Help me choose an amp..!!

[Mr.P]

whew.. this is my first post..
i've been playing guitar for 2 years.. and im kinda tired of using Line6 thing.. im going to buy a new "real" amp next month.. and i guess it will be a mesa.. mark series and roadkings are out of my budget though..

i mainly play yngwie, helloween, TOTO, and some heavier music.. with my band.. so.. basically all i need is great chugga-chugga rhytm tone.. and wet "marshall-esque" lead tone...

the question is: which mesa should i buy? it must be a head, and not too **** loud so i could reach the spot where tube-amps-starts-to-shine at home for daily practicing.. I'll use attenuator if it's necessary..


thanks,

 

[BENNY]

Chugga-chugga eh, well you are in the right place for that. for your marshall-esque lead tones i would say you need the Stilleto. i don't have one, but played many, and they are sweet. tube rect. tracking on and spongy is the tone Randy was trying to achieve. that would be my suggestion. start there. there are alot of clips here you can check out.

 

[shnapper]

Most of..........Well no all of the Amp's in Mesa's line are expensive. If you really want a Mesa save up for it and buy the one you want. I've made the mistake of buying other stuff only to lose money on it because I didn't like it and sold it off for less.

Go play the a stilleto/Roadster/lonestar/DR & TR at your local shop. Once you decide buy it or put it on layaway and pay on it you'll be happy you did..

 

[siggy14]

one of the Mark III's, i think the blue stripe, but dont mark my words, is suppose to sound alot like a hot rodded marshall.

 

[CudBucket]

Any tube head will probably require a good deal of volume to hit it's sweet spot. There really isn't any "bedroom" tube heads. That said, the best in that regard, that I've owned is without a doubt, the Peavey JSX. How that amp sounds so good at such low volumes is beyond me.

More importantly, it seems you're starting out on the wrong foot. I say that because you state, "I want to buy a real amp so I guess it's going to be a Mesa". Yet, it doesn't seem you've tried one yet. So if that's the case, how do you know you want a Mesa? If it's because you've heard CD's of bands that use them, keep in mind that you're not going to get that tone in your room with just the amp.

Go to a music store and play as many amps as you can with your own guitar and then just buy what really sounds best to you.

 

[Ravensha]

I've made the mistake of buying other stuff only to lose money on it because I didn't like it and sold it off for less.

True dat!
Rather than waste tons of cash cycling through inferior gear ... just save and get the real thing. If that means you have to suffer through the Line6 for a little longer - you will thank yourself in the long run.

Mesa is definitely worth it.

 

[tele_jas]

Wow, well it all depends on what else you need/want?? The Rectifier line doesn’t have a real “Tight” low end and can get kind of mushy (in a good way) sounding when chunkin’ on the low E string. Mesa Rectifiers are definitely the voice of “modern” rock and “Nu-Metal” (I hate that word), but like I said they don’t have a real tight low end.

If you don’t need a great clean tone, I’d try a Single or Dual recto (triple is overkill IMO), don’t forget about the Rectoverb or Tremoverb either. The Dual has 3 channels and a few more options over the single recto. If you need a good clean tone along with that distortion, try a Roadster or Road King (series 2 has better cleans, but the series 1 ain’t too bad either). If you want more of a Marshall tone, check out the Stiletto series. The Ace is the most recent, and has the most gain of that series. If you push a Stiletto with a decent pedal like a Tubescreamer, you can get some pretty heavy tones.

Going back a little, the Road King is a great amp!! You can use one or the other or both; 6L6 tubes and/or EL34 tubes (for a more Marshall - higher mid bite).

It sounds to me that what you may be looking for is a Single or Dual recto with EL34’s?? Not to steer you away from Boogie's, but the Peavey XXX and JSX are more Marshall voiced and have tons more gain than a Marshall does too.

Best advice is to find a shop that has several different models for you to try out and let your ears be the deciding factor.

I have a few clips of the Road King at www.guitartest.moonfruit.com if you want to give them a listen.

That’s my $.02 worth.

One more thing, if you're coming from a Line 6 amp that has an insane amount of gain on tap to a tube amp, you may be in for a bit of a learning curve and some time getting your ears used to the tubes. There is a difference, especially when your the one playing it. And in my 20+ years of using tube amps, most of them sound better at louder volumes.... Not really "ear bleed" volume, but gig level volume.

 

[eliot323]

Definitely audition the Stiletto Ace - it has a ton of great sounds - check out the threads and sound clips - it is winning a lot of fans here on the Board.

Although no valve amp can really be considered a bedroom amp, I practice at home and can the Ace feeding back with beautiful distortion at wife and cat-friendly levels without the need for OD/distortion pedals or an attenuator. I could never do this with the single rectifier I once owned.

 

[Mr.P]

thanks for replying..!!

ok.. the first problem here is.. i live in such a small town that the music store doesn't have tube amps in stock.. so i don't have any chance to try tube amps by myself..
but i've played some marshall JCM800/900 on gigs..a Peavey 5150 which is very noisy and sounded like crap.. Laney GH100L.. sounded quite decent for the bucks but got some build quality issues..

forget about the RK.. it costs 4000$ in my country.. :shock:

about rectos.. some of the clips on this forum sounded amazing.. but some other sounded really "stupid".. especially for lead tones..

stiletto ace sounds very promising..

or should i save my money for a mark IV head?


btw.. i use Line6 stuff.. but i'm not one of those gain obsessed maniacs Line6 created.. lol.. i hate all those Line6 factory presets.. sounds really stupid..

 

[JOEY B.]

I would like to chime in on the tube vs. solid state theme. If you want the same tone at all volume levels, get a solid state amp. The tube amp, regardless of make, will react to the input and volume levels, wheather you like the results or not. Set the tube amp up to your liking (the best you can) at your favorite volume level (mine is usually jacked up). There will be a give and take situation from this point. Maybe you can find the sweet spot. Good luck.

 

[Mr.P]

I would like to chime in on the tube vs. solid state theme. If you want the same tone at all volume levels, get a solid state amp. The tube amp, regardless of make, will react to the input and volume levels, wheather you like the results or not. Set the tube amp up to your liking (the best you can) at your favorite volume level (mine is usually jacked up). There will be a give and take situation from this point. Maybe you can find the sweet spot. Good luck.

thanks for replying..!!
I'll go with the tube amps.. that's why I'm on this forum.. haha..


btw..
I've tried a mesa markIV combo yesterday.. can't find enough crunch!!! :x
I think I'll go with the stilettos..

 

[Nork]

First reply to a thread - howdy!

I just recently did the very same thing you were doing - went from solid state to tube. I went for it - Stiletto Deuce. I love it...versatile (and I've only just begun) and it gives you that wet sound as well as the nice chug...

that's my vote!

 

[Mr.P]

First reply to a thread - howdy!

I just recently did the very same thing you were doing - went from solid state to tube. I went for it - Stiletto Deuce Series 1. I love it...versatile (and I've only just begun) and it gives you that wet sound as well as the nice chug...

that's my vote!

cool..!!

 

[JOEY B.]

Not enough crunch from a Mark IV???? Those amps are very tricky to dial in. The users manual is a must have. Maybe the stiletto series will get you what you need. The thing that I love about tube amps is their ability to "clean up" with a little reduction of the guitar's volume knob. The R2 channel of the Mk IV will go from clean to a fairly dirty rhythm sound with this approach.

 

[fbomb]

stage ll stiletto

 

[newtomesa]

I'd put some consideration into a Mesa Mark III, it's one of the more cost effective amps as well. Not sure what your budget is, but you can land one for ~$700 these days. You can dial in a super tight chug tone and it can also conversely open up very wide.

 

[Mr.P]

thanks for the replies..


i live in asia.. so it will be quite impossible for me to find mark IIIs...

@ JOEY B. :
yeah.. i've been messin up with the lead channel+EQ.. and finally i got some brutal Trivium-ish chuggin tone out of a mark IV.. awesome! but now I need one more mark IV for lead tones.. lol.. i guess that's why john petrucci got 3 mark IIc+ on his live rig..

:wink:

 

[kissing]

Hi Mr P,
Can i know where in asia did you find your Boogie? i live in Singapore

 

[Mr.P]

Hi Mr P,
Can i know where in asia did you find your Boogie? i live in Singapore

i live in Indonesia.. ever heard ? :lol:

Indonesian boogie dealer : www.melodiamusik.com

 

[kissing]

you guys have RK2 in indonesia?
how much are they?