new roadster owner !!

[wolverine]

Hello all !!

new to forum and must give kudos to all involved great board ! great source of information !
Ive been a boogie owner for years and finally took the plunge and purchased a new Roadster ,, still trying to dial in "that tone" and admittedly having some issues ,, 1st ,, gain structure ,, find myself having to get into the gain control substancially more than my 3 channel rec ,, normal ?? 2nd ,, sustain ,, having to really get into the channel volume to achieve the sustain that im used too on my dual ,, 3rd ,, tubes ,, any one using EL34's ?? ive read other threads in regards to this this issue but would really like to hear from someone who has made the jump and is sticking with it ,, im using a recto 2x12 cab mostly with prs' ( custom 22's )
I really want to love this amp like my dual but have to admit that its going to take some effort ,, oh ,, have an OCD on order so if anyone is using currently with thier Roadster would like to hear from them as well ,,

Thanks for listening ,, looking forward to frequent visits !!

 

[Kaz]

Welcome to the club! I'm also a proud Roadster (and PRS) owner, and I'm definitely enjoying this amp a whole lot. For a lot of my high gain I run the gain at around 1 or 2 o'clock at most and hit the pre hard with my OCD (level almost maxed, drive almost nothing, tone set 3/4ths of the way, High Peak mode) to get the extra gain and tightness/cut I need on Channels 3 and 4.

I find that to get a good sound out of the roadster that really makes the amp shine you NEED to get that master output above 9 o clock... I have all my channel masters set fairly high as well (10 to noon, depending). Most of the time I'm riffing away with the output around 11.

Hope that helps a little...I don't know too much about tubes, I haven't tried EL34s in my amp yet but I'm about to put in some SED winged C 6L6s and maybe an RCA 12AX7 in my V1 but haven't gotten around to it yet.

 

[jdurso]

Hello all !!

new to forum and must give kudos to all involved great board ! great source of information !
Ive been a boogie owner for years and finally took the plunge and purchased a new Roadster ,, still trying to dial in "that tone" and admittedly having some issues ,, 1st ,, gain structure ,, find myself having to get into the gain control substancially more than my 3 channel rec ,, normal ?? 2nd ,, sustain ,, having to really get into the channel volume to achieve the sustain that im used too on my dual ,, 3rd ,, tubes ,, any one using EL34's ?? ive read other threads in regards to this this issue but would really like to hear from someone who has made the jump and is sticking with it ,, im using a recto 2x12 cab mostly with prs' ( custom 22's )
I really want to love this amp like my dual but have to admit that its going to take some effort ,, oh ,, have an OCD on order so if anyone is using currently with thier Roadster would like to hear from them as well ,,

Thanks for listening ,, looking forward to frequent visits !!

welcome to the forum

first thing i will say is while the regular dual and the roadster share the fact they're both duals, the roadster is voiced somewhat different, meaning same settings on both amps will yield different tone. i find the reglar duals a little more aggressive whereas the roadster is a little smoother.

Now i think you can get the tone your after in both amps you just have to know how to get there (which may be different on each amp). With that said i would say start with manual's settings and find one thats in the ballpark and tweak from there (pretend you've never used a recto before). Keep in mind the gain structures are some what different and i find the roadster has a lot of gain, meaning even having the gain at or below 12 will yield a brutal tone. It took me a lot of experimenting with the different voicings, power settings, bold vs spongy, and even tubes to get what i was after. what kind of tone(s) are you after? and what settings do you have setup on your roadster right now?

now as for external devices helping you out what worked for me was getting both an eq for the loop and an OD infront. the EQ will give you the most band for your buck when it comes to tone shaping. It will let you dial in and out the appropriate frequencies to tighten things up and enhance your tone. The OD will help you tighten up the preamp but it will also add a nice layer of cream to your tone especially for leads. I have the OCD and i love it with the roadster. As far as tubes i've experiemented with kt77s and like them as a 6l6/el34 hybrid. They're tight and aggressive like an el34 but have the girth and body of the 6l6. Also they stay clean for your clean channel like a 6l6.

At the end of the day there are tons and tons of things you can do to find your tone but it starts with your guitar, amp and cabinet. changing one of those will yield the biggest changes. You may find after a lot of experiementing the roadster is not for you. BUT do a lot of experimenting befor eyou decide that. start with the settings in the manual and tweak from there. if you let us know what your after we'll try and supply some advice and our own settings. good luck and dont be afraid to ask questions.

 

[wolverine]

thanks !

preciate the input ! you are right about having to really get into the master portion ,, i agree ,, good to hear that the OCD seems like it will be a good addition ,, have yet to read anything really contrary about that pedal ,, we us epretty much the same gain settings and I thing thats prolly in the ball park ,,im sure it will just take some time !!

Thanks again !

 

[wolverine]

thanks jdurso !!

youd think id get it after playing for 30 years wouldnt you !! ,, playing mostly classic rock ( bar gigs ) ,, other than that ,, work on Petrucci'ish stuff ,, really dig that free form melodic minor controlled mayhem sound ,, ( make sense ?? :shock: ) ,, maybe oit just comes down to too many choices !!

thanks !

 

[Laskyman]

Congratulations- I just had my 1 year anniversary with my Roadster and I am happy to say we are still on the Honeymoon.
Best amp I have ever owned. You will enjoy this amp as it really will "grow" with you.
I find that at "home" levels, I use my overdrive more than in a band setting- once you kick the volume up a bit, both the 3rd and 4th channels come alive. I keep my gain at 11 oclock vintage on 3, and 1 oclock modern channel 4 and I do not have any problem with sustain....also, the diode setting tightens up the amp more than recto setting, and I prefer to run an EQ in the loop to dial out the 200s and kick up the 100s.

Last night after sound check, the sound guys came up and started talking to themselves over by my rig- I thought something was wrong, so I went over to speak with them about adjustments, etc. Turns out both of them were floored by the tone. Greatest compliment a guy can get. Unfortunatelly the room was horrible to play, but the sound guys were still lovin' them some Roadster....

Laskyman

 

[TheBlackman]

Hello all !!

new to forum and must give kudos to all involved great board ! great source of information !
Ive been a boogie owner for years and finally took the plunge and purchased a new Roadster ,, still trying to dial in "that tone" and admittedly having some issues ,, 1st ,, gain structure ,, find myself having to get into the gain control substancially more than my 3 channel rec ,, normal ?? 2nd ,, sustain ,, having to really get into the channel volume to achieve the sustain that im used too on my dual ,, 3rd ,, tubes ,, any one using EL34's ?? ive read other threads in regards to this this issue but would really like to hear from someone who has made the jump and is sticking with it ,, im using a recto 2x12 cab mostly with prs' ( custom 22's )
I really want to love this amp like my dual but have to admit that its going to take some effort ,, oh ,, have an OCD on order so if anyone is using currently with thier Roadster would like to hear from them as well ,,

Thanks for listening ,, looking forward to frequent visits !!

Hey, i've had my roadster for about a year now and have spent a lot of time finding my sound. I just got the OCD as well and use it to get extra sustain on CH2 and CH3.

The amp was killer sounding though last night with the wolfgang and les paul, both with stock pups...here are my settings i use live btw:

CH1:
Clean
Gain 12:00
Treb 12:00
Midd 11:00
Bass 12:00
Pres 12:00
Mast 11:00
Diode 100W

CH2:
Brit
Gain - Max
Treb 11:00
Mid - Max
Bass - 10:30ish
Pres - All the way off
Master 9:30
Recto 50W
Thow in a boost for leads (I use the OCD with volume maxed, gain off, and tone at about 11:00, HP)

CH3:
Vintage
Gain 2:00
Treb 1:00
Mid 11:00
Bass 1:00
Pres 11:00
Master 10:00
Recto 100W
Boost as above for leads (OCD)

CH4
Modern
Gain - 3:00
Treb - 2:00
Mid - All the way down
Bass - 12:00
Pres - 12:00
Master - 10:00
Diode 100W

Shoud sound good with a PRS. I keep these written down but though i should post them as a backup.

Oh, and i've tried EL34's in the amp, found them a little harsh on the brit channel but they were Electro-harmonix and not mesa or groove tubes. Didn't keep them in long enough to give a good opinion, but i did find they gave each channel a more distinct voice than with the 6l6's. If you have some take the time to mess around, your tastes may be different from mine.

 

[wolverine]

Thanks everyone for thier input !! really appreciate it !! in regards to the PRS thing ,,, they are a match made in heaven ,, there is nothing better than a custom 22 and a recto !! that being said ,,, i recently had the itch to change over the pups in my Clapton ,, just hated the fender vintage noiseless ,, they should have called them the fender vintage lifeless ,, anyways ,, dropped in a set of the Holy Grails from Lace and voila !! this thing through the rec is unbeleivable ,, big ,, ballsy ,, and dead silent !! well worth the try !!

thanks for all this ,, im sure im well on my way to another love affair ,,

 

[Robusto]

Welcome, from another newbie!

Great thread as well.

 

[scoden]

I just picked up a new Roadster 3 days ago and gigged it the very next day. (crazy right??) Its just a testament to how user friendly this amp is.

Some of my observations.....the first two channels not only have all sorts of great shades of clean / OD but they can actually blend quite well in a live setting when I switch between channels 1/2 to 3/4 pretty seemlessly in terms of volume matching. Other multi channel amps I use never quite sounded natural when Id go from clean to mean channel ...so got used to using guitars volume knob. Nice to know I can switch channels without worrying about a huge shift in percieved volume/ tone to rest of band/ audience.

I did notice( at home) that I tend to get footswitch pops mostly when I go from a diode set channel (2) to a recct tube set channell (3) ....even when I set 4 to diode for a mean aggressive metal tone ..back to 3 makes a bit of a pop...not sure how this will sound in a live setting.....anybody know if pop gets louder at gig volumes....I didnt swicth too much first gig ..used channel 3 / solo boost whole night and rode volume knob for different gain shades.

Also I used to have a Single Rect Solo 50 head...that I really hated beacuse it was way too muddy( for me ) and didnt have the crunch I liked to hear.
This amp is nothing like that and gets nice and old school crunch when I want ....yet still retains a smooth type of modern saturation when you need that.

Looking forward to getting more live time with it as I have 10 more shows this summer.

Peace.
Scott

 

[jdurso]

hey scott welcome to the club

the popping is one of the main flaws of the newer mesa amp (some not all). it has to do with the relays getting static built up during your power up. the way to tame/resolve it is to do a little pedal board dance while you're warming the amp up on standby. so with the amp on standby cycle through your channels a few times and come out of standby in channel 3. that will usually resolve all the static build up and you should be good to go. now understand also if you listen to it, its more of a mechanical sound. even with the cycling in standby you'll hear a very quite popping but at live volumes you wont hear it because you're playing lourder the the audible pop. hope this helps.

 

[scoden]

Thanks for the tips jdurso.

I will try it next time I power up....I dont mind if there is a quiet mechanical snap when I switch ...I was def getting more of a static pop.....and ONLY when I go from a diode set channel to a rect track set channel like 2-3 or from 4-3. Tuner button or fx loop never pop???

Hope your system works for me ....Id really like to have the ability to switch between the sag of the recto for crunchy rthym ...and the aggressive attack and clearer low end of the that diode setting for live work.

I realize nothing is perfect ...this is the only flaw I have come across....to me thats not a deal breaker thats for sure.

SV

 

[jdurso]

Thanks for the tips jdurso.

I will try it next time I power up....I dont mind if there is a quiet mechanical snap when I switch ...I was def getting more of a static pop.....and ONLY when I go from a diode set channel to a rect track set channel like 2-3 or from 4-3. Tuner button or fx loop never pop???

Hope your system works for me ....Id really like to have the ability to switch between the sag of the recto for crunchy rthym ...and the aggressive attack and clearer low end of the that diode setting for live work.

I realize nothing is perfect ...this is the only flaw I have come across....to me thats not a deal breaker thats for sure.

SV

the pop shouldnt be between different tubes but actually going from the quieter to and from channel 3. i dont know why channel 3 is the culpurit but thats the channel i noticed it happens with. to be honest with you after a year and a half with this amp i dont even notice it anymore.

 

[scoden]

Hey Jdurso

Tried the pedal dance ...but it still pops. At least its predictable and I know how to get around it. I really dialed in some sweet tones on 3 / 4 both with recto tracking.....that tube sag is real nice ......so no pop worries for now. Channel 4 can be very aggressive even without diode setting ...its all in the presence/ gain controls levels.

Id call Mesa just to pick their brains...but they probably will blow me off and tell me to balance my volumes better.......I dont mind if its a quirk of the design ..but it would be cool if they just put out a bulletin to address/ admit / offer tips on how to manage it.

 

[songrider]

You can call Mesa and they will not blow you off... Thats the BIGGEST difference between Mesa and most of the others. They will talk to you and they are concerned with making you happy.

My roadster popped alot more the first few weeks I had it... I do the power up dance on that and my Dual Rec triple and I dont really notice it anymore. Just every once and awhile.

 

[metalmm785]

Hey Bud,
Welcome to the forum and congrats on the amp.
Btw, i did call mesa to ask about the popping and the customer service rep explained to me that there is so much stuff going on with the amp that pretty much between the channel switching and the different tube/recto and multi-watt settings, it's bound to do it.
I'm not much fussed about it because after playing the amp for a period of time, it goes away.

 

[Robusto]

when I picked up my Roadster, My salesperson warned me about the channel 3 pop, even as we were powering up.

seems that it is a very common occourance with the amp.