[noodles]

I've heard plenty of people describing the Recto sound as "buzzy", but I've never been able to figure out why. Well, a visit to Guitar Center before practice this week answered some of my questions. This is sure to prompt some heated discussion, but what the fuck...

They only seven in the entire store was a RG7321, which just happened to be sitting next to a DualRec in the loud lounge. Since this was just beggin to be cranked, in I walked. There were a couple of kids hanging around, teaching each other how to play Green Day songs (wrong, out of tune, on crappy guitars through JCM2000's), so I employed my room-clearing technique: plug-in, tune-up, play 3-string natural minor sweeps as fast as possible. Works every time.

Now I play a Road King, so I know how to dial in a recto. For the life of me, I couldn't get a good sound. The recto buzz was there the whole time. The only way to get rid of it was to sludge out the tone by cranking the bass and dropping back the presence. Yuck.

I grab a Duncan-equipped Dinky off the wall. Buzz gone. I switch out to a Les Paul with stock Gibson pickups. Fat crunch. Hmm...

I head out to the main room, and grab two of the nicest Ibanezes they had, with stock Dimarzios. The buzz is back.

Back out I go, and grab two Schecters: one with Duncans, one with EMGs. The EMG one sounds like what you expect every guitar with EMGs to sound like: crushing rhythm, sterile leads. The other one had that thick, singing midrange character I expect from Schecter. I've got it nailed down now.

Rectos don't like Dimarzio (this is where the large debate begins). The amp isn't buzzy, because I went through four different guitars without the recto buzz. Sure, the high end sizzle was there, but nowhere near as pronounced as it was with the three Ibbys I played. I'm beginning to think this is why I've never liked Dimarzios. They just seem to lack that musical quality that Duncan has, or the tight, brutal low end of EMG.

I am a firm believer in the principal of personal preference. To my ears, they sound like shit, but that is only my opinion. Has anyone else had similar experiences to me, or totally different ones? I have a Rhoads with a Tone Zone that sounds out-fucking-standing through a Marshall, but I've never actually plugged it into a Recto. My band practices in a rehersal studio that provides amps, so my Recto only sees use at gigs. Suffice to say I don't gig with the sixes.

[bostjan]

My BC Rich has Dimarzios and it seems better than fine to me through my recto. My Fly Classic (with Dimarzios) also sounds great through it, too.

Plus, RG7321 doesn't have Dimarzios.

Maybe it's Ibanez and Mesa/Boogie having bad mojo or something?

I have an RG570 that sounds like through my Recto, but sounds fine through a Peavey, whereas my BC Rich sounds much better through the Recto.

[nyck]

Interesting.

[Vince]

I've used many different DiMarzios, Duncans, and EMGs.

The DiMarzio Evo 7 pickup is almost identical to an EMG in tonal quality IMO. Amazing rhythm guitar sound, but a bit too much gain & nasal for leads. For fast, Alex Skolnick style leads, it's great, but for more Petrucci or Satriani-eque leads, gotta go with something warmer.

I have Duncans as the bridge p/u in 3 of my 4 electric guitars. 2 JBs and a BS Trembucker. Great sounding pickups.

I've owned guitars with EMGs, and played guitars with EMGs.

Having said all that, I don't think the pickups are generally the reason for the 'buzzy' recto sound people complain about. Yeah, you're right, they'll definitely make a difference, but I don't think you can peg the recto buzzyness on just one brand of pickups.

Rectos are extremely high gain amps. Most people IMO aren't used to that, most rock is usually with a cleaner gain sound. Rectos will fry your face off with gain. Plus, rectos have a sweet spot on the gain knob at about 1-2 o'clock. From my experience, most people plug into an amp and turn the gain up to 9 or 10, which on most amps will give you a nice saturated tone, but on a recto, that'll give you an extremely saturated tone with tons of presence. That's IMO why people refer to rectos as buzzy amps.

Plus, if the tubes are worn, as they are in the rectos that are on the floor at most guitar centers, you'll have more flabbyness in the sound and it'll be less tight, especially on the bottom end, which can conversely over-emphasize how the ear picks up the higher frequencies.

Bottom line: Rectos give a lot of gain

[Mark. A]

I'm waiting for the Mesa lovers to come haha.

Ya should've taken the emo killer in

[Leon]

Originally Posted by Mark. A

I'm waiting for the Mesa lovers to come haha.

the thread starter is a Mesa endorsee, and you posted right after one

i don't think it's an Ibanez/DiMarzio thing with Mesa, because my Ibanez/DiMarzio guitars sound great through my Mesa. of course, it's not a Recto.

[bostjan]

Yeah, Mark, you're the only non-mesa user who's posted in this thread so far

We all love the Mesas here. …well, mostly…ok, some of us do, well nearly some more like almost nearly a few.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by bostjan

…well, mostly…ok, some of us do, well nearly some more like almost nearly a few.

she turned me into a newt!

[zimbloth]

Noodles, that's a bit far-fetched You're right every pickup has different characteristics that can not mesh well with a given amp, but plenty of DiMarzios sound excellent with Rectos. The RG7321 just has shitty pickups, not even DiMarzios.

A lot of Rectos have that quality no matter what you run through it, some of the models being made today just are duds. Also most guitar center amps have bad tubes or are treated like shit (GC employees turn the amp on and standby on at the same time like morons, or turn the amp on without a cab being connected first).

Some pickups will conceal their buzziness and razory qualities, some wont. But it's not a blanket Seymour Duncan vs DiMarzio thing. I owned a Dual Recto head for YEARS, and had a zillion different kinds of pickups. Some Duncans meshed real well with it, some didnt. Some DiMarzios did, some didnt. It's just the way it goes. It's definitely not a DiMarzio thing. Hell, the Duncan Distortion was the worst culprit of them all in my days of being a Recto owner, and thats not a DiMarzio. It just depends. The JB and Invader for example sounded great with it. Not the Sh-6. The DiMarzios I had back then sounded fine through it, some better than others (Blaze, Blaze Custom, Evo were the ones I tried back then).

My friend used to have a Rectoverb head, he ran Parkers with DiMarzio and USA BC Richs with DiMarzio Super Distortions and the tone he got was out of this world. I'm pretty sure its more that a lot of those Ibanez stock pickups are ass.

[Mark. A]

Originally Posted by bostjan

Yeah, Mark, you're the only non-mesa user who's posted in this thread so far

We all love the Mesas here. …well, mostly…ok, some of us do, well nearly some more like almost nearly a few.

Rub it in a bit more