Mesa Express - Head or Combo?

[infrared72]

So I really dig the Express - I tried the 5:25 about 2 weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it was the one with the 10" speaker. Amazing volume and different tones from that amp. The dealer I tried it at also had the 5:50 Express 112 combo and the head, neither of which I got to try due to limited time. My dilemma is this - I've already got two Avatar 112 closed back cabs, and I'm trying to break up the weight of the amp gear I'm carrying around. (I have another 212 amp that's going to have to stay home due to it weighing almost 70 pounds.)

So I started thinking that the Express 5:50 head might be better for me, since I've already got the 2 cabs. I must say that the small combo format of the express (either 110 or 112) is really appealing. But still not totally sure on the combo or the head. I noticed Mesa doesn't put the weight of their amps in the PDF owner's manuals like a lot of others do, so I'd probably have to call them directly to determine how heavy this stuff is.

I intend to try out the 5:50 head with my cabs this weekend, but I wonder if my closed back cabinets are going to be the total BUZZKILL for the 5:50. When I tried the 110 equipped 5:25, there was so much bass even though I had the eq for the lows at maybe 2. So I wonder if the sealed back cabs are going to take the low end way over the top.
-P

 

[vbf]

I was in the same quandary and decided to get the 5:50 combo and an Express 1x12 extension cab. After a lot of research I decided to buy the Express cab (open back) because it was "voiced" for the amp. Now I'm not exactly sure what that means. But I plan to experiment with a piece of wood velcro'd to complete the back thereby closing it in to see if what you're describing (buzz kill lows) is something I don't like. If I like, the piece stays. If not, it goes.

 

[smd24fan]

So I really dig the Express - I tried the 5:25 about 2 weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it was the one with the 10" speaker. Amazing volume and different tones from that amp. The dealer I tried it at also had the 5:50 Express 112 combo and the head, neither of which I got to try due to limited time. My dilemma is this - I've already got two Avatar 112 closed back cabs, and I'm trying to break up the weight of the amp gear I'm carrying around. (I have another 212 amp that's going to have to stay home due to it weighing almost 70 pounds.)

So I started thinking that the Express 5:50 head might be better for me, since I've already got the 2 cabs. I must say that the small combo format of the express (either 110 or 112) is really appealing. But still not totally sure on the combo or the head. I noticed Mesa doesn't put the weight of their amps in the PDF owner's manuals like a lot of others do, so I'd probably have to call them directly to determine how heavy this stuff is.

I intend to try out the 5:50 head with my cabs this weekend, but I wonder if my closed back cabinets are going to be the total BUZZKILL for the 5:50. When I tried the 110 equipped 5:25, there was so much bass even though I had the eq for the lows at maybe 2. So I wonder if the sealed back cabs are going to take the low end way over the top.
-P

When I had my 5:50, I used a 2x12 closed cab and loved it! That's the nice thing about Boogies, the controls work! Just dial some bass out if it gets too be too much. I thought it added allot of headroom on my cleans too. Just my opinion and good look on your decision!

 

[THE TUBENATOR]

infrared72,

I realize this is an old post and there is no update indicating what choice you may have already made. In any case I want to add my thoughts. I have a 5:50 Long Head sitting on top of a Mesa Stiletto 4x12 slant cab and I love it! When I ordered my equipment I went to the local Tampa Bay Area rep and tride out both the 5:25 and the 5:50 combo's (he did not have any heads in stock) with a variety of cabs. I immediately fell for the 6L6's of the 5:50 over the EL's of the 5:25. I quickly weeded through the open, half open backed speakers and focused on the 4x12's. It was a toss up between the deep growl of the Rectefier 4x12 cab and the slightly more suttle Stiletto 4x12. I decided on the Stiletto slant 4x12 and I can say that if I ever get a wild notion to make this a full stack I will undoubtebly get the Recetfier base cab! That will be a killer combination! Now this is my personal preference. I tried to post a pic of my amp and cab but I still have not figured that out and I couldn't find instructions under the FAQ.

 

[iohanr]

I tried to post a pic of my amp and cab but I still have not figured that out and I couldn't find instructions under the FAQ.

Hey Tubenator, just upload the picture to a website (like Flickr or Photobucket) and put the link to the picture inside these tags [ img ] [ /img ] (I intentionally added spaces so that the tags would show in this post, but they should not have spaces in order to work).

 

[THE TUBENATOR]

iohanr,

Thank you so much for the lesson on posting pics to a forum. I actually created a photobucket account just to up load this pic! Here is my Express 5:50LH (Long Head) on top of the Stilletto, Traditional 4x12 slant cab. I love it! Let me know if you want more pics. And as you can see I like the altered sound of a very long cable. I splice two 25 footers together! This amp has not moved from my family room since I purchased it so I keep it at the 5 watt setting and every other month I rotate the two 6L6 tubes for even wear. I also like the sound of the amp at full volume so I use the very long cable to move from the family room to the living room about 40 feet away. The two rooms open up to each other and at that distance the amp sounds like heaven at full volume! The only unusual thing about this pic is that I normally keep channel 1 volume at 100% and I don't really use the clean setting much.