Mesa Boogie MkIIC Combo

[Nick Athanasatos]

Hi..Can you guys tell me what the going price is for an original owner MK IIC Simuclass/Reverb 1x12 Creme Vinyal Combo in nice condition?
No EQ...and no +
but has a matching 1x12 extension cabinet.
Ive looked into upgrade at Mesa and its totaling quite a bit when added to this amp.
Please advise.
Thanks

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

Oh oh..no responses.
Im somewhat out of touch and fear I may be slightly overpaying..and the fateful day is tomorrow.

 

[s-fresh]

You'll sometimes wait a few days for response here, not very active.

With the IIC+ market, it seems to be all about graphic EQ and to a lesser extent Simul-class. It seems like the biggest driver is GEQ and amps without it don't sell for nearly as much. There are tons of sold listings on Reverb.com for non-GEQ IIC and IIC+s for under $2k, some as low as $1,500 for 60w IICs. I'm not sure how much more Simul-class might bring up the price though.

 

[Markedman]

Currently, the market is swamped with great amps. Also, there are fewer guitar players out there. If I say anything about a mesa mark amp without the graphic EQ, I’ll get slogged all day.

(OK I’ll just say it, the amps without the graphic EQ & + are totally worthless in my opinion.)

To those who don’t agree with me, good for you, get off my lawn!

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

But how worthless..going market value? I have a MklV and I think the lead channel sounds a bit too processed/ artificial to me.Clean channel is as good as it gets I think.

 

[MK IIB]

Currently, the market is swamped with great amps. Also, there are fewer guitar players out there. If I say anything about a mesa mark amp without the graphic EQ, I’ll get slogged all day.

(OK I’ll just say it, the amps without the graphic EQ & + are totally worthless in my opinion.)

Nonsense.Not everyone who plays a mesa mark amp is into metallica etc.If you need that heavy bottom end scooped mid sound then yes the graphic is needed for that but worthless?You could always get a good EQ and stick it in the loop.

edit:Upon second reading I think this might be tongue in cheek right??

 

[BoogieHog]

Currently, the market is swamped with great amps. Also, there are fewer guitar players out there. If I say anything about a mesa mark amp without the graphic EQ, I’ll get slogged all day.

(OK I’ll just say it, the amps without the graphic EQ & + are totally worthless in my opinion.)

To those who don’t agree with me, good for you, get off my lawn!

Now you see? This is why Markedman is one of my favs. I don't NECESSARILY agree with him but, I LOVE the way he says it! You have GOT to love that level of honesty!

 

[GJgo]

I paid $1600 for a very clean HRG IIC and had it modded.

I paid $2000 for a pretty clean DR IIC+.

I spend a lot of time playing my G C+s with the G turned off.

Getting it modded by Mike is worth it!

 

[xdg999]

I had Mike B. uprade an HR and a DRG. The DRG might be the best of my c+'s. It does add up sending the amp back to Mesa, shipping + mod + new caps + repairs. But it's well worth. The amp comes back sounding awesome. If I lived close to Mesa I'd have Mike B. work on the other 4 c+'s I own. If you did buy the amp I recommend changing the reverb tank even if the old one works.

 

[darkbluemurder]

My Mark III does not have the EQ. If I wanted I could purchase a Mesa Five Band EQ, put it in the loop and have an EQ. If it is important to you factor the price of an EQ into the purchase price for a used amp.

Cheers Stephan

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

Thanks..some more questions.
* How about having them put the original Sylvania tubes in
there.?..I have the Original 4 tubes as well.Worth it?
*What about V1 PreAmp tube..should I get an NOS tube for that as well? What the hell..I've eaten pork, I might as well have a Heineken.
*Why should the Reverb tank be changed?
*Who made the Standard 12" Black Shadow Speaker for Mesa in early 1983 in MkllC? The Black Shadow EV was marked EV but other one not.
Thanks

 

[xdg999]

I would send the Sylvania tubes with the amp. My favorite preamp tubes are nos Chinese military. C+’s originally came with Tungsram 12ax7’s. The Chinese tubes are brighter and have a little more gain. The springs in the reverb tank get gunked up over the years. If the tank in your amp is original you should notice a difference with a new one. Eminence made the MS-12 speaker. My favorite speaker until I tried Celestion Redbacks. I have a vintage Mesa metal grill 4x12 loaded with Redbacks that I use with my wide chassis HR c+.

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

I was thinking to get new set of the STR415 and keep these as spares.The one set should last the rest of my life I think.
The Reverb Tank I have can't be cleaned with WD40 or something on to Springs?
Thanks again

 

[xdg999]

I just talked to Rich at Mesa. They still have STR-415’s. $250 for a pair. I never tried to clean the springs.

 

[darkbluemurder]

Thanks..some more questions.
Who made the Standard 12" Black Shadow Speaker for Mesa in early 1983 in MkllC? The Black Shadow EV was marked EV but other one not.
Thanks

That should be a C-90, manufactured by Celestion.

Cheers Stephan

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

Celestion C-90..thanks. : )

 

[gts]

Thanks..some more questions.
Who made the Standard 12" Black Shadow Speaker for Mesa in early 1983 in MkllC? The Black Shadow EV was marked EV but other one not.
Thanks

That should be a C-90, manufactured by Celestion.

Cheers Stephan

No it would be an Eminence speaker, not a Celestion.


Post a pic of the back as well as the front of the speaker.
Fwiw there should be numbers on the frame of the speaker or the magnet.
If the numbers start with a 67 it's a Eminence

 

[Nick Athanasatos]

Hi.. I did go and try the Cream tolex MkllC Simuclass/ reverb Combo and bought it.
In very nice condition but not played in 20+ years.
Really I was not knocked out by the sound at all but it was Original owner who truly loved the amp..such a nice guy who set us up so nicely at his house to play it and that simple familiar control panel,and I was melancholy as one of my favorites (Dolores) died a day or two before,I just went ahead.
I went home and pulled out my MklV at the settings Doug West suggested put volume up and and it kind of blows the the other one away..but really it's no comparison as the C needs a tune up.A lot of people don't realize an amp needs a good tech to service it every so often..A good amp tech will make or break a good amp.
So now we have to motivate ourselves to take things out
and send it to California.
Are original Sylvania 6L6 tubes a noticable difference in this amp compared to new 6L6 ?? They are expensive but a set should last as long as I have left.

 

[xdg999]

The first Mark IIc I bought didn't impress me at all. I played it for maybe a minute. Packed it up and shipped it back to Mesa for the upgrade and cap job. The second one I bought I almost wanted to keep stock. It sounded so much better than the first one. I asked Mike B. if the later Mark IIc's had more gain and he said they did. I sent it back for the upgrade to correct the volume difference between the rhythm and lead channels. The Sylvania's are great tubes but I've gone back to using Groove Tubes 6L6R's (same tube as the Mesa 425 and Sovtek 5881) with a #4 rating and NOS Chinese 12ax7's.

 

[gts]

Are original Sylvania 6L6 tubes a noticable difference in this amp compared to new 6L6 ?? They are expensive but a set should last as long as I have left.

IMHO yes.
They are a 10,000 hour tube so they very well could last you "as long as you have left".

But considering yours is a Simul Class.... be patient and look for/ find an old pair of Sylvania EL34's aka Mesa STR-416's
In Class A which only use the out two power tubes, if you have STR-416's in those two outer slots, they are sublime!
Then again it may depend on what type of music you like and play.