Mini Rectifier + Fulltone Fuldrive II - Help with settings

[Netto]

Hi there guys.

I live in Brazil and I´m new to this board.

Recently I got to NY and got myself a Mini Rectifier + 1x12 Slant Cabinet.

I have a Carvin Bolt Custom Shop 1994 With 3 Dimarzios Fast Track - Ft2 on the bridge and FT-1s on the middle and neck.

My Pedal Board has the following:

Fulltone Fulldrive 2
Polytuner 2
Vox Duel Overdrive - Not in Use

This goes directly in the input

Boss DD3
Boss Equalizer (Not in use, just as a boost for volumes, trying to get the tone from the amp itself)
Small Clone Chorus

This goes in the loop.

I always had marshalls and peaveys and Im having a difficult time getting some great tones in the mesa. I mostly like a really heave distortion, with bite and defined tones. King what you would here in dream theater.

I mostly use the vintage mode and add the fulldrive to shape de tone. But I cant seem to find a good spot for the highs and presence knob so it dont get too fizzy. I know this is a mesa charactheristic but I hoping I can leave it to a minimum.

I also have a shield with dimarzio super distortion on the bridge and paf on the neck (Same configuration as the dave murray strat) that Im considering to change for the actual setup


Can you guys help me out with that? Some pictures of the setup below you can see the settings I´m using in the pics

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[elvis]

Hate to write this, but your cabinet is likely a big part of the problem. A huge tone requires a big cabinet. I'd recommend a 2x12 or 4x10, or at least a ported widebody 1x12. I couldn't get anything I liked out of the MR 1x12 or recto 1x12 cabs. No low-end and really honky mids.

Next is volume. Even at 25 Watts the MR is a loud amp. If you choke off the volume for bedroom playing, you won't get much tone or response. As with the infamous Dual Rectifier, you don't get the great tone until you crank up the Mini Rectifier, at least enough to make your family (and neighbors) a bit uncomfortable.

Finally, I would disconnect all the outboard gear until you get the basic tone and gain of the amp worked out. They can color the sound and confuse the issue.

Once you have the right conditions, the tone controls are pretty easy to tune. I don't think your settings are unusual, but you can also try some from the Mesa online videos, or search on this site for recommendations. I am pretty sure I have posted some as well.

Once the amp is as close to the tone you want as possible, then try the Fulltone. You can go for sone mid boost and lots of clean volume boost (like what many people do with an OD808 or TS808) for a pushed rhythm sound. Or give it a little gain and cut the treble a bit for a more liquid lead tone.

Once all that is sorted out, then try adding the rest, one at a time, and rechecking the tone to make sure that you don't have a pedal that causes a change.

Good luck!

 

[Netto]

Thanks very much for the reply.

I know the cab is an issue, but when I play with the band I use a rectifier 4x12 that's in the studio. I would like to set the tone for home use. This thing is pretty loud, but I live in a big apartment and can use the master about 11 o clock. Thats pretty loud

I'll try setting the tone for the amp with just the guitar and work my way from there. I got pretty good tones, but I'm looking for that something extra. I'm pretty sure I'll get it eventually, just need some more tweaking with the amp and the fulltone. I'll try some of the settings on the Mesa site and look for some in here. I didn't notice any coloration on the effects loop, but surely will give that a try.

Thanks for the input

Ps:sorry for the mistakes but I'm typing from my cell phone and it usually autocorrects to Portuguese and **** things up lol

 

[elvis]

I think you will struggle to tune the amp to the cabinet with the tone controls on the amp. For example, adding bass to compensate for the cabinet will sound flubby or muddy because that adds low frequencies to the distortion circuit.

Try using the settings you like with the 4x12 and then compensating with the EQ in the loop. you will need to scoop a bit I think to boost the bass and then remove some of the cab's overwhelming mids.

 

[Netto]

Well that's it. It's the cabinet. Like you said it sounds flubby and honky.

Gonna sell it and import a 2x12. That's kinda easy to move around.

The rectifier 2x12 vertical slant is a good choice? Or go for the straight horizontal one? Wich one you guys think it's better for this? The lows are really flubby when dialing it up and lacks the punch

 

[Steve Naples]

I have. Recto 2x12 horizontal cab with my Rectoverb 25, it sounds great. My 1x12 cab not so much.
Everyone that I know uses the recto 2x12 horizontal cab with the mr or RV 25, loves it.

 

[Dreamtheaterrules]

I use the Vintage channel the most on my Mini. I'd start with bring the mids up a bit (9:00 to 10:00 max) and the bass down to 9:00 or so, Treble at 1:00, and then get rid of the fizz with the treble control. I know those aren't true single coils, and I haven't tried those exact models but sometimes stacked HB's are brighter than the full size models. I've seen Petrucci have the presence way up for humbuckers and it can work, but with my true singles, I have it way down. I'd try dialing it down some to get rid of fizz.

 

[Netto]

Yep. I found a really good tone with almost no fizz setting the trebles up in the fulltone pedal.

I'm installing this today to see the difference. Super distortion and paf anniversary

 

[elvis]

I have both vert and horiz recto 2x12 and I think you can't go wrong either way. I tend to use the vertical more because it's convenient and I like the brightness.

 

[Dreamtheaterrules]

I'd also add, that 1x gets a bit tubby with much bass or mids added at the amp, but does much better with adding back some bottom in with an EQ in the loop. I have a 10 band MXR and I Set a mild smiley curve (not the almost complete mids drop you see so often with Mesa EQs). It's an octave per slider, rather than 1 1/12 per slider like the Mesa, and so there is a 500hz (down about 4dB) and 1000hz (down about 2dB) where the Mesa has a 750 slider with a wider Q. With the amp settings I mentioned above, it sounds great with 2 speakers. Kicking the EQ on just makes it tighter, punchier and clearer.

That said, the easiest way to make the bottom fill in is to add another 1x12. I never play my Mini with just the 1x12 Rec cab as I don't love it by itself. Sit it on top of an Avatar cube with either V30 or G12H and then it sounds great! Heck, right now (because I've moved cabs over to experiment with the two Trans Atlantic amps) the Mini and 1x12 Recto are sitting on and plugged into an open back cab with a Red Fang Alnico and even that sounds GREAT (especially on the clean channel, but it works great with the gain channels too).

 

[Netto]

If I get another 1x12 straight would solve the problem? It's way easier to bring it back on the air plane. I can just fit in my dispatch bag. Or should I go thought the trouble and get the 2x12?im getting a mark v mini as well. And would use the recto cabs on it

 

[elvis]

It might. I am learning the two 1x12 is more growly/thumpy than you would expect based on a single 1x12. I'd seriously consider adding a theile to your 1x12. I played a MV25 through that combination and it was huge, even though either of those by itself sounds anemic to me.

 

[Netto]

Well after the axe upgrades all I can say is that this carvin bolt got a lot of balls. Sound is huge, dark and defined even with very high gain. Probably more then never will need the 2x12 or 2x12. Great caps and work by the luthier. pics bellow. Need to dial a totally different set up now as it changed everything.

 

[Netto]

Well. Just bought a 2x12 and let me say! What a difference. Sounds like a different amp. Would you guys care to share some settings for a tone like whitesnake, Bruce Dickinson, Metallica etc?

Thanks

Here is the setup now