Dialling in a Mesa Rectifier head.

[Trevoire520]

Hey guys, got a band coming in to record soon and the guitarist has got a rectifier head. I've never used one of these before and I know there's quite a few options with bold/spongy switches, tube/solid state rectification, different channels and modes etc. Basically I don't know where to start!

I think its the single rectifier solo head the guy has. I know the general consensus is that it's not as good as the other recto's. Though I remember hearing a clip of Marcus' holy diver cover run through it that sounded really good.

What's a good starting point with this amp for a metalcore kinda sound?

 

[Scott Horner]

I don't think the single rec has the option for tube/silicon or bold/spongy. I would use the modern red channel boosted with a tubescreamer type OD. Watch the presence because those can get fizzy.

 

[PhilTheBeard]

Def boost the amp with either a ts 808 or an od808. And keep the presence around 11o clock and 1 o clock. And on the single rec put it on bold. and you don't have to worry about the recto tube's since the single rec only has silicon diodes

 

[AboutBlank]

Yeah, presence is a bitch, haven't set this over 11 o clock, mostly around 10...

 

[greyskull]

Tricky bastards to dial in rectos... I think the best tip I can give is to not be afraid to turn knobs down from the mid position. I've ne'er got a great sound out of one with any of the knobs dimed that's for sure!

 

[mickrich]

I have a triple Recto and the way I dial it is:
808 in front
All knobs at 12 then lower bass a bit to get rid of mud (ends up around 11 o'c)
Lower mids to get rid of boxiness (ends up around 9-10o'c)
Presence to zero then turn it up until the fizz appears then back off a bit (ends up around 7-9o'c)
Back off treble to 10o'c then turn it up until fizz appears then back off a bit (usually ends up 11-12o'c)
Turn up gain until fizz appears then back it off a bit (usually 12-2o'c)
The recto's eq is nothing like my other heads. If you go past 12o'c on any control it's too much (for me). Some people don't like rectos because they are fizzy but it's usually due to pilot error setting the eq up like they would on other amps.
I find the recto to be all about fighting the fizziness. Because the controls all interact starting with all at 12 works best for me. Using pink noise fed into the amp to position the mic helps too because it will steer you away from the harsh high mids.
I love my recto even though it requires much more work than the 6505 to get a great tone.
Hope this helps

 

[Trevoire520]

Great advice so far. Thanks a ton guys!
Does the recto have a active eq like the XXX? Or is it passive?

 

[Harry Hughes]

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/equipment/585598-dual-rectifier-tips-tricks-hints.html

Still somewhat relevant me thinks

 

[some-dude]

Great advice so far. Thanks a ton guys!
Does the recto have a active eq like the XXX? Or is it passive?

Passive.

It's just interactive because the pots feed into each other.... so more treble means less signal being fed to the midrange. Less treble means more signal being fed to the midrange. Same deal for midrange to bass.

It also adds some other interesting characteristics. Adding more treble adds more gain and the mids knob controls how stiff the amp feels. The presence also acts as a hardness control... if you want aggressive try diming it in modern mode, then drop the tone knob on the guitar to cut the sizzle down to useable levels. Makes the Tubescreamer+Recto thing sound like weak sauce. It used to be a common trick to "scoop" a Recto by running the mids and presence up high with the treble off, but it seems to fallen off the radar lately.

The bass knob is pretty much the the only knob that does what it's labeled to do... control bass.

With any luck he'll arrive with a Mesa cab as their V30s do shape the Rectifier sound, including taming the top end fizz.

 

[Mikaël-ange]

I think its the single rectifier solo head the guy has. I know the general consensus is that it's not as good as the other recto's. Though I remember hearing a clip of Marcus' holy diver cover run through it that sounded really good.

Marcus HD clip was a 2 channels dual rectifier (rev g with schumasher tranny), not a single

For setting:

Bold, silicon diode, red
Treble 12:30
Mid 10
Bass 11:30
Pres 10:30
Gain 2

All setting are o'clock

 

[BrettT]

I have a triple Recto and the way I dial it is:
808 in front
All knobs at 12 then lower bass a bit to get rid of mud (ends up around 11 o'c)
Lower mids to get rid of boxiness (ends up around 9-10o'c)
Presence to zero then turn it up until the fizz appears then back off a bit (ends up around 7-9o'c)
Back off treble to 10o'c then turn it up until fizz appears then back off a bit (usually ends up 11-12o'c)
Turn up gain until fizz appears then back it off a bit (usually 12-2o'c)

Listen to this guy.

 

[amarshism]

Presence -> 0
With the right mic position you'll get enough high end excitement.

 

[Mikaël-ange]

Presence -> 0
With the right mic position you'll get enough high end excitement.

Except the fact presence on rectifier (red channel so what everyone use since 15 years for heavy genre) don't affect high end but low end... Just saying...

 

[ahjteam]

Actually at least the Dual Rectifier manual (page 7 and forward) comes with a really cool info about the knobs and usually their "sweet spots" that sound good in 90% of the time (treble 11:00-1:30, presence 7:00-9:30 and for mids and bass there is long chapters) and "character zones":

By itself the GAIN Control has basically three tonal regions -
Low ( 7:00 - 11:00 ) provides the cleanest, least saturated sounds and in this region the sound will be brighter and contain more
upper harmonics lending a three dimensional character to the sound.
Middle ( 11:15 - 2:00 ) enhances the saturation and replaces some of the upper harmonics with a richer, warmer quality and a fuller
bottom end response. Not yet fully saturated, this region is the easiest place to get a great sound in both channels. This region
contains many of the RECTO’S best sounds...especially for soloing due to the crucial blend of an expressive attack combined with
ample sustain.
High ( 2:15 - 5:00 ) saturates the signal and enhances low and low mid frequencies. While this region provides the maximum
saturation and therefore sustain, if also compresses and softens the attack characteristics. For this reason we suggest using this
higher region of the GAIN Control sparingly and only when maximum sustain is needed.

So check out the manual what they suggest for single recto, then adjust to taste.

 

[ahjteam]

Except the fact presence on rectifier don't affect high end but low end... Just saying...

I changes depending on what channel, mode and version of the recto you are on.