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questions about a bass rack

S

swankfrank6

Feb 5, 2008
91
0
#1
so here in a month or so im going to be receiving quite a bit of money for graduation and my birthday. im going to put it all into building a bass rack. i already know that i want a 700rb-II with a rbx 410. i'd like to get a power conditioner and a rack tuner to start. so far what i've seen that i liked is the Alesis POWERTRIP-8 and the Korg DTR-1000 rack tuner.
any suggestions ?
 
#2
FWIW you need to decide whether you want the convenience of having all your gear mounted in one rack, or whether you are just filling rack spaces for the sake of having an impressive-looking rack. :p The best tuner I've ever used is a pedal, and there's no way I would add the weight and bulk of a rack-mounted tuner to any rack that I'd have to move around a lot. To a possibly lesser extent the same is true of power conditioners. Some say "power conditioners" are nothing more than rack-mounted outlet strips, others say they get a noticeable improvement in line noise or hum in certain environments with a "conditioner". I would say first ascertain whether you really "need" a rackmounted power unit before buying one just to fill a rack.

IMO you'd be way better off buying a good tuner pedal and a good noise-filtering outlet strip, but it's up to you if you like a big rack and don't mind lugging it around.
 
#3
well the thing is, i have a HUGE effects pedal board. i built the thing out of cedar awhile back and i have pretty much filled it up.. so it would be nice to have something not on there.. i really like the idea of having a rack. i dont mind lugging the thing around. plus i play in a lot of venues with some pretty shady power sources.. so it'd be nice to not have to worry about questionable electricity.
 
#8
power conditioner: mutli outlets, circuit breaker for surge protection, RF filtering...that's it. You will not get any protection from shady electrcity other then the circuit breaking from a surge. If you want power REGULATION, consistant voltage even in brown out conditions, then a power regulator is what you would need and they cost much more then a "conditioner"

that said, a rack mounted conditoner is a convienent way to organize the AC in a rack. I like to mount them in the back of the rack if you can manage the space.
rack tuner? the peterson strobe
 
#9
JustDavid said:
I must respectfully disagree. I really like them in the FOH rack; power management with the buss bar, love the lights when trying to work them teeny knobs in the dark, & would like one with a voltmeter (OK; I'm a paranoid).

I do agree that they are a waste of money when it comes to conditioning power.
Click to expand...
Well for conditioning they are a waste of money. That being said I own 3 of them. :) But they do work well for the other reasons you stated. I actually own an old Furman that had a built in tuner. I don't know why they discontinued them. That was a great idea IMO.
 
#10
ahh ok i see what the deal is.
a power regulator is really what you want for questionable power.
a conditioner really doesn't do anything... hmm.. however a regulator is quite more expensive.
i guess it'd probably be best to save up.
oh and i'm definitely getting the peterson strobe
 
#11
I would humbly offer these suggestions:

1. Determine if you really need a rack. Racks (and rack gear) add size and considerable weight to your rig and unless you go all the way and buy a shock mounted rack, you're only protecting your gear against scratches.

2. If you do decide on a rack, remember to consider a few things like being able to lift it by yourself, getting it in and out of your vehicle without damaging either, and making sure your rack has sufficient air-flow for your amp since most folks cram their racks full of gear.

One last suggestion: you mentioned that you had very large pedal board full of effects. Don't forget that the best (or at least the truest) tone is achieved by the shortest signal path. Try keeping the pedals and patch cords to a minimum. If you really use every pedal during a gig, make sure there's a pedal in the middle of the chain that is buffered so you don't suffer the usual signal loss. Think of it this way: if a decent instrument cable starts to suffer signal loss at 25 feet, imagine what happens with 12 patch cables going through 10 pedals.

Just food for thought...YMMV
 
#12
thanks for the input
i bought a jeep just for the size to transport bass gear.
also i've wasted many hours in school thinking about all this.. and i'd say im good to go to build a rack. another part of the whole conditioner story is so i can set up everything faster and use less extension cords and therefor looking less ghetto.
good info on the patch cords. i'll have to keep everything short. right now im in the middle of experimenting with the effects loop on my amp to see if thats worth it or not
 
#13
swankfrank6 said:
i'd like to get a power conditioner and a rack tuner to start. so far what i've seen that i liked is the Alesis POWERTRIP-8 and the Korg DTR-1000 rack tuner.
any suggestions ?
Click to expand...
How 'bout getting both in one unit? Furman used to sell a conditioner/tuner combo called the PL-Tuner. You might do a saved search on eBay and wait for one to come up. I've had one for several years, no complaints.

Keep in mind, once you get past about a 4-space rack they can get pretty heavy. Mine's a 6-spacer and I have a hard time moving it (but then I'm a thinly built guy with skinny arms that most chicks would kill for. :D).

Regards,
Wayne
 
#16
I would normally not recommend this brand of product, but my favorite power conditioner is made by Samson of all people. It has a voltmeter, ammeter, a nifty pull out flourescent light that is far more useful than Furman's antiquated pull out lights (plus you can order a custom panel with the text of your choice), and here's the big selling point for me: it has an XLR socket on the back panel for a gooseneck lamp. Imagine that, having a light in the back of your rack and not holding a flashlight in your mouth!

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