Mesa Royal Atlantic v Electra Dyne video up ...

[jeffp]

I agree. I can tell you that the Red on the ED will get a lot more work for me than the red on the RA would have and thats a plus for me! Both amps are very good! jeffp

 

[screamingdaisy]

Someone posted earlier that they had a conversation with one of the Mesa dudes at NAMM. The gist of what I remember is that the RA had a redesigned power section that was intended to make the amp more raw/aggressive whereas the ED has the Simul-Class power section, which tends to make the amp more smooth and singing.

I think these clips show that really well.

 

[mistercoffee1]

I've only played the ED in person, but from this demo, it seems that the RA mids would cut great in a band mix, especially with another guitarist.

Don, can you comment on the effects loops of both? My hesitation with the ED was that it seems to prefer line level effects in its loop, rather than stompbox type. I didn't get to demo with my effects board though.
I can't seem to find any manual on the RA to see if it's the same case with it.

I've also read the RA has a speed controlled fan. Nice idea, but is it always on?

 

[YellowJacket]

I've only played the ED in person, but from this demo, it seems that the RA mids would cut great in a band mix, especially with another guitarist.

The Electra Dyne has plenty of mids on tap. If you run them at 10:00 (Like in the video) you'll get a more scooped tone, but if you turn them to 1:00 they crunch like mad and cut like a knife. It is pretty stinking overwhelming when playing by ones lonesome.

 

[jeffp]

Having tried both.... i agree with Yellowjacket.

 

[danyeo1]

I've owned an ED before, getting another, and I played the RA the other day. It was a head on a 4x12. One thing about the RA is that it has more gain than the ED and can sound really good at low volumes. The ED really shines when it's loud but the ED can sound good low as well, just not at it's best.

One thing I noticed is that I had the RA bass control set a lot higher than I would have it set on the ED. The ED seems to have this big fat bottom even when the bass i below halfway. I wish the RA and ED had solo boost functions and I wish the RA had independant gain controls the blue and red.

Both great amps. Can't go wrong with either.

 

[skunizzi]

I own an ED combo and one thing that I've learned is that if you are using the volume control function on the back of the amp, its sounds will change quite considerably. I was very surprised at how aggressive the sound was on the clean channel as well as the OD. I can get some great saturation and nice round clean sounds from mine which I was not hearing in the demo video. Maybe the mic and cabinet has something to do with it..?

The knobs are very sensitive and a little more or less in either direction can make a huge difference.

For those of you who were wondering about the sound with a tube change to EL34's I did that in mine and I found that I liked the 6L6 tubes better. More definition and a better clean tone as well.

My 2 cents!

 

[jeffp]

Well...yes i was wondering about the EL34`s and thanks for your thoughts there. But about the volume the manual says use the level knob to DECREASE for balance and my amp fully up on the level was WELL below any balance always. This is unacceptable for a brand new 1700 dollar amp. I`ll be working on this today.

 

[Analog Kid]

I have to agree that while Haggerty does great videos, the amp was done a diservice by having the mids set too low.

 

[J.J]

I went to the shop yesterday to try out the RA for myself. It certainly is a good amp, but I'll be keeping my ED :lol:

The clean tone is very nice, but does not suit my tastes as well as the ED (6L6 vs EL34 ?). I thought the reverb was great and has an almost slap back delay quality about it. It has a sharp attack and dies back rapidly. The ED reverb seems to have a much longer decay. The attenuator was a surprise for me on the clean channel, even at the highest level the tone did not loose its quality or edge.

The gain side does offer way more gain than an ED and from what the guys in the shop were saying it can easily do metal (I don't play any metal). As has been said, it does have a stack of upper mids and does amazing crunch. I did find it could get very bright, but the tone controls tame it well. The Attenuator does not work as well for the gain side, the loss of definition was quite apparent to me.

Some other things that I noticed and thought were really nice is that master and gain pot tappers are much more friendly. The volume comes up much more slowly and the gain is very progressive. An ED II with a control layout and tappers like the RA would be great.

 

[JOEY B.]

Electradyne with the STR-450 or better yet STR-442 EL-34 power tubes. Piss on the STR-447.

 

[HaggertysMusic]

Ok I've taken a lot of heat over this video, and deservingly so. I'm not sure what I was thinking when dialing in the ED. All I can say is that it sounded good at the time.

Would you guys appreciate a part 2 redo?

Maybe just the LO and HI modes? I think the cleans were ok in the last video, right?

I can make this happen if not this week, then next for sure.

 

[YellowJacket]

Don, don't worry about it. At least you are making videos!!

If you want to redo it, why not compare all three modes again and maybe with some sample settings.

 

[J.J]

Don, I didn't think that video was to bad. It definately shows the contrast between the two amps.

It would be interesting if you were to do another video with different settings. After watching that video again, I felt there was to much bass dialed into the vintage gain settings. The bass also seems to mask the mids which is where a lot of the complaints came from.

 

[BostonRedSox]

Don, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Honestly, if you do, I don't think you'll end up pleasing everyone in the first place. I've read some of the criticisms of your videos. Some of them seem to be a bit ridiculous, while others are just people pointing out their tastes in eq settings. I think the problem is the whole "versus" concept - it has some people a bit defensive when hearing their amp against another amp. Look at your "Multi-Watt Dual Recto v. Roadster" videos. How many people are writing comments, stating defensively, that their Roadsters sound nothing like what's captured on video?" No matter what, I don't think you'll ever end up pleasing all of the people, all of the time. Plus, this is the ED thread too, which is going to solicit a completely polarized viewpoint in most scenarios.

Like in your latest video, I just read a criticism stating essentially that had you used a Gibson LP, rather than a Suhr, you could've shown off what the RA's blue and red channels are capable of, in an even better fashion. Really? Give me a break. Talk about stating opinion as fact. I mean, duh, any guitar is going to impart its own characteristics on an amp. One guy even criticized your choice in using a Suhr, talking about how you may have had more favorable results had you used a Tom Anderson - geez! As soon as you open yourself up, you are going to be the target of a lot of criticism that is all opinion driven. Even in the face of empirical results, such as your videos. Some will call you out for your eq tastes, while others may focus on your guitar choices, mic'ing techniques, etc.

In other words - I wouldn't lose any sleep over the critiques made. Great job and thanks for the vids!

 

[HaggertysMusic]

I appreciate what you're saying a lot! I know I'll never please everyone and I'm happy knowing that with each video I've done the best job that I could... except that Electra Dyne comparison. I want to change it more so because I'm not happy with it, as opposed to the criticisms, which in retrospect I fully agree with and feel were totally justified!

I don't know where my head was that night because I never run the ED with mids under 12:00 :roll: And I certainly in no way wish to place that amplifier in a bad light. It's a wonderful amp and has a strong place in Boogie's lineup and I totally get why guys may choose the ED over the RA or vice versa.

And as I type this, I'm realizing that I'm out of ED's down at the shop. :roll: So the follow up video may not even happen in the near future.

 

[J.J]

And as I type this, I'm realizing that I'm out of ED's down at the shop. :roll: So the follow up video may not even happen in the near future.

does that mean ED sales have taken off ? :lol:

 

[screamingdaisy]

While there is a bunch of people b*tching that the ED sounds too scooped in these videos there's probably a whole bunch who aren't b*tching because to them it sounds great.

Personally, I think you should dial it in so that it sounds good to you and go from there.

 

[JOEY B.]

Don,

Your videos are great. The Electradyne with the RIGHT EL-34's is an awesome amp. The wrong EL-34's kill the clean channel. When I try the red and blue channels of the ED with the best 6L6's, it is still not as good as the EL-34's to my ears.

Do you remember the channel 2 Mark V suggestion?

 

[Analog Kid]

It might be worth it... Those settings don't sound bad at all- I'm not sure you can dial a bad sound in this amp, but you did miss out on the muscle car, 800 pound gorilla thing that it does so well. The mid knob on the Dyne has a big throw and it seems to get meaner when you push it as opposed to some Boogies that just get boxy when you raise mids.
If not, no big deal...