Okay, so I did it. I actually talked to my amp tech about this -- and, btw, I'd been meaning to ping him about retrofitting the 10w option into my LSC since I got it back when, so this whole Reeder business just made the call happen that much faster. Anyway, to finish out that tangent, he IS going to retrofit my LSC with the 10 watt output setting. So that's alllllllll goooooood.
He's The Man, too, so I'm not really worried about voiding my Mesa warrantee. Anyway, he isn't available for another 4 weeks, and he charges $75 minimum per mod, which I don't begrudge at all -- he's feeding his family this way, so power to him -- but he walked me through the process of doing the Reeder myself.
(We could debate the deal with discharging the caps -- I have read both sides of the play a chord, then turn amp off method -- he actually said play a chord, then UNPLUG the amp. He also said it doesn't discharge the caps 100%, but gets them down to under 20V or so; anything under 50 he says is manageable, so it's not nothing, but nothing to be too afraid of. I know, I've read several different takes on this. This was the advice I got, but since I didn't touch anything that made me go bzzztztzztztztzttzztzttzzzz, I can't vouch for the accuracy thereof. But it gave me enough confidence to try it myself. Anyway, Charles, I appreciate your concern, it was well-founded, and I took care because of it.)
I am planning on writing more up on this, including some clips and photos, but my detailed summary is as follows:
The process was a teeny bit tricky, but care and right intention served my negligible electrical chops well. My biggest worry was with the soldering itself -- I've never been happy with my soldering skills. And it was tight in there -- the leads aren't long, so you basically have to work right over the circuit board, or right next to it. I safeguarded against dripping solder on the board by placing a plastic spoon underneath the pot I was working on.
Other things: the 1-2-3 dot markings on the wires is really good -- I actually caught an error on my part this way, and had to re-solder one of my pots. Also, it was helpful to mark the pots themselves -- I know, the part nos. are listed on the diagram, but it saved me a small amount of confusion... Also, getting the pots out of the bottom channel (Ch2) was a little tricky, and involved tilting them up toward me before backing them out of the hole in the chassis... otherwise, the good news is that for me anyway, taking the chassis out of the cabinet and putting it back was a snap. The screws line up with holes in top and bottom of the chassis, so there's no aiming in the dark. just get the first one lined up, and you should be good.
Anyway, it all went basically without a hitch, which is good because I'd be out an amp for 4 weeks (and I have a show in 2).
Now, what you really want to hear about: The Sound.
Well, what can I say? Basically, The Reeder pretty much seems to be the real deal, that is, the clone thing is basically spot-on.
(That 1-digit discrepancy in the part number could account for a small difference in the output level of the channel, with all other controls the same and drive bypassed. At my home-volume level I had to compensate up almost an hour, so 9:00 on Ch1 = 9:45 on Ch2. But that's not a complaint, just a note.)
So, yes, having a true clone on Channel 2 really changes things. It sounds, well, amazing. Amazing!! It's like the true voice of the amp has been unleashed. Transparent. Bubbly. Juicy. All the color is back; what was once a contrast between pure, clear water and nonfat milk is now basically nothing.
It does seem to really highlight the way the Gain and Drive controls each contribute to the tone/gain structure. Before, the difference between the way the amp sounded with either of them dominant over the other seemed pretty subtle; now it's really clear how they affect each other. So far, I still really like having the Gain be the dominant control, with Drive staying behind and just adding some juice. But switching them is really cool too, and very different; you're essentially starting with a very clean channel with Gain under 12:00, and adding drive at that point makes it more of a buzz-saw-style OD.
Everything just seems clearer. Glassier, woodier, more real and alive. And now I get that same addictive feeling from Channel 2 that I always got from Channel 1.
I will say that it's possible that I will miss the sort of tight, punchy response Ch2 had, pre-Reeder; it had a thing, really. But add my hat to the circle of people who interpreted the adverts for the LS as saying the channels were clones of one another. In fact, my manual says in the overview: "Channel 2... can be set to achieve a slightly gainier clone of Channel 1, or, with the flick of a switch become a high gain preamp." I guess "slightly gainier" is Mesa's out; but I read that as something like a Channel 1 that goes to 11 or 15. Which is not what it was.
I'll also venture a guess at this point that Mesa did this for the reasons Charles surmised -- fear of criticism for producing an amp with 2 identical channels -- and possibly also because I think the stock config might have allowed the amp to get something more akin to a high gain sound. It seemed a little thicker, more amenable to large quantities of gain, without all the complex harmonics in the way. That's how I would read it at the moment. If that's true, this mod solidifies the idea that the LS's true character is NOT a high-gain amp, at least not the way the DR people like them. But it also brings it in line with the way I read the sell. [Edit: Upon further consideration, this is actually not true, at least not about the complex harmonics. It sounds really, really good just plain cranked, with the treble up -- just a lot clearer and more defined than before, if you can believe it. The same complaints about the loose low end still apply, so it's still not necessarily for the high gain aficionados. But it's a good sound nonetheless. In other words, the mod improved it in every way.]
Okay... I'll post more, maybe in a new thread sometime.
Meanwhile: Thank you, Charles.
