I received my King Snake 2 weeks ago. I've had several Mesa's over the years and always loved the tone of the early models. Single channel amps are not an issue. Actually, I got this because it is a single channel. It is also a 1x12 combo which is a nice option to my 4x12 Marshall half stack.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/54678946/Photo May 30, 6 30 18 AM.jpg
From previous Mesa's I knew that it was going to take a little playing around to get the tone that I wanted, so I wasn't frustrated when it sounded kind of thin out of the box. It's take the full 2 weeks but I think I am 90-95% there. In general,
- the controls, especially the midboost, are very powerful.
- the 10/60/100 power options are great, but the amp is always loud (I run 60 most of the time)
- I can get reasonable bedroom level sound out of it, but it blossoms when the master is up over 3
- the master volume is very transparent
- the build quality is excellent. No issues on the appearance and the components are top notch
- the Output Transformer is huge, which makes for very nice tone. It weighs a ton
For me and my playing (which is not that great right now), I find that running the bass up at 8 or so gives me the kind of crunch I like. Very deep and rich. The Filmore2 speaker is just beginning to loosen up and I like that it stays full on the deep end and doesn't pierce on the high end. It is a very nice match for this amp. I did plug it into my 4x12 which is loaded with Creambacks and I liked the Filmore2 better for the King Snake. The 4x12 is perfect for my Marshall JVM205h (modded by Voodoo Amps).
All in all, this is just what I was expecting. It is simple, toneful and a nice combo. It is the classic Mesa tone. Not just Santana, but there is some angry Neil Young in this combo and I can go from a nice clean feel to a deep crunch by adjusting my guitar volume and tone controls, which I like to do.
For the record, I didn't buy this as a collectable. It will get used. Just like my Les Paul and my Marshall half stack. Good amps and good guitars are made to be played, not displayed.
I might still be in the honeymoon phase, but I've had enough amps over the years to sense that this is a nice one. At least for me and the kind of music I like to play.
I have a lot of respect for Randall and the folks at Mesa Engineering. This just confirms that respect is well placed.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/54678946/Photo May 30, 6 30 18 AM.jpg
From previous Mesa's I knew that it was going to take a little playing around to get the tone that I wanted, so I wasn't frustrated when it sounded kind of thin out of the box. It's take the full 2 weeks but I think I am 90-95% there. In general,
- the controls, especially the midboost, are very powerful.
- the 10/60/100 power options are great, but the amp is always loud (I run 60 most of the time)
- I can get reasonable bedroom level sound out of it, but it blossoms when the master is up over 3
- the master volume is very transparent
- the build quality is excellent. No issues on the appearance and the components are top notch
- the Output Transformer is huge, which makes for very nice tone. It weighs a ton
For me and my playing (which is not that great right now), I find that running the bass up at 8 or so gives me the kind of crunch I like. Very deep and rich. The Filmore2 speaker is just beginning to loosen up and I like that it stays full on the deep end and doesn't pierce on the high end. It is a very nice match for this amp. I did plug it into my 4x12 which is loaded with Creambacks and I liked the Filmore2 better for the King Snake. The 4x12 is perfect for my Marshall JVM205h (modded by Voodoo Amps).
All in all, this is just what I was expecting. It is simple, toneful and a nice combo. It is the classic Mesa tone. Not just Santana, but there is some angry Neil Young in this combo and I can go from a nice clean feel to a deep crunch by adjusting my guitar volume and tone controls, which I like to do.
For the record, I didn't buy this as a collectable. It will get used. Just like my Les Paul and my Marshall half stack. Good amps and good guitars are made to be played, not displayed.
I might still be in the honeymoon phase, but I've had enough amps over the years to sense that this is a nice one. At least for me and the kind of music I like to play.
I have a lot of respect for Randall and the folks at Mesa Engineering. This just confirms that respect is well placed.
