Lexicon PCM96 Stereo

[Jakem]

Anyone use one? How do You like this unit?

 

[glpg80]

I wish I owned one. I love the reverb sounds on them more than my 81, but my 81 does one thing amazingly well and I’m not hard pressed to upgrade anytime soon.

 

[Geo]

If you want the Lexicon sound and don't want to buy used, it's the only choice.

 

[fusedbrain]

I've had one since they first came out.
Used it in a recording/mix rig back when plugin reverb and delays sounded like donkey balls.
The pcm96 or the Bricasti m7 were the gold standard of hardware reverb and delays, and probably still are, along with the high end eventide stuff.
There were some issues with plugin functionality and claimed connectivity functions that never really worked correctly, but I sent it a stereo aes/ebu signal and brought the analog outs back into my analog mixer.
Used it on a ton of mixes, and it sounded killer for realistic spaces and ambience. Never really dug into it for special effect type sounds like chorus, flange etc.
I think it would be overkill in a guitar rig, but with the evolution of plugins these days, this kind of studio hardware may be available at low cost on the used market. Don't know, haven't looked in years.
Stellar sounding unit, but depending on pricing, you may want to look at eventide hardware for the types of effects guitarists would gravitate towards for a rack rig.

 

[Geo]

How about an MPX 1?

Lexicon sound, fairly inexpensive.

 

[glpg80]

I've had one since they first came out.
Used it in a recording/mix rig back when plugin reverb and delays sounded like donkey balls.
The pcm96 or the Bricasti m7 were the gold standard of hardware reverb and delays, and probably still are, along with the high end eventide stuff.
There were some issues with plugin functionality and claimed connectivity functions that never really worked correctly, but I sent it a stereo aes/ebu signal and brought the analog outs back into my analog mixer.
Used it on a ton of mixes, and it sounded killer for realistic spaces and ambience. Never really dug into it for special effect type sounds like chorus, flange etc.
I think it would be overkill in a guitar rig, but with the evolution of plugins these days, this kind of studio hardware may be available at low cost on the used market. Don't know, haven't looked in years.
Stellar sounding unit, but depending on pricing, you may want to look at eventide hardware for the types of effects guitarists would gravitate towards for a rack rig.

I don’t think people understand just how much horsepower the PCM96 provides to reverb and how great it sounds. I’d own one over a plugin if I could afford it and didn’t have the PCM81.

 

[fusedbrain]

I don’t think people understand just how much horsepower the PCM96 provides to reverb and how great it sounds. I’d own one over a plugin if I could afford it and didn’t have the PCM81.

Yeah, the PCM96 is beast. I used to run it with 2 parralel engines, set up as mono in/stero out, with each side of the digital input feeding a dedicated engine producing a stereo output. It could reproduce 2 totally independent stereo ambience effects that would blow your mind, and never break a sweat.
People don't understand that the type of signal processing and dsp required to produce world class reverb and delay for high end audio is very difficult / impossible to reproduce with a PC.
The dsp in the hardware boxes a a completely different topology to what is in a pc, and the hardware can dedicate massive amounts of ram to the signal processing that a pc just can't match.

 

[Jakem]

Thanks for the comments! Let’s hope Eventide releases a 1U rack successor to the Eclipse!

 

[glpg80]

Thanks for the comments! Let’s hope Eventide releases a 1U rack successor to the Eclipse!

I wouldn’t count on it with the way plugins and such are going these days. Plus the lexicon sounds better than eventide IMO.

 

[ChurchHill]

I've had the PCM92 for about 10 years now, which is basically the same as the PCM96 without surround and fewer IO options, neither of which inhibit my usage. I think it sounds great! I've got a PCM81 and a 300, too, and they are all a little different, but all very good.

As @Geo mentioned, the MPX-1 is another great unit. It's got a dedicated reverb chip and is incredibly versatile if you are inclined to dive into all the modifiers available. Very underrated and still dirt cheap, at least compared to the higher-end Lexicons.

And while the Eclipse may not be a Lex, it's no slouch in the reverb department, either. Honestly, some of my favorite verbs are from the GTR4000. But, they're not Lexs and when you want that Lexicon sound, nothing else will do it.

 

[ChurchHill]

I wouldn’t count on it with the way plugins and such are going these days. Plus the lexicon sounds better than eventide IMO.

Yeah, it's unfortunate, but you're likely correct. I'm not sure I'd say better, but certainly different. To my ears, Lex is more realistic and Eventide is more surrealistic, although they can both cross-over into either realm. I can transport my experience to somewhere else with the Lexicon and forget I'm not actually there, where Eventide is more of an effect, albeit an ethereal one.

 

[Jakem]

I wouldn’t count on it with the way plugins and such are going these days. Plus the lexicon sounds better than eventide IMO.

Indeed. I was about to build a rack/stereo setup after ordering a IIC++ reissue but Gibson cancelled my paid order for the shop I ordered it from. Still building a stereo setup is fascinating me and therefore this quesiton about the PCM and also the comment about the Eventide. Would cover all bases if both were included.

 

[glpg80]

Indeed. I was about to build a rack/stereo setup after ordering a IIC++ reissue but Gibson cancelled my paid order for the shop I ordered it from. Still building a stereo setup is fascinating me and therefore this quesiton about the PCM and also the comment about the Eventide. Would cover all bases if both were included.

Man a stereo rig with a PCM96 would sound absolutely insane. Absolutely overkill for guitar but they add so much to your tone.

Ironically the reason I even own my PCM81 is because I bought it broken from a studio in NY that converted everything over to PCM96. Mine was a backup. I diagnosed and repaired it myself and have been using it ever since.

 

[alund]

Man a stereo rig with a PCM96 would sound absolutely insane. Absolutely overkill for guitar but they add so much to your tone.

Ironically the reason I even own my PCM81 is because I bought it broken from a studio in NY that converted everything over to PCM96. Mine was a backup. I diagnosed and repaired it myself and have been using it ever since.

What setting are you using in your PCM81?

 

[glpg80]

What setting are you using in your PCM81?

It’s within the modulation card. Either a chorused reverb or a reverbed chorus, it’s the opposite of what the stock unit has loaded. I haven’t changed the preset in years - it’s my go to tone.

 

[alund]

It’s within the modulation card. Either a chorused reverb or a reverbed chorus, it’s the opposite of what the stock unit has loaded. I haven’t changed the preset in years - it’s my go to tone.

Doing a wet dry? Or WDW thing ?

 

[glpg80]

Doing a wet dry? Or WDW thing ?

Neither - I run it in series and don’t do any external mixing - I just use it to add some smear to my dry tone. I’m not big on effects and never really have been. In my gigging days I did the same thing with a g major.

 

[Racerxrated]

I've had the PCM92 for about 10 years now, which is basically the same as the PCM96 without surround and fewer IO options, neither of which inhibit my usage. I think it sounds great! I've got a PCM81 and a 300, too, and they are all a little different, but all very good.

As @Geo mentioned, the MPX-1 is another great unit. It's got a dedicated reverb chip and is incredibly versatile if you are inclined to dive into all the modifiers available. Very underrated and still dirt cheap, at least compared to the higher-end Lexicons.

And while the Eclipse may not be a Lex, it's no slouch in the reverb department, either. Honestly, some of my favorite verbs are from the GTR2000. But, they're not Lexs and when you want that Lexicon sound, nothing else will do it.

I had a PCM 80, at the same time as an MPX1. The 'detail' in the tone was slightly better with the PCM, but a very small difference. Since I roll with 2 SD3000s for my delays I only used the PCM for reverb, some detune, I decided to sell the PCM and keep the MPX1. The MPX1 cost me 200$ at the time while the PCM was 800$...of course, they are worth more now but I only see MPX1s for 500 or more.
Lexicon are great products, can't go wrong with any of the PCMs or the MPX1.

 

[ChurchHill]

Indeed. I was about to build a rack/stereo setup after ordering a IIC++ reissue but Gibson cancelled my paid order for the shop I ordered it from. Still building a stereo setup is fascinating me and therefore this quesiton about the PCM and also the comment about the Eventide. Would cover all bases if both were included.

That sucks they cancelled your order. Sometimes, IDK what Gibson's thinking at all. I'd bet they'll come out with another C++ before much longer. They're driving a collector-driven market, but they could be making more money themselves and without alienating actual musicians. Anyway...

I've got a small rack that has my PCM92, an Eclipse, and a SPX2000. Between the verbs from the 92 and the effects from the Eclipse, it covers everything I need it to do. Well, except the Symphonic from the SPX, which is why it's there. To be fair, it does some other things pretty well, too. I've been thinking about putting my AxeFX in there, too, which would be so flexible. Just haven't gotten there, yet.

Another Lexicon to consider is the old LXP-15 II. They're getting harder to find, but are usually very reasonable. They're not quite as flexible as the newer stuff, but they still have the Lexicon sound. The older LXP-1 and LXP-5 are nice half-rack units, too. The other Lexicon stuff, like the MPX-500, is pretty generic, but the MPX-1 and MPX-G2 are great.

 

[Jakem]

That sucks they cancelled your order. Sometimes, IDK what Gibson's thinking at all. I'd bet they'll come out with another C++ before much longer. They're driving a collector-driven market, but they could be making more money themselves and without alienating actual musicians. Anyway...

I've got a small rack that has my PCM92, an Eclipse, and a SPX2000. Between the verbs from the 92 and the effects from the Eclipse, it covers everything I need it to do. Well, except the Symphonic from the SPX, which is why it's there. To be fair, it does some other things pretty well, too. I've been thinking about putting my AxeFX in there, too, which would be so flexible. Just haven't gotten there, yet.

Another Lexicon to consider is the old LXP-15 II. They're getting harder to find, but are usually very reasonable. They're not quite as flexible as the newer stuff, but they still have the Lexicon sound. The older LXP-1 and LXP-5 are nice half-rack units, too. The other Lexicon stuff, like the MPX-500, is pretty generic, but the MPX-1 and MPX-G2 are great.

Yes, that would be the plan. Something like a Suhr reactive load IR + rack wah+PCM+Eclipse+some pedals with a looper, stereo mixer and an SS stereo poweramp with two 1x12s.

I talked with Mesa’s factory support and they seemed not so happy about hearing my situation and how Gibson fucked it up. Mesa included quite a few Gibson managers in the e-mail but everyone from Gibson is hiding under a fucking stone. They fucked up and nobody takes responsibility. What a POS company.