Anyone still racking it up?

[JamesHealey]

Anyone out there still playing a rack setup?

I've got an old 70s tube head and a rack setup and I've gotta admit im loving the rack gear atm.

 

[gtrnstuff]

Still. But also have a pedal board for gigs where I have to carry my own stuff.

 

[rockon1]

Ive keep a minimal rack. I actually use it more like an amp head. PV Rockmaster,JMP 1 and a Classic 50/50 power amp. I use a board with EQ,Delay,clean boost and wah with it same as with my other gear. Bob

 

[Lucky Dog Guitars]

I do both.. pedal board for most of my main sounds.. and for harder rocking rhythms & leads I switch to a ADA MP-1 Classic with a Roland GP-8 in the loop (the GP-8 has REALLY good delays & chorus).

I was using an AXE-FX Ultra for a while. It was great for recording, but I never could get my live sound to be as good as my pedals & the ADA

 

[Steve Dallas]

I would venture a guess than anyone who has adopted the AXE-FX is a "rack person."

Funny this question should come up. I've recently trotted out some of my old rack stuff and have been having a blast with it. And, hey my tone wasn't half bad back then. I just remember it sucking for some reason.

 

[Lucky Dog Guitars]

That AXE-FX was amazing in features, tweakability, and for recording.. but on the gig, I just never could get it to sound right. Went back to my Dr.Z.. a few pedals.. and much happier with the sound.

But I am a person that loves programming processors, so that wasnt the problem with me. I got great sound at home, but it didnt sound like a real amp when I went out to gig. Maybe it wasnt meant to be used that way?...

But it is an amazing piece of work. I'd rather use it for recording than anything else.

 

[Dave L]

I still keep a very modest rack, with a Rivera TBR1, a Furman and two FX units. But even that is too cumbersome and heavy to cart around, so it mostly lives at the rehearsal space.

 

[Lucky Dog Guitars]

One really easy rig I put together sometimes is my 1-space ADA Microtube 200 power amp, the ADA MP-1, & the Roland GP-8. All fits in a 3-space rack bag. Depending on the gig size I can take a 1X12 or 2X12 cab. Simple midi switching pedal & you have a pretty compact & very versatile rig

 

[Dantana]

I'm a long time rack addict. I've done both the preamp/power amp/FX thing (Triaxis, Egnater M4), and the head/FX thing (Rivera M100, Boogie Mark IV) and just love the power of programming and one step tone/fx changes.

My latest rig is built around a THD Flexi 50. I load the Flexi 50 into a Hot Plate, then line out to a G-Major. This feeds a stereo power amp (currently a single space SS amp) and on to a stereo 2X12. Ive got an RJM Amp Gizmo for midi controlled channel/boost switching on the amp (although the G-Major can handle this for the Flexi 50). I still have a pedal board with pre-amp type pedals (OD, Boost, Octaver, Compressor, Wah, Talk Box), but may move some of these into a rack with a GCX switching system for further automation.

I've had cheesey racks, and I've had nice racks, but I just can't seem to get away from the power and flexibility of a rack based rig.

 

[drewl]

I'd rather use my old and homemade pedals live (I use them in studio) but I don't feel like having them kicked/trodded on destroyed by drunk girls onstage so I've been using my ValveFX for the past ten years or so for the numerous effects I need live.

I just upgraded to a GSP1101 and used it for rehearsal last night and I'm loving it!
I can't wait for saturdays gig!

I also have my wireless and power supply in the rack, it takes me about 3 minutes to set up.

 

[buddaman71]

My 6U rack is:


X2 wireless
Digitech GSP1101 (Kicks a$$! Expecially with the C40 Beta software upgrade)
Boss GX700
Tubeworks ProValve 50/50 Stereo 6L6 Tube Power Amp
Peavey Penta 412 Stereo Cab

LOVE it!!

 

[Dave L]

I guess I could add that apart from the TBR1 rack rig I also use a small rackcase in my main "regular" rig, with a Furman and a Rocktron Multivalve.

Around 2001 or so I had more of a "classic" rack rig, with two preamps (went thru a MP1, a Boogie Studio, a Carvin Quad, a Groove Tubes Trio, a Soldano SP77, a JMP1 etc.) hooked up in a Rocktron switcher, a few old school FX units (Roland, Ibanez etc.) and a Marshall 9000-series poweramp. It looked awesomely 80´s and various incarnations of it sounded damn good, and the best part is that back then you could get rack gear dirt cheap around here.

 

[gulliver]

Ive keep a minimal rack. I actually use it more like an amp head. PV Rockmaster,JMP 1 and a Classic 50/50 power amp. I use a board with EQ,Delay,clean boost and wah with it same as with my other gear. Bob

I had the PV Rockmaster and Classic 50/50 combo as well, great tone. I set the power amp up so I was using one side with two tubes pulled, making it an 18 watter. With JJ EL84s, it sounded great.

 

[Bobbyoso]

I've got a few different setups, but have kept my Mesa Studio Pre, 50/50, and Line6 Echo Pro since I bought all of em new years ago (not that many years ago for the Line6). All in a 5-space padded rack bag. Weighs as much as the same volume of dwarf star, and produces nearly as much heat.

I don't cart it out anymore unless I'm playing bigger halls or outdoors, but I'm always happy when I do. Run through a pair of 1 -12" Mesa cabs, it is a huge sounding stereo rig. Playing through other great amps, I'm rarely unhappy with any of 'em, I don't seem to have any set tone I "require", I prefer to explore and enjoy what any great amp has to show me. But then I crank the Mesa rack rig, and I remember why I love stereo setups, that one in particular. Plus you can play at lower volume and still get amazing dispersion.

Don't think I'll ever get rid of it; even in the house, at volumes where the 50/50 is barely awake, it sounds great.

 

[Eagle1]

It's hard to get by without some rack gear notably reverbs and delays .I still have racks and Heads and combos. no prejudice.I have
Pre amps;
JMP1
MP1
E570SE
Trio
SP77
Power amps;
2/50/2
TBR3
Processors;
MPX1
G Major
MX400.

 

[amc]

Luckily, I still have my Demeter TGP-3 preamp with the Slave poweramp.
I run a TC G Major in the loop and sometimes a Fender Tube reverb thru the front.

What a great setup (though it is too cumbersome to cart around)

 

[Shark Diver]

I grew up on racks, and tried to convert to heads a while ago. Had a few Bogners, Diezels, DR. Z and Bad Cats. Just found myself racking the pedals with a switching system and thought why the hell am I using a head, I still have a rack? Put a deposit down on the motorized midi Caswell head, but after a year of waiting for it to be built gave up. So, sold the heads and tried the Axe for over a year and a half. It was decent, but just not there for me.

So, now I have a SLO rack amp with a Bogner Fish, using my 2290 again and I'm in heaven. Even went as far as grabbing an original Palmer 03 and decided to still run FRFR. No guitar cabs. I now have the convenience of the Axe, but the tone of a tube head. Stereo, switchable, reach down to turn a knob and tweak without scrolling through menus, no real set up time. Crank the amp without volume issues. Perfect.

I also bought an X99 with a Soldano mono block SM 100r power amp for a back up rig and home use. Run that into a couple of cabs for fun, but I really think I get better tones with the Palmer.

Racks rule!

 

[tng]

I started with a pedal board but things kept growing...
So about 1 year ago I decided to rack it up.
Long time project.
My rack is not for the amps - it's just a (somewhat oversized) place for the effexts. So far there is a furman, d-two, m-one, mixer/splitter for w/d-things, 3 drawers for the pedals and a looper.
As I want a few more loops I'd love to see the new axess looper...

Racks ain't that way easy to carry but freaking cool!

Cheers,
tng

 

[Bad Juju]

I have an 8U rack that I use with my Bogner XTC 101B and Shiva 2x12 cab:
ETA Power Conditioner
Korg DTR-1 tuner
tc electronics D-Two
ISP Decimator Pro Rack G
RJM RG-16
Rocktron Xpression

I have a pedal drawer in it but no pedals yet. I think it will probably stay that way and I'll get a smaller rack. Or get a 2 space locking drawer for cables and stuff.

 

[localmotion411]

I've got a great rack rig I've put together around a head and cab setup -- will let me rack my pedals and use a midi controller and rack strip to switch between amp channels, pedals, and rack effects for maximum flexibility. Here is a thread on it:

https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/488077&highlight=bludo+rack

Only problem -- I'm still stumped as to how to get everything to play nicely with each other and be controlled by the midi controller. It's probably a lot simpler than I'm making it out to be; I just need the time to dig in and make it work.