New modular systems?

[Jaded Faith]

What about a SS or digital power section? It would make weight a non-issue. my Markbass is SS and sounds bonkers good.

I hope it stays sounding good, because if it craps the bed you are SCREWED in all caps. From my repair experience, there are three brands I tell folks to runs away from like they are on fire: Mark Bass, Blackstar and Behringer. You want no part of any of this garbage. The gear often sounds great, but all three brands are built like disposable garbage.

 

[rblyn]

What about a SS or digital power section? It would make weight a non-issue. my Markbass is SS and sounds bonkers good.

I hope it stays sounding good, because if it craps the bed you are SCREWED in all caps. From my repair experience, there are three brands I tell folks to runs away from like they are on fire: Mark Bass, Blackstar and Behringer. You want no part of any of this garbage. The gear often sounds great, but all three brands are built like disposable garbage.

Guys- Use your own ears and experience with gear- Rob is entitled to his opinion but so am I and everyone else....

Blackstar is not garbage- Totally disagree with that statement. One of my artists are endorsed (I do some A/R on the side) and I've seen first hand how they handle their R/D and communicate frequently with their marketing guys. I own some of their gear too- Their service is also top notch. Just like every other brand, they have low end/entry level gear...intermediate type amps and then flagship products. Cant speak for some of the entry level stuff, but I am familiar with a LOT of their products and spent a good portion of the last two NAMM shows in Anaheim with them. Great guys and very dedicated to putting out great gear at competitive price points...

 

[rblyn]

How about a RM100 with 3 unpopulated modules and a voucher for a 'module building class' :wink:

Never thought about this! (Module building/modding class) What a great idea! Might be a good entry level way to start learning circuits etc. I would think there would be a ton of interest in this???

 

[suphuckers]

Guys- Use your own ears and experience with gear- Rob is entitled to his opinion but so am I and everyone else....

rblyn, I have no opinion on those amps, but I want to +1 that statement. I get sooooo irritated with people that are soooo scared to express their opinion. I express myself quite plainly, but soooooo can everyone else. In fact I wish they would. Good for you sir. Buncha Girly men lurking around this earth I tell ya. Girlllllly Men

 

[rblyn]

Guys- Use your own ears and experience with gear- Rob is entitled to his opinion but so am I and everyone else....

rblyn, I have no opinion on those amps, but I want to +1 that statement. I get sooooo irritated with people that are soooo scared to express their opinion. I express myself quite plainly, but soooooo can everyone else. In fact I wish they would. Good for you sir. Buncha Girly men lurking around this earth I tell ya. Girlllllly Men

yeah I dont know why anyone would be scared to do so? I dont care who made the statement, if I disagree with it- I should be able to say so? The key is to keep it respectful....criticism should be constructive and always keep an open mind.. As far as Blackstar goes, I have a lot of exposure/experience with the company (beyond a normal consumer) and think highly of them. Coincidentally, they happen to be one of the fastest growing amp companies in the world.

 

[tschrama]

How about a RM100 with 3 unpopulated modules and a voucher for a 'module building class' :wink:

Never thought about this! (Module building/modding class) What a great idea! Might be a good entry level way to start learning circuits etc. I would think there would be a ton of interest in this???

8) Spread the word... Spread the word... lets make it happen!

 

[Jaded Faith]

Perhaps I should clarify. These brands offer a bang for the buck and often sound fantastic. From a technical point of view, there are valid reasons for my statement.

Blackstar: They use a lot of SMD technology inside their amps. This has a history of being a bad idea inside of tube gear with high voltages. I have also seen several of their amps have issues with voltage leaking between the top and bottom layers of the PCB. That's pretty disturbing QC, particularly in a tube amp.

Behringer: There is so much history of poor quality and reliability coupled with constant discontinuation of replacement parts that most shops have dropped them as a Service Center. That's usually a glaring warning sign.

Mark Bass: Almost every repair on these amps has to be at a PCB-replacement level and can't be done at a component level. Parts come from Italy. This is bad on two levels. You need to be close to one of the few service centers to get anything fixed and parts/repairs end up nearly as expensive as the gear itself. Twice I have had bands on tour sent to the shop with their Mark Bass amps that couldn't be fixed quickly, easily or affordably. For bonus points, their service manuals are three pages long and only explain how to swap boards.

Consumers today demand everything to be loaded with features, reliable and cheap as can be. Ideally, you can hit on two of the three. One will have to suffer to make the other two a reality.

 

[Jacksauce]

Built in Clean Channel: Great idea for models with one or two bays.
20 Watt model with 2 bays (RM22) plus built in clean channel and MIDI.
50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

Power Section
Pot to scale (e.g. 100w/50w modes)
3-Way tight switch Loose/Normal/Tight

Clean Boost (foot switchable?)
Reverb
Direct recording out
Effects loop level

This forum has a wealth of ideas like adjustable boost input level.
Rob has come up with this and other incredible tweaks here:
http://mtsforum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?t=19736

 

[Petrucci]

50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

:arrow: :arrow: :arrow: YES, YES, YES, YES, YES!!!

 

[suphuckers]

50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

:arrow: :arrow: :arrow: YES, YES, YES, YES, YES!!!

That.

 

[drewiv]

Bruce,

This seems to be gaining some popularity... Pretty please.

Bruce,

MOD50 with four module bays. Just sayin'.

Drew's suggestion "50 watt modular amp with four dual channel slots" would be a hit as well.

I have to throw in my lot with DrewIV....four channels...50 watts...yes please.

I have to throw in my lot with DrewIV....four channels...50 watts...yes please.

This would totally rock. Could we also have a head cabinet choice, such as a regular head cabinet & a one with a 1U rack slot built in?

Bruce,

MOD50 with four module bays. Just sayin'.

+1, great idea, Drew. :idea:

50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

:arrow: :arrow: :arrow: YES, YES, YES, YES, YES!!!

50 Watt model with 4 bays (MOD50 married to a M4).

:arrow: :arrow: :arrow: YES, YES, YES, YES, YES!!!

That.

 

[withmittens]

seems to be a trend

I'll add that as a consumer using the MTS system because it can be tweaked, it would be awesome if it were somewhat scalable.

For instance, the size and power scaling of the Carvin V3 Micro is very attractive, although the sound may not be. A mod 50 with a great loop to add my RM4, in a small package like the V3 Micro with power scaling, interchangeable tubes, would be killer. and of course all of the great Egnater features we know and love

 

[Johnny Wadd]

heard this story many times before...

 

[Ultron]

Yes, the new modular stuff will be "backwards compatible" with all the old Randall and Egnater models.

 

[Jacksauce]

Seriously, we should be damn thankful for the backward compatibility. Improving the platform they use and offering new modules. Thank you Bruce!

Bruce will have to decide on select models.

Scenarios: studio, large, medium and small venue/home.

Personally I don't think these sell as well:
- Amp with less than 2 channels
- Combos larger than 50 watt

For me, the idea of keeping everything separate is appealing. Power amp, preamp and cabinet.

 

[iekobrid]

I would love to own a small form MTS compatible head with a single module slot, a single octal power tube, and the board on the bottom (tubes facing up like stalagmites instead of hanging down like stalactites / RM20). Then I'd build separate head shells and 1x12 cabs that are cosmetically appropriate for each module 'family' -- Fender style, Marshall style, Vox, etc. Modular mini stacks!

 

[SALVAGED]

Seriously, we should be damn thankful for the backward compatibility. Improving the platform they use and offering new modules. Thank you Bruce!

I'm assuming this means the new platform will accept old modules, but NOT the other way around (as in: old platform accepting new modules)?

Personally I don't think these sell as well:
- Amp with less than 2 channels
- Combos larger than 50 watt

I tend to agree with this. I'm hopeful for a 4-module, 50-watt head with a 1U rack chassis... all in one. That would be a perfect fit for me. 8)

 

[j4q0]

Not much of a talker in the forum but I will chime in for this as hopefully Mr. Egnater will take these comments into consideration.

That 4 module 50w head that fits in a rack is the ideal, specially for those who love the RM4/M4+power amp as you can just have it as part of your rack. For people who prefer a head, it's sill the same product, only with the difference that it has it's own shell instead of a rack.
Makes me think of a scaled down version of a RM12 but with an improved power section and with the option of it looking as a traditional guitar head.

Must say that the scalable power section feature would be nice too. This would put all the features that everybody in this forum wants in one piece of gear.
Sort f like a MarkV but with the modular preamp bays, sounds very feasible and desirable.

Perhaps most importantly would be to address that "feel" that most people complain or have issues with when dwelling into the MTS world, which we all know stems from the gain staging variables inherent in the design of the MTS platform.
If this problem is addressed and corrected (or perhaps simplified so people with less experience in the at of gain staging are less prone to ruin the tone/feel of the system - My guess is that the RM12 has less of this issue, if any at all) and your MTS system "feels as good as your ideal amp" then that MTS system with your particular and favorite modules will be your ideal amp.

 

[suphuckers]

Perhaps most importantly would be to address that "feel" that most people complain or have issues with when dwelling into the MTS world, which we all know stems from the gain staging variables inherent in the design of the MTS platform.
If this problem is addressed and corrected (or perhaps simplified so people with less experience in the at of gain staging are less prone to ruin the tone/feel of the system - My guess is that the RM12 has less of this issue, if any at all) and your MTS system "feels as good as your ideal amp" then that MTS system with your particular and favorite modules will be your ideal amp.

j4q0, I'm gonna start another thread on this because... I'm really new to these amps, and every time I read this I think... "Whaaaaaa?"

I hope you (and everyone) participate in the discussion

 

[jimosity]

+10000 on the head being rackmountable.
Similar to what is available on the Carvin V3M!