Randall Rig Reform

[Tubes In a Hat]

I just recently received a sum of money, and I plan on using a bit of it to overhaul my whole rig.

I've spent the last couple days auditioning Mesas (including the Mark V and the new Dual Rec) a 5150 III, Egnaters, and Marshalls, and I've come to the conclusion that I would probably be smart to stick with MTS.

Anyway, I have an RM100 with Blackface, SL+ and Rectified modules. I also have a Mesa Fifty/Fifty power amp that I'm not using.
I think I want to get an RM4 to use with the Mesa so I can keep my amp and my effects all in a rack and save space and weight over the RM100 head.

Money isn't totally an object but between the RM4 chassis, mods for my existing modules, and another module, I'd like to keep it under $1500.

Really what I need is a great full, smooth clean sound with lots of headroom, a smooooooth overdrive sound with definition a la Mark I with Santana in mind, and basically the Dual Rec heavy distortion sound that I know and love but a little tighter with less buzz that will work well for heavy rhythms AND solos. It would also be cool to have a Soldano SLO type sound for less modern stuff... what are the recommendations? Thanks!

 

[Smokey]

Sounds like you're going for modded territory.
Get a Gigmods Mark or Salvation MarkUS,
Either get your Recto modded, or buy a modded Recto module (Gigmods Recto or Salvation Deadplate)
and finally a Mr Scary or Slodano or Salvado for your SLO tone.
Cheers

 

[m0jo]

Okay let's see:

If you stick with the RM100 you can easily get 3 modded modules for that amount, heck you can get a lot more!
On the other hand, with the RM4 you will have 4 channels and an easyer rig to move (although a rack rig isn't much lighter.. my rack is 38KG! (84 lbs) it kind of depends on the weight of the 50/50)

So the question is really wether you want to sacrifice tone for versatility and ease of use.
Most people will have enough with 3 very good modules.

On the other hand, the SL+ is definitly one of the better stock modules, so you already have one down.

For the Mesa and SLO sound I can recommend the Salvation Mods Dr. Feelgood.
It has recto and SLO voicing, for me it does all the things you describe very well.
check out some of my clips for it's sounds (see descriptions on the forum here for which module does what as I switch it around a lot in recording)
www.soundclick.com/m0jo
The latest, Ignorance, was solo'd with the Sloogie, my personal version of the Dr. Feelgood
Also the rythm is a mix of Twinface Pushed mode and Sloogie crunch mode.
Alse check out "A boy's dream", all the rythm is SLO mode on the Sloogie.

 

[rhequiem]

+1 on the Dr. Feelgood. It's still my favorite module, hands down. Very versatile, quality sounds

 

[kbause]

Why not spring for an Egnater M4?
That way you can use modded Randall modules as well as Egnater mods. Sure its more investment but the options are then limitless.

 

[Julia]

A rack rig with a RM4 and a tube power amp are actually going to weigh more. How often are you going to use more than three channels?

but you might want to look at the M4 if Bruce ever makes it, and buy a Eggy COD. That'll get you the Dumble and Mk I tones.

Another option is to do what I did in the rack with and use the KH1 for the clean. Then add a Hermida Zen Drive for dirt on that channel. That'll get you the Dumble and Santana type tones, too.

 

[Tubes In a Hat]

I'm planning on using a rack with a G-Force and an audio switcher either way, so using a rack mounted preamp and power amp would just be more compact than it would be lighter I suppose.

The KH1 seems like the way to go for higher headroom cleans. I have a Timmy overdrive pedal... not exactly the same type of thing as the Zen Drive, but... ball park.

I emailed Pete at gigmods and for a bit over $500 I could get the "pro" mods for my current modules. He also said he could turn my SL+ into a Mk I type of thing.

If I could get a high-headroom warm clean channel, a Mk I esque sounding channel, and a Recto sounding channel that was less buzzy and tighter on the low end, I think I'd be quite contented sticking with the RM100 head... provided it will be dependable and not blow fuses in the middle of a gig.

It turns out I'm more of a Mesa guy than a Marshall guy... but if I'm not mistaken, the Recto circuit shares quite a few similarities with the SLO circuit...

 

[Shinozoku]

Then I would definitely go for Pete's offer, getting his Recto mod and the others he mentioned. And for more headroom on your clean modules, trey a few lower gain tubes like a 5751 in your Blackface module

 

[Tubes In a Hat]

I was reading up a little bit on the Mercury Magnetics transformer upgrades for the RM100...

Is the improvement in overall performance and reliability of the amp worth spending the time and money getting the PT, OT, and choke installed?

Currently I have 400mA fast blo fuses for the tubes, a 5a fast blo for the mains, 1.6a slo blo for the two under the midi board, and the original fuses everywhere else.

I'm afraid to reincorporate the amp into my rig until I can know for sure that it will have consistent performance and not continue to blow fuses. I heard that upgraded trannies can help with this as well... Is that true?

 

[pipedwho]

Unless you blow something else first, I can't imagine a reliability issue with the stock Randall transformers.

Tonally, I've changed transformers in the past (not in an MTS amp though) and by far the biggest difference tonally has been in the power transformer. Upgraded transformers tend be made with larger iron and have an extended low end frequency response. The trick with being able to make use of that response is to make sure that the rest of the signal chain (ie. coupling capacitors) aren't already rolling off most of the low end (to protect the stock transformer).

Depending on the amp, sometimes a few capacitor changes will help in making the most of an output transformer upgrade.

 

[pipedwho]

Currently I have 400mA fast blo fuses for the tubes, a 5a fast blo for the mains, 1.6a slo blo for the two under the midi board, and the original fuses everywhere else.

I'm not sure of the ideal fuse configuration for your amp, but it is generally a good idea to use a slow blow fuse in locations that involve large reservoir caps. This prevents the fuse blowing due to the sudden inrush current that goes into charging these capacitors when the amp is first turned on. Some people just use an excessively large fast blow fuse in those locations to compensate, but IMO, it's a better idea to use a properly rated slow blow.

 

[JKD]

Yeah, the mains fuse is spec'd as a slo-blo for this very reason I'm sure.

 

[Tubes In a Hat]

On my amp on the back it says to either use a 5a fast blo or a 2.5a slo blo

... although, I've noticed in pictures that sometimes the written recommended values for the fuses have changed over the years