does any one else have any problems with the mesa roadster

[jakezillaz]

i have had so many issues with this amp. dont get me wrong i LOVE the sound of this amp but i have just had soo many problems with volume and **** just not working. i first bought one a couple of years ago and i fell in love with the sound. but i started having a problem with the volume swelling every time i switched chanels. it would work fine if the reverb was on but if it was off any channel that i would switch to the volume would swell from real quite to normal volume. i took it in to the store i had purchased it from and they couldnt find anything wrong with it. they ended up sending it back to mesa to look at it. well i get it back and ****** sparks shoot out of it. and nothing happens. after that i was pretty pissed. the store talked with mesa and sent me a brand spankin new roadster so i would hopefully never have any problem again. well i havent had any problems with this amp. ive played quite a few shows the past couple of months and its worked beautifuly. we even had a show last friday and it worked fine. ive been so gentle with it just so i wouldnt **** nething up. well yesterday at practice i turn it on. ive got barely any sound. turn up the volume all the way and it sounds like my ****** practice amp. on all 4 channels. its like i have no gain at all. does any one else have this problem or know what it may be?

 

[pokerrules47]

Definitely sounds like tube our output transformer issues to me. I'd call mesa direct this time. I don't think the music store is putting enough pressure on mesa for this case.

I have an 07 roadster and the only issue I've noticed is popping on channel 3 when I switch to it. I am going to call them on it, but I doubt they'll have a fix.

 

[Bobby_E]

You can't do anything about the "popping" it's the nature of the head. It's in the manual too warning you of that happening. All you have to do, is while on standby, cycle through your channels and let it warm up a bit and the "popping" will go away.

As for the original post, that sounds like you have some bad luck because I've had none of those problems with mine.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

Chances are one of your preamp tubes went...swap it out, and you should have all your volume back.

I haven't had a single problem with my '08 Roadster....it just roars and roars gig after gig :twisted:

 

[daveg62]

Might be a tube. I know I've had lots of bad luck with mesa tubes in my Mark III, but that's to be expected. It's hit or miss with tubes, no matter what brand they can go at any time. Give them a call, I'm sure they will help you troubleshoot. Good luck.

 

[domct203]

Check your preamp tubes, especially V3 & V5.

SOUND “DROP-OUTS” / INTERMITTENT SIGNAL

One Possible Cause



Most (but not all) Mesa/Boogie amplifiers have one or two “cathode follower” tube
stages in their preamps. Tube selection is CRITICAL in these stages.



Specifically, in a 12AX7 tube used as a “cathode follower”, the voltage difference
between that present at the cathode, as compared with the heater voltage, can be
withstood or tolerated by certain types of tubes, whereas other tubes will fail. The
failure of a “cathode follower“ tube will cause sound dropouts or signal loss.



For the past few years, Mesa has been using two types of 12AX7 tubes: ones
originating in Russia (Sovtek EH), and ones originating in China. The Russian (Sovtek)
tube is NOT reliable as a cathode follower. Of the tubes we are using today (March
2008), ONLY THE CHINESE 12AX7 IS RELIABLE AS A CATHODE FOLLOWER.



In conclusion, if you are troubleshooting for signal dropout in a Mesa/Boogie amp,
suspect a cathode follower tube, and try replacing it with a Mesa 12AX7 that is marked
as “CHINESE” (silk-screened on the tube itself).



Below is a partial list of Mesa amps and cathode follower tube locations:

GUITAR AMPS BASS AMPS

Lone Star & LS Special: V3
M-Pulse: V2
Stiletto: V3 & V4
Venture: V2
Road King I: V3 & V4
Big Block 750: V4
Road King II: V3 & V5
Titan: V4
Roadster: V3 & V5
M2000: V2
Dual & Triple (2ch or 3ch): V3 & V4
Bass 400+: V2
Tremoverb: V3 & V4

ANOTHER POSSIBLE SCENARIO may occur in the “SPONGY” (or on some models,
“TWEED”) power setting: the reduced filament voltage may cause very low output from
a RUSSIAN preamp tube. Again, the recommended fix is to replace the “sagging” tube
with the CHINESE type of Mesa 12AX7 - which are more immune to this type of failure.

Dom