Luckyman
New member
Hello there! Nice to find a forum dedicated to the real thing I'm a Mesa fan from Finland and am seeking for a advice from you gurus.
I've owned Mark IIb Combo with EVM-12L for about 15 years now, and I haven't gigged with it that much, and have had long periods that I haven't used it that much. Anyway, now I'm back in the home studio/band scenes again and have dived deeper into the soundscapes of my trusty Mesa. I know that it can deliver, but the more I play it now, I think there's something wrong with it..
It seems that I cannot get the cleans as they used to be. The sound is somewhat muddy and distorted even in when the Vol. 1 is set to around 3-4 or so (using my Fender Tele). Overall the amp sounds boxy, there is no warmth in the sound. Then there are some really harsh trebly sounds from the E & B strings that also peak even when presence is set below 5 and treble below 6. Bass sounds are boxy, and then is some weird 'clang' sound when I hit the bottom E in my guitars.
Also, it really seems that the longer the amp is on (hours) the sound becomes more harsh and the sounds run out of power and responsiveness.
When I tested the sounds I used my Fender Standard Tele, and didn't use even the EQ.
Some years ago I got some NOS Philips tubes, but the pre-amp tubes must be pretty old...maybe original.
What could be the problem with the amp? I'm seriously thinking about completely re-tubing the amp and seeing if that helps. Can't do no harm, can it What brands and mail-order dealers would you guys suggest for tubes? JJ's?
Other option could be that the speaker would need to be re-coned (?) The speaker is the same that came in the combo, but I'm not sure that around here anyone could re-cone it. Should I maybe buy another speaker instead?
I would appreciate it very much if anyone has any clue about what could be wrong with my amp. In the end, I would only need to use the clean channel, since I get my overdrives/distortions from my effect pedals. Need I say that the overdrive channel in my Mesa was always pretty bad...very out of focus, muddy, and not dense at all.
I've owned Mark IIb Combo with EVM-12L for about 15 years now, and I haven't gigged with it that much, and have had long periods that I haven't used it that much. Anyway, now I'm back in the home studio/band scenes again and have dived deeper into the soundscapes of my trusty Mesa. I know that it can deliver, but the more I play it now, I think there's something wrong with it..
It seems that I cannot get the cleans as they used to be. The sound is somewhat muddy and distorted even in when the Vol. 1 is set to around 3-4 or so (using my Fender Tele). Overall the amp sounds boxy, there is no warmth in the sound. Then there are some really harsh trebly sounds from the E & B strings that also peak even when presence is set below 5 and treble below 6. Bass sounds are boxy, and then is some weird 'clang' sound when I hit the bottom E in my guitars.
Also, it really seems that the longer the amp is on (hours) the sound becomes more harsh and the sounds run out of power and responsiveness.
When I tested the sounds I used my Fender Standard Tele, and didn't use even the EQ.
Some years ago I got some NOS Philips tubes, but the pre-amp tubes must be pretty old...maybe original.
What could be the problem with the amp? I'm seriously thinking about completely re-tubing the amp and seeing if that helps. Can't do no harm, can it What brands and mail-order dealers would you guys suggest for tubes? JJ's?
Other option could be that the speaker would need to be re-coned (?) The speaker is the same that came in the combo, but I'm not sure that around here anyone could re-cone it. Should I maybe buy another speaker instead?
I would appreciate it very much if anyone has any clue about what could be wrong with my amp. In the end, I would only need to use the clean channel, since I get my overdrives/distortions from my effect pedals. Need I say that the overdrive channel in my Mesa was always pretty bad...very out of focus, muddy, and not dense at all.