Rectifiers vs Marks

[sjk]

Both classic amps but I've often wondered what is is about rectifiers that made them so much more popular and bigger sellers. Obviously the many models of rectifiers would suggest more sales of them vs marks, but are there other reasons why they are one of the most successful amplifiers of all time. Anyone got any opinions on this I'd love to hear them. I prefer Marks fwiw.

 

[ACShreds]

Cuz all the kids from the 90's thought the diamond plate face was cool, and the name dual rectifier sounded heavy...

 

[dfrattaroli]

Cuz all the kids from the 90's thought the diamond plate face was cool, and the name dual rectifier sounded heavy...

Spot on. Thread complete.

 

[Tone Monster]

My honest opinion is that they sound unique and heavy for shittier players when they do simple power chords usually drop tuned. Mesa tapped a huge market...

 

[mboogman]

They actually work really well together. The other guitar player in my band plays a Rect-O-Verb, and it my MKIII red stripe fills in all the meat that the rectifier is lacking in the mid range, at least the way he sets up his tone, which is still very good, FWIW.

$.02

 

[RSRD]

I, obviously, love the tverb. It's still my favorite Mesa hands down. I like It better then the mark bit that's my taste.

 

[Anonymous]

I own a mark and a dual recto....i'll take a dual rec over a mark any time...

 

[155]

I own a mark and a dual recto....i'll take a dual rec over a mark any time...

im the exact opposite, cant get on with rectos , but the marks rip!

 

[ACShreds]

Personally i find that the Marks are great for leads and the Recto's are great for rhythms. Now of course they can both be used for either and is a matter of personal choice. My dream rig is a Mark V for leads and cleans and a Roadster for rhythms.

 

[Shask]

I prefer the Recto, but they are both good. You want saturated heavy crunch rhythms, or fluid compressed solo tones?

 

[Les Zombie]

I'm a fan of both

 

[Badronald]

I'm a fan of both.
I currently own a Triple Recto and it slays.

 

[dfrattaroli]

I've owned a Road King II and in the end, could not love it. The Mark IV I have now, will be with me till I die. That said, I've never owned a DR or a T'verb and would love to.

 

[sjk]

Cuz all the kids from the 90's thought the diamond plate face was cool, and the name dual rectifier sounded heavy...

Spot on. Thread complete.

I'm sure that helped sell thousands but there has got to be a better reason than this, I mean look at all the bands all thru the 90s and beyond that used them, there on thousands of albums. Might have something to do with how well they sound recorded...I don't know. Like I said I prefer the much tighter mark series, but obviously there is something very special about the rectifiers for them to become as popular as they became.

 

[glpg80]

I prefer the Recto, but they are both good. You want saturated heavy crunch rhythms, or fluid compressed solo tones?

Have to agree here, different strokes for different folks, both have their benefits but neither are end all be all amplifiers. All depends on the player's needs. I bought a dual rec because i wanted another amplifier to dual track rhythms with, i use my 5150 II for tracking leads and solo's. Had i been looking for a solo tracking amplifier my first choice would obviously not be a dual rec model, but something else entirely.

 

[crankyrayhanky]

Personally i find that the Marks are great for leads and the Recto's are great for rhythms. Now of course they can both be used for either and is a matter of personal choice.

they sound unique and heavy for shittier players when they do simple power chords usually drop tuned

With all due respect, this is a tired refrain from many older players...Keep in mind plenty of bad players also play in standard E and plenty of skilled players droptune...good and bad everywhere if you have an open mind

There's more crap, because there's exponentially more music than ever.
We all can't shred like St. Kirk


lol

 

[Tone Monster]

Personally i find that the Marks are great for leads and the Recto's are great for rhythms. Now of course they can both be used for either and is a matter of personal choice.

they sound unique and heavy for shittier players when they do simple power chords usually drop tuned

With all due respect, this is a tired refrain from many older players...Keep in mind plenty of bad players also play in standard E and plenty of skilled players droptune...good and bad everywhere if you have an open mind

There's more crap, because there's exponentially more music than ever.
We all can't shred like St. Kirk


lol

I don't think they're terrible amps. I just stated why I thought they got so popular. Shitty players make up 99% of the market, self included. They can be dialed in to sound great and blend especially well with other amps. Who in the hell is St. Kirk? Hammett? What does that dude have to do with this thread???

 

[Laars]

Hi Guys,
My rig is full of boogies, and I like old Marshall Plexi tones with little gain. With that said, I run a Boogie Stiletto and use the Triple Rec as a giant distortion box. My Stiletto is run dry, with hardly any gain. Then I add the Triple Rec on top if needed. I dont scoop the mids though. The Rec adds low end, and gain for a nice full sound.

They really aren't bad sounding amps and they can be useful. Too bad some people run them by scooping the mids, and making them sound like crap.

 

[glassjaw7]

Both great for different reasons. I feel that with a Mark, you get out of it what you put in. It won't hide your mistakes. Rectos look cool, hide mistakes in your playing, sound HUGE, and came out when the whole alternative metal scene was being born. It just fit with the times.

I miss my modded recto every day. Amazing amp!

 

[TheMagicEight]

From a technical standpoint:
Rectifier has "better" distortion. The Mark series doesn't have a cold cathode distortion stage, so the distortion is a bit more raw and grainy. Now, you might call a Rectifier grainy or fizzy, but it's for other reasons. Namely, the Rectifier doesn't have a negative feedback loop on Modern Red, which contributes to the amp's feel of being heavy and brutal (and fizzy with the wrong setup!). Of course, many complain that the Rectifier isn't tight. It's because you need to turn your amp up! Already tried that? Well, there's a capacitor that cuts out some high end on the Rectifier that isn't there on the SLO or 5150. Halve the value in the Rec and you'll be amazed at how much tighter the Rectifier gets.

I'm not saying the Mark series might not be "better". But I am saying that without a cold biased preamp distortion stage, the content of the distortion is far more filled with odd order harmonics than even order, the opposite of what our ears find "pleasing".

From an experience standpoint:
I love Rectifiers and while I've never bonded with a Mark I've played, I've heard some excellent recordings. Since you're curious about Rectifiers, I'll talk about them. I think too many people don't understand that the amp is NOT your rig. Everything - from your pickups, to your guitars, cabs, and speakers - is your rig. The amp is only a part. Because of the way the Rectifier is designed, it's very important to match it with an appropriate cab. Maybe it's a design flaw and the Rec should work better with other cabs, but then it wouldn't sound the way it does.

But even that isn't enough. Rectifiers - not very unlike the best Marshalls - must be turned up a bit to feel the way they're supposed to. Once the speakers start working, the feel of the amp improves immensely. And I would in fact argue that because the Rectifier has so little gain compared to some modern amps - Bogner Uberschall, Diezel Herbert, or the new Egnater Armageddon - it in fact is not good at covering up mistakes.