5:50 Pharty Bass

[bazooka47]

Hello Forum. New guy here.

I am now about a month (and 5-6 four hour shows) into my new Express 5:50. For the most part, LOVE the amp, but one aspect I do not like is the tendency for the lower E string notes to flub out when the amp is being pushed. I don't use a lot of gain (set the dial between 9 - 11 o'clock), and keep the master below noon, but this seems to happen on both channels.

Anyone else have this going on? I am running factory tubes and speakers and would like to keep it that way if possible.

 

[soundchaser59]

I am running factory......speakers and would like to keep it that way if possible.

Then get used to pharty bass......the factory speakers are the only thing about the Express amps that do not impress me. 12 inch speakers should not have pharty bass, unless maybe you are cranking the bass tone knob full or something, I dont know. But the factory speakers are not the best.

 

[GD_NC]

Three letter solution: EVM

Tight as hell, never farty!

EDIT: But may not be a great idea for a 2x12 unless you look like a pro football player.

 

[ryjan]

Welcome to the pharty party! Without changing hardware I'd say play with the eq a bit. Maybe an extension cab when you play at higher volumes would help. Good luck, *******! :lol:

 

[bobby wasabi]

Where do you have the bass eq set at? On my 5:25, I have the bass way down (between 8/9 o'clock) on the Burn channel to tighten it up and lose the fart, so to speak.

 

[MrMason]

Yeah, with the stock speaker(s)/cabinet you will need to turn the bass way down. Tinker with it, you'll find the sound you're looking for eventually.

 

[soundchaser59]

Ya know, even a guitar has a few lower harmonics. You'd be surprised how you can clean that up using a good EQ pedal, without losing your low end punch. I rolloff below 80 or 60 hz, and a lot of the unwanted rumble goes away. But it is still an interplay with the speaker you choose.....and even the pickups add their own unqie frequency signature. I got rid of a lot of low end mud in my Ibanez just by putting vintage DiMarzios on it.

 

[bazooka47]

Thanks for the info (and humor). I am re-thinking my plan to keep the speaker stock.

Any particular model EVM?

 

[soundchaser59]

SRO (good luck finding one!)

EVM12L

Force 10

Weber Michigan is similar, but not as efficient.

 

[GBP]

Ditch the C90. I almost sold my 5/50 because of this speaker. I can't figure out for the life of me why Mesa uses them.
They should at least use V30's. There is this lo mid/bassy farty thing that just cant be dialed out of the C90's.
I dropped in a pair of Cannabis Rex's and the amp immediately sounded 10x's better.No exaggeration!!! Literally 10x's.The lows became massive,perfectly rounded, and tight as a nun.The mids became woody and subdued ( all Mesas could use that being mid hyped in nature), and I can't say enough about the improvement in the highs.Smooth and articulate with no ice pick no matter how much you turn the treble up. I find these speakers to be a magic bullet for amp frequency related issues. They are perfectly EQ'ed with just the right amount of subtle emphasis in essential guitar frequencies. And hemp cones do that smooth thing like no other non-hemp cone could ever hope to do. Plus they are almost indestructible no matter how bad you punish them.

So drop a pair of those bad boys in and you will fall in love with your amp.
The clean channel on mine sounds markedly better than my buddies Lonestar. That's saying something.

Also, I've extensively experimented with preamp tubes with this amp. Everything from JAN NOS 12AY7's to RCA blackplate 5751's and I have found that the stock Boogie tubes really do a good voicing job as long as you change your gain stage 1 tube (V2) to a more strident and articulate sounding 12AX7 like a Tung Sol reissue or believe it or not a Mullard reissue 12AX7. I actually like the Mullard the best out of the two. The Tung Sol can be a little bassy and this amp doesnt need any help there.Especially with the speaker swap.

Do those two things and I promise you that you will fall in love with your amp.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[EtherealWidow]

tight as a nun.

Awesome...