Rack building Help

thebattle · Post by **thebattle** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

I'm building a rack for my bass. I don't wanna anything special just one with a tuner in it. But, I'm completely clueless when it comes to these builds can anybody instruct me on this topic.

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

What exactly are you struggling with? interconnecting, what rack to purchase, accessories?

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

JackANSI wrote:What exactly are you struggling with?
interconnecting, what rack to purchase, accessories?

Ah...Now you have the Rack Expert on it. Make sure you
have a lot more slots in there than you're thinking you'll need.

thebattle · Post by **thebattle** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

I haven't even started building yet i don't know where to start haha. Obviously i need a case. As far as connecting everything what are the main things that i need.

Banned · Post by **Banned** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

the components should be based on what YOU need.

PanzerFaust · Post by **PanzerFaust** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

AwakenedDrummer wrote:the components should be based on what YOU need.

Or should that be BASSed on what you need...

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

There's nothing mystical about racks...its just an enclosure that takes 19" wide equipment and a bunch of holes in mounting rails that go 5/8", 5/8", 1/2"...

To make it simple, they divide everything up into 1-3/4" high rack spaces. 2 space equipment = 3-1/2" high, 3 space equipment = 5-1/4" high....

Its usually a good idea to set aside one space for a good power conditioner and plug all your stuff into it. Cheap power conditioners suck and you should get at least 2 (or better yet) 3 stage protection. They also come with pull out lights that will light up the rest of the rack front.

Regular wall wart power supplies are a pain in the ass. It is better to avoid them, but the easiest ones to secure in a rack are ones that have 2 wires--to both the AC and the device. These can be secured to rear rack rails. Depending on the supply requirements, you can go on eBay and get new ones that plug right into an AC socket just like a regular AC cables...really cool stuff:

http://cgi.ebay.com/1200mA-AC-DC-Power- ... 0338828994

I usually make my own small rack mount AC-AC power supplies for rear rail mounting and also interconnect cables, but you can get short ones at music stores or on eBay. When routing cables, always keep power cables away from signal cables. Its usually works best to run power cables on one side and signal cables on the other.

You should also have a nice supply of cable ty-wraps to secure everything.

As far as spaces...you need to imagine how many spaces you might need for FX and any other stuff you might get.

Unless you intend to go the preamp/poweramp route, my recommendation for you is to get a 4-space rack. 1 space for power, 1 space for tuner and 2 extra spaces for other stuff.

My favorite is the Gator shallow effects rack. They are compact and have rear rack rails. There are a lot of others out there, like the SKB X-rack that should be OK for guitar.

Banned · Post by **Banned** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

hahhaha yeah...what he said

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

Now that I have a bit more time, I'll just go over a few things. I'll use my infamous 'house' analogy.

1st: Don't go overboard and pick up a 12U monster (at 12U the rack alone is the size of a majority of beefy combo amps). If you need a 4U, get a 6U. If you need a 6U, get an 8U. Today's efficient fan-loaded power amps do not require the extra spaces above and below. You can quite safely rack up 3 or more megawatt+ amps right on top of each other without causing a meltdown. Just make sure the amp you buy has a fan

I consider this analogous to the walls and roof of a house. You wouldn't want to start out your new family in a 1 bedroom house when you planned from the beginning on having kids. You put an extra bedroom in while you can. There are generally two types of racks, effects (shallow), and power amp (regular or deep). If you have shallow rack devices in a deep case you can use the back rails too. Not in every case, but its nice to put stuff you don't mess with often out back, out of the way.

2nd: You'll want a power conditioner/power distribution unit (usually 1U, 8 outlets on the back, one up front, sometimes with lights and volt/current displays, Furman makes some of the better ones). I consider this analogous to a good foundation on a house. The point of a rack (in this case) is to make sounding good, easy. This makes it just the flick of 2 switches to bring everything to life (You always want to shut off your power amps first; turn them on last), and sometimes can diminish buzz or make it easier to diagnose. Plus its one plug for all your power needs.

3rd: Get the best equipment you can. A rack keeps it safe, so it'll hold more of its value (generally). This is analogous to buying appliances and fittings for your new home. Its going to suck if you can't use that new kitchen because the fridge keeps breaking down or the sink leaks all over the floor. But when it comes time to sell your house, stainless steel makes the kitchen in most cases.

4th: Cover your empties. If you have any extra room on the front of your rack, cover it with a blank panel. This will make the rack stronger as a whole and even look professional. Its cheap and it helps. This is analogous to having load bearing walls inside your house. It helps hold up the weight of the entire structure without requiring you to beef up your outer walls (like having to upgrade to an Anvil rack). Since removing the one device (BBE 362NR) from the back of my rack, I noticed it got flimsy. I ordered a few perforated blank panels to put back there to bring back some strength. (I got the mobile home of racks, a Gator).

If you're going with something like an Ampeg SVT3-Pro or another pre/power combo amp generally a 4U rack will do. These amps are rarely bigger than 3U, most are 2U. This leaves you with 1U for the tuner and 1U for a power conditioner. If you even think you'll want to put more in, or if your amp is 3U, get a 6U now.

If you're going with a 'discrete' type setup (separate 1-2U preamp, 2U power amp, 2U's for the tuner and PC) you'll want to start with a slightly bigger rack, 6U is a good starting point, but 8U would be logical choice if you think you'll want to add effects, compressor, EQ, etc.

As for racks themselves, Gator is probably your best bet for 'entry level', SKB for gigging regularly but you still handle your gear, or Anvil for when you are touring and usually don't transport your own gear (or do it in a trailer).

You can also buy just the 'rack rails' yourself and make a box to put them in. Start here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rack_unit

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

Also, a shameless plug.

If you're not going to be racking a power amp and are just looking for a place to stuff a tuner and effects.

I have a great tuner and pedalboard for sale.. I'll even throw in the effects for free

http://www.rockpage.net/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=21411

thebattle · Post by **thebattle** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

I didn't need anything special i wanna put a tuner in there. So basically what goes in my rack is my head unit a power amp and a tuner?

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

Don't need a power amp if your head already has one big enough for your needs

Killjingle · Post by **Killjingle** » Tuesday Feb 03, 2009

what do u already own/ use?

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Wednesday Feb 04, 2009

The first question I asked myself when I first started building my rack is "what type of sound am I going for"

That's #1 right there, then playing style would be a close second.
Is this for home use, or are you planning to use it live?

Next would be Solid State, or Tubed.
How many watts?
What kind of effects, etc....

I'm sure that everyone here will help you out as much as they can once they get an idea on what you want out of your rack.

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Thursday Feb 05, 2009

When I was saying about taking that one unit out of the back and making it flimsy, this is what I did yesterday to correct it:

Connectors L to R:

Power-in (neutrik powercon)
power-out (powercon, switched with the rack)
4-pole speakon (both amp channels, channel 1 only when using a 2 pole speakon cable)
2-pole speakon (channel 2 only)
Post-effects XLR
Pre-effects XLR
Effects return (locking 1/4")
Effects send (locking 1/4")

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Thursday Feb 05, 2009

Oooh. Christmasy. I need to get a blue (Or purple) jewel light.

onegunguitar · Post by **onegunguitar** » Thursday Feb 05, 2009

I decided to go with a head/rack case.

Killjingle · Post by **Killjingle** » Thursday Feb 05, 2009

thats nice scott. I like that

sunsetbass · Post by **sunsetbass** » Thursday Feb 05, 2009

JackANSI wrote:When I was saying about taking that one unit out of the back and making it flimsy, this is what I did yesterday to correct it:

Connectors L to R:

Power-in (neutrik powercon)
power-out (powercon, switched with the rack)
4-pole speakon (both amp channels, channel 1 only when using a 2 pole speakon cable)
2-pole speakon (channel 2 only)
Post-effects XLR
Pre-effects XLR
Effects return (locking 1/4")
Effects send (locking 1/4")

thats 1 sweet rack. alot of thought went into that. hats off dude nice work.

onegunguitar · Post by **onegunguitar** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

Killjingle wrote:thats nice scott. I like that

Thanks Chad!

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

Scott, are you going to use all of that live?
Looks like it's heavy (not in a good way)

You need a handi-cap accessible van to lift your rig into it now!

Nice rack Rob, that's nice! Looks great in the dark too.
Edit: (that sounded gay as hell, but I'm leaving it here)

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

metalchurch wrote:Nice rack Rob...

He's been workin' out.

JackANSI · Post by **JackANSI** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

onegunguitar wrote:I decided to go with a head/rack case.

What all is in that? I can't read some of the units.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

JackANSI wrote:
onegunguitar wrote:I decided to go with a head/rack case.

What all is in that? I can't read some of the units.

Pretty sure the one unit is a rack mount pitch correction/suck cut with a skills boost.

Kidding Scott you rule man!

onegunguitar · Post by **onegunguitar** » Friday Feb 06, 2009

metalchurch wrote:
JackANSI wrote:
onegunguitar wrote:I decided to go with a head/rack case.

What all is in that? I can't read some of the units.
Pretty sure the one unit is a rack mount pitch correction/suck cut with a skills boost.
Kidding Scott you rule man!

Haha,thanks Joe,I need that for sure.

Yea,it weighs about 140 pounds with everything in it,it'll probably be a pain in the ass at times but I got too much money invested in my ENGL and the rack equipment not to protect it. The way I figure it is this: Everytime I put the head on the cab it's subject to getting damaged,each time you plug in cables,power cords etc.. it slowly wears on the jacks and the cables plus now I have quicker set up and tear down times since everything stays hooked up.

As far as what's in the case it goes like this:
From top to bottom
-X2 wireless
-Behringer tuner-isn't the best but you can read it from a distance plus it has lights.
-Boss GT PRO
-Monster Power Conditioner Pro 2500
-ENGL Z 11 Midi Switcher
-ENGL POWERBALL

The only thing I use the GT PRO for is effects-a little delay,chorus,reverb,etc..
I do have a preamp setting in the Boss for live use in case my ENGL would go down,just plug it into a board or another amp and I can get thru the rest of the night.

Of course I reserve the right to add,remove, change any and/or all of this equipment at any time.