moving to a small appartment but i need tone too

[Commander Coo1]

well i have a 2 channel dual recto that i really like the sound of especially once it gets a bit louder. but i just moved into a condo with an elderly woman who used to be the president of the condo association right next door... so the recto isnt really possible. now i have a pod 2.0 going into my computer, and the sound is just so un-inspiring that it drives me crazy. so i am looking for another high gain amp with such great tone like my recto that i can use at bedroom levels. im not too interested in the express series. but maybe a mark iv combo or tremoverb combo. do you think they would sound any better at low volume? i play a lot f heavy stuff like metallica and creed, but i also value my clean channel. well thanks for the advice everyone.
-James

 

[CoG]

rec pre, my man! Tone through your headphones Best with a software or hardware cab sim, but still pretty nice direct.

You should be able to find one used on ebay for 600-850.

I have some tunes on my website, I'm not really doing traditional heavy tones so I may not be the best example.

 

[mightywarlock]

Recto Pre, or just go buy a HOTPLATE and be done with it.

crank the amp with low volume.

 

[disassembled]

Recto Pre, or just go buy a HOTPLATE and be done with it.

crank the amp with low volume.

Yeah, but people usually start breaking stuff because they crank the amp ALL THE TIME versus just once in a while.

Why not go for a Rec Pre and 20/20 power amp? It will have more than enough volume for the band but it can be used at low volumes or head phones if needed.


Greg

 

[voodoo_child]

As stated by rabies, the MKIV works just fine with low settings on the master and appropriate settings.

Recto pre and 20/20 can work fine at apartment levels too (you can use just one side of the 20/20 if you take the right precautions).

 

[Hobo]

Buy the old lady some earplugs.

 

[guitarmaster]

:!:

 

[SixVeeSix]

If you keep your Volume and Master settings cranked so you hurt the tube (counter-intuitive, I know) the Vox Tonelab or Valvetronix stuff sounds pretty amazing. Just set your Gain to taste. Certainly better than anything I was able to extract from the POD.

I had the Valvetronix 30 watt 1-10" and there is a small knob on the back of the amp to turn down the solid state amp AFTER the tube so you can play a scorching tube at any volume. I sold that to a friend but still have the Tonelab LE and it sounds great through headphones or into an amp.

I also have a Roland Micro-Cube and I like it a lot (see my post in Amps) but the effects are so poor with exception of the tremolo that you will need external effects. If you can find an old Hughes and Kettner Metal Shredder or Metal Master those will get you the heavy sounds but not the clean ones. I live in a condo too but have befriended a Rainsong 12 string for the time being. I am sure I will be back to the post-Hendrix madness soon though. Good luck!

 

[RyanDM]

Get a Single Rec man! 50 watts... I still can get a great sound with mine at lower volumes.

 

[disassembled]

Get a Single Rec man! 50 watts... I still can get a great sound with mine at lower volumes.

A single rec at low volumes will be just about the same as the Dual or Triple at low volumes. The preamp is very similar between them that you probably couldn't tell the amps apart at low volumes.

I think it is a bit harder to sell a single rec than a dual or triple.

As stated earlier the mark iv would be a cool option too. I think when you run in tweed, class A, triode you getting like 10-15 watts of output power.


Greg

 

[SixVeeSix]

Get a Single Rec man! 50 watts... I still can get a great sound with mine at lower volumes.

A single rec at low volumes will be just about the same as the Dual or Triple at low volumes. The preamp is very similar between them that you probably couldn't tell the amps apart at low volumes.

I think it is a bit harder to sell a single rec than a dual or triple.

As stated earlier the mark iv would be a cool option too. I think when you run in tweed, class A, triode you getting like 10-15 watts of output power.


Greg

I have a Frenzel Champ Plus and with a 6V6 in it is tops out at about 6 watts. Still way too much for an adjoining unit with an elderly lady in it, I could blow her out of her tree big time!! :shock: Uhh...not that I ever would of course.

 

[JOEY B.]

As stated earlier the mark iv would be a cool option too. I think when you run in tweed, class A, triode you getting like 10-15 watts of output power.


Greg

I have a Frenzel Champ Plus and with a 6V6 in it is tops out at about 6 watts. Still way too much for an adjoining unit with an elderly lady in it, I could blow her out of her tree big time!! :shock: Uhh...not that I ever would of course.

I am able to do free home pest control with 15 watts of MkIIC+ and a couple of EV thieles. Do not be fooled by the wattage hype. You will lose more low end than actual volume.

 

[Commander Coo1]

thanks for all the input so far, i like the ideas i am hearing and its good to know i have options. i am sure that ill miss the recto no matter what. how does the sound of the recording pre and 20/20 compare to a full out dual?

 

[vermillion]

I own a Tonelab and practice with AKG 240 headphones on -- its good for low-medium gain tone. To my ears, the high gain stuff isn't really believable. If you're unhappy with your Pod 2.0, the Tonelab probably won't do much for you.

If money is no option, try a mark iv in silent recording mode to a headphone amp.

 

[SixVeeSix]

I own a Tonelab and practice with AKG 240 headphones on -- its good for low-medium gain tone. To my ears, the high gain stuff isn't really believable. If you're unhappy with your Pod 2.0, the Tonelab probably won't do much for you.

If money is no option, try a mark iv in silent recording mode to a headphone amp.

Well I never said it sounded like having a half stack cranked in the room but I like some of the hi-gain sounds I can get. Are you hurting the tube, you MUST hurt the tube to get the tones?!!? Otherwise it is just preamp gain, like every other guitar widget out there except the old Hughes and Kettner boxes. Vox has the 12ax7 configured as a virtual output amp, you know what to do! :shock:

 

[CoG]

thanks for all the input so far, i like the ideas i am hearing and its good to know i have options. i am sure that ill miss the recto no matter what. how does the sound of the recording pre and 20/20 compare to a full out dual?

It's quite different because the 20/20 has EL84 tubes, is stereo, has the presence circuits. It's made as a general-purpose tube power amp and isn't supposed to sound like a Recto power section. It's a different amp, basically. The cleans totally smoke any of the SR/DR/TRs, but it doesn't have the same big low end.

The 20/20 is definitely not quiet, though. For example, if I am on ch 2 on the rec pre, with the gain at 12 (all numbers o'clock), master at 3, live out volume at 8:30, and running one side of the 20/20 with the volume at 9 through a single 1x12, you can still hear me clearly through the whole house.

 

[pjrake]

i use a hotplate in the studio, and sometimes at gigs. anything past -8dB you'll notice a tone difference, but it's better than the modeling stuff that's out there now.

 

[Mr_You]

Go direct and wear headphones.