OrdinaryNimda Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 (edited) Well, this came as a surprise. Personally, I welcome it. Gibson was missing this segment in its ecosystem. And building an amp factory from zero, is very expensive & time consuming. Mesa/Boogie, we have just one petition: please remain an extremely high-quality custom amp shop. Yeah! 😎 Here goes:Gibson Announces Acquisition of Mesa/Boogie Edited January 6, 2021 by OrdinaryNimda 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twang Gang Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 I just saw the announcement this morning on this and I hope it works out for both of them. I always thought Mesa Boogie amps had great tones (think Santana) but in the 80s they weren't all that reliable. I had one acquaintance in particular who gigged one and it seemed half the time his amp would crap out part way through the show. I think they've improved on that since those days, but I was always scared to buy one and try to gig it because of that experience. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 I had a Mesa TA-15 Head. Killer stuff. I used to be stationed in the town that makes Mesa Boogie Amps, Petaluma, California. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NighthawkChris Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 Fan of both brands so hope all goes well. My Fillmore 50 combo makes my R9 sound great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I just got 2 emails today on Mesa / Boogie. I listened to a couple of different guys playing the amps. One I liked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brad1 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Well, I recently purchased the Mini Rectifier. And I can say it is the best amp I have ever owned. I am enjoying playing through it so much. However, now that it's Gibson branded, they will probably go up higher in price than they already are. So I have mixed feelings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 27 minutes ago, brad1 said: Well, I recently purchased the Mini Rectifier. And I can say it is the best amp I have ever owned. I am enjoying playing through it so much. However, now that it's Gibson branded, they will probably go up higher in price than they already are. So I have mixed feelings. And dont forget ICONIC.... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Why? Just recovering from Bankrupcy & we're still waiting for Guitars like the USA Casino that were introduced more than a year ago? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 6 hours ago, Larsongs said: Why? Just recovering from Bankrupcy & we're still waiting for Guitars like the USA Casino that were introduced more than a year ago? 9 hours ago, brad1 said: Well, I recently purchased the Mini Rectifier. And I can say it is the best amp I have ever owned. I am enjoying playing through it so much. However, now that it's Gibson branded, they will probably go up higher in price than they already are. So I have mixed feelings. Mesa's were never inexpensive to begin with. And I guess they did it cause they can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brad1 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 hour ago, Sgt. Pepper said: Mesa's were never inexpensive to begin with Never said they were; nor implied it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Look for a few more major purchases like this one. The bondholders now own infrastructure and agreements throughout the music industry. They can turn their failed investment into future money, whenever and however they unload Gibson. rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 39 minutes ago, brad1 said: Never said they were; nor implied it. Thanks for clearing that up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 6 hours ago, rct said: Look for a few more major purchases like this one. The bondholders now own infrastructure and agreements throughout the music industry. They can turn their failed investment into future money, whenever and however they unload Gibson. rct They would flip such an ICONIC brand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 lolz No, not flip. They were(are) bondholders, probably never wanted the business to begin with, just their money. rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 PHEW! As long as the guys in the fake motorcycle jackets and Converse fruit boots hang around we're good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zigzag Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 (edited) Sounds to me like Randy Smith, founder, owner, and designer of Mesa amps, wanted to stay more focused on designing amps with less focus on management, in addition to insuring the security of his workers: “I’m 75 years-old and still at work every day. This is my art and many of our crew have worked along my side for 30 to 40 years. As we witnessed JC and Cesar transform Gibson, we saw kindred spirits sharing common values and a fierce dedication to quality... Today, Gibson’s guitars are the best-ever and when they asked if we’d like to become Gibson’s Custom Shop for Amplifiers, we envisioned a perfect collaboration that would expand our outreach while preserving our legacy beyond my time... Gibson realizes the unique value of what we’ve all built together and this next chapter in the Mesa/Boogie story is a continuation of that dream. I am so fortunate for this partnership with the new Gibson after 50 years of doing what I love. It’s been the ride of my life… and it ain’t over yet!” Edited January 8, 2021 by zigzag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 The best thing about Mesa Boogie amps is that I won't work on them. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 Why is that? Difficult or unreliable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 On 1/8/2021 at 9:46 AM, SteveFord said: Why is that? Difficult or unreliable? They are built sturdily. I can't really say how reliable they are, overall. Every one I worked on was broken, lol. Complicated, like three boards stacked, so you have to remove two to get to the third. Can't access all the amp components for diagnosis without partial disassembly. Bad to non-existent factory support. I've never had real schematics. Switching relays underneath stuff so you can't diagnose them easily. Just a real hassle to work on. Lots of techs won't work on them. I worked on my last one in Sept/Oct. Noisy thing with inadequate power filtering and more AC on the B+ that any modern amp I've ever measured ( I know how that bothers people). I swear I'll never touch one again. 😬 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, badbluesplayer said: They are built sturdily. I can't really say how reliable they are, overall. Every one I worked on was broken, lol. Complicated, like three boards stacked, so you have to remove two to get to the third. Can't access all the amp components for diagnosis without partial disassembly. Bad to non-existent factory support. I've never had real schematics. Switching relays underneath stuff so you can't diagnose them easily. Just a real hassle to work on. Lots of techs won't work on them. I worked on my last one in Sept/Oct. Noisy thing with inadequate power filtering and more AC on the B+ that any modern amp I've ever measured ( I know how that bothers people). I swear I'll never touch one again. 😬 It's pretty well known around Musician circles. For this reason I think Gibson didn't do their due diligence.. Hopefully, they're not going down that road again..... My Vox AC10 is a simple Amp with 4 Tubes, my AC15CC1X has 5 Tubes & is also simple in design by comparison... Both are trouble free & sound amazingly good.. Their design is simple enough that even a neophyte like me can mod & work on them... Why Mesa's need 10 Tubes, 3 Layers of stuff & endless Knobs is way Overkill..... They don't sound any better. Edited January 9, 2021 by Larsongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted January 10, 2021 Share Posted January 10, 2021 Replacing a socketed tube and clipping a cap leg is easy enough for anyone. If something actually goes wrong with your AC15 you either will not be able to fix it or you incorrectly described yourself as a neophyte. A tweed fender is a design that’s easy to work on. A Chinese PCB based amp with half solid state circuitry is not. The AC15CC1X is a much more serviceable design than the AC30CC1 though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted January 10, 2021 Share Posted January 10, 2021 24 minutes ago, Dub-T-123 said: Replacing a socketed tube and clipping a cap leg is easy enough for anyone. If something actually goes wrong with your AC15 you either will not be able to fix it or you incorrectly described yourself as a neophyte. A tweed fender is a design that’s easy to work on. A Chinese PCB based amp with half solid state circuitry is not. The AC15CC1X is a much more serviceable design than the AC30CC1 though Luckily I don't have a need for an AC30.. I seldom play out with my Twin.. Most of the time I play a DRRI or a Vox AC15.. Sometimes I use a PRRI or a modded Vox AC10.. I've not had any trouble with any of them & use them regularly. Other than an occasional Tube.. Once I had to replace a Reverb Tank in my Twin. I've swapped put Speakers too... Anything beyond that I take to my Amp Tech.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted January 10, 2021 Share Posted January 10, 2021 They did improve the reliability of the AC15 quite a bit by changing it to something that is no longer an AC15 lol I think they’re great sounding amps but my comment was only concerning the serviceability. It’s a walk in the park compared to a big Mesa but not in any way something that I would reference as an easily serviceable design Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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