New Rig Day - Dual Rectifier Reborn

[Bad.Seed]

Welp, this is about rectifier #13 for me. I buy them when I find good deals for them in hopes that maybe I will finally bond with one. My last one, a 2 channel triple had something going on with the Orange channel that made me dig it much more than the other. Shouldn't have let it go, but sometimes money talks at the right moments.

Anyways, I scored a mint Dual Rectifier Multi Watt w/ Traditional 412 cab, road case for the head with 6 space rack on wheels, On Stage Stands pedalboard with cheap multi power supply, boss ns2, rowin noise gate, and line 6 G30 wireless system for $1,500. Figured I couldn't say no to that deal.

Anyways, got it home and plugged it in, hoping that the good things I heard about Reborn Rectos would make me like it, but my fears were confirmed. It sounds pretty much exactly the same.

At this point, I know I'm beating a dead horse and just wanting to like something I know I don't, so I've accepted that. I hear others play them and make them sound killer, but in my hands, I just don't like the slow tracking and bouncy feel while playing it. It is what it is.

You guys ever have an amp like that? You want to love but just can't? Anyways, here's the rig.

 

[skullfxr]

My tremoverb keeps me happy with rectos. TBH none of the others do the same for me, and I really don't want to fork out cash for a Rev F Triple but that is really about the only other Recto I crave.

 

[Metlupass2]

Dude I'm the exact same way with Rectifiers. I've had 4 or 5 myself and always end up selling them too.

 

[slash57]

What did you use as a boost?
Maybe there are other boost pedals that suit your taste better with the recto.

 

[Markedman]

I love rectifiers when other people play them and I relly love the tone on albums by my favorite bands, but yeah, I buy and sell rectifiers too.

That is why I go by "Markedman", I love Boogie Mark series stuff and have gotten great tone from all Mark series amps.

 

[fusedbrain]

I've owned a few different recto's over the years.
The only one I kept is a rev G triple.
Until I got the rev G triple rec, I never really understood the recto love. (I hadn't tried any rev G or earlier models up to that point though.)
The rev G triple with Orange cloned to Red is an F'n great tone. That amp is a beast.

I will say I thought the newer multi-watt dual I had was kinda OK, but nothing special.
Very versatile for a gigging player, and lots of cool features, but there were no tones in there that stood out at all.

All the models I tried that were made after the 2 channel Rev G's, but before the re-born multi-watts were really really lackluster.

 

[Racerxrated]

Boosted they can be killer; kinda like a JCM 800 in that regard...plenty of gain but it just becomes much better boosted. OD 808, SD1 and OD1X for me. Triples are my favorite also.

 

[Dopethrone]

By themselves, jamming just guitar at lower volumes, meh, yep i get it.

In a band mix though!!!!

Mixed with other amps, I quickly see what's missing from those other amps, including:
Jvm410h
M3/4/5
5150 v1 &1
Egnater tourmaster
Pvy XXL
Marshall g100rcd

Instant ? when you run a DR stereo w another amp, especially in vacuum tube rec.

 

[ZEEGLER]

I figured out after only owning one of them, that I just don't get along with Rectos. It sounded "messy" to me. That's the best way I can think of to describe it. Just no clarity, little note definition.

 

[Bad.Seed]

I figured out after only owning one of them, that I just don't get along with Rectos. It sounded "messy" to me. That's the best way I can think of to describe it. Just no clarity, little note definition.

Couldn't agree more.

 

[Bad.Seed]

By themselves, jamming just guitar at lower volumes, meh, yep i get it.

In a band mix though!!!!

Mixed with other amps, I quickly see what's missing from those other amps, including:
Jvm410h
M3/4/5
5150 v1 &1
Egnater tourmaster
Pvy XXL
Marshall g100rcd

Instant ? when you run a DR stereo w another amp, especially in vacuum tube rec.

I get this. As a single amp rig, hell no. Too much mess/mud. As a dual amp rig with something with more clarity and precision to accent, it can fill in nicely.

 

[MetalHeadMike]

The 2014 MW Dual I had was phenomenal, but that's boosted. It was super articulate/defined, huge but tight low end and mean as fuck. That said it was a bit sluggish in regards to tracking. There was always a bit of sag, but I liked that compared to all my other amps which are extremely fast tracking. Ultimately I moved it to try something else but nothing I've owned can achieve the aggressive low mid anger that amp could....perfect for those huge grinding death metal riffs not soo good for lazer beam thrash stuff IMO.

 

[Beyond Black]

I haven’t played a MW, but the F and three channel Duals that I had KILLED on the orange channel clean boosted with an 808, gain around 11 o’clock, bass low, treble and presence around 12-1 ish, mids to taste. That should get you close and be killer. E34L’s will also tighten it up and make it hit like a jackhammer. GZ34 rectifier tubes will further tighten it up.

 

[paulyc]

Not Mesa related, but I had the Lee Jackson Ampeg and I just couldn’t love it. Didn’t like the Metaltronix M 1000 either.

 

[Rex Rocker]

IMO, the SD-1 is one of the best boosts for a Recto. I see people often pair SD-1's with Marshalls, but I think it really gels with the Recto tone better. It cuts more bass than a Tube Screamer, so it tightens up more, and ads a hint of high-mid grind that blends well with the Recto's scoopiness.

Try an SD-1 with your Recto.

 

[mnemonic]

I like using a GE7 or similar EQ in front of a tubescreamer or other overdrive, to fine tune the tightness. I cut some bass at 400hz and below, then boost some mids. Doesn’t need to be extreme, really helps take a tone from an bit loose and messy’ to ‘razor sharp’. And what I love about rectos is that with the ludicrous amount of low end they have on tap, you’re not really gonna end up in a situation where too tight of a boost ends up with a thin guitar tone.

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I like using a GE7 or similar EQ in front of a tubescreamer or other overdrive, to fine tune the tightness. I cut some bass at 400hz and below, then boost some mids. Doesn’t need to be extreme, really helps take a tone from an bit loose and messy’ to ‘razor sharp’. And what I love about rectos is that with the ludicrous amount of low end they have on tap, you’re not really gonna end up in a situation where too tight of a boost ends up with a thin guitar tone.

^^^
I achieved similar results with a good boost and an MXR 10 band in the loop. Cut the treble, boost the mids and it was a thick/huge tone but defined and hit like a wrecking ball. Agreed that the ample low end allowed to boost and cut/tighten the lows but not at the expense of making the tone thin out.

 

[mooncobra]

My tremoverb keeps me happy with rectos. TBH none of the others do the same for me, and I really don't want to fork out cash for a Rev F Triple but that is really about the only other Recto I crave.

Best Mesa I ever played by a mile was a Tremoverb

 

[Dopethrone]

The other 2ch dr settings i use maybe worth checking out:

Vintage to clean/Red to vintage
Vacuum tube rec
Loop master off

Vol and gain to taste
Bass 11oclock ish
Mids cranked
Treble OFF
Red to vintage allows me to use both presence knobs

Bigger smoother tone at volume ^ still nasty af due to dual presence

 

[danielraible]

I can sympathize. My DR search finally ended when I purchased a Tremoverb.

That said, my favorite way to run any Dual Recto variation is slaved into a 2:90 power amp. The increased headroom of the 2:90 really helps with the clarity, and the extra presence knob helps to tame the paper-shredding high-end of the DR preamp section. Yes it increases the cost of the rig significantly, and the complexity, but the payoff is worth it.

For what it's worth I recall reading an old interview of Ty Tabor during the 'Dogman' era saying that he prefers the red channel of his Racktifier set on bold with silicon diodes slaved into a 2:90 power amp. After experimenting with every possible combination...I concur. That sound is the one.

Hope this helps.

YMMV.