Formerly Content 5:25 Owner

[ifailedshapes]

So I got a 5:25 1x10" combo in July and have been loving it since then. Well, I went to my local Mesa dealer today because my footswitch jack has an issue with the connection and ended up playing the following: Road King II head through a Stiletto 4x12", LSS 4x10" combo, Stiletto Ace 1x12" combo, LSC 1x12" combo, and an Express 5:25 1x12" combo. I got stuck on the Lone Star Classic's clean channel for over a half hour....and now I want one. Well, let me take that back. I want a Mark V. I really wanted to play one, but they were troubleshooting the floor model, so I couldn't turn it on.

So, what are your opinions on this? Do you love your Express no matter what the comparison, or did you just settle on a more affordable Mesa? To be honest, I just settled on a more affordable Mesa, but I do like the tones that come out of my 5:25. Just not my absolute favorite!

 

[EtherealWidow]

I actually don't like any other Mesa Boogie amp. Rectos are fizzy. There's just something about the Marks that doesn't really get my attention. If it weren't the Express, it would have been a Bogner Alchemist. Glad I have cheaper taste.

 

[TimeSignature]

IMO the Express series is not "settling" at all. I preferred the sound of the Express over any Boogie to date when I had mine last year.

(I think I may like the ED a little more than the Express series now, but that may because the ED is still very new to me.)

 

[EtherealWidow]

I should also add that a speaker can mean all the difference in the world. The combos have no balls. V30 closed back cabs are muddy to me. Mesa's Thiele's are too dark and fuzzy. This Boogafunk with the C12K is just incredible. I should try a Mark V thru it. Or... maybe I shouldn't. :/

 

[richpjr]

I was originally going to get the 5:25 1x10, but then I played the 5:50 1x12 and fell in love with it. I'm not sure how much of it is the tubes and how much is the bigger cabinet, but it definitely sounded much better to my ears. I also played the LSC and while I liked the clean on it better than the 5:50, I just thought the Express was much more versatile. But amps, like guitars, pedals, and all gear, are so subjective that what sounds great to one won't sound great to another.

 

[boswell]

The 5:25 1x10 does have a "small" "boxy" sound to it I played it side by side with the 5:50 when I bought my 5:50, had the 5:25 1x12 been available I may have bought that instead?

 

[Don]

The 5:25 1x10 does have a "small" "boxy" sound to it I played it side by side with the 5:50 when I bought my 5:50, had the 5:25 1x12 been available I may have bought that instead?

I agree with this. I tried the 5:25 1X10, 5:50 1X12 and Lonestar Special 1x12 and thought the 5:25 sounded small and boxy. The LS was nice but the 5:50 was just what I was looking for. I didn't settle.

I would love to have tried a 5:25 1x12 but it wasn't available at the time. I still have yet to see one in person!

 

[Uncle Rocker]

I owned a 5:25 for just 2 days before bringing it back and getting the 5:50. I really liked the sound of the 5:25 but as I told the salesman it was like having 4 very good flavors of chocolate ice cream. The 5:50 has more head room and better cleans.

 

[EtherealWidow]

I owned a 5:25 for just 2 days before bringing it back and getting the 5:50. I really liked the sound of the 5:25 but as I told the salesman it was like having 4 very good flavors of chocolate ice cream. The 5:50 has more head room and better cleans.

As long as all the ice cream has peanut butter cups in it, I fail to see where the problem is. But maybe I'm missing the point entirely.

 

[soundchaser59]

I owned a 5:25 for just 2 days before bringing it back and getting the 5:50. I really liked the sound of the 5:25 but as I told the salesman it was like having 4 very good flavors of chocolate ice cream. The 5:50 has more head room and better cleans.

As long as they are all chocolate, what'sa matter? chocolate, dark chocolate, darker chocolate, bittersweet chocolate.....heaven!

Even though I would prefer a 12 inch speaker, I am not unhappy with my 5.25, but if I were there on the sales floor knowing what I know now, I also would go for the 5.50 instead. Wait til you put a Celestion Alnico Gold in it! 8)

 

[Uncle Rocker]

As long as they are all chocolate, what'sa matter? chocolate, dark chocolate, darker chocolate, bittersweet chocolate.....heaven!

I feel a little silly comparing my Mesa Express to ice cream but figuratively speaking, I loved the "4 flavors of Chocolate" I got from the 5:25 but I went with the 5:50 because it gives you "vanilla, strawberry, as well as light and dark chocolate". OK, now I'm starting to get an ice cream head ache.
In a nut shell, I prefer the 5:50 over the 5:25 because I has a wider variety of tone. I may have prefered some of the tones from EL84's over the 6L6's but you just can't beat the 6L6's for clean head room and they can get you close w/ the over drive tones.

 

[gezza]

Hey Guys,

I had the chance to play 5 amps in an auditorium.

5:25 1 x 10" and 5:50, Hughes and Kettner Dual EL84, Switchblade, Fender Supersonic. I just kept going back to the 5:25. My second favorite was the H&K Dual EL84, but the boost was preset.

All amps have strengths and weakness, you have to work on the amp to find the sweet spots.

I love the Clean and I love the Burn channel, I have added some pedals, I get 3 of the best tones possible.

I also added a 1 x 12" Boogafunk Speaker Cab, now it's the perfect rig, small, loud and awesome.

Just a Note, I sold my Marshall JVM410C 100watt, But it was just too big and too loud for most of my gigs, but 4 channel amp, each with 3 modes, all midi switchable. I found I only used 3 sounds live.

I have not missed the Marshall one bit, the 5:25 filled the spot. I have better cleans and sustain is awesome.

Still happy almost one year, now.

P.S also tried the MK4, sounded very boxy and way to many switches, clean sounded ave to me, 2 channel sounded very boxy, 3rd channel sound muddy.

Gezza

 

[ifailedshapes]

P.S also tried the MK4, sounded very boxy and way to many switches, clean sounded ave to me, 2 channel sounded very boxy, 3rd channel sound muddy.

Gezza

My dad has a Mark IV that I setup for him because he's not the most patient person in the world. Truth be told, I've played that amp WAY more than he has. I love that sucker. The cleans are very thin and sterile, and I'm not a huge fan of the shared controls between Rhy1 and Rhy2. Also, the onboard reverb isn't the greatest, and you only have one reverb control for all 3 channels. Those gripes aside, you can get REALLY REALLY good tones out of that amp; however, for every good tone hidden amongst the controls, there are hundreds of bad ones more easily stumbled on. There is a reason why that amp was in production for almost 20 years, and there's also a reason so many people hate them. They sound amazing, but it takes a few months to really learn how to use it! It's not a plug-and-play amp. It has to be set to your own guitar, the sound you're trying to get out of it, and there has to be a little compromise between Rhy1 and Rhy2 (at least in my experience, I was never able to get both channels exactly how I wanted them!)

Wow, I just typed a lot. Long story short, if all you did was plug in and start playing, then you didn't really give it a fair chance.

I do love my 5:25. In its own rite, it's an amazing instrument, and I don't think I'll ever get rid of it. It's so light and portable, and that 10" speaker has its own unique vibe. I want to upgrade the stock speaker to a 10" Celestion Gold, but with our first baby due in March, that probably won't happen for a while.

From my love for the Mark IV, and the fact that the Mark V fixed every "problem" I have with the Mark IV, I know a Mark V is in my future. That's basically what started this whole thread. I love my 5:25, but I'm not content anymore with it being my only amp anymore.

 

[Newysurfer]

I want a Mark V. I really wanted to play one, but they were troubleshooting the floor model, so I couldn't turn it on.

So, what are your opinions on this? Do you love your Express no matter what the comparison, or did you just settle on a more affordable Mesa? To be honest, I just settled on a more affordable Mesa, but I do like the tones that come out of my 5:25. Just not my absolute favorite!

I luv my 5:50 ... at A$2700 in Aust that's as much as I could afford 2 years ago - and I got it real cheap - RRP price here is $A3300. It's an excellent versatile amp but I'd prefer a Mark V head for sure.

But it ain't gonna happen anytime soon cause they cost over $A5000 here.
There'll never be a used market for em here either.
So will just have to be content with my 5:50 in the interim .... won't be so hard :mrgreen:

 

[gezza]

Hey Guys,

I forgot to mention I had a MK3 Combo 1 x 12 , with a 1 x 12" Extension cab for 10 years, I really love that amp.

But shared EQ. Very temperamental.

I find with a lot of amps, the sweet spot needs to have he amp running at a decent volume.

That's why I like the 5:25 so much, I can push it a bit louder and get the tubes hot.

Most 100watt and 60watt amps, they're not even at idle.

So I do have experience in a lot of different amps.

I wanted a 2 channel amp, that had 2 separate EQ, that had a lot of versatility.

We all have different needs, so If you like the Mk4 that cool. Again for me it's too loud and way to heavy. But for you it might be just right.

I did a lot of tweaking with the Express 5:25, at first I though there is something wrong with the burn channel, as I have the Bass at 2/10. But to me that is where it sounds the best.

Now it sounds truly awesome.

Just my thoughts.

Gezza.

 

[snakestretcher]

So I got a 5:25 1x10" combo in July and have been loving it since then. Well, I went to my local Mesa dealer today because my footswitch jack has an issue with the connection and ended up playing the following: Road King II head through a Stiletto 4x12", LSS 4x10" combo, Stiletto Ace 1x12" combo, LSC 1x12" combo, and an Express 5:25 1x12" combo. I got stuck on the Lone Star Classic's clean channel for over a half hour....and now I want one. Well, let me take that back. I want a Mark V. I really wanted to play one, but they were troubleshooting the floor model, so I couldn't turn it on.

So, what are your opinions on this? Do you love your Express no matter what the comparison, or did you just settle on a more affordable Mesa? To be honest, I just settled on a more affordable Mesa, but I do like the tones that come out of my 5:25. Just not my absolute favorite!

I've owned a few Mesas from a MkIV to a Lonestar Special and F50 and, apart from the Lonestar which I wasn't too keen on, I felt that I could never drive them hard enough to make use of their huge tonal potential. The lower power of my 5.25 1 x 12 provides plenty of power for my gigging needs plus I can drive the power stage harder and get fatter tones with less emphasis on pre-amp gain.
Being less expensive didn't hurt a bit!

 

[edward]

I love my 5:25 10" combo. While there was a time that I would have preferred the 12" for the obvious tonal reasons, I do not by any stretch feel the 10" combo lacks anything in the tone department. If I need more bottom, bring a cab (my EVM-Thiele is an amazing compliment!) ...or just leave that bottom end to the bassist

But one point that many ignore, fail to see, or just flat-out don't want tp recognize (same as me until I lived with my 110 for a while) is that the 10" brings something to the table that a 12" cab cannot. Coupled with the natural mids and mid-high bump of the EL84s, that 10" speaker really has a lovely voice all its own that if you live with for a while, really grows on you. These are my confessions as I, too, wanted a 12" cab. Then felt like I wanted a "better" 10" to give me what I was "missing." Then eventually realized how cool this 10" really sounds in its own right. Remember that a speaker is not just a sound "reinforcer" as much as it is an integral component in "tone making." So like the 10 or prefer the 12 ...up to you. But I have now come to find that the 10 is the better speaker to have for its unique voicing, and also the fact that if I want a 12" "authority," that is easily obtained with a simple plug-in cab.

Edward