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OSP rack case question...

YCBass

YCBass

Aug 29, 2007
2,837
448
SoCal
#1
Hey TB'ers... I was looking at getting one of these for my Aguilar DB750 - it's the closest thing to what I want, a 3-space shallow/14" rack with this look and not a molded case.

My question is, would you trust that the hinges will carry the weight of the head (43 lbs.) and case. The way it's designed, the handle is on the lid so all the weight will be on the hinges.

Of course the eBay sellers say it will, but I want to know what you guys think. Does any use this exact case for a 3-space head or anything heavy?


Thanks!
 

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#2
I'd pass on that case. A "road" case that is made cheaply is not road-worthy, and therefore not a road case. You get what you pay for with these things...trust me.

The handles need to be on the sides. The DB750 weighs close to 50 lbs., and that flimsy handle will not be sufficient. They should be spring-loaded recessed handles and not strap style.

There's a company in Montreal, Angstrom Cases, that I can highly recommend. They sell mostly through their eBay store http://stores.ebay.com/Angstrom-Cases_W0QQcolZ2QQdirZQ2d1QQfsubZQ2d33QQftidZ2QQtZkm but right now they don't have much stock up. You can contact Monik directly at [email protected] for a quote. They're super fast and the cases are very, very high quality.
 
#5
May I wholeheartedly suggest a case from Mark and Liz at Audiopile:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

They are very beefy, and reasonably priced. Plus they are great folks!

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa to all!

Kim
 
#6
Thanks for the replies All... I will look into what you've suggested. OSP makes a model that has spring loaded handles mounted on the sides (like they're supposed to be) but they don't make a shallow 3-space version... Hence the question about this one.
 
#7
rok51 said:
May I wholeheartedly suggest a case from Mark and Liz at Audiopile:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

They are very beefy, and reasonably priced. Plus they are great folks!

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]



Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa to all!

Kim
Click to expand...

Thank you Kim! This one seems to be exactly what I want - perfect!!!
 
#8
YCBass said:
Thank you Kim! This one seems to be exactly what I want - perfect!!!
Click to expand...

Glad to be of help! When folks have actually seen these cases, they have been blown away at the strength and quality of them. Got our harp player to get one for his Super Champ...it made everybody else's road cases look second rate.
Mark and Liz Hellinger are stand up folks...Mark is too honest for his own good, sometimes, lol! If there is a weakness in anything he sells-he is the very first to point it out and will readily recommend a competitor's product if he feels the customer would benefit. Very humble folks and an absolute delight to deal with. I won't buy cabling anywhere else.

Kim
 
#11
A big +1 about mark and Liz Hellinger.....good people. The EWI cases are an excellent value. They are made in China, just as the Roadready cases are but they are very well put together and priced according to the place they are made.

You should not consider buying a 3 space however for the following reasons. The rack rails are usually attached with a 1/4 inch carriage bolt, washers and a nylock nut. When you build a 3 space case with recessed hardware however, there is no room to put a carriage bolt so an alternative arrangement must be devised. What EWI does is to leave out a rivet in the latch well and use a much smaller machine screw, washer and nylock
nut to attach the rack rails to the case. While this works, and I have a brand new EWI 3 space shallow rack, I'm going to use it for my GK 1001rb2 which weighs a lot less than a DB750.

Other places like New York case company do a 3 space but they use surface mount hardware. While the surface mount latches are OK, the surface mounted handles are not spring loaded and will rattle like crazy when the case sits on a speaker cab.

Invalid Link Removed
 
#12
lowmid1 said:
A big +1 about mark and Liz Hellinger.....good people. The EWI cases are an excellent value. They are made in China, just as the Roadready cases are but they are very well put together and priced according to the place they are made.

You should not consider buying a 3 space however for the following reasons. The rack rails are usually attached with a 1/4 inch carriage bolt, washers and a nylock nut. When you build a 3 space case with recessed hardware however, there is no room to put a carriage bolt so an alternative arrangement must be devised. What EWI does is to leave out a rivet in the latch well and use a much smaller machine screw, washer and nylock nut to attach the rack rails to the case. While this works, and I have a brand new EWI 3 space shallow rack, I'm going to use it for my GK 1001rb2 which weighs a lot less than a DB750.Invalid Link Removed
Click to expand...


Thanks for pointing that out. Good to know for an application such as a heavy amp. For a few lightweight pieces it would probably be okay. Is it a #10 machine screw?

Because of that I went to EWI's website and took a look at a couple of their large photos.
The shot of the 3U clearly shows what you brought up. Take a look: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Now, take a look at the 4U, which clearly shows the carriage bolts (albiet, a 16" depth): [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Slight derail:
Does EWI, or any of the other "budget" case "makers" (besides Anvil/Calzone, KK, which aren't "budget", but very good and $$-$$$$ :D), make a good amp rack that has the recessed butterfly latches mounted on the lid, not the case?

Other places like New York case company do a 3 space but they use surface mount hardware. While the surface mount latches are OK, the surface mounted handles are not spring loaded and will rattle like crazy when the case sits on a speaker cab.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't touch any of their crap. I made a mistake of getting something from them once. Never again.
 
#13
I dont have a need for 3U small racks so I have zero experience with them. However in the larger racks ANVIL and JAN-AL seem to be quality. My 20U is a JAN-AL. My 8U is a SKB Roto.

Little racks are supposed to take as big a hits as Big Racks, but the only kind of serious damage you can do to a big rack is have it fall off a loading dock, have a fork lift drive through it or have the box fall off the end of a fork lift. This stuff happens and they will be destroyed in this case.

Little Racks can have a lot more stuff happen like dropped... Banged. Etc. For amplifiers, we're usually humping the stuff in and out of venues and not shipping the stuff FedEX or UPS. Where a big roller will get shipped. Like how about slipping on ice and falling while carrying your $2600 amplifier?

The needs are different in construction of these two different cases that are usually built using the same technology.

The only thing I suggest is the consensis of staying away from OSP. You can look at the videos showing highlights by that music store on eBay...

I think if I was seriously going to buy ATA fabricated case for smaller gear I would look at the MIL Spec ones even if it was going to cost $500.

There's a Cab Manufacturer that makes head racks, like a manufacturer would make for almost any size. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Go look at them. Its another alternative. BOB
 
#14
I'm not aware of any..........however, Roadready will do custom cases. The problem with that is they are priced pretty high from most dealers so you have to negotiate a reasonable price when you buy it. It is next to impossible to negotiate on a special order, custom case so the price you would end up paying for the Roadready would be really expensive.

If you look at the EWI cases, the lids are about 3 1/2 inches deep already. If you put the latch on the lid, that depth would really have to increase to accomodate the latch and the aluminum extrusion. This may be the reason why the latches are on the body instead?

If you move up to the 4 space EWI, carriage bolts are used for rack rails and the construction is sufficient for anything you might want to carry.
 
#18
We've hashed these racks several times in the last month just as we've hashed the power conditioner thing. Why is that? Because we feel we need to protect our prized possesions.

I mentioned slipping on ice and falling while carrying a head. I actually had this happen carrying my Bassman in about 1970-71. Fortunately I went straight down and the amp didnt get hurt at all. It might have went down in snow. I got destroyed however... Hit really hard.

Well it could have been the other way around and the head could have been hurt. Even a busted tube would have been devastating, however, I carried spare power tubes, not preamps.

I think when it comes to rack heads, I'm leaning towards shock mount cases. I think I decided this just today as we're discussing this. My big rack is a shocker, just foam padded, not rubber deals... But I think a crushable box to take up the shock and be destroyed as the case hits the ground for a head would be a good plan.

There should be a difference between a mounting rack and a shipping or travel case. These ATA cases for say an AMPEG SVT head, you open it and pull the head out. Well I think a RACK MOUNT head that is not shock mount should also travel inside one of those removable cases. Pop the latches and lift the rack out.

Just a thought.

These guys with 6# rigs. Get a shoulder strap, or have your chick carry it. Then you can yell at her when she drops it. hahahaha. BOB
 

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