Hoping changing from Mesa valves to EH will allow my 5.50..

[UKBoogieboy]

I'm hoping to change the valves in my 5.50 (the amp is new and had a few hours use) to some EH valves. I sold my F50 and bought the express 5.50 but I couldn't get it to sound any good with any of my 6 overdrive pedals. I have now bought my F50 BACK.

My F50 sounds much better with my pedals but also sounds much better clean than the Express, with the Express clean the contour is great, and the reverb is much better than the F50, but there just isn't that bloom, that fullness and presence, warmth, depth, body, that my F50 has got.
My F50 has got EH valves, vs the Mesa valves in the express.

But I borrowed another F50 which had MESA valves and it ALSO lacked all the 3D bloom and body! Is it the Mesa valves then, I am wondering if I change the Express valves to E.H. it will sound as good as the my F50 with E.H.

The borrowed "mesa valve" F50 was louder and brighter than my "EH valve" F50 but mine sounded miles better, I owned a Lonestar classic 2x12 for one day before sending it packing, I was very disappointed after reading all the hype, the F50 clean beats it aswell.

I just hope I can get the same quality of depth from the Express because I plan to use the F50 for overdrive pedals in the clean channel, and use the gain channel aswell, so all overdrive.
And The express for ALL clean, channel one fender 64 deluxe reverb sound with mid back and contour up, then the blues channel for a pushed middly clean.

But I need the express to sound as good as the f50!

 

[Newysurfer]

What are the 6 overdrive pedals you have ?

 

[Old BF Shred]

This is a tough one......
why?
Because the EH tubes are Sovteks. And the Mesa tubes marked "Russian" are ALSO Sovteks.....so.......
Could your Mesa tubes be the "Chinese" versions?
I also know that Mesa has used JJ tubes recently, but I have never seen one, yet, so I can't say how they are labelled.
Perhaps your closest Mesa dealer could help you determine exactly which is which.
Without knowing for sure you may be taking a chance just buying them.

Just food for thought to help your decision..... :wink:

Good luck with that!

 

[MrMason]

http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=40532 :roll: :lol:

 

[Don]

It sounds like you have a real nice sounding F-50. Why replace it?

 

[GBP]

Lose the C90. I almost sold my amp due to how it sounded with the stock speaker. I dropped in 2 Cannabis Rex's and my amp sounds literally
10x's better.Smoother and more articulate highs. Subtle mids with more character and a massive rounded but tight bottom end. I also changed my 1st gain stage tube to a Mullard Reissue. I never thought that tube was anything special in Fenders but it really shines in Mesas. But a speaker swap is necessary with this amp as far as I'm concerned. C Rex's have always been a magic bullet for me in amps with frequency issues. It has just the right amount of every guitar essential frequency without being obnoxious in any particular one. And they sound smooth yet articulate at the same time.
Hemp just does something that no other cone can.Just my 2 cents.

Gregg

 

[UKBoogieboy]

In a side by side A/B test with the f50 and 5.50 clean, same settings, the 5.50 has got a strange mid sound almost like its through a wah pedal.

 

[UKBoogieboy]

So you think a speaker change in the 5.50, ok.
The F50 sounds perfect with the C90, but I was surprised by the lack of detail in the mid on the 5.50, like a hal open wah, only a bit but makes a difference, also at the same setting the 5.50 is quieter. I was going to change the F50 speaker to an EVM12L classic but I bought my old F50 back after I couldn't get my overdrive sounds with the 5.50. So I haven't got any money for a speaker now, but an eq can take that honky mid out of the 5.50.

 

[Newysurfer]

UKBoogie -
I reckon you'd be much better off selling both Mesa's and getting a Line 6 X3 Live and a Spider 11 amp :mrgreen:

 

[soundchaser59]

It sounds like you have a real nice sounding F-50. Why replace it?

This question bears repeating.......be nice to understand why you didn't just stick with the F50.

 

[UKBoogieboy]

Because I had trouble with the F50 blowing valves since I bought it, it blew during a gig and because I had taken the amp back and complained so many times they offered me my money back. I was pleased to get shot of the F50 and ordered a 5.50, but after being quite pleaed with the clean channel I tried it with my pedals and it didn't sound good.
So I bought the F50 back but now I have got the 5.50 aswell, I must say the burn channel sounded great cranked up in the pub the other night, I F50 is great clean and great with overdrives on the clean channel BUT the F50 channel 2 is no good for what I do.
Both amps are good but the 5.50 is VERY middly on crunch, blues, burn, with a low mid honk on the clean setting, but I can use a graphic for that.

Get a line 6, HA! Nice one, I sold my Flextone 1 years and years ago and bought a Flextone 2, but I sold my POD XT-LIVE and FLEXTONE 2 last week on ebay, I still own a Roland VGA3 modelling amp, and Roland cube 30. But those amps don't sound good at loud volume, they are not loud enough, they mush up and lose all definition, detail and clarity, and they don't cut through in a live band situation.
The Pod XT-Live was amazing for recording though, I got the live Mark Knopfler "You and your friend" sound, which is one of the hardest sounds to get.

I made a backing using a keyboard workstation and recorded the guitars and vocal over it.
This is NOT a sound that you can get just plugging into a Mesa/Boogie overdrive channel because its just not the right sound at all.

The closest I can get now to the "you and your friend" live sound is using a Bad Monkey (tried lots of overdrives and distortion pedals) into the clean channel of the F50, the 5.50 sounds harmonically loose and can't get that tight sting.
The 5.50 is GREAT for certain sounds, and the F50 is great for others which I why I am keeping both.
But this is a sound I wish I could get again, but using my real amps instead of the line 6 that I just sold.

My version is the first track on the player top right.

http://www.myspace.com/straitjackettribute

 

[UKBoogieboy]

Here is a Plywood Korean Les Paul played through a Boss OD2, and my F50 which is crackling.
I am using a sound which is like a mix of lots of different sounds that Mark has used with a Les Paul over the years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnDAtXpfh8s


This is 6 years before using the line 6 Flextone for the Pensa Suhr sound, Mark used a Soldano SLO 100 for this sound.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kefIBxo6Rs