Is my roadster letting me down, or am I just getting Old?

[biazzaz]

I made a post the other day about how the recent purchase of a DC5 was giving me a doubts about my Roadster. Today no one was home (thanksgiving alone for me!) so I decided to AB the heck out of them to try and tweak the Roadster in order to get more out of it. At one point I even decided to switch around speakers in order to make sure it wasn't the older speakers in the DC combo that made me like it. The DC through the brand new 2x12 recto cab was even better than it was before!

My needs are are pretty simple for Mesa's. I need a 90's heavy rhythm, a Petrucci lead tone, and a solid clean (I dont mind if its a little dirty lol).

To be more specific the Roadster is giving me solid tones for any kind of rhythm, but just not doing it for me on any kind of lead/single note riffage. I've tried setting it to 50w, using channel 3/4, trying the many other options, and nothing good seems to come out of it. Its a brand new Roadster maybe 4 months old, and the tubes have been broken in so that shouldn't be the problem.

I've been considering a distortion/od pedal which I'm sure can remedy this, but I'm just kinda let down that I would need to do that in order to get a decent sound. My DC just gives this to me right out of the gate, and I still get a really nice rock+heavy rhythm out of it too.

The purchase of the DC was just to have a beater in order to travel around to practices etc, and I really want to have a really nice amp for home/recording stuff or decent gigs. Do you guys think this is just a preference thing? Maybe I should trade in the Roadster for a Mark IV? I do remember reading about someone else with a similar problem a week or so ago on the forums. This isn't my first recto. I've actually owned Recto's for the last 8 years or more.

Thanks for any help, and settings are appreciated although I'd be shocked if that did it for me. I'll give you a dollar if you give me a setting that does it lol!

Mike

 

[Anonymous]

The way I see it is an amp should, right off the bat, give you something close to what you need. If it's cleans, rhythm, or lead you're looking for and the amp isn't doing it for you, at all or even close, it's probably not going to work for you at all (as long as you've found that nothing else in the chain is the cause).

I love my TR, but it just can't do leads the way my Einstein could. I liked my Einstein, but it doesn't have enough chunk to fit my rhythm needs. Put them together, for recording purposes, and I'm set.

However, I'd like to get something to do it all for me and I think I'm going to find that in a Bogner Ecstasy. It can't replicate the Triple's rhythm so I'm going to keep that, but it definitely will fill my needs and sound great.

My recommendation to you is to try other amps. Even if you aren't going to switch amps, try anything you can get your hands on. My thought is you'll find something you really like and have something to shoot for. Once you have that, it'll probably be easier to find something that fits.

Hope that helps!

 

[biazzaz]

Yeah I really know what you mean. The other guitarist and bassist in my band keep saying well it does sound really good too, but if its not doing it for me I can't imagine why I would keep it. That's one expensive amp to have especially if your not enjoying the tone. I mean I've even got a road case custom made for it

 

[TheBlackman]

An OCD or another clean boost will put you leads into creamy territory, i mainly use my crybaby q-zone to get my lead tone and occasionally the OCD. The q-zone gives me the lead tone with that neck pick-up tone all over the fretboard, without switching to the neck pickup! i've had my roadster for over a year and still smile when i see it

 

[Mark Fore]

Yo Biazzaz... I have this problem EVERY SINGLE FRIGGIN DAY!! I spend most days second guessing myself and when I get home from work I reconfigure my rigs between the Mesa's I have and one will come out the winner. I will spend a week or so with that rig and then it's off to another one. I realized that I should not jump to a conclusion and sell an amp because it sounds different that week. Whether it is my ears, the weather, the tubes, cables, strings, etc. I can always go back. If you can keep the two amps financially you will go back and forth. I have a Roadster and love it some times and loathe it other times. This at least helps me sleep better and saves me money in having to buy amps a second and third time.

The OD pedal suggestions from the others are definitely worth a try. I almost got rid of my Roadster and then the BB Preamp made it sound perfect.

 

[LithiumZero]

That's just life with a recto. A clean boost completely transforms my Roadster into a lead machine. I use a Bad Monkey with the level at 3:00 and the gain completely off. EQ to taste and your leads will sing! It does suck that a pedal is needed in front of such a feature rich amp but thats the nature of a rectifier.

 

[SCOTTY]

I've been going through the same thing ...your not alone. Some days I love the amp somedays it drives me nuts...however once I do get it dialed in it sounds really really good.

Let me know if you find the magic setting that makes the amp sound good all the time!! lol

Thanks

Scott

 

[fishyfishfish]

Just as an opinion, I went through every drive pedal/eq/compressor to make my Lonestar Classic have the extra punch and sparkle that I thought it should have, and no dice. I went with a Dual and Presto, the tone that I was trying to get with a pedal was already in another amp! Moral of the story: If you can't get a good sound that you want right off the bat, that amp is just not for you (Or me in this case). Why would you spend some serious dough to get an amp that you have to augment with booster/drive pedals the minute you get to rehearsal? Don't get me wrong, but if I can get my sound with guitar-cord-amp, I know everything else will be just icing on the cake.

 

[tetsubin]

Why not just play the DC when it gives you all you want?

 

[jdurso]

Why not just play the DC when it gives you all you want?

agreed. i think a lot of us (and i include myself in this) try way too much to like a certain amp because of a stigma or features or because of looks. At the end of the day no matter what you brain thinks you're going to like, your ear should be the final judge. Its a bummer the Roadster may not be the amp for you but thats not because the amp doesnt deliver the goods... just not the goods your after. I would say if the DC-5 does everything you need then sell the roadster and either bank the money or invest it into a few pedals that will get you some more variety (ODs, EQs, etc). Or you can sell the roadster and get a Mark IV because i think if you dig the DC-5 leads and rhythms, the Mark IV will get you all of that with great cleans and a little more flexibility.

 

[LithiumZero]

I actually went from a DC-10 head to a Mark IV head to a Roadster 2x12 combo. The Roadster is a much better amp for my needs. The DC and the Mark were both excellent amps though. I really miss my DC.

 

[wildrat666]

ok the roadster is great for leads.

channel 4: presence 12 oclock

bass: 12 oclock

treble: 1 oclock

middle 11 oclock(or 12 )

gain 1 oclock

boost it with a overdrive pedal: gain 0 , volume max , tone 12 oclock


now you ve should have a great lead tone

 

[wickedgtr1]

I completely understand the dilemma; but for me so far the DC rules them all. my friend just got a RK series 1, and it sounds awesome, but there is some about the DC that just sounds so much better. I, however, wont sell my amps, I am starting a collection : 8) (see sig below)

Besides maybe the cleans, i don't think the mark iv and the dc have much in common, the high gain settings on the mark iv don't come close to what the DC can do. I want to love the mark iv so much, but so far, the most useful thing its got is the clarity in pulling single notes out of chords under high gain.

 

[MusicManJP6]

The DC series of Mesas are the only Mesa amps i've not heard or seen in person... Makes me wonder if I am missing out on something special!

 

[jdurso]

The DC series of Mesas are the only Mesa amps i've not heard or seen in person... Makes me wonder if I am missing out on something special!

You need to find one... search craigslist and see if you can find a DC5 or DC10 near you. Pretend your interested and go try it out.... but be sure to bring your check book just in case :wink:

 

[wickedgtr1]

if you play it, you will buy it, trust me

 

[Grindjazz]

you need a Petrucci lead tone from a Roadster combo? I was able to get one in matter of a few minutes, but i'm also using the same pickups, as he is. What are you using? The Roadster sings for leads, that was without delay, with no effects straight right into the amp. Hmmm?

 

[jdurso]

you need a Petrucci lead tone from a Roadster combo? I was able to get one in matter of a few minutes, but i'm also using the same pickups, as he is. What are you using? The Roadster sings for leads, that was without delay, with no effects straight right into the amp. Hmmm?

what are your settings out of curiosity?

 

[MrMarkIII]

If the Roadster sucks so bad, sell it and buy two or three DC-5s for spares.
The amp to keep is the one that sounds the best to you.

 

[nemesys]

It's possible to get a good lead tone out of a Recto. Don't use the Modern voicing, as it's too buzzy and compressed for this, use Raw or Vintage (I prefer Raw, personally). Keep the gain at moderate settings, and turn the midrange up very high, 3:00 or higher (you're turning the gain down because the high midrange setting will put some gain back in the mix). Run the presence on the high side, and the treble on the low to moderate side. Play with the bass a bit, and set to taste. This works best if you're playing fairly loud, though you don't have to be at ear-bleeding levels.