it is a better (warmer) sounding "pushed" channel 1, and a pretty bitchin' channel 2 all around, and a less "fizzy" channel 3. Neverthess, I admit pllaying a Mark IV the last 5+ years, in addition the Stiletto the last year or so, I am but a novice when it comes to the Recto's and plan to evaluate a little more, though like many players here I also have heard the Recto's recorded by countless bands that I listen to on a farily regular basis though that is not quite the same as playing one yourself.

 

[YellowJacket]

Thoughts:
If you don't own a recto and you want one, my first advice would be to get the Reborn. With a new amp you would get the assurance of knowing the history of the amp and with a Reborn, you get two great gain channels AND a clean channel. Yes the 2channel amps have a great vibe and all that, but they are really not THAT different and you have the added pain of only two channels. Being able to switch the wattage for each channel individually and use recto tracking is also a huge plus.

With an old 2 channel amp, you don't know the history and there is always the possibility that expensive repairs are just around the corner. Of course they still sound good, but you have to consider many factors here.

 

[TTSTWO]

Good thread. DR may be my next amp.