Explain racks

[hthomas]

this is going to sound stupid. but i just dont no what all racks do.

Cna someone explain them? do they take place of amp heads? do you just play through pre amps into cabs?

 

[glpg80]

they provide versatility, advanced tonal options and routing options, and allow W/D/W setups to be built.

for W/D/W explanation - search the forum. thats a whole different topic in itself.

basically your amplifiers have a preamp section, and a poweramp section all in one amplifier, with some upper end models with an effects loop to insert effects after the preamp and guitar tones. you also have pedals that you insert into your signal chain even before the preamp.

racks allow you to take all of this into pieces and build a setup with the best of all preferred worlds into one unit - and then allow full control over that unit with the push of a button to eliminate pedal "dancing" with pedal boards and effects loop switches.

- it allows you to program MIDI patches with a controller unit of some sort (RJM16, GCX, etc)
- control your pedals all at once or individually without dancing all over the place and/or -
- control effects processors (which combine effects into a single unit [albeit not all racks sound the same as pedals...which choice or either choice depends on taste])

- control your amplifier channel (RJM allows you to do this, another controller called an amp gizmo does this as well) and only have 1 MIDI pedal in front of you at the mic stand to controll ALL of it with the push of a button and also switch whatever you please in that MIDI programmed patch of settings on or off as well (for solo boosts, mixing options, etc)

when i say patch, a patch is a saved setting. inside that patch you can edit anything you like, save that change update it this way whenever you like. if you dont save the changes, after you make the changes, then you can recall that patch later in the show and nothing would have changed (solo boosts on or off, chorus on in a certain part of the song, etc)

a bank is a set of patches, so a set list would be a (bank) of patches (songs) in the order that you want them

series parallel control is also a big deal, and in racked setups - you have the ability to split your signal chain effects into left and right channels and control those effects independently from one another. if you ever listen to a car stereo, guitars are usually panned left - bass panned right, or a mix of both. a rack allows advanced control of left and right channel effects for a much fuller sound and control - the same way a recorded CD does the same thing with post-production recordings of bands.

very versatile. i prefer a mix of amplifiers, rack, pedals, and racked effects all in one. they all have their place

 

[stefvorcide]

All I have to add is : Preamp = "Tone " (either clean or overdriven) and Power amp = Volume

After you can add any FX you like, tuners, etc..

 

[Death by Uberschall]

Here's mine:

Basically the signal goes like this:
Guitar > wireless > Rocktron compressor/noise reduction > Mesa TriAxis preamp > Rocktron gate > left channel of Mesa 2:90 power amp > left speaker out > Palmer dummy load/line out > second channel of the Rocktron gate > Rane mixer
>Alesis Quadra-verb > Rane mixer
>Digitech harmonizer > Rane mixer
>ADA Digitizer4 > Rane mixer
>Alesis Quadra-verb II > Rane mixer
Rane mixer > BBE 362nr > right channel of Mesa 2:90 > what ever speaker cabs I decide to use.

This set up allows me to send a dry, no-effect signal all the way through to the power amp which is run hot to the point of tube compression/coloration, but not overdriven, to get my base tones (clean or overdriven). This gives the ability to get pushed tube tone at any volume level. The Palmer dummy load sends a low/line level signal to the Rane mixer. The Rane mixer runs a separate send of the dry, no-effect signal to each of the effect units in parallel and mixes it back into the original signal as needed. All effects are set to full wet. So I always have the original tone as the base for my sound in the Rane mixer with each effect mixed in separately. Then the final mix goes through the BBE 362nr for a final tone tweak and noise suppression, then through the right amp channel to power my cabs at what ever volume I want.

The tuner gets a separate feed from either the compressor or preamp, just don't remember which, so it's not in the signal chain. Sometimes I bypass the wireless and just plug in. Everything is controlled by an Art Ultrafoot midi controller. All sounds are one stomp, with the exception of the ADA Digitizer4 which I control on the fly as needed for some add-on effects from it's own footswitch.

Seems complicated, but it's really straight forward and done correctly.

 

[rlord1974]

Here's mine:

Two quickies for ya':

1.) Do you support any of those units on the back?

2.) I thought you used a Marshall 9200?

Thx!

 

[Repner]

To sum it up shorter, I was going to say it's up to you what gear you can have in a rack. Could be just effects processors, or pedals in a tray connected to a switcher, or preamp + poweramp setup, or any combination.

I was originally going to have a rack purely for effects before deciding to add a pre/poweramp set up to it, so it's not always just a replacement for an amp head. In fact it could be anything. It's up to you.

 

[Death by Uberschall]

Here's mine:

Two quickies for ya':

1.) Do you support any of those units on the back?

2.) I thought you used a Marshall 9200?

Thx!

It's the 9100 sitting on top of the rack. I use the 2:90 for the switching abilities while using the Triaxis, but I'll never sell the 9100 because it does sound great.

Nothing is supported on the rear. But the Marshall 9100/9200 requires some type of bracing unless it sits directly on the bottom of a rack floor.

 

[rlord1974]

It's the 9100 sitting on top of the rack. I use the 2:90 for the switching abilities while using the Triaxis, but I'll never sell the 9100 because it does sound great. Nothing is supported on the rear. But the Marshall 9100/9200 requires some type of bracing unless it sits directly on the bottom of a rack floor.

Nice. Thanks!

 

[guitarslinger]

my rack:

 

[Ventura]

Pauly's avatar does a great job of explaining racks...

V.

 

[rsm]

I don't know what there is to explain about racks?

 

[Death by Uberschall]

I don't know what there is to explain about racks?

 

[rsm]

Nice big racks here. I'd really like a Marshall EL34 100/100 but then I'd need two 4x12 cabs, and...well, too much stuff.

Despite my last post in this thread, I'm a minimalist when it comes to racks: power conditioner-preamp-effects(optional)-poweramp. Since getting an FRFR, I just use power conditioners + preamp or preamp+effects. I had my Axe-Fx Ultra in a similar set-up when I had one. Here are my current racks:

Marshall (Furman and JMP-1 purchased from Rig-Talk members; JFX-1 a great deal on ebay. I think I was the only bidder?)

Tech 21 (another ebay deal, I was the only bidder)

Trace Elliot (bass)

 

[MARK1970]

I don't know what there is to explain about racks?

Nice pics of racks. PLEASE post more pics racks as I still need more info. Did I say please?

 

[rsm]

More examples, as requested but we may need to move this to OT if this keeps up...

This one's my fav in this list; first one in the last post fav there too.

not sure what the look is, but it wouldn't bother me too much.

 

[NITROHOLIC]

holy shit. and i thought my dream pedal board was hard to understand.

 

[bronz79]

Nice cans pics...ops..i mean racks!

 

[steve_k]

For real?

 

[Zachman]

Racks come in all sorts of configurations, sizes, and budget ranges-- to suite a wide variety of player's needs.

The reason I use them is for versatility, to access a wide variety of sounds, and the ability to control (In real time) the gear which provides them, which allows me the freedom to concentrate on performing, not doing tap dance steps.

The other thing re: rack rigs is-- they make it convenient to integrate analog, digital, and pedal technology into a cohesive rig, with more than one signal routing path, allowing for more flexibility-- and for one heck of a tone adventure for those who use them.

One can design a rack rig (I did), to accomplish several rig types in one. I can run the rig, mono, w/d, stereo, w/d/w, or wd/d/wd with virtually no fuss.

Here is mine:

Signal Routing Block Diagram:

 

[bronz79]

Racks come in all sorts of configurations, sizes, and budget ranges-- to suite a wide variety of player's needs.

The reason I use them is for versatility, to access a wide variety of sounds, and the ability to control (In real time) the gear which provides them, which allows me the freedom to concentrate on performing, not doing tap dance steps.

The other thing re: rack rigs is-- they make it convenient to integrate analog, digital, and pedal technology into a cohesive rig, with more than one signal routing path, allowing for more flexibility-- and for one heck of a tone adventure for those who use them.

One can design a rack rig (I did), to accomplish several rig types in one. I can run the rig, mono, w/d, stereo, w/d/w, or wd/d/wd with virtually no fuss.

Here is mine:

Signal Routing Block Diagram:

Simply fantastic,the rack rig of my dreams!