So I've got a mark IV "B" what's a Roadster give me if anything ?
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spawnofthesith
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I would say yes, they are radically different amps with very different gain structures
yeah it's a very different amp, they couldn't have less in common. my bandmate has been using a roadster as his main ride for like fifteen years, I love it. recto eq is extremely versatile, there really isn't a core sound you have to work around, more a 'feel' thing.
big thing is that esp. for high gain it sounds kinda meh until you get to a decent rehearsal volume (waaaaaay louder than tv/conversation lol). people who say rectos are always "fizzy" or "flubby" aren't playing them loud enough.
but I see from your sig you've got a splawn so you know all about sounding great loud!
big thing is that esp. for high gain it sounds kinda meh until you get to a decent rehearsal volume (waaaaaay louder than tv/conversation lol). people who say rectos are always "fizzy" or "flubby" aren't playing them loud enough.
but I see from your sig you've got a splawn so you know all about sounding great loud!
They are not only sonically different, they feel different. Both are inspiring, but they will take you down different paths, even in the same melody.
I owned my Roadster since 2007, gigged solid with it until the pandemic hit. In 2010 I bought a MKV90, totally different vibe. Don’t get me wrong, they are both excellent and versatile amps that can cover just about anything, but yet still unique from each other.
The Rectos are huge sounding for high gain at stage volume, they are that wall of sound that is like being bludgeoned with a sledgehammer. They demand a solid picking hand. The Marks are more surgical, big sounding in their own right but more about cutting out a path in the soundscape than just leveling everything in sight.
I still own the Roadster, it’s my desert island amp and I’ll never part with it. I sold the MKV90 years ago, but I will get either the JP2C or MKVII to add to the stable as I do miss that Mark series vibe. I keep leaning towards the JP2C, the IIC+ is an iconic tone that I would like a piece of.
Dom
I owned my Roadster since 2007, gigged solid with it until the pandemic hit. In 2010 I bought a MKV90, totally different vibe. Don’t get me wrong, they are both excellent and versatile amps that can cover just about anything, but yet still unique from each other.
The Rectos are huge sounding for high gain at stage volume, they are that wall of sound that is like being bludgeoned with a sledgehammer. They demand a solid picking hand. The Marks are more surgical, big sounding in their own right but more about cutting out a path in the soundscape than just leveling everything in sight.
I still own the Roadster, it’s my desert island amp and I’ll never part with it. I sold the MKV90 years ago, but I will get either the JP2C or MKVII to add to the stable as I do miss that Mark series vibe. I keep leaning towards the JP2C, the IIC+ is an iconic tone that I would like a piece of.
Dom
I'm gonna jump back in for this because Dom is right as usual. Biggest difference for me 'artistically' is that Rectos, especially the big ones, don't fight you. My Tremoverb makes me feel like I'm cheating at guitar. Marks, at least up to IV... you gotta bring it to sound good but when you do it sounds *really* good.
Wait, actually, another big difference. I have been playing IIIs for like 15 years but I find them really, really finicky in the room. First, there's no one-size-fits-all speaker solution for them like Rectos - just plug a Recto into V30s and it'll sound good in any room. Any speaker choice for Marks involves bigger compromises. And, when I have my Mark III plugged into a cab I feel like I have to tweak the EQ even if I move the cab in a room, much less take it anywhere. I don't think I've played my III through a cab in a couple of years basically for this reason.
There's this sort of user-friendliness with Rectos in general.
The room is everything. If my Roadster and Recto 4x12 are in a corner the low end gets overwhelming quick, especially if the cab is not on casters. As long as it sounds good out front I dealt with it, I usually just dial in more presence. The MKV90 was not as bad, it didn’t have that lower resonance of the Roadster & was easier to tweak with the GEQ.
I found the MKV90 felt fuller with the cab off the casters and on the floor, while the Roadster sounds clearer with the casters on the cab.
Dom
I found the MKV90 felt fuller with the cab off the casters and on the floor, while the Roadster sounds clearer with the casters on the cab.
Dom
I have not played a Roadster, but I have had a Mark IV for years. This post is 100% correct about the IV. When I first started playing it, I realized pretty quickly how unforgiving the amp was. Every single mistake I made was glaringly obvious. I was disheartened at first, but after time I realized playing through the IV was making me "up my game" as a guitarist. Ever since that realization, I have come to appreciate what the IV offers even more.
danut
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The gain texture is different. The Mark is abrasive, like sanding with a 120 grit sandpaper, while the Roadster is somewhat silkier, like a 320 grit sandpaper.
There’s a difference in urgency, too. Marks are immediate, Roadsters are somewhat lazier.
Also, the “point of impact” is different. The Marks bark and hit you in the chest, while the Roadsters growl and hit you in the groin area.
I have a Mark V90 and a Roadster and I can’t pick one out over the other.
There’s a difference in urgency, too. Marks are immediate, Roadsters are somewhat lazier.
Also, the “point of impact” is different. The Marks bark and hit you in the chest, while the Roadsters growl and hit you in the groin area.
I have a Mark V90 and a Roadster and I can’t pick one out over the other.
I can relate, having been a Mark amp owner/user since 1989 with the MKIII and getting the Mark IVB in 2000, followed by the Mark V90. I bought the Roadster about a year or two after bringing home the Mark V90 in 2012. At that time I was originally after the Roadster but could not figure it out. So I ended up with the V90 instead. I did get around to buying one and I am glad I did.
The Roadster is a beast. Night and day difference between the Mark IVB and the Roadster. The Marks will get you with feedback issues depending on the guitar, tone woods, pickups, etc. Depends on how much gain you want from it. The Roadster is a dramatically different, it will fight against you with harmonics that make you think you have dead spots on the neck of your guitar (mostly with the Modern mode. at full power, diode tracking, more or less it is some form of sound cancelling thing at some frequencies. Pinch off harmonics can be tricky too but can be done.) They both have their challenges to the guitar player in how the instrument couples to the amp and sound from the speakers. I got used to the Roadster and it did not take long to become a favorite. Been a while since I had the Mark IVB. I still have the Roadster and is one of the keepers in my collection. This is one of the few pictures I could find with the Roadster in it. Both cabs here are the Recto Standard slant front 412. The Roadster is on the right under the MWDR. the one that does not have the silver grill on the front.
The Roadster is the first multi-watt dual rectifier that predates the MWDR or newborn Recto. All 4 channels are voiced differently so there is no true cloning here. That adds in some versatility in a way. The MWDR may be three channels but the CH2 and CH3 are clones. Roadster CH3 is a close match to the MWDR in some ways as it is brighter than CH4.
There are some preamp tube tricks you can do with the Roadster to tighten up the low-end response to make the amp compatible with 7 string guitars without affecting the overall performance of the amp with 6 string guitars. No hard mods required, just a change in preamp tubes and that is it. I am not fond of using OD pedals up front but that is also suitable for most to compensate for the low end as it is not something that can be dialed out easily, even with a GEQ in the FX loop. Much more of a scooped tone than a Mark in general terms (without the GEQ in use).
You may struggle at first in getting used to the Roadster as you are coming from the Mark IVB. The suggested settings in the manual are a big help to get started. I wish I had printed out that page when I went to try the Roadster for the first time. It is that different. How the gain setting affects the tone stack, where to set the gain and volume controls for the channel and what to do with the global master volume (that only works if you are not using the hard bypass on the FX loop).
Horizontal 212 cab or 412 is probably the way to go. It sort of looks out of place on the Vertical 212 cab. It will fit on it but the head shell is wider than the Vertical 212 cabinet.
The Roadster is a beast. Night and day difference between the Mark IVB and the Roadster. The Marks will get you with feedback issues depending on the guitar, tone woods, pickups, etc. Depends on how much gain you want from it. The Roadster is a dramatically different, it will fight against you with harmonics that make you think you have dead spots on the neck of your guitar (mostly with the Modern mode. at full power, diode tracking, more or less it is some form of sound cancelling thing at some frequencies. Pinch off harmonics can be tricky too but can be done.) They both have their challenges to the guitar player in how the instrument couples to the amp and sound from the speakers. I got used to the Roadster and it did not take long to become a favorite. Been a while since I had the Mark IVB. I still have the Roadster and is one of the keepers in my collection. This is one of the few pictures I could find with the Roadster in it. Both cabs here are the Recto Standard slant front 412. The Roadster is on the right under the MWDR. the one that does not have the silver grill on the front.
The Roadster is the first multi-watt dual rectifier that predates the MWDR or newborn Recto. All 4 channels are voiced differently so there is no true cloning here. That adds in some versatility in a way. The MWDR may be three channels but the CH2 and CH3 are clones. Roadster CH3 is a close match to the MWDR in some ways as it is brighter than CH4.
There are some preamp tube tricks you can do with the Roadster to tighten up the low-end response to make the amp compatible with 7 string guitars without affecting the overall performance of the amp with 6 string guitars. No hard mods required, just a change in preamp tubes and that is it. I am not fond of using OD pedals up front but that is also suitable for most to compensate for the low end as it is not something that can be dialed out easily, even with a GEQ in the FX loop. Much more of a scooped tone than a Mark in general terms (without the GEQ in use).
You may struggle at first in getting used to the Roadster as you are coming from the Mark IVB. The suggested settings in the manual are a big help to get started. I wish I had printed out that page when I went to try the Roadster for the first time. It is that different. How the gain setting affects the tone stack, where to set the gain and volume controls for the channel and what to do with the global master volume (that only works if you are not using the hard bypass on the FX loop).
Horizontal 212 cab or 412 is probably the way to go. It sort of looks out of place on the Vertical 212 cab. It will fit on it but the head shell is wider than the Vertical 212 cabinet.
thanks Bandit 
This would primarily be used with my 7's, unless I can coax out some good 70's, 80's rock tones with it , then I'd used it with the "Dad Rock" band I play in.
My Splawn has been my main gigging amp for the last 3 years, but I wouldn't mind mixing it up a bit.
I used to have a Rectoverb series II 50 watt head back around 2009 that I absolutely loved with KT-77's in it, but once I got a mark IV I kind of felt it wasn't offering me much so I sold it.
I've the mindset that with the Splawn, the Mark IV and a Roadster, I'd have just about any tone I was chasing covered.
This would primarily be used with my 7's, unless I can coax out some good 70's, 80's rock tones with it , then I'd used it with the "Dad Rock" band I play in.
My Splawn has been my main gigging amp for the last 3 years, but I wouldn't mind mixing it up a bit.
I used to have a Rectoverb series II 50 watt head back around 2009 that I absolutely loved with KT-77's in it, but once I got a mark IV I kind of felt it wasn't offering me much so I sold it.
I've the mindset that with the Splawn, the Mark IV and a Roadster, I'd have just about any tone I was chasing covered.
Out of the box experience, Roadster, MWDR are not all that compatible with the 7 string guitars. Perhaps I am doing something completely wrong. I still refuse to run an OD up front so the only other option was to find out what preamp tubes I have on hand that works. Sorry about the talk about the glass here. No need to turn this into a tube discussion. I did not want to say, yeah, Roadster is awesome with the 7 string without some supporting information how to get there with it.
KT77, interesting. Not sure how that would work in the Roadster. Not sure how the Roadster compares to the Road king, that amp has a few more tricks to it. Same preamp but different power section.
If you want to run a "Dad Rock" I would also consider the Badlander. We play mostly classic rock form the 60-70's At least that is when most of the music we play came out. Some 80's too. I go for more of a modern thing but the BAD is a surprising amp right out of the box. Fully 7 string compatible too. I would not make that the deciding factor unless that was your goal.
The BAD is similar but different from the Mark IV. One would think it is much the same as the Mark VII, that circuit is in that amp but still different so having the BAD and the Mark VII is not a redundant thing. I generally look past the death metal sound and want more than djent or grunge. Sure, I can get into that heavy tone too or style, but would prefer more versatility.
Probably why the Roadster is a keeper, The gain modes on the two clean channels are good. So are the medium gain raw and vintage. I still prefer the modern mode so that is what I run with the Roadster or MWDR. My other amps cannot do that. Even going soft with the tube tracking and spongy mode has its value. Actually that is one way to get the Roaster or MWDR from fighting you with the harmonics. The Badlander cannot touch the Roaster or MWDR spongy mode with tube tracking, it does not have rectifier tubes, only variac power. Aslo does not have the cold clipper circuit so it does not give you those low sub-harmonic tones. That is sort of what is cool about the Dual Rectifiers.
Shortly after getting the Badlander I started looking into what could be done with the other two amps.
Since I have the tubes on hand, why not try them.
Loaded the full preamp up with them. A few were NOS Ruby versions. Not easy to find these days.
Then the STR440 tubes are now out of production. The STR440 Reds just worked the best. Now the Roadster is a 7 string compliant amp. That was unexpected as it was not the intended goal but did have the one 7 string out to give it a go. That seems to be the thing I end up doing when I get a new amp. Run every axe into it and see if I can make use of it.
Those old Mesa tubes also work well in the Mark IVB. Back in the day, they were the only 12AX7 tubes you could find in the Mesa box (1989 - 1992). Not sure when Mesa brought in the JJ ECC83S but my Mark IVB was loaded with those. Bought it in 2000. I held onto the preamp tubes from the Mark III as I changed all the tubes in the amp every 3 to 5 months usually after red plating the EL34 pair. It was a DRG.
It is not the end of the world if you cannot find those preamp tubes. The Roadster sounds great with the stockers. However, not so good with the 7 string as it will flub out on you, just not tight enough.
Now comes the issue with the Power tubes. STR440 no longer available. Tried the STR445 in yellow, seemed to be too much tube for the amp. There are other tubes, Tung Sol 7581A sounded good. Have not run those with the Chinese military tubes though. Roadster needs a power tube with plenty of headroom or it will just sound off (like it is not biased correctly). Some may favor the SED =C= 6L6GC in the Roadster. Getting used to the change in character of the amp with alternate tubes is probably where I struggle.
We all have our opinions on tubes and such. Not trying to influence you one way or the other. I personally like the Roadster for what it is. Just as much as I like the MWDR and the other amp I have. Just figuring out how to make the best use of it that may be different from its image or target user. I do not care if it chugs, I know it will, just how does it perform when I want to use it for something else? I would not pigeonhole the Roadster into one class. It can do well with different music styles. Some amps may be more suited for that but there is a lot of amp packed into that box.
KT77, interesting. Not sure how that would work in the Roadster. Not sure how the Roadster compares to the Road king, that amp has a few more tricks to it. Same preamp but different power section.
If you want to run a "Dad Rock" I would also consider the Badlander. We play mostly classic rock form the 60-70's At least that is when most of the music we play came out. Some 80's too. I go for more of a modern thing but the BAD is a surprising amp right out of the box. Fully 7 string compatible too. I would not make that the deciding factor unless that was your goal.
The BAD is similar but different from the Mark IV. One would think it is much the same as the Mark VII, that circuit is in that amp but still different so having the BAD and the Mark VII is not a redundant thing. I generally look past the death metal sound and want more than djent or grunge. Sure, I can get into that heavy tone too or style, but would prefer more versatility.
Probably why the Roadster is a keeper, The gain modes on the two clean channels are good. So are the medium gain raw and vintage. I still prefer the modern mode so that is what I run with the Roadster or MWDR. My other amps cannot do that. Even going soft with the tube tracking and spongy mode has its value. Actually that is one way to get the Roaster or MWDR from fighting you with the harmonics. The Badlander cannot touch the Roaster or MWDR spongy mode with tube tracking, it does not have rectifier tubes, only variac power. Aslo does not have the cold clipper circuit so it does not give you those low sub-harmonic tones. That is sort of what is cool about the Dual Rectifiers.
Shortly after getting the Badlander I started looking into what could be done with the other two amps.
Since I have the tubes on hand, why not try them.
Loaded the full preamp up with them. A few were NOS Ruby versions. Not easy to find these days.
Then the STR440 tubes are now out of production. The STR440 Reds just worked the best. Now the Roadster is a 7 string compliant amp. That was unexpected as it was not the intended goal but did have the one 7 string out to give it a go. That seems to be the thing I end up doing when I get a new amp. Run every axe into it and see if I can make use of it.
Those old Mesa tubes also work well in the Mark IVB. Back in the day, they were the only 12AX7 tubes you could find in the Mesa box (1989 - 1992). Not sure when Mesa brought in the JJ ECC83S but my Mark IVB was loaded with those. Bought it in 2000. I held onto the preamp tubes from the Mark III as I changed all the tubes in the amp every 3 to 5 months usually after red plating the EL34 pair. It was a DRG.
It is not the end of the world if you cannot find those preamp tubes. The Roadster sounds great with the stockers. However, not so good with the 7 string as it will flub out on you, just not tight enough.
Now comes the issue with the Power tubes. STR440 no longer available. Tried the STR445 in yellow, seemed to be too much tube for the amp. There are other tubes, Tung Sol 7581A sounded good. Have not run those with the Chinese military tubes though. Roadster needs a power tube with plenty of headroom or it will just sound off (like it is not biased correctly). Some may favor the SED =C= 6L6GC in the Roadster. Getting used to the change in character of the amp with alternate tubes is probably where I struggle.
We all have our opinions on tubes and such. Not trying to influence you one way or the other. I personally like the Roadster for what it is. Just as much as I like the MWDR and the other amp I have. Just figuring out how to make the best use of it that may be different from its image or target user. I do not care if it chugs, I know it will, just how does it perform when I want to use it for something else? I would not pigeonhole the Roadster into one class. It can do well with different music styles. Some amps may be more suited for that but there is a lot of amp packed into that box.
The only drawback with the Roadster and may as well include the MWDR in this, is its loudness. Not a practical amp for use as a practice amp if you want to get into that bedroom level and do not have a reactive load box to tame it. There is something to be said about the amp's sweet spot, it is at that level you hear and feel it at the same time. Also sounds best with a 412 cab. See what others say about it. I am sure @domct203 could fill you in more than I can.
