If there is any reason...

[dcow90]

for me not to buy a Dual Rectifier Roadster 2x12 Combo speak now or forever hold your peace.

I'm a young guitarist with many years of technical and tonal development ahead of me. I play a Fender American Telecaster w/ the S1 switch (I also play some others but nothing compares). I'm the lead guitarist in a band that plays mainly John Mayer, 90s rock, and similar genre covers. We're beggining to write some original material as well. The singer plays a Taylor 814 with a Fishman acoustic amp. The bassist plays a Fender Areodine through a Brighiner 30w amp. I play through a piece of sh!t Crate 120w 2x12 no effects. I'm way overdue for a real amp..

When I say young I don't mean without experience. I've/We've played many shows and have more to come (one on Saturday in fact). Although we play mainly the stuff I mentioned I play a much wider variety on my own time. I enjoy anything from classic to hard rock and love scales and soloing.

I'm interested in the Dual Rectifier Roadster b/c I believe it encompasses all the styles I currently use or could ever imagine playing. What can't it do..?? I've looked at the Stillettos and Lonestars but from what I believe the roadster is far more versatile.. which is exactly what I'm looking for, something that won't limit my tone to a certain style yet still complement my telecaster without impeding it's potential.

Have I made a good decision or would you recommend a different amp family (maybe Lonestar..)?

Would anyone recommend something other than a mesa?

Is there anything about the Roadster in particular I should know before buying it?

And.. Would anyone recommend a Head/2x12 Cab over the Combo? I know I would prefer that but it's $500 more just to do it that way =S.. Also what are your thoughts on using non mesa speakers (like the ones in my Crate 2x12) and building my own Cab?

I would appreciate any help anyone can give as this is a big purchase for me. I'm very confident about it but just want to make sure.

Thanks.

Dave.

 

[coppa]

WAIT! see if you can track down a mark 4 and try that. try both in fact, and mark 5 is rumored to be coming out soon so WAIT once again.

definately go with head + cab it gives you so many more options and much easyer to move around. its worth the extra 500

Its a big decision to get a big expensive tube amp so choose very carefully and dont rush your self.

I think the most important thing that many have learned the hard way is never settle for anything less than perfect for you and expect to upgrade later or tweak or mod it to your liking. Only buy your perfect amp even if it costs 3 or even 5 times as much as the quick fix believe me it will save you a pile of money in the future if you dont have to go through 3 or 4 amps to finally get the one you always wanted in the first place.

 

[songrider]

Hey, I got a Roadster Halfstack and I absolutely love it. Its 4 great amps in one box. I play ALOT of different styles and plug various guitars into it and it ALWAYS sounds good. The Roadster has sweet cleans all the way to blistering metal tones and literally EVERYTHING in between.

I cant see ANYONE being disappointed with this amp. It takes some tweak time but there is so much to offer with this amp w/all the various channel modes and such. But its not intimidating at all once you get it. its laid out simple and just FULL of different tones.

When I got in the position to buy this amp I could have ANY amp I wanted. And the Roadster is the one I chose above all the others. It does more than I will ever need it to do and everything it does I think it does very well.

I use mine with a 4-12 mesa cab, but I have had it in a 2-12 open back with fender speakers out of an old twin and it sounds fantastic that way as well.

 

[155]

the roadster does it all and does it well, no worries go for it!

 

[prskier17]

Try it out... and if you like it GO FOR IT!

I agree completely with the previous poster that recommended the seperate head / cab. You will have so many more options and it's easier to move two (less heavy... I won't say light) pieces that one really heavy one.

I was sold on the Roadster and ended up with a Road King II only because I found an unbeatable deal on a nearly new one locally. Now that I have it I'm glad I have all of the power tube options. Be forwarned though.... it takes some serious time to learn how to operate one of these and even though there will be plenty of instant gratification with one of these amps its NOT plug and play Don't let this scare you, just plan on spending some quality time with your new amp once you get it!

 

[jdurso]

the ultimate question in my eyes is do you need all 4 channels to pull your music off live? for the longest time i only used a heavy distortion and a clean channel. I never needed the inbetween until my band started to mature and as we did so did my need for more variety in tone. if you know your going to use all 4 channels in one set (clean, bluesy clean, heavy, mid gain, etc) then go for the roadster. if you dont need all 4 channels it might be more economical to buy a regular recto, a stilleto or even an express (killer little amp with tons of tones). All consider will you be using all the different options (wattage, tube setting??)? If not again economically speaking there might be another amp with a better fit. all mesa IMO are tonally versitle and can compete with the roadster BUT what the roadster gives you is 4 different tones right on tap without having to change anything. personally i cant live without having atleast 4 channels with different tones on each because i use them all... i create even more toneswith an OD in front and fx in the loop all controlled by my rg16... so in effect i have a huge amount of tonal diversity. just keep these things in mind.... i'd say if you need what the roadster dishes out then get it because its an incredible amp. if you dont need everything and are tight on money there are other great options out there. at the end of the day you should buy an amp that fits, that wont drive you broke and that you'll be happy with... there should be no regrets when spending that much. good luck

 

[siggy14]

Ask yourself this, do you listen to and do you plan on playing any music that uses the Recto tones from the mid to late 90's all the way up present?

If your answer is no, or very rarely I would say go with a used Mark IV or wait for the Mark 5. These two amps sound like they would be more of what you are looking for.

Also I agree go with the head and cab, looked for a used cab locally on craigslist or on ebay, will be alot cheaper.

 

[MJ Slaughter]

Regardless of what amp you have, go head and cab when ever possible. I've had heads and cabs for years then thought it would be easier, less setup, to go with combos. I've since sold all my combos and am back to heads and cabs. For me, 90 lb 2x12 combos at 2:00 AM are very heavy no matter how young or old you are. I now have one cabinet that works well with two different heads. And the most important reason to me is that a seperate cabinet just sounds better.

Minor point but worth noting is that most combos will be hard on your tubes from all the sound pressure of the speakers. Also if you play hair band music you just can't use a combo! 8) What will the neighbors think?