Late 80's & early 90's rack effects for guitar

[JTyson]

I love those old Yamaha REV7's, Ive had 2 of them since the mid eighties and they are killer.

 

[phil b]

Yamaha Spx90
Lexicon PCM's
Eventides
Tc 2290 and 1210
Rane Mixers
Tri Stereo Chorus (for the Landau nuts)

Other than those, don't waste your money. Find newer stuff like a Line6 M13 or M9, TC G major or G Force, or a Lexicom MPX unit.

Ed

The Intellifex would be a better option as the Gmajor sucked tone unless yer running a mixer. I had both and sold the Gmajor. I still have my original blackface Intellifex and an LTD as well. Their path was analog which made them really transparent. If you use a mixer with the Gmajor they sounded good. Only drawback is there were effects in that unit that needed to be run in series.

 

[Exo-metal]

I love those old Yamaha REV7's, Ive had 2 of them since the mid eighties and they are killer.

What did you like about them, I never had the chance but back in the day they were everywhere.

 

[Zachman]

What were the hottest rack effects to buy back then? I can only name stuff like SPX90, Quadraverb, Lexicons. Anything else that i should look into?

Eventide
TC Electronic
Lexicon
Roland
Rocktron
Yamaha
AMS

My madness

LOL! Brah, I was just going to post "If Zachman is still around, you need to ask him". For some reason I knew you would be in this post. I got to play thru that monster rig at Hot Licks!!

How are things going on the island dude? Hope all is good man. I need to fly over and get some Malasadas and some sushi - Mike (RR)

Aloha... I am now in Arizona. In-Laws getting old and needed help, so... I closed the shop, and brought everything with me, figuring I could re-open here. Thank God I didn't, or the shutdowns would've killed me. Everything is in storage, and I'm just hanging in there. Maybe I'll liquidate to an existing shop. Dunno

 

[Zachman]

My madness

Crazy fucking rig, that's straight rack porn right there!

I find I like the older stuff better because it could be more transparent and subtle. I have never been a huge effects person, but have been getting into them more through these old units. I find most newer units want to emulate pedals, which is a totally different sound. Much more dramatic and limited control. I think I didn't use effects at all for years because of Line 6 Not that their effects are bad, but they just tend to be more pedal emulating, where I would prefer 80's rack emulating.

I have the Intellifex and Replifex as said above, but I also have a G Major 2. It is a great unit also. Kind of the last of it's kind, lol. Seems like everything went modeling after that. I also have an Axe-FX II, which honestly, is probably better than any of that old stuff except the highest $$ Eventide and Lexicon. The Axe-FX would be a better purchase today, but I still think there is something nice about the older units. They are simpler in some ways, yet sneakily more complex at the same time. I still want a Lexicon MPX unit. However, I know that would also bring a mixer to bring out the best in it....

Those older units do have a sound on their own. The reverbs back then were made for the music on that era, which can be heard especially on the reverbs as they seem to be more powerful and over the top compared to what we have today. Also the technical limitations back then probably affected the sound and imo makes them sound more vintage and old school.

I actually asked about these units from a local facebook group and most of the people there praised the Rocktron stuff. Some of the guys there actually have it still in their arsenal. One guy said that Rocktron is especially good if you're looking for that "80's hifi sound".

 

[jabps]

Man I went through alot of rack effects back in the day. I started with a massive rig w/ two pre-amps, mixer, loop switcher, tuner, Furman, wireless, power amp and effects. By the end it was whittled down to a 6 space rack, 1 effects unit and racked pedals that I did tons of gigs, rehearsals, recordings.

Units (if I can remember them all) -
Alessi Quadraverb, Quadraverb Plus, Quadraverb 2
Boss SE-50, SE-70, SX-700
Roland GP-8, GP-16, SDE330
Lexicon MPX 1, MPX G2
Yamaha SPX90II
Rocktron Intellifex, Intellifex LTD, Intellifex Online, Intellifex XL, Replifex, Pro Chorus
Marshall JFX-1
TC G Major, G Major 2, M One
Korg A3, DL8000R



I never ventured into the Eventide realm or the other top line TC stuff like the 2290. Of all those units I owned I always came back to the "lowly" Quadraverb Plus. And if not for that I'd go with the Intellifex, I often had one just to have lying around and I always preferred the original. One's that I wish I had kept - Korg DL8000, that unit is deeeeeep but I got it at a time where I was sick of programming effects. Other units that I liked - Marshall JFX-1, very nice easy to dive into. Boss SE-70 and the Yamaha SPX90II. I also like the TC G Major 2. The original was a major tone suck.

Units I wished I had tried - Rocktron Intelliverb, just could never get my hands on one. And obviously a couple pieces in Zachs rack lol.
Units I would like to still own - Roland SDE3000, Korg SDD3000 or I wish they would downsize the pedal version.

Why I liked the Quadraverb Plus? Well ultimately I always wanted a processor to do multi-effects at one time but often those older units couldn't handle it, you were always giving something up and they could be noisy. Why alot of guys would have dedicated units as opposed to the multi. However as I went along, I narrowed everything down on the Quad to two delay types and one verb and that was it. Everything else came from the pedals. That was the basis of my rig for twenty years easy. And to this day, even though my rack is long gone I cannot dial in a better sounding delay with my pedals - to my ears/feel than that Quad.

I miss the rack days but my "back" doesn't.

 

[Thunkful]

Man I went through alot of rack effects back in the day. I started with a massive rig w/ two pre-amps, mixer, loop switcher, tuner, Furman, wireless, power amp and effects. By the end it was whittled down to a 6 space rack, 1 effects unit and racked pedals that I did tons of gigs, rehearsals, recordings.

Units (if I can remember them all) -
Alessi Quadraverb, Quadraverb Plus, Quadraverb 2
Boss SE-50, SE-70, SX-700
Roland GP-8, GP-16, SDE330
Lexicon MPX 1, MPX G2
Yamaha SPX90II
Rocktron Intellifex, Intellifex LTD, Intellifex Online, Intellifex XL, Replifex, Pro Chorus
Marshall JFX-1
TC G Major, G Major 2, M One
Korg A3, DL8000R



I never ventured into the Eventide realm or the other top line TC stuff like the 2290. Of all those units I owned I always came back to the "lowly" Quadraverb Plus. And if not for that I'd go with the Intellifex, I often had one just to have lying around and I always preferred the original. One's that I wish I had kept - Korg DL8000, that unit is deeeeeep but I got it at a time where I was sick of programming effects. Other units that I liked - Marshall JFX-1, very nice easy to dive into. Boss SE-70 and the Yamaha SPX90II. I also like the TC G Major 2. The original was a major tone suck.

Units I wished I had tried - Rocktron Intelliverb, just could never get my hands on one. And obviously a couple pieces in Zachs rack lol.
Units I would like to still own - Roland SDE3000, Korg SDD3000 or I wish they would downsize the pedal version.

Why I liked the Quadraverb Plus? Well ultimately I always wanted a processor to do multi-effects at one time but often those older units couldn't handle it, you were always giving something up and they could be noisy. Why alot of guys would have dedicated units as opposed to the multi. However as I went along, I narrowed everything down on the Quad to two delay types and one verb and that was it. Everything else came from the pedals. That was the basis of my rig for twenty years easy. And to this day, even though my rack is long gone I cannot dial in a better sounding delay with my pedals - to my ears/feel than that Quad.

I miss the rack days but my "back" doesn't.

Right now i'm trying to decide between a Rocktron or the Quadraverb, which one do you think is better sounding?

 

[Purpleibby]

If you get an MPX, you will end-up selling it. It's not that great of a unit, even if you get later updated model. Sub-par effects, preset switching lag, intermittent rebooting... If you get the Lexicon switcher, plan on replacing every switch in the board. I've been there, and it's a PITA!

I don't get this obession with "transparent" guitar effects? The singular aspect that makes the EP1/2/3 tape echo, Roland tape echo, DM-2 delay, CE-1 chorus, Uni-Vibe, Leslie speaker cabinet, etc... sound so great, is the fact that they add a certain level of coloration. Lexicon knew this, which is why they designed the early units with coloration. Transparency (IMO) is best suited for vocals, and acoustic instrumentation.

If I may...
Per my experiance; those who began playing in the era of digital racks and effects loops exist in an alternate reality. Back in the day, building a "tone" was an additive/subtractive process, using a multitude of various devices. Robert Fripp, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Robin Trower, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Pat Travers, Alex Lifeson, Ted Nugent, Edward Van Halen, Randy Rhoads... were all pioneers of the process. Compare Alex Lifeson's 1st RUSH album tones to his later "rack" tones... Not even close!

Someone recently posted a clip of his band. To my ears, it sounded like every other band I've heard in the last 20 or so years. Not that it wasn't good... it just lacks originality. The "worship" bands all sound like U2! The most impressed I've been in a long time, is with the guy who plays guitar in Greta Van Fleet.

You couldn't be more wrong...the MPX-1 is an outstanding unit and has some very cool tricks up it's sleeve. You don't want any rack unit dubbed "transparent" or not run without a mixer that leaves your dry sound intact. There's no sub-par effects in the MPX-1....just don't go thinking it will do everything at once....but the pcms didn't do everything at once either. MPX-1 can be had for a great deal and you will have an awesome unit. Switching lag is not an indicator of a unit that has a bad sound, few if any of the great sounding fx boxes were instant. The MPX-1 is a killer effect unit, just wire it right and put it in a mixer(as you should ANY line level rack effects) and you'll have a great FX box.

http://www.italodeangelis.com/public/co ... ibrary.pdf
Scroll down for sound clips:
http://www.italodeangelis.com/it/eventi ... -MPX-1.asp

 

[Purpleibby]

Don't overlook the Roland RSP/SDE/SDX units from the time as well, man there are some real jems in there.

 

[Thunkful]

Don't overlook the Roland RSP/SDE/SDX units from the time as well, man there are some real jems in there.

I might get an SDE 2000 as a studio reverb in future, but right now i'm looking at the multi fx units as there's few of them available from that era.

 

[kurtsstuff2003]

I still have and use the Alesis Quadraverbs...Basically because I'm too lazy to figure out rack stuff that's more involved to program..The Quads are bonehead simple...lol!

 

[jabps]

Man I went through alot of rack effects back in the day. I started with a massive rig w/ two pre-amps, mixer, loop switcher, tuner, Furman, wireless, power amp and effects. By the end it was whittled down to a 6 space rack, 1 effects unit and racked pedals that I did tons of gigs, rehearsals, recordings.

Units (if I can remember them all) -
Alessi Quadraverb, Quadraverb Plus, Quadraverb 2
Boss SE-50, SE-70, SX-700
Roland GP-8, GP-16, SDE330
Lexicon MPX 1, MPX G2
Yamaha SPX90II
Rocktron Intellifex, Intellifex LTD, Intellifex Online, Intellifex XL, Replifex, Pro Chorus
Marshall JFX-1
TC G Major, G Major 2, M One
Korg A3, DL8000R



I never ventured into the Eventide realm or the other top line TC stuff like the 2290. Of all those units I owned I always came back to the "lowly" Quadraverb Plus. And if not for that I'd go with the Intellifex, I often had one just to have lying around and I always preferred the original. One's that I wish I had kept - Korg DL8000, that unit is deeeeeep but I got it at a time where I was sick of programming effects. Other units that I liked - Marshall JFX-1, very nice easy to dive into. Boss SE-70 and the Yamaha SPX90II. I also like the TC G Major 2. The original was a major tone suck.

Units I wished I had tried - Rocktron Intelliverb, just could never get my hands on one. And obviously a couple pieces in Zachs rack lol.
Units I would like to still own - Roland SDE3000, Korg SDD3000 or I wish they would downsize the pedal version.

Why I liked the Quadraverb Plus? Well ultimately I always wanted a processor to do multi-effects at one time but often those older units couldn't handle it, you were always giving something up and they could be noisy. Why alot of guys would have dedicated units as opposed to the multi. However as I went along, I narrowed everything down on the Quad to two delay types and one verb and that was it. Everything else came from the pedals. That was the basis of my rig for twenty years easy. And to this day, even though my rack is long gone I cannot dial in a better sounding delay with my pedals - to my ears/feel than that Quad.

I miss the rack days but my "back" doesn't.

Right now i'm trying to decide between a Rocktron or the Quadraverb, which one do you think is better sounding?

On one hand it's a tossup and on the other, I'd lean Quad. It's what I always went back too.

However there was a specific reason and that was the delay patches and verbs. I used it for nothing else. Originally I used the mult effect patches, along with the chorus, the flange but honestly they are somewhat weak and could get noisy. But for just straight delay and simple verbs...it was perfect for me. You can even use the multi-tap delays to setup a "quasi" 2290 type thing where the repeats were modulated or at least sounded like they were modulated. And I like how it sits in regards to your playing. Even with my Nemesis Delay pedal with is fantastic, I'm still adjusting to get that balance just right. Again, though I would not get the Quad for multi effects ala Delay / Verb / Chorus at one time. Individual delays and verb, yes. And whatever you do, don't use the internal EQ, noise city. Also no lag time switching presets. That's my mileage on that unit, others may differ.

Rocktron - it's a much better all around multi-effect and the chorus still holds up today. For me it was always a little harder to get the delays and verbs just right but it's a great unit that I always had around. Also no lag time switching presets.

Might want to peak into the Boss SE-70. Alot of big time guys loved that unit. I could never get the delays "placed" where I wanted them and why I never kept it, but it's a good unit. Joe Holmes used one in his rig and to this day had the best sounding tone live in concert I've ever heard.

Speaking of lag time, it's why I let alot of great sounding units go. After I had downsized from the refrigerator rack I wasn't going to be running multiple effects units, into a mixer. and switcher..I wanted one good unit to do delays and verbs and that is another reason I stuck with the Quad. The Lexicon stuff sounded fantastic to me but there is a delay in switching presets. More so on the MPX 1 than the G2. For my circumstance that was a non starter. Another issue with these older units are the internal batteries, just be aware as many need to be replaced.

 

[Goat]

If you get an MPX, you will end-up selling it. It's not that great of a unit, even if you get later updated model. Sub-par effects, preset switching lag, intermittent rebooting... If you get the Lexicon switcher, plan on replacing every switch in the board. I've been there, and it's a PITA!

I don't get this obession with "transparent" guitar effects? The singular aspect that makes the EP1/2/3 tape echo, Roland tape echo, DM-2 delay, CE-1 chorus, Uni-Vibe, Leslie speaker cabinet, etc... sound so great, is the fact that they add a certain level of coloration. Lexicon knew this, which is why they designed the early units with coloration. Transparency (IMO) is best suited for vocals, and acoustic instrumentation.

If I may...
Per my experiance; those who began playing in the era of digital racks and effects loops exist in an alternate reality. Back in the day, building a "tone" was an additive/subtractive process, using a multitude of various devices. Robert Fripp, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Robin Trower, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Pat Travers, Alex Lifeson, Ted Nugent, Edward Van Halen, Randy Rhoads... were all pioneers of the process. Compare Alex Lifeson's 1st RUSH album tones to his later "rack" tones... Not even close!

Someone recently posted a clip of his band. To my ears, it sounded like every other band I've heard in the last 20 or so years. Not that it wasn't good... it just lacks originality. The "worship" bands all sound like U2! The most impressed I've been in a long time, is with the guy who plays guitar in Greta Van Fleet.

You couldn't be more wrong...the MPX-1 is an outstanding unit and has some very cool tricks up it's sleeve. You don't want any rack unit dubbed "transparent" or not run without a mixer that leaves your dry sound intact. There's no sub-par effects in the MPX-1....just don't go thinking it will do everything at once....but the pcms didn't do everything at once either. MPX-1 can be had for a great deal and you will have an awesome unit. Switching lag is not an indicator of a unit that has a bad sound, few if any of the great sounding fx boxes were instant. The MPX-1 is a killer effect unit, just wire it right and put it in a mixer(as you should ANY line level rack effects) and you'll have a great FX box.

http://www.italodeangelis.com/public/co ... ibrary.pdf
Scroll down for sound clips:
http://www.italodeangelis.com/it/eventi ... -MPX-1.asp

I've had two of them. Early and updated model... The MPX-1 is a convoluted mess, IMO. Sterile effects, switching lag... Rocktron Intellifex, although transparent, blows the MPX out of the proverbial water. I'd rather have one great reverb/one great delay vs the plethora of **** stuffed into the MPX-1. Rocktron's 8 voice chorus alone blows-aways the entire MPX-1 ROM library. Lexicon PCM70 is another story...

 

[Purpleibby]

If you get an MPX, you will end-up selling it. It's not that great of a unit, even if you get later updated model. Sub-par effects, preset switching lag, intermittent rebooting... If you get the Lexicon switcher, plan on replacing every switch in the board. I've been there, and it's a PITA!

I don't get this obession with "transparent" guitar effects? The singular aspect that makes the EP1/2/3 tape echo, Roland tape echo, DM-2 delay, CE-1 chorus, Uni-Vibe, Leslie speaker cabinet, etc... sound so great, is the fact that they add a certain level of coloration. Lexicon knew this, which is why they designed the early units with coloration. Transparency (IMO) is best suited for vocals, and acoustic instrumentation.

If I may...
Per my experiance; those who began playing in the era of digital racks and effects loops exist in an alternate reality. Back in the day, building a "tone" was an additive/subtractive process, using a multitude of various devices. Robert Fripp, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Robin Trower, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Pat Travers, Alex Lifeson, Ted Nugent, Edward Van Halen, Randy Rhoads... were all pioneers of the process. Compare Alex Lifeson's 1st RUSH album tones to his later "rack" tones... Not even close!

Someone recently posted a clip of his band. To my ears, it sounded like every other band I've heard in the last 20 or so years. Not that it wasn't good... it just lacks originality. The "worship" bands all sound like U2! The most impressed I've been in a long time, is with the guy who plays guitar in Greta Van Fleet.

You couldn't be more wrong...the MPX-1 is an outstanding unit and has some very cool tricks up it's sleeve. You don't want any rack unit dubbed "transparent" or not run without a mixer that leaves your dry sound intact. There's no sub-par effects in the MPX-1....just don't go thinking it will do everything at once....but the pcms didn't do everything at once either. MPX-1 can be had for a great deal and you will have an awesome unit. Switching lag is not an indicator of a unit that has a bad sound, few if any of the great sounding fx boxes were instant. The MPX-1 is a killer effect unit, just wire it right and put it in a mixer(as you should ANY line level rack effects) and you'll have a great FX box.

http://www.italodeangelis.com/public/co ... ibrary.pdf
Scroll down for sound clips:
http://www.italodeangelis.com/it/eventi ... -MPX-1.asp

I've had two of them. Early and updated model... The MPX-1 is a convoluted mess, IMO. Sterile effects, switching lag... Rocktron Intellifex, although transparent, blows the MPX out of the proverbial water. I'd rather have one great reverb/one great delay vs the plethora of **** stuffed into the MPX-1. Rocktron's 8 voice chorus alone blows-aways the entire MPX-1 ROM library. Lexicon PCM70 is another story...

Disagree, then you didn't know WTF you were doing...my MPX-1 replaced an intelliverb. Sorry but an intellifex doesn't even hold up next to an intelliverb or an MPX-1. You do NOT run an effects processor of any kind without a mixer, I don't care if it's an intellifex or anything. The intelli units are not bad units...but they don't hold up to the possibilities you can get out of an mpx-1....they just can't.

 

[JTyson]

I love those old Yamaha REV7's, Ive had 2 of them since the mid eighties and they are killer.

What did you like about them, I never had the chance but back in the day they were everywhere.

They were workhorses, the 2 I have are still going 30+ years later. My fav thing was the live reference patch I would run at around 20-25% on the mix knob, it added some space and depth to the tone and it really didn't sound like a reverb was on at all, until you bypassed it and took it out. You could use the para eq just on the effected tone and it made an otherwise pretty 1 dimensional tone sound huge, but you had to use it sparingly. I went between Triaxis and Marshall preamps and ran them between the preamp and power amp. I got to a point I had to get a second one in case 1 went belly up on me on the road. They were a pita to figure out, but they sounded killer

 

[phil b]

If you get an MPX, you will end-up selling it. It's not that great of a unit, even if you get later updated model. Sub-par effects, preset switching lag, intermittent rebooting... If you get the Lexicon switcher, plan on replacing every switch in the board. I've been there, and it's a PITA!

I don't get this obession with "transparent" guitar effects? The singular aspect that makes the EP1/2/3 tape echo, Roland tape echo, DM-2 delay, CE-1 chorus, Uni-Vibe, Leslie speaker cabinet, etc... sound so great, is the fact that they add a certain level of coloration. Lexicon knew this, which is why they designed the early units with coloration. Transparency (IMO) is best suited for vocals, and acoustic instrumentation.

If I may...
Per my experiance; those who began playing in the era of digital racks and effects loops exist in an alternate reality. Back in the day, building a "tone" was an additive/subtractive process, using a multitude of various devices. Robert Fripp, Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Robin Trower, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Pat Travers, Alex Lifeson, Ted Nugent, Edward Van Halen, Randy Rhoads... were all pioneers of the process. Compare Alex Lifeson's 1st RUSH album tones to his later "rack" tones... Not even close!

Someone recently posted a clip of his band. To my ears, it sounded like every other band I've heard in the last 20 or so years. Not that it wasn't good... it just lacks originality. The "worship" bands all sound like U2! The most impressed I've been in a long time, is with the guy who plays guitar in Greta Van Fleet.

You couldn't be more wrong...the MPX-1 is an outstanding unit and has some very cool tricks up it's sleeve. You don't want any rack unit dubbed "transparent" or not run without a mixer that leaves your dry sound intact. There's no sub-par effects in the MPX-1....just don't go thinking it will do everything at once....but the pcms didn't do everything at once either. MPX-1 can be had for a great deal and you will have an awesome unit. Switching lag is not an indicator of a unit that has a bad sound, few if any of the great sounding fx boxes were instant. The MPX-1 is a killer effect unit, just wire it right and put it in a mixer(as you should ANY line level rack effects) and you'll have a great FX box.

http://www.italodeangelis.com/public/co ... ibrary.pdf
Scroll down for sound clips:
http://www.italodeangelis.com/it/eventi ... -MPX-1.asp

I've had two of them. Early and updated model... The MPX-1 is a convoluted mess, IMO. Sterile effects, switching lag... Rocktron Intellifex, although transparent, blows the MPX out of the proverbial water. I'd rather have one great reverb/one great delay vs the plethora of **** stuffed into the MPX-1. Rocktron's 8 voice chorus alone blows-aways the entire MPX-1 ROM library. Lexicon PCM70 is another story...

Disagree, then you didn't know WTF you were doing...my MPX-1 replaced an intelliverb. Sorry but an intellifex doesn't even hold up next to an intelliverb or an MPX-1. You do NOT run an effects processor of any kind without a mixer, I don't care if it's an intellifex or anything. The intelli units are not bad units...but they don't hold up to the possibilities you can get out of an mpx-1....they just can't.

Thats the beauty of the Intellifex though. You dont need a mixer for it to sound great. One of the main reasons for using mixers is to preserve the dry tone. That was the premise for them back in the day. A LOT of the earlier units did not have an analog path and the core tone was terrible. Units like the Gmajor and similar all in one units are really designed for series. Thats not to say you cant run in parallel, but in doing so a lot of the effects cant be used..ie. compressor,eq, gates..etc.

 

[romanianreaper]

My madness

Crazy fucking rig, that's straight rack porn right there!

Dude you don't even know. Zach, our friend Carlos and I were hanging out and I got to play thru his setup. It sounded insane! We had a great laugh at one point. Carlos told me to play and then he hit a pedal. Every he hit it he'd yell "There's $1000", "There's $5000, etc.

Definitely had that tone like standing on a stage and being "enveloped" with great tone. I heard it in a band context a few months after that at one of his gigs and sounded insane. That and a Cameron mod amp sounded awesome.

 

[romanianreaper]

Aloha... I am now in Arizona. In-Laws getting old and needed help, so... I closed the shop, and brought everything with me, figuring I could re-open here. Thank God I didn't, or the shutdowns would've killed me. Everything is in storage, and I'm just hanging in there. Maybe I'll liquidate to an existing shop. Dunno

Oh man, that's crazy dude. You never know man. You still have the stuff so might be able to work something out down the line. Glad to hear you are well man!

 

[Purpleibby]

Thats the beauty of the Intellifex though. You dont need a mixer for it to sound great. One of the main reasons for using mixers is to preserve the dry tone. That was the premise for them back in the day. A LOT of the earlier units did not have an analog path and the core tone was terrible. Units like the Gmajor and similar all in one units are really designed for series. Thats not to say you cant run in parallel, but in doing so a lot of the effects cant be used..ie. compressor,eq, gates..etc.

That's exactly the thing..... I wouldn't use the one of those processors for a compressor or an eq(digital eqs and compressors SUCK) and their gates don't compare to dedicated units....those effects IMO need to be analog rack dedicated, or maybe even pedals in front of the amp depending on your taste and both removed with a relay switcher when not used. If you're gonna use an eq in a digital effect then it would be best used to color your delays or other effects which are run parallel.

I had a replifex(never liked it) and an intelliverb in my rack for a long time.... They are fixed in their internal routings and limited on algorithms....and there's no juice there. If you plan on ONLY using an intellifex(which you wouldn't really because IMO it can't do everything at once, they lose their mojo IMO when you run the chorus delay reverb algorithm) then you might get away from having to use a mixer....THe intelliverb, which is really the best of the intelli Rocktron units was a good sounding unit, I liked it's chorus and virtual room algorithms but it took up the processing for the whole unit then you need MORE....but I'll tell ya, for all the talk about it being transparent I like the way the Switchblade preserved the dry signal better than the Rocktron. The MPX-1 IMO is a superior unit, I stand by it. You need a mixer.

My old rack from 2003/2004

 

[Zachman]

Man I went through alot of rack effects back in the day. I started with a massive rig w/ two pre-amps, mixer, loop switcher, tuner, Furman, wireless, power amp and effects. By the end it was whittled down to a 6 space rack, 1 effects unit and racked pedals that I did tons of gigs, rehearsals, recordings.

Units (if I can remember them all) -
Alessi Quadraverb, Quadraverb Plus, Quadraverb 2
Boss SE-50, SE-70, SX-700
Roland GP-8, GP-16, SDE330
Lexicon MPX 1, MPX G2
Yamaha SPX90II
Rocktron Intellifex, Intellifex LTD, Intellifex Online, Intellifex XL, Replifex, Pro Chorus
Marshall JFX-1
TC G Major, G Major 2, M One
Korg A3, DL8000R



I never ventured into the Eventide realm or the other top line TC stuff like the 2290. Of all those units I owned I always came back to the "lowly" Quadraverb Plus. And if not for that I'd go with the Intellifex, I often had one just to have lying around and I always preferred the original. One's that I wish I had kept - Korg DL8000, that unit is deeeeeep but I got it at a time where I was sick of programming effects. Other units that I liked - Marshall JFX-1, very nice easy to dive into. Boss SE-70 and the Yamaha SPX90II. I also like the TC G Major 2. The original was a major tone suck.

Units I wished I had tried - Rocktron Intelliverb, just could never get my hands on one. And obviously a couple pieces in Zachs rack lol.
Units I would like to still own - Roland SDE3000, Korg SDD3000 or I wish they would downsize the pedal version.

Why I liked the Quadraverb Plus? Well ultimately I always wanted a processor to do multi-effects at one time but often those older units couldn't handle it, you were always giving something up and they could be noisy. Why alot of guys would have dedicated units as opposed to the multi. However as I went along, I narrowed everything down on the Quad to two delay types and one verb and that was it. Everything else came from the pedals. That was the basis of my rig for twenty years easy. And to this day, even though my rack is long gone I cannot dial in a better sounding delay with my pedals - to my ears/feel than that Quad.

I miss the rack days but my "back" doesn't.

Right now i'm trying to decide between a Rocktron or the Quadraverb, which one do you think is better sounding?

I really like the Rocktron gear. Intellifex, Intelliverb, and the Replifex in particular--and prefer them to the Alesis Quadraverb. I use a Rocktron 300G rack compressor in the big rig.

If you go with an Intellifex vs the Intelliverb you'll have a wider variety of 'Other' fx too. (Delay, 8-voice chorus, Pitch, Detune, etc...)