Mesa Amps:

syscokid said:
Dang-nabbit!!!!!! I just found out that the Mesa Hollywood store is not the same anymore. They might have relocated, and with very different business hours and other different protocols due to the response of the pandemic... and possibly the influence of the Gibson ownership! This is sad... :confused2:
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That is sad news. I absolutely loved going there - bought all my Mesa/Boogie gear there over the last 20+ years. The guys that worked there were amazing and the store itself was like a shrine to all things Boogie. Truly bums me out.

But...thinking it through optimistically, maybe this spells a new boutique with both Boogie and Gibson? Now that would be something special.
 
Robert Herndon said:
Tell you something...

When I got this Les Paul, I wasn't sure the Burstbucker 1&3 were gonna work for me, since they are relatively low output humbuckers.

Truth is, they changed my tone significantly. It's hard to explain, bit the 50's Standard Gold Top just really sounded and behaved very differently than my other guitars and I've revamped amp settings to compensate.

I'm using greatly reduced gain levels, yet sound like I'm actually using higher gain levels!@!
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I know this is about Mesa Amps, but I am glad to see Robert is finding new ground to explore with the new Lester.
 
gball said:
That is sad news. I absolutely loved going there - bought all my Mesa/Boogie gear there over the last 20+ years. The guys that worked there were amazing and the store itself was like a shrine to all things Boogie. Truly bums me out.

But...thinking it through optimistically, maybe this spells a new boutique with both Boogie and Gibson? Now that would be something special.
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MesaSon ?
Giboogie ?
 
Robert Herndon said:
Good lookin out, my friend!!!

I played through Triple and Dual Rec's and I wasn't blown away. I mean, they are great amps, but I didn't hear something I was listening for.

A few weeks ago. I was working in a session and was invited to play a Fillmore 100watt. I didn't post my reaction here for fear of being burned at the tonal stake, but I was absolutely floored by the tone.

It was just gain per se, but it was a certain character of the gain structure in that there was this full, edgy bite that I was getting without a lot of gain!!!!

The Ivanberg Modded ORI50 (which I love) puts out more gain - absolutely - but the Mesa had more "body" and complexity to the tone, and even though the Fillmore produced less gain than the Origin, the tone was "bigger" and just sounded like a 4x12, but was only coming from a single 12" speaker.

TBTH, I can't explain it any other way, but it's the first time that a lower gain setting really made me take notice and I've come to realize that maybe I've relied on gain production to get me to somewhere I couldn't get to any other way.

I wish I could explain this better...

Also, a huge selling point is the 50 watt Fillmore Combo is only 44 pounds!!!!!
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Post reactions to anything! There are guys on here using Peavey! :D I kid don't get knickers in a twist.

From trying out various Mesas at home and fiddling, reading manuals, the tone controls come BEFORE the gain so they really shape the sound of the gain.that is way the graphic is nice cause it shapes after. It really makes them work and sound different from every other amp I have ever used.
But I do like.
Get one man. You will love it I bet.
 
Jethro Rocker said:
Post reactions to anything! There are guys on here using Peavey! :D I kid don't get knickers in a twist.

From trying out various Mesas at home and fiddling, reading manuals, the tone controls come BEFORE the gain so they really shape the sound of the gain.that is way the graphic is nice cause it shapes after. It really makes them work and sound different from every other amp I have ever used.
But I do like.
Get one man. You will love it I bet.
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So you'rr saying that whatever model one chooses should be a plus model with graphic EQ?
 
Astral Traveler said:
So you'rr saying that whatever model one chooses should be a plus model with graphic EQ?
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They don't do that "plus" model thing anymore. The only ones that have the GEQ now are the Mark Series.

But Jethro is right, Mesa tone stacks are really different than what most people are used to with Fenders and Marshalls, etc. I've heard people tell me for years that they couldn't get a good sound out of a Mesa but it always seems because they go in and set everything at noon like they would with a Marshall and use that as the basis, and you are going to get mud out of it if you do that. There is a learning curve with the controls but once you learn how to dial them in watch out.
 
gball said:
They don't do that "plus" model thing anymore. The only ones that have the GEQ now are the Mark Series.

But Jethro is right, Mesa tone stacks are really different than what most people are used to with Fenders and Marshalls, etc. I've heard people tell me for years that they couldn't get a good sound out of a Mesa but it always seems because they go in and set everything at noon like they would with a Marshall and use that as the basis, and you are going to get mud out of it if you do that. There is a learning curve with the controls but once you learn how to dial them in watch out.
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What do you recommend????
 
Robert Herndon said:
What do you recommend????
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For me, I start with adjusting the gain and treble with the mid and bass all the way down and the EQ off (talking about my Mark 5 of course) to get the core tone, then pring up the mids to give it body and punch and slowly bring in the bass to fill out the low end. If I am using the EQ then I adjust that for the final tone and only then the presence. The controls are extremely interactive and powerful so tiny movements make relatively huge differences.

It's like anything else though - trial and error and once you get the hang you can dial in whatever you want. The great thing about the Mesas is they have so many personalities in one amp because of it.
 
You guys are killing me.

Got me to thinking, My experiences with Mesa's are when my blind friend would acquire some models, and other friends would mention theirs or ones they wanted.

My blind friend had a 50 Cal and a Dual Rec I think it was.
The other fella had a Mk1 he split into a head and carried the speaker cab as just the speaker. ( Sadly he passed away in the past 10 years of cancer) 2nd guitar player in the and of theirs that died.

Common theme here,,,,,,,,,, the next fella was a fella in his 20's who bought my PRS Santana 2 guitar from me. He wanted a Heartbreaker.
I think of Ray when I think about that PRS. I think Ray and of course DonO might have really dug that one. It was Santana Orange and the most deep 3d tiger striped 10 top of any PRS I ever saw.
 
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gball said:
For me, I start with adjusting the gain and treble with the mid and bass all the way down and the EQ off (talking about my Mark 5 of course) to get the core tone, then pring up the mids to give it body and punch and slowly bring in the bass to fill out the low end. If I am using the EQ then I adjust that for the final tone and only then the presence. The controls are extremely interactive and powerful so tiny movements make relatively huge differences.

It's like anything else though - trial and error and once you get the hang you can dial in whatever you want. The great thing about the Mesas is they have so many personalities in one amp because of it.
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Wow, that's different!@@!
 
syscokid said:
Maybe one of the local Guitar Centers will have different Mesa models in stock... :fingersx:
If you want a good laugh... Click on the Mesa website's "DEALER LOCATIONS" button. Type in California in the "search" box. What do you see? Answer: A bunch of Mesa dealers all over the state. 99% of them are Guitar Centers!
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I played through a British Cream Mesa when I road tested my Les Paul....you can see it in the background in this photo, along with a Friedman I played through also.

The Mesa destroyed the Friedman.

20211117_180419.jpg
 
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Jethro Rocker said:
The tone controls come BEFORE the gain so they really shape the sound of the gain.that is way the graphic is nice cause it shapes after. It really makes them work and sound different from every other amp I have ever used.
But I do like. Get one man. You will love it I bet.
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Really??? I've never heard of such a thing!!!!
 
Robert Herndon said:
I played through a British Cream Mesa when I road tested my Les Paul....you can see it in the background in this photo, along with a Friedman I played through also.

The Mesa destroyed the Friedman.

View attachment 76569
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Yeah, that's a CA Tweed. Very nice amp. Very different from other Mesas, and really different from a Friedman that has that grainy kind of Marshall-esque distortion.
 
Robert Herndon said:
Does this make sense to anybody????
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What you’ve described is similar to what I’ve experienced with my Rivera. I can get a powerful overdrive without excessive distortion. I may be wrong, but in the case of my Rivera, some of that may be due to the 6V6 tubes. They seem to have a more “rounded” tone with more musical character.

Admittedly, the tubes are only part of the story. The rest of the circuitry plays a bigger role than many guitar players realize.
 
smitty_p said:
What you’ve described is similar to what I’ve experienced with my Rivera. I can get a powerful overdrive without excessive distortion. I may be wrong, but in the case of my Rivera, some of that may be due to the 6V6 tubes. They seem to have a more “rounded” tone with more musical character.

Admittedly, the tubes are only part of the story. The rest of the circuitry plays a bigger role than many guitar players realize.
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I play at very high levels and the Mesa is far more controllable at those elevated volume levels.
 
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