Mesa Boogie Rectifier Badlander 50 Combo

The Mesa Boogie Rectifier Badlander 50 Combo was featured as Musician’s Friend Stupid Deal of the Day at $1299. This price was better than used prices by several hundred dollars, so i had to jump on the deal. A total impulse buy, but perhaps one that is actually worth it.

Guitar Pics

Just a spot to upload random guitar pics for online linking.

Dean MD24 Floyd Rose leveling attempt.

Crab Guitar Effects Benzin Head (VH4)

My order of the Benzin. 50W head, inspired by the Diezel VH4, is making its way from Ukraine to the US.

DIYRE Colour Palette

I bought a DIYRE Colour Palette MkII while it was on sale at $120, right before the price increase to $200. It is a vehicle to use up to 3 Colour modules, modular audio circuits for an already module 500-series format. I put off the build for about a year, but couldn’t justify an entire project sitting on my workbench any longer.

Each bypassable Colour module has a front panel trim/drive knob with a bypass button, with an overall master bypass button at the bottom. At the outset, I was planning on buying the Louder Than Liftoff Implode (1176 Rev F), Avenson MN-50 Smash (Fostex MN-50), and Tonecraft Audio Toneloc (Shure Level-Loc) compressor modules. At this time, I may skip the Toneloc since Shure has partnered with Korneff Audio and Black Lion Audio for the new plugin and hardware versions of the circuit. I am planning on going with the Louder Than Liftoff Pentode Mk2 module, a miniature tube saturation circuit.

Colour Palette with Louder Than Liftoff Implode.

The build came together very quickly over 2 nights because of the relatively low parts count and spacious PCB. Like the DIYRE EQP5 I previously built, PCB solder pads were generously spaced. It was easy to get the main PCB to line up with the daughter board. I had an easy time fitting and aligning the faceplate to the rest of the assembly. Without any modules, I could not test the functionality of the unit when engaged. I learned that the LEDs only light up with modules installed, and the color of the illumination is based on the module. I had to get at least 1 module to see if the Colour Palette was properly working.

Colour Palette mounted in 500 rack for initial testing.

I started off with a Louder Than Liftoff Implode compressor module. A jumper sets normal and high level of thresholds for the input section of the compressor, which doesn’t seem to be offered on earlier versions. Attack and release controls are set by trimpots, and are configured to Dr. Pepper settings at 10:00 and 2:00 respectively. 

A pair of jumpers sets ratio for either 4:1 or All Buttons In mode, although I will likely leave the module at 4:1. The Colour format does not provide visual feedback for gain reduction of the input. I fed some sine tones into the unit to get a feel for the amount of output gain reduction at different trim/drive knob settings. 

More to come.

Line 6 Spider Valve 4x12 Cabinet

I saw a Line 6 Spider Valve priced very low around $200 and took the gamble to see if it was loaded with Celestion Vintage 30s. It unfortunately was previously raided and replaced with SLM Electronics speakers. I was disappointed, but decided to keep it once I saw the plywood construction.

I decided that I could load the cab up with a bunch of my Celestion speakers, some that had been collecting dust. I could have access to all of my Celestions ready for recording.

I decided to install my Celestion G12M65 (upper left), Vintage 30 (lower left), G12T75 (upper right), and V-Type (lower right). I may eventually move the Classic Lead 80 into the cabinet over the V-Type.

Initial tests listening to the Vintage 30 under a SM57 seem to indicate that the cab tightens up the sound a bit compared to my Jet City 2x12. However, there might be more low end in the 100Hz region with the Line 6 cab. The Line 6 4x12 seems to provided a bit of brightness compared to my 4x12, but still sounds big under a mic. This cab should work well with the Mesa Dual Rectifier and Peavey 6505.

The G12M65 Creamback is a new speaker addition to my small Celestion collection. It is very reminiscent of the Greenback that I have.

More to come.

Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Multi-Watt

My interest in acquiring a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier grew as I revisited the popular rock music of the 1990s and 2000s. It was a staple in all of the rock concerts that I went to as a kid in the early 2000s: in arenas, in tiny clubs, and on the Warped Tour. After going through all of the punk, emo, nu-metal, and metal albums that were recorded with Rectifiers, I knew that I wanted to have the amp.

With the new 90s Dual Rectifier being released, there were rumblings that the Multi-Watt version would be discontinued. I had been reading up on the Multi-Watt version for some time, but wasn’t enamored with its $2700 new price. I heard about its Lonestar-inspired clean channel, and it’s improved dirty voicings through many different discussion boards and demo videos.

A used Multi-Watt came up on the Guitar Center site at a good price via a tip on a forum and I jumped on it. The amp was just labeled as a regular Dual Rectifier. The tiny details such as the “100W Head” vs the “Solo Head” logo and the wattage switches on front panel required some zooming to discern. Once I received, I saw that the chassis was dated December 2010, so it is an early example of the amp’s run. The previous user had installed STR447 EL34 tubes in the amp.

Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Multi-Watt

Disappointingly the amp did not power on when I received it. I replaced the bad 4A fuse, but the new fuse still blew with the with a subsequent power on/standby off. This behavior hinted that the rectifier tubes were a problem. I wanted to see if I could get it working again before resorting to returning the amp. I inspected the rectifier tubes and noticed that one had a part that was rattling around. Indeed, one of the 5U4 tubes was bad and was likely causing the amp to shut down. I didn’t want to take any more chances on the tubes.

I looked at a typical 3-Channel Rectifier schematic and noticed that the rectifier tubes were still in the circuit in diode mode. The screen grid resistors were all measuring 1kohm while the amp was off. The resistors looked like they were in good shape, along with the rest of the PCB. I decided to change out all the tubes in the power section, not knowing how old the tubes were. 

Dual Rectifier with all tubes functioning.

I put in new STR441 6L6 power tubes and 5U4GB rectifier tubes along with a new fuse. The amp powered up successfully in Bold Mode with the Diode Rectifier selected for all 3 channels.

I am still learning the nuances of the tone controls of the amp. I have mainly stayed in Channel 3 Red, switching between Vintage and Modern modes. Turning on Vintage mode and palm muting a Les Paul immediately reminded me of the sound on Ocean Avenue by Yellowcard. It was fairly effortless to find a sound reminiscent of the intro of The Hell Song by Sum 41. 

Modern mode adds a large volume boost and the ubiquitous scooped nu-metal voicing of the late 90s. I needed to dial the Bass control back considerably below 11:00 to control the amp in Modern Mode. My Treble, Middle, and Presence settings have hovered around 12:00 in most cases. The EQ seems very touchy, as turns of 0:30 in o’clock settings seem to have big changes. On both channels, I prefer the amp’s Gain control to be in the 12:30 to 2:00 range on the Vintage and Modern modes.

I’ve spent some time with the Clean Mode of the Green Channel. Its relation with the Lonestar circuit is a major reason why I wanted to go with a Multi-Watt Dual Recto over a Solo Head. The Clean Mode stays clean for most of the gain range with my lower output pickups, so I tend to keep the gain control around 12:00. I like chow cleans come through my V30 speaker best. I’ve got no real amp counterpart for a Blackface clean sound, but the cleans on this Rectifier are good enough for me at this time. 

I was surprised how much I liked the Pushed mode of the Green Channel with single coils. The Pushed mode can get a crunch sound that sounds like an entirely different amp. The sounds are slightly broken up at low gain settings (<11:00) and work well with neckups. Medium settings are crunchy, and outright distorted at the top of the dial. I prefer the bridge pickup at these higher gain levels.

More to come.

Some Old Pedal Gutshots

  

I mainly wanted to share some gut shots of my DIY pedals while I had them disconnected from my pedalboard, but it helps to document some of them so I can recall details in the future without having to open them up.

Top Row: Timmy, Green Russian Big Muff, Madbean Slow Loris

Bottom Row: Himmelstrutz Fetto, OCD, Red Llama

All were built in 2012, except the Tommy clone in 2014. Once I felt comfortable building on Madbean PCBs, I got into building overboard layouts from the Tagboard Effects blog. Most were wired with Chandler hookup wire from the defunct Mammoth Electronics. That wire was stranded, but the strands were very loose and not conducive to handling. One tiny spool did get me through all of my DIY pedal attempts and failures. The Slow Loris parts were mostly sourced from Smallbear, while the vero board builds were made with Tayda parts. All enclosures were from Mammoth Electronics, except the enclosure for the Timmy clone was from Pedal Parts Plus.

Studio Furniture: RAB LS840 Desk and Auray ERS-12U

RAB Audio LS840 Desk

I revisited my recording room’s layout to improve on my efficiency. I wanted to get as my outboard gear in front of me and ready to be patched in to use. I’ve had my my preamps and buss compressor patched in for the most part, but could not integrate my 500-series rack efficiently.

I thought about building my own desk, but decided to an off the shelf solution. I wanted to go with a smaller desk to avoid the temptation of leaving junk on the tabletop. I went with the RAB LS840 because it was narrower than the typical 48” desk. Most MDF desks at this price range offer 6RU, but the RAB had 8. I needed enough space to get my 500 series rack, Chameleon Labs 7603 pre/EQ, Audioscape Bus Comp, and Klark Teknik 1176-KT directly in front of me.

Front view.

The build was straightforward for the most part. The unboxing and assembly video provided by RAB Audio’s YouTube channel was a helpful resource. All of the pieces lined up easily, much better than some other flat pack furniture that I’ve built in the past. Most pieces were secured with hex head screws.

The keyboard tray was a disappointment for me. The black screws for the tray’s components were difficult to tighten by hand, and I gave up on fully tightening the screws. The 32” width keyboard tray barely fit my M-Audio Keystation 49 II keyboard. The volume slider rubs against the bottom of the table a bit.

Tight fit for M-Audio Keystation 49 II.

I was finding the 8in/8out limiting on my UR824 interface, so I decided that I will chain my preamps with EQs and compressors. 

I’ve initially wired up a UR824 line output into the 1176-KT, followed by the 7603 Line Input back into the UR824 to use as a Comp-EQ hardware insert. It was immediately obvious how much more useful it was to have the controls directly in front of me rather than off to the side. 

Desk rack - left side.

I plan on having the following inserts set up:

• Klark Teknik 1176-KT > Chameleon Labs 7603
• 2x CAPI VP28 > Audioscape Bus Comp
• Stam SA73 > Hairball FET500 Rev D > CAPI LC25

I will be looking into adding more acoustic treatment to smooth out the low end in the room with the new desk installed.

The corners are treated, but I may look into treatment above my listening space.

Some plots using Room EQ Wizard and a Behringer ECM8000 mic.

JBL LSR305 Left 1/24 Octave Smoothing 30Hz - 20kHz

JBL LSR305 Right 1/24 Octave Smoothing 30Hz - 20kHz

JBL LSR305 Left 1/3 Octave Smoothing 30Hz - 20kHz

JBL LSR305 Right 1/3 Octave Smoothing 30Hz - 20kHz

JBL LSR305 Left 1/24 Octave Smoothing 35Hz - 400Hz

JBL LSR305 Left Spectrogram

JBL LSR305 Right Spectrogram

Edit - 1/11/25 - I took some more steps to work on cable management around my desk. One of my main goals with this iteration of the desk setup is to more easily switch from tracking with my CAPI VP28 mic preamps to mixing with them as line level saturation devices. The best way I think of was to get the input connections in front of me to patch into. I bought a Redco 2RU panel, pre-punched for 24 D-series connectors, and installed only what I needed.

I decided to install female XLR connectors for front panel access of the CAPI VP28, Chameleon Labs 7603, and Stam SA-73 preamp inputs. I had some spare 1/4” feed through connectors, which I used to move the connection points of my Wavs-PRS Guitar Interface and DIYRE L2A Reamp. The front panel access to these devices should keep me from bumping into their knobs.

I used install-grade wiring to neaten back panel connections to reduce the cable clutter. For years, I’ve been using regular-sized audio cable (~0.25” OD), either pre-made from Monoprice or DIY’d with Mogami and Redco. The thinner cables should help minimize the mess on the rear panels of the equipment.

Auray ERS-12U Rack

I bought a couple of Auray ERS-12U equipment racks to house the rest of my rack mount gear. The were $130 each on sale, but even the full $170 price is much less expensive than any of the other 12RU racks made of MDF.

The main rack is filled with my sub-$120 budget outboard buys over the years. The height of the 12U rack on casters happens to be at desk level.

Many online reviews complained about the rack rail threads being incompatible with the hardware provided, but I did not find this to be the case. A generous amount of 10-32 and 12-24 hardware was provided, but I only used the 10-32 screws. I had some old Middle Atlantic 10-32 screws that fit well on the rails as well. 

To be continued.

Squier Hello Kitty Stratocaster

Hello Kitty Strat.

I bought the 50th Anniversary Hello Kitty Strat from the Fender x Hello Kitty collection on a whim. I always did want a single humbucker fixed bridge Strat since I grew up playing guitar as the Fender Tom DeLonge models and original Hello Kitty guitar were introduced.

I am enjoying the Hello Kitty Strat in its stock form. The guitar’s build is Classic Vibe-level in terms of its fit and finish. The unique appointments are purely cosmetic, like the pick guard, white tuners, red position markers on a maple fretboard, matching pink headstock, and pink volume knob text. But at the end of the day, it’s a comfortable guitar to play. The frets are smooth and I am familiar with the feel of the Squier CV necks.

The stock humbucker is fairly low output, which I am fine with at this point in my tone chase. If I had bought the original Strat, I would’ve certainly changed out the pickup for something high output like a Duncan JB or Invader. However, I can get more than enough gain between my Peavey 6505 and various modeling solutions. I also want to be able to play cleaner sounds, which this guitar’s humbucker allows me to do.

Here’s a video of some higher gain amp presets in my Fractal FM3. The pickup is low output, so I can hear the individual strings fairly well. 

Volume Pot Attenuator Build for FX Loop

100k audio taper pot in a box.

I was recently reading up on the effectiveness of putting a volume pedal into the effects loop of a Peavey 6505 to bring the amp down to bedroom levels. Before I sank $100+ into a low impedance volume pedal, I remembered that there were multiple  potentiometer-based attenuator pedals on the market. I kept running into the JHS Little Black Amp Box, a $65 product. The box contains just a pair of jacks and a 100k audio pot on a PCB.

There are multiple gut shots of the pedal itself and DIY clones available, so I decided to build one. I already had all the parts from several Tayda bulk orders, so I saved myself the purchase. 

With the pot about halfway, my 6505 with the master volume on 1 suddenly dropped down to practice amp levels.