rack case rant

[Dave Horne]

I have two kinds of cases, cases made in the US and a case made in Holland. The cases made in the US have pre drilled holes on the rack rails. If the manufacturers of the rack equipment (modules, mixers, effects, etc.) would be slightly more generous in the positioning of the holes (making the holes just a bit bigger), it would allow more possibilities in the placement of all the rack equipment.

 

Every so often, I get the urge and rearrange the placement of the mixer, effects, whatever. I had to file a slightly larger opening on the rack ears of a mixer to line up with the pre drilled holes.

 

The cases made in Holland (at least the one I own) has a system of sliding holes, if you will. There's a track system that holds a handful of little boxes with holes. Anything can be positioned anywhere you want it. The down side of this system is the additional weight.

 

Sorry, have to vent. Am I alone here?

[JimmieWannaB]

There seems to be a standard pattern for hole placement that most rack manufacturers use. Unfortunately, the pattern sucks. You try to add one thing and every piece of gear needs to move up or down two rather than one hole in order reline up all four holes in the panel. Then you're stuck with an ugly gap requiring the purchase of blank panels.

 

I guess if you allowed enough holes for all one rack unit high gear while also allowing for two pieces of gear to be butted together you would weaken the strength of the rails. That or rack manufacturers are just to cheap to drill enough holes.

 

Anyone have a better explanation for the odd (make that pain in the ass) hole placement? In my thirty plus years of rearranging video gear in racks (gawd, I'm getting old ) I haven't heard a reasonable explanation for this.

[Bubbajazz]

heat dissipation?