Need a Mesa!

[thejay]

I am new here and I am looking to buy my first Mesa; I have had my eye on them for a long time. I have used many different amps - solid state and tube (Fender, Marshall, B52) but still want to get a Mesa for my main rig. I narrowed it down to the Dual Rect, Rect-o-verb, Roadster or Road King. Leaning more toward the Roadster/Road King. Does anyone have any suggestions??

So you know I am looking for an amp that can handle both Clean and Distorted tones

 

[clutch71]

Welcome to the Board. If your looking for clean/distorted tone go for the Roadster. Same cleans as the RK minus the progressive linkage, extra parallel loop, and speaker cab selection...unless you want to run multiple speaker cabs. The cleans on the DR are greatly improved from what they used to be but the Roadster would be the best bang for the buck IMO.

 

[thejay]

Thanks!
Do you know the price for a DR, RK or Roadster? Also curious - I have a B52 cab that is pretty good, wondering if I should also get a Mesa cab??

 

[ytse_jam]

Thanks!
Do you know the price for a DR, RK or Roadster? Also curious - I have a B52 cab that is pretty good, wondering if I should also get a Mesa cab??

take a look at the sticky post in this section! Can't speak about the B52 cab but if you feel it's lacking something, mesa 4x12 would be a step up

 

[jdurso]

Thanks!
Do you know the price for a DR, RK or Roadster? Also curious - I have a B52 cab that is pretty good, wondering if I should also get a Mesa cab??

if its the b52 with the v30s thats a great cab..... just see how it sounds with whatever you get.... if its lacking then start looking for a different cab.... IMO if your wouldnt use the bells and whistles of the RK go with the roadster.... amazing cleans and an over all great sounding amp.... much better value than the standard DR or TR

 

[thejay]

I got the Roadster and it is fantastic. Looking forward to playing/tweaking it more! Thanks for the input guys I appreciate it.

 

[Machine Gun]

Congratulations on the new Mesa!

 

[jdurso]

I got the Roadster and it is fantastic. Looking forward to playing/tweaking it more! Thanks for the input guys I appreciate it.

nice.... how does it sound with your cab? also you may want to look into an eq pedal for the loop... i find it almost a must with a recto to finely tune your tone... many here would agree.... congrats on the new toy

 

[thejay]

I actually got a Recto Cab when I got the head just b/c it sounded great. I compared the two and the Recto has more Omph overall and handles everything I throw at it really well. The B52 sounds high end heavy so mixing the two is an option and for now I keep the B52... maybe unload at some point. I have my eye on the new Gibson Faded Explorer over at GC - sounds great through the Roadster!

I have never felt a need for an EQ pedal does it really help the sound on a Mesa?

 

[Elpelotero]

an EQ pedal does wonders for a Mesa when placed in the loop.

 

[jdurso]

I actually got a Recto Cab when I got the head just b/c it sounded great. I compared the two and the Recto has more Omph overall and handles everything I throw at it really well. The B52 sounds high end heavy so mixing the two is an option and for now I keep the B52... maybe unload at some point. I have my eye on the new Gibson Faded Explorer over at GC - sounds great through the Roadster!

I have never felt a need for an EQ pedal does it really help the sound on a Mesa?

you dont know you need it until you try one in the loop..... it can even turn a 4 channel monster into an 8 channel monster if you set everything up right

 

[AustinK]

an EQ pedal does wonders for a Mesa when placed in the loop.

Yep 8)
How come no one uses mr. shades

 

[lailer75]

you dont know you need it until you try one in the loop




isn`t this how they sold all those stupid BBE`s

 

[creekhed]

My BBE Sonic Stomp is one of my Favorite pedals!

 

[thejay]

what brand EQ is everyone using??

I wanted to get a Boss for the longest time and just never did... recently I have been very impressed my MXR pedals and have replaced my older Boss/DOD models with MXR pedals... so I guess my other question would be has anyone used the MXR EQ pedals??

 

[kmanick]

I have an MXR10 EQ in the loop of my Rectoverb and one in the Loop
of my JSX head, and really, once you've got them in there and dialed in
you won't want to run the amp without it. 8)

 

[creekhed]

What is the advantage of having the EQ in the loop as opposed to running it out front?

 

[jdurso]

What is the advantage of having the EQ in the loop as opposed to running it out front?

the eq in front is eq'ing your guitar signal..... so you will see more drastic changes with it in front (turning a humbucker sound into a single coil).... the eq in the loop can have equally drastic changes but when used right is a way of fine tuning your tone.... in the loop you are eq'ing the preamp signal before it hits the power amp.... if you have ever played a mark 4 or an amp with a built in 5 band post eq (vht pitbulls, nomads, .50 caliber), its doing the same thing..... to me there is advantages to both because they have such a different effect on your tone... many people use two eqs one in each position

 

[nwoforlif]

Thejay

I agree totally. An eq in the loop changes the sound SO much. You can get rid of the mud for a tighter sound with it. At high volumes (master at 4 or above) I tend not to need it much at all, so I have it on slightly or off. I am using a Boss ge-7. People here say it is a noisy pedal but I think I got lucky with this particular one. Mine is quiet. I also owned it before I purchased my mesa. The comunity here seems to like the MXR 10 band and say it is the best of the best. So it is all up to you in the end. Congrats you have bought yourself an amp that will last you probably as long as you live. It is built really strong.

NWOFORLIF

what brand EQ is everyone using??

I wanted to get a Boss for the longest time and just never did... recently I have been very impressed my MXR pedals and have replaced my older Boss/DOD models with MXR pedals... so I guess my other question would be has anyone used the MXR EQ pedals??

 

[thejay]

great - thanks for the input guys I will look into it.