hbpatter83 Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 Some of you may remember my recent post about buying new tubes for my Fender Blues Dx. Thanks to some of your suggestions I got new tubes and with a little mod with a different tube I got a pretty pleasing sound. I've alway's thought that amp really never came alive until cranked and of course that's very loud!! So I started shopping a couple of weeks ago for something in between my small cheap little VOX practice amp and the Fender BD. I tried the BJ which many of you thought was pretty bright and I'd have to agree.. too bright for me. I guess I prefer a little darker sound. I tried a Peavey classic 30 and it made a funny rattling noise in the speaker.. I couldn't get over that so I left that one alone. I tried a few others in that size but can't remember now (CRS disease) I then found they had a Mesa F-30, used, for about the same price as the BJ. I ended up buying the Mesa mainly because of the adjustability... a very wide range. It's definately not bright. This is my first venture into Mesa so maybe you all have some experience with their flavor of sound. I know I just like it. It can sound very warm. It also has a nice sound that I can't describe but it may be described as "glassy"...if that makes any sense. One thing I like is that it sounds really nice at low volume..unlike my Blues Dx. Also, the controls are very responsive..just slight movement and the sound can really change.. I suppose this can be a blessing and a curse. A curse because I may not remember some good settings. I've just started playing with it so there's plenty to learn but first use is quite nice. The jazz chords sound really full and articulate (this is compared to the stuff I own so we'll keep it in that context). The single bluesey leads sound very nice as well. So why am I telling you all this... Because my wife just doesn't get it. She say's it sounds nice but she doesn't have my level of enthusiasm.. You all might! Anyway... I'd appreciate any tips or experience you may have with this amp or any other mesa amp. Thanks HP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichCI Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 I then found they had a Mesa F-30' date=' used, for about the same price as the BJ. I ended up buying the Mesa mainly because of the adjustability... a very wide range. It's definately not bright. This is my first venture into Mesa so maybe you all have some experience with their flavor of sound. So why am I telling you all this... Because my wife just doesn't get it. She say's it sounds nice but she doesn't have my level of enthusiasm.. You all might! Anyway... I'd appreciate any tips or experience you may have with this amp or any other mesa amp.[/quote'] I've never tried out the F-30 but own a Stiletto Deuce and have some experience with Mark IV's. My only advice is to spend a good amount of time with it experimenting. Mesa amps tend to be pretty tweaky with lots of options (Mark IV is just nuts) that are more often than not worth exploring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 I keep post it notes or a note pad handy when I am playing with my tones.... that way I can note the settings and get them back later. Sorry, never played a Mesa amp, can't help much there . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbpatter83 Posted October 21, 2008 Author Share Posted October 21, 2008 I've never tried out the F-30 but own a Stiletto Deuce and have some experience with Mark IV's. My only advice is to spend a good amount of time with it experimenting. Mesa amps tend to be pretty tweaky with lots of options (Mark IV is just nuts) that are more often than not worth exploring. Thanks Rich... I'll definately take your advice and experiment. I like to tinker and tweak so that's not a problem. Fortunately the users manual is very good and details each knob in how it functions and the effect it has on the other knob settings and he gives a range of "sweet spot" for a given knob. The manual also has a very good write up of why the amps have non adjustable bias. It's a PDF...maybe I'll post it someday. HP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbpatter83 Posted October 21, 2008 Author Share Posted October 21, 2008 I keep post it notes or a note pad handy when I am playing with my tones.... that way I can note the settings and get them back later. Sorry' date=' never played a Mesa amp, can't help much there :D.[/quote'] Thanks ChanMan.. The nice users manual has a page of copies of the knob layout where you can make notes on each and draw where you like the knob's for a particular setup. Kinda handy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 Thanks ChanMan.. The nice users manual has a page of copies of the knob layout where you can make notes on each and draw where you like the knob's for a particular setup. Kinda handy Yes sir. I have a small photo album I keep all my user guides in. When I have dialed in a "Keeper", it gets a spot in the user guide. Until I run out of user guide LOL! GL :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtle Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 I played through a white mesa boogie studio 22 amp in the studio and it sounded great. i dont know where to find one (probably ebay), but worth checking out. it had a white cover instead of black but that could have been an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichCI Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 It's an option. You can custom order Mesas in lots of different covers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 I've been gigging a Blue Angel 1;12 combo for a few years now. Love it. Just retubed power and rectifier a few days ago, 8 years on originals. Mesa builds a very good amp, I just wish they built some with a non master channel. They will build an amp with 4 channels and a million tube options, red, blue orange, tweed, ect., ect, but nothing with a non master channel. But I still like em'. A lot. Murph. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hbpatter83 Posted October 21, 2008 Author Share Posted October 21, 2008 I've been gigging a Blue Angel 1;12 combo for a few years now. Love it. Just retubed power and rectifier a few days ago' date=' 8 years on originals. Mesa builds a very good amp, I just wish they built some with a non master channel. They will build an amp with 4 channels and a million tube options, red, blue orange, tweed, ect., ect, but nothing with a non master channel. But I still like em'. A lot. Murph.[/quote'] I've heard a lot of great things about the Blue Angel.. I'll have to try one someday. Enjoy! HP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_HEWC Posted October 22, 2008 Share Posted October 22, 2008 I also have a Studio .22 +, I bought it used and its been my number one for ten years. Love the versatility of the Studio, the clean sounds are excellent and it covers a lot of ground in diffrent sounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichCI Posted October 22, 2008 Share Posted October 22, 2008 Mesa builds a very good amp' date=' I just wish they built some with a non master channel.[/quote']I think master volume is sort of their hallmark; they started out with Randall Smith hotrodding Fender amps with a master volume before he started building his own amps. My best suggestions are, if you want a nonmaster volume amp, keep the master all the way up on your Mesa and use the gain control to set the volume or check out some Fender amps. I'd go with sticking with your Mesa since you're happy with it; one aspect of master volume amps that a lot of guys don't seem to consider since master volume is usually associated with distortion is that you can use a lighter setting with it to get some mild compression in the preamp while still maintaining an overall clean tone or to get just a touch of hair on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.