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Rack size - small or large?

hmmm...what is wrong with sitting ur head directly on top of your cab/stack/combo whatever... does it have rubber feet on it? i suppose if you really need a rack, a 4 space one woudl work fine, but its overkill. Get a rack that will hold ur head nicely and leaves a bit of room for air to flow around. A roack is no good if it fries ur head everytime your blasting into your 2nd or 3rd set.
 
i have a filled 4 space rack, and even that can be a pain sometimes. its about 40 lbs, and i definitely dont want to ever get something bigger and heavier than this.

if i were you i'd just get a nice 2 space rack bag to throw the thunderfunk in and call it a day, so you can carry it on your shoulder, and carry your cab in one trip. maybe even one hand the cab andhave your bass in the other hand. that would be sweet.
 
looks like your in my neck o' the woods. I'm here in the Humble area. Just got back from an open mic jam in Conroe. Some good players came out tonite, it is my birthday today so when wifey asked "What do you want to do?" I said "JAM of course" so we went and it was good. Plus they had steak nite and cold draft beer 1 buck. Mmmm, Food. Anywho, I just broke down a 6 space flight case and went amp, GBE600 into 2 space case and Furman pwr cond & BBE maximizer into separate 2 space case. Also have a GK100RBI in a 2 space case. Now I can take my effects and place them atop whichever amp I decide to use that nite. I like it, I like it alot.
 
ErnieD said:
looks like your in my neck o' the woods. I'm here in the Humble area. Just got back from an open mic jam in Conroe. Some good players came out tonite, it is my birthday today so when wifey asked "What do you want to do?" I said "JAM of course" so we went and it was good. Plus they had steak nite and cold draft beer 1 buck. Mmmm, Food. Anywho, I just broke down a 6 space flight case and went amp, GBE600 into 2 space case and Furman pwr cond & BBE maximizer into separate 2 space case. Also have a GK100RBI in a 2 space case. Now I can take my effects and place them atop whichever amp I decide to use that nite. I like it, I like it alot.

That's what I mean. Modular. Take only what you need for the gig and everything is small,light and portable.
 
I recommend going no smaller than four spaces. I think it would be useful to have your RBI in the same rack with your Thunderfunk. Sure, you won't always use it, but it's there when you feel like it. And with the extra space you could add a tuner or power conditioner or whatever.

Something else to consider: I actually own *two* racks, a four and a six. These are two independent gig rigs (each has its own power amp and preamp), I don't use 'em both at once. I try to use my four-space as my "go-to" rack, but it's nice to have the six just in case I feel like using more gear.

FYI: the four space has my favorite preamp, a compressor, and a 2-space power amp. The six space actually has 5 "usable" spaces, because I don't count the Furman PL-Plus power conditioner that sits in the top space. Right now the sixer has my second-favorite preamp, a parametric EQ, a 2-space power amp, and an empty space (in addition to the Furman). For awhile I was just using the sixer: power strip, preamp, compressor, parametric, and 2-space power amp.

You have an advantage in that your Thunderfunk contains both preamp and power amp in a 2-space unit, so maybe you won't need more than 4 spaces.
 
jayzarecki said:
hmmm...what is wrong with sitting ur head directly on top of your cab/stack/combo whatever...

I'd think, though I don't have experience, that IF you wanted the head in the rack witht he rest of the equipment (say it's a lockable cabinet) then maybe one of those 1U-2U rack drawers would work. Put the head in the drawer. Those usually have a door on the front that swings down or even open. Then find a way to secure the head.
 
SirPoonga said:
I'd think, though I don't have experience, that IF you wanted the head in the rack witht he rest of the equipment (say it's a lockable cabinet) then maybe one of those 1U-2U rack drawers would work. Put the head in the drawer. Those usually have a door on the front that swings down or even open. Then find a way to secure the head.

why did you quote me? you didnt answer my question. And yes, i knwo about rack drawers. We are just bass players...we dont need anythign like van halen, but they are fun to look at. So... whast wrong with sitting ur head on top of your stack/cab, whatever?
 
jayzarecki said:
why did you quote me? you didnt answer my question. And yes, i knwo about rack drawers. We are just bass players...we dont need anythign like van halen, but they are fun to look at. So... whast wrong with sitting ur head on top of your stack/cab, whatever?

I indirectly answered your question. Some people want to lock their equipment in the rack. Though I don't know what would stop someone from taking the whole rack unless the rack was locked down.
 
Thanks a lot once again, I'm overwhelmed with your helpfulness:)
The reason why I need a rack is obvious: For protection. I gig out all the time, and I don't want my thunderfunk to get ugly! I'm the kind of guy who always mistreat my equipment so I figured if I keep it in a rack, at least it's safer :) Seems like a pretty small rack is the best for me.
I'm thinking maybe 3 space: Thunderfunk and sansamp. But what really is a Power Conditioner, and for what do I need it?
 
Go small, maybe even rack bag. Thats what i was gunna do but i decided it would be too heavey. Im gunna go with a 4 space SKB. For my QSC PLX and my rbi and probally furman later on. That shouldnt be tooooo hard to move.
 
Norwegianwood said:
But what really is a Power Conditioner, and for what do I need it?
Most power conditioners are just rack mountable power strips (with surge protection, etc). Some have pull-out lights for dark stages and/or voltage meters that let you know if your'e getting too much or too little juice. Some have musician-friendly features such as a built-in tuner. The expensive ones are able to regulate the voltage going to your gear.

I'd still recommend a four-space rack. Doesn't hurt to leave an empty space... in fact, it can be good for ventilation. The BH-420 I owned many years ago could get pretty hot!
 
I have a fairly large number of racks and change them around a fair bit. Lately I opt for the convenience of the smallest workable setup and leave the flashing lights (rack tuners, power conditioners, space wasters) at home.

If I remember correctly, Thunderfunk uses the case as it's heatsink. It will probably get mighty warm inside there so you might want to leave an extra space and get a vented panel. Four is workable if you really need your RBI. You really appreciate the minimalist approach when it comes time to tear down your rig after a long night.
 
Fuzzbass said:
I'd still recommend a four-space rack. Doesn't hurt to leave an empty space... in fact, it can be good for ventilation. The BH-420 I owned many years ago could get pretty hot!

Although all my gear has vent panels around it, I'd check the manuals for whatever gear you have. For example, I recently picked up a Crown XLS602 for PA use, and it's manual states that because the fan system draws air from front to back through the chassis, ideally there should be no open spaces in the front of your rack, or the airflow will be disrupted.

With my other gear, all the front panels are solid, so I tend to leave a space above and below potentially hot units, and sometimes just for aesthetic reasons--which is how I ended up with a 12U rack and only 7U of actual gear.

Oh, and with my bass rig, I use an external APC Line-R 1200VA line conditioner. It's a lot cheaper than most MI-specific units and is of much higher quality.
 
amper said:
Although all my gear has vent panels around it, I'd check the manuals for whatever gear you have. For example, I recently picked up a Crown XLS602 for PA use, and it's manual states that because the fan system draws air from front to back through the chassis, ideally there should be no open spaces in the front of your rack, or the airflow will be disrupted.

That's a good point, which I probably overlooked because I carry a lot more power than I usually need (Stewart 2.1).