5150 II or Triple XXX?

[Fragle]

uh? everyone who has seen them with different set-ups have said that they sounded the best and the clearest with rectifiers
and one of rectifiers strongest points is the awsome sound while playing big open string chords, no mud at all unless you can't tweak the amp right

seriously, they don't. in fact, the best sound they/jeff have/has ever had was with the peavey XXX, so go figure. imho, the rectifier is NOT the perfect amp for nevermore type stuff. it works in the studio, but it's way mushy live.
and the open string stuff is NOT true when talking about nevermore. if you were more familiar with their work you'd know that jeff uses a lot of dissonant chords coupled with quick changes from palm mutes to open strings. the pre chorus riff of final product would be a perfect example of that. while rectifiers really shine in a nu metal environment with lots of BASIC open chords like an open D chord played on the A-b strings, it's a well known FACT that they have a hard time making anything but the root and the fifth come through clearly.

[Endrik]

dude I played Zappa's Zoot Allures and some Coltrane's stuff with modern channel, full drive on, tons of gain, only 7Sus4, 11, add13, 9b5 and other crazy jazz chords wich make nevermore look like the sex pistols, the sound was super CLEAR. What kind of a BS "FACT" are you talking about?

Muddy live? Have you ever played with one live? have you played with one at all?

[kmanick]

I'm on the Nevermore/Steve Smyth/Chris Broderick forums alot and people are constantly posting pics from recent shows up all the time.
the Dual Recto vanished for a while and all you saw were Kranks, but all recent pics show one dual recto up on stage behind Jeff again and one behind Broderick.

oh and when I play my hellraiser 7 thru my 5150 it sounds anything but 'thin". BBE sonic stomp in the loop into my marshall cab
you need to crank a 5150 up to at least 4 post gain to get it's 'true" sound out of it and then it's a monster

[Endrik]

didn't Gary saw them recently with Rectos?

[Dreamland_Rebel]

i'd go with the XXX or JSX if i were you.

[Fragle]

"the Dual Recto vanished for a while and all you saw were Kranks, but all recent pics show one dual recto up on stage behind Jeff again and one behind Broderick. "

that's probably because most of the recent pics were taken on european shows, and they've always used (except for the EoR tour i think) rented dual recto's for the euro stuff - cheaper than bringing their own rig from the US, plus you don't have to deal with different voltages and stuff.

and Endrik....to answer your questions, yes, i have played the rectifiers (more than once, never actually OWNED one though), i have NOT played one live (but have seen countless bands doing so, and they all sounded mediocre to shitty except for cataract, but that's because their music is rather groovy most of the time (the stuff i've seen them play was, to be more precise), and seriously, anyone who isn't tone deaf or does not use SUPER conservative settings (very little bass mainly, a la john petrucci) could confirm this FACT for you.
you know what i think? playing zappa stuff with full gain on the modern channel yet being able to hear all the notes....i smell a huge pile of
BULLSHIT

[Endrik]

smell what you want, I'm speaking about my experiences, and don't be so bitter because I can make the amp work.

and you have to use little bass because bass guitar has to deliver the lows not guitar and besides Mesas have more lows than most of the amps so you have to pull them back even more.....so I don't know what those "bands" you've seen do with those amps.
A couple of years ago a fusion band played here wich featured Zappas ex-keyboard player Allan Zavod who is a monster virtuoso and a big name, they also had one of the Australian finest drummers Glenn Roche. The guitar player used PRS and Dual Recto, everyone in the concert said that they had one of the best sounds ever...and specially the guitar.

[Mordor]

Just to share my experience, I have single recto and these days it's my main amp. I keep tones and gain at 12.30, can't remember presence. With these settings my recto sound great, no muddy at all, clear and tight, with lots of harmonics. Rectifiers are a pain in the ass to be set in the beginning, but once you know how to dial it properly it shows how much good it can sound. One of the most important things to know is that the master control plays a HUGE role in tone crafting. It can turn the amp to sound like a elephant's fart, flabby and muddy. Rectos are very underrated imo, they are very versatile amps. I'm using the vintage channel a lot lately and I'm very happy with its voicing. Cleans are also great. Some weeks ago I played some Holdworth-like stuff with the clean channel and the guy that was with me was surprised about the jazzy sound of the amp.

[Endrik]

yes dude, Mesas are great amps for jazz and fusion and not only the Mark series but the Rectos aswell, I've seen tons of great Jazz/Fusion players with rectifiers and they all have amazing tone.

[VitaminG]

and the open string stuff is NOT true when talking about nevermore. if you were more familiar with their work you'd know that jeff uses a lot of dissonant chords coupled with quick changes from palm mutes to open strings. the pre chorus riff of final product would be a perfect example of that. while rectifiers really shine in a nu metal environment with lots of BASIC open chords like an open D chord played on the A-b strings, it's a well known FACT that they have a hard time making anything but the root and the fifth come through clearly.

I went to the Brisbane Metal Convention last Saturday. 9 band line up, all thrash, grind, death & melo death bands. Not a gnu-metaller amongst them. There were exceptions, a few Marshalls & H&Ks, but the most common amp there was a Recto. Now, most of these guys weren't playing chords as complex as Jeff fancies, but there were some brutally heavy sounds happening there.

btw, Vernon Reid is another who likes using jazz chords in metal songs. Hamers & EMGs into Mesas. He's been using them since the 80s.

I'm on the Nevermore/Steve Smyth/Chris Broderick forums alot and people are constantly posting pics from recent shows up all the time.
the Dual Recto vanished for a while and all you saw were Kranks, but all recent pics show one dual recto up on stage behind Jeff again and one behind Broderick.

didn't Gary saw them recently with Rectos?

That's just what I saw. November 2.

As Fragle said, they were probably rentals. But the guitar shop that Jeff's tech was sent to to buy cables before the show is a chain store owned by one of the countries biggest gear rental companies (I just happened to have been chatting with the guys when he popped in) and they stock a range of Mesas, Engls, Marshalls, Line6, Genz AND Krank. And yet Chris and Jeff both played through Rectos that night.

[sevser]

Well I like both the 5150 and the XXX (Own the XXX) but they are not voiced the same, so one doesn’t out do the other. Both the same build quality so how one "Kills" the other I don't understand.

Loomis liked the XXX sound but was probably offered a better deal. Still gives a good idea what kind of sound he looks for. Our new stuff uses a lot of jazz chords and the XXX delivers the notes very well with high gain. Very much a technique issue as well....I do a lot of fret hand muting of certain strings to keep things tight.

What was the question? lol

[Fretburner]

Have you tried the Carvin V3 ? I love mine, I've had all the mentioned above except the XTC. The V3 Crushes them all! Was the XTC mentioned? LOL

[jgcable]

Between a 5150 and a Rectifier.
Hmm. thats a tough call.
NOW... LETS JUST TALK ABOUT THE HEAVY STUFF.
For thrash and death.... Rectifier
For that subsonic alternate tuning shit.. Rectifier
For bands that don't play guitar solo's....Rectifier
For a band that needs a super loud super clean channel....Rectifier

For EVERYTHING ELSE from late 70's rock and metal to todays metal in a variety of genre's and styles including all lead guitar players.... 5150

[DumpyWumpy]

Hmm the V3...that's something I didn't think of! I'll have to do some research...Do you have any clips or anything Fretburner?

[Fretburner]

V3

I don't have any clips but if you go to the Carvin forum there are a few guys that have clips. I can honestly say, Don't judge any amp by clips on the net. Carvin has a 10 day return policy. I took a chance when I bought mine on eBay and I really love it. It has more features than any tube amp in it's class and it sounds Mean! It also has one of the best clean sounds I have ever dialed in on a tube head. The eq on this amp is also incredible.

Hmm the V3...that's something I didn't think of! I'll have to do some research...Do you have any clips or anything Fretburner?