Time to stop kidding myself about Dual Rectos

[Robotechnology]

The only Rectos, I'd own are the "bookends:"

Rectoverb Series II
Road King Series 1 or Series II (the Roadster is missing the different power tube selection per channel feature)

I've owned 4. Still have a Rectoverb 1X12 combo. Wouldn't have sold the Road King head if I didn't need money at the time. Good riddance to the Dual and Triple recto heads I had.

[yard dawg]

I tried a Recto with the Mesa cab and it sounded flubby in the low end. I then played it thru a Port City Audio cab and the flubbyness went bye bye. I wouldnt give up on the recto until I tried it thru a better cab with different speakers and without the JB pickup.

If you feel like you have come full circle and back to Marshall maybe you should just stick with Marshall if the recto issues cant be fixed.

[destructin_od]

My bud just got the new Marshall JVM, insane.

I tried one out last week. Pure awesomenes ! Nice cleans , chunky and warm distortion tones.

[rocksoldier]

Since you liked the 5150 combo, i would just get the head version, isn't the head 120 watts or something? should be enough to keep up.

[JC_Denton]

I want really tight, palm muted chunk on the low E.

I hear you i had exactly the same problem with my triple rec. the solution for me was, new euro tubes + 1x12 cab with 8ohm celeston vintage 30's , i think best would be 2x12 mesa cab, and ibanez ts9 gain tunred to 0

[skorb]

Recto's are not one trick ponies, I have seen them used in many different styles of music and sounded good in every style. I really hate when people say they are one trick ponies.

yup, true, I used to think they were just thrash metal amps but then I saw the Foo Fighters using them on their most recent (rock, not acoustic) tour, and they had mind-crushingly awesome tone. the best I've ever heard at any show. heavy, sharp, cutting, with a ton of midrange and great harmonics, but not brutally massively thrash heavy (that's where it gets too much for me).

[cookiemonster2]

I'm no expert but here are two speculative observations:

1. A Recto and Splawn are apples and oranges from what I understand them to be. So maybe a Recto just isn't your tone.

2. Even at half way up on the master maybe this isn't enough to get the sound you want. I have a MarkIV, when I switch it into Class A, which I think drives the power tubes harder (or saturates them somehow) than Class A/B, the lead channel is so much more distorted, tight, and punchy, then when in Class A/B at relatively the same volume. That is to say, the fizziness in high gain amp distortion comes from relying on cranking the gain to distort the pre-amp as opposed to getting the power amp clipping. Of course this could all be my own personal intuitive BS.

[jgcable]

I had a few Rectos and then went to a 5150. Then an SLO. I would try a 5150 first.

I'll go with the above statement myself.

[chmizell]

Agree with Lynchfan......I used to think it was a little bit of pretentious blabber from the old schoolers....but as time goes by, I learn more and more the 50% or more, probably a lot more, comes from your hands!

[Firebird V]

I had a few Rectos and then went to a 5150. Then an SLO. I would try a 5150 first.

[beachjammer]

What was in it before the V30? I was under the impression that V30's already were pretty brigth sounding speakers...

It had the Mesa/Celestion Black Shadow C90 speaker in it. It was brighter sounding and caused it to be a little too bright for my tastes since it's a 3/4 back open cabinet. When I added the Vintage 30 it gave it more low/mid punch and was just what the doctor ordered

[lynchfan6]

Exactly,,,,it is a costly, long journey ( I went through many Marshalls, ADA's, Carvin, Peavey 5150, ART, Sovtek,) When I finally heard the Soldano, it was everything I've been looking for since I was a teen. And yet as much as I love my SLO, and would recommend anyone to try one out, it isn't going to be everyone's dream amp. I recently let a friend of mine play through my SLO, as he sounds pretty jagged through some ancient peavey head he has,,,,and he sounded better, but still not too good through my Soldano. They way he approaches (or doesn't) the strings did no justice to my SLO. About ten years ago, I went to see an Ozzy tribute band, and the guitarist was phenomenal.....all of the squeaks, squaks, beautiful sound like the no more tears record.....and he looked and acted like a cross between Randy Rhoads and Zakk,,,,and just played that stuff perfectly like it was second nature. ANyway, it turned out that he was using some old solid state peavey head and cab from the 80's !!!!!!!!!! And it blew me away.

[Endrik]

Sean, just sell it, it isn't your thing. I never had any fizz or any other problems with Rectos, many have. It's the hands (fingers, skin, pressure, attack) and playing style/technique I guess
When I play with engl's, they sound like cheap SS amps but Doug Aldrich sounds amazing with them.

[Endrik]

However, the fact remains: MY OPINION IS that Recto's are only good for Heavy-metal and even then you'll be suited much better with other amps if you play that style of music (I definetly do). Just my 2 cents.

tons of jazz, pop and blues artists use rectos, I rarely see them using all those other hi gain amps mentioned here before

[zEr0]

I love my Recto but it's the single rectifier rectoverb 1x12 combo. I put a vintage 30 speaker in it and it removed all the fizziness to it that annoys some people and really brought it alive. Course that's just my opinion and the tone I like. Although the clean channel isn't as good as what's on other amps I frequently use mine to play country , blues and jazz stuff.

What was in it before the V30? I was under the impression that V30's already were pretty brigth sounding speakers...