Mesa 395 Questions - Speaker load & fuse values

[The Casual Doctor]

Hi all

I'm the proud new owner of a Mesa Triaxis and a 395 power amp. I've found my tone, that's all I'll say. I'll save gushing for another post!

I have some questions, if anyone can be of assistance:

Firstly, I don't need the full power compliment of the 395 all of the time. I'd love to be able to switch one side off and use the other, but that's obviously not possible. I've seen people reference Mesa stereo power amps being able to not have a load on one side, provided the volume is down and the presence is up. Is this possible with the 395, and does it even save enough on wear and tear to be worth it?

Secondly, I was running a single 4 ohm load on each channel. I tried a pair of 2x12s at 8ohms a piece, and I blew the mains fuse. Could this be a bad 8 ohm output?

Lastly, I did notice the fuse blew immediately upon powering up, before standby was disengaged. This doesn't seem like slow-blow behavior to me, nor does it seem like power tube problems, so perhaps the fuse was incorrect? I can't find literature stating the required fuse, but this one was 4A.

Thanks in advance!

 

[jediguitarist]

You can't turn on just one side?

I run a Simul 295 with one 8ohm cab, but I'll alternate each side every few gigs/sessions/practices.

The mains fuse holder should be labeled but it's a 6a SB fuse.

 

[The Casual Doctor]

I can leave it on standby, but technically it's still "on"... I've never had a stereo power amp before, so I've never actually even researched if it's OK to leave an amp on standby without load- from the sounds of things, it's fine?

Oh, and regarding the amp- I see now the 6A on the front panel is blacked out. I'm in a 230V region, so the fuse current rating is roughly halved, 3A it is!