New Roadster: Positive Jamming Experience

[Artiefufkin10]

Relatively new member to the board here.

I recently picked up a used Roadster 2X12 that was purchased in January '07. The guy I bought it from was a die-hard Mark IV guy and didn't feel that he needed it. He ended up selling the Roadster to me for about 25% off of the new price, so I felt like I got a great deal.

After a few weeks of bedroom level playing, I got the opportunity to jam with my friends with it.....man the thing really rips! Previously, I had been playing my Ibanez JS1000 through a Line 6 Flextone II and I could NEVER cut through. what a difference!
Also, I love how the amp can evolve from shimmering cleans on "twead mode", british rock on "brit" and the "vintage" rock/lead sounds on channel 3. Since we were supposed to practice, I tried to not bore the other guys by tweaking my settings the whole time, but I had a few questions for other Roadster/DR enthusiasts.

1) At times I felt the amp was a little "clippy". Is this an inherent sound of the dual rects, or was it more likely that I didn't have enough head room in my settings? My channel masters were around 12-1:00 and and my output was maybe around 10-11:00. Also, I was using the 50Watt setting and tube rectifiers, which may make a difference.

2) What are some good suggestions for getting more sustain and warmth out of channel 3? I had the bite I wanted with Ch1/Ch2, but I wanted my leads to sing a tad bit more. I'm unfamiliar with the presence controls, so I imagine getting familiar with that would be useful.

3) What's the general consensus on the 6L6's vs the EL34s? The manual warns that the EL34's may sound good in Ch1/2 but could be too thin for 3 and 4. Any experience with this?

4) This thing is HEAVY! It didn't take me long before I started thinking about the possibility of trading it in for a head and picking up a cab. Has anyone done this?

Thanks, so far great amp, but there's a lot more tweaking to be done.

 

[Platypus]

1) At times I felt the amp was a little "clippy". Is this an inherent sound of the dual rects, or was it more likely that I didn't have enough head room in my settings? My channel masters were around 12-1:00 and and my output was maybe around 10-11:00. Also, I was using the 50Watt setting and tube rectifiers, which may make a difference.

Try using the 100W mode, you're running out of headroom in 50W it sounds like.

2) What are some good suggestions for getting more sustain and warmth out of channel 3? I had the bite I wanted with Ch1/Ch2, but I wanted my leads to sing a tad bit more. I'm unfamiliar with the presence controls, so I imagine getting familiar with that would be useful.

Rectifiers aren't known for their good lead voice.. you'll most likely want to use an overdrive pedal to get a better lead tone

3) What's the general consensus on the 6L6's vs the EL34s? The manual warns that the EL34's may sound good in Ch1/2 but could be too thin for 3 and 4. Any experience with this?

I liked EL34's in my Rectos but they're designed around a 6L6 platform.. the only way to tell which you'd prefer is to just try it yourself

4) This thing is HEAVY! It didn't take me long before I started thinking about the possibility of trading it in for a head and picking up a cab. Has anyone done this?

Mesa's 2x12's are heavy.. but they have the ease of moving one piece as opposed to two.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

Pretty much second everything Platypus just stated

And STRONGLY second that Recto's have a poor lead voice...could never get a good sustain out of them. Many like to use overdrives...still didn't really do it for me.

 

[Artiefufkin10]

Thanks for the responses.

I've read in a lot of other posts that people generally prefer a Mark IV or Stiletto lead sound to a Recto lead sound. I think the potential is there on the Roadster, i just need to work with it a little more. Being my first tube amp, I might just need to familiarize myself with the various sounds provided by different tubes.

@4life, I'm not a big pedal guy...to me its just something else to tweak and get frustrated with, which is why I'm just looking to keep it old school, amp + guitar.

@platypus, how do you feel the lead sounds of the stiletto cut through? You seem to enjoy it in other threads. I might try this amp at the store. Although its very hard to look past the 4 channel capabilities of the roadster.

Thanks to all.

 

[Platypus]

Thanks for the responses.

I've read in a lot of other posts that people generally prefer a Mark IV or Stiletto lead sound to a Recto lead sound. I think the potential is there on the Roadster, i just need to work with it a little more. Being my first tube amp, I might just need to familiarize myself with the various sounds provided by different tubes.

@4life, I'm not a big pedal guy...to me its just something else to tweak and get frustrated with, which is why I'm just looking to keep it old school, amp + guitar.

@platypus, how do you feel the lead sounds of the stiletto cut through? You seem to enjoy it in other threads. I might try this amp at the store. Although its very hard to look past the 4 channel capabilities of the roadster.

Thanks to all.

The stiletto has fantastic lead sounds, I think it's the closest rival to the Mark IV that Mesa puts out today. It DEFINITELY cuts through the mix without a single doubt. As for the Roadster, I'm not saying 4 channels is neccesarily a bad idea but it's adding a lot of unneeded complexity in my opinion. I think 3 is plenty if not overkill. You can easily create different sounds with your guitar volume or stomping on a pedal. There is no 'one amp does it all' solution out there as much as people want there to be. If you feel like you'd use all 4 channels then go for it, everyone is different. For me, I typically like a clean and a dirty channel and everything in between I'll use pedals on the clean channel to acheive.

The Stiletto is voiced very differently than the rectifier you have, if not completely opposite. It's a very bright/tight midgain amplifier whereas your rectifier has a looser/scooped mid feel to it. At the end of the day it comes down to what gives you YOUR sound. Take comments you read with a grain of salt and use your ears to decide! 8)

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

I know what you mean...not really a pedal guy either...which is why I ditched my Dual Rectifier...I couldn't find the tones without pedals, and I didn't want to bother with pedals. :?

 

[Artiefufkin10]

Thanks again.

The whole tube amp thing is very new and exciting to me. I'm now at the point where I can afford one and actually take advantage of its uses. That said, I bought the Roadster sort of impulsively because I was getting a good deal, plus I liked the way it sounded. Also, Boogie's are known for holding their value, so I knew I wouldn't lose out on much if I decided to trade/sell.

But like you said, Platypus, the dynamics of tube amps are incredible. You get so much more by just varying the guitar volume than you would on solid state amps. And I felt that all the options on my Flextone were more dehabilitating than useful.

 

[ibanez4life SZ!]

^That I will give you...love the dynamics of a tube amp....as of late, I've been pretty much using one channel, and a volume pedal to go from clean to all out gain....allows me swell in distoriton...LOVE IT!

 

[noodles]

Hmm, I have no problem getting great lead tones out of my Roadster. :?

It's pretty common knowledge that you run a tube screamer in front of a Recto. I'm not a pedal guy, but that is one is an exception. The only time I turn it off is when I'm playing on channel one.

The preamp tubes Mesa is using are lousy in V1. Pick up a Tung Sol 12AX7 (reissue) and the amp completely changes. The top end smooths out, the mids warm up, and the bottom end tightens up.

You also may not like V30s. I personally think they are a horrible pairing with Rectos. The midrange peak is in the wrong spot, and the bottom end is loose as hell. I prefer the tighter, smoother response of the C90.

Now I've got several lead options available to me. Ch2/Brit with the gain cranked screams like an 80s Marshall on steroids. Ch3/Vintage with the gain cranked is a nice hard rock sound, with plenty of gain and bite. Ch4/Modern with the gain slightly past half sings like no tomorrow.

I've A/B'ed a Roadster and a Stiletto II back to back, and I don't know where people get off saying the Recto can't do leads. It's just different, and it depends on the sound you're going for. I'm not a big fan of EL-34's, so the Stiletto is too bright/midrangey for my usual taste, but nothing does modded Marshall better right now. The Recto is more of the modern lead sound, as long as you spend some time tweaking it.

 

[Artiefufkin10]

@noodles

never doubted that the roadster couldn't produce a good lead channel...it was CH3/vintage mode that sold me on the amp on top of the tweed and Brit voicings of CH1/2. CH4 I just haven't really had the chance to dive into...yet. So far it seems similar to 3 but I know the presence control acts way different on this channel. I think I can find the sustain the next opportunity I get to turn up...this pup is no bedroom amp for sure.

Btw, what kind of guitar are you playing?

 

[Artiefufkin10]

also @ noodles.

What did you mean by "V1"? Is that the first pre-amp stage tube? And you find drastically better tone just by replacing that one preamp tube? interesting.

 

[Silverwulf]

What did you mean by "V1"? Is that the first pre-amp stage tube? And you find drastically better tone just by replacing that one preamp tube? interesting.

It has the most overall effect on your tone. If you really want to try some different options, preamp tubes are cheap. Just drop $30-$40 and pick up a handful of different 12AX7/ECC83 tubes to swap in and out of V1 and see what you like best...Tung Sol, high gain JJ, etc.

 

[Anonymous]

Post removed.

 

[vertigo_]

I think roadster is one of most complete mesa amp out right now. I don't know what do people mean by "can't get a decent lead tone out of a roadster/recto". When I brought the roadster...I compared it side with an mark IV(used). The mark IV had great stuff...but the roadster didn't lack at all. Actually in some departments it was better than the mark. I am not going into which departments...don't wanna start a mark vs. recto war.

But people who are thinking about getting a roadster..don't be afraid, get it. You can get some sweet lead tones in channel 3 vintage mode.

V

 

[Platypus]

edit: nevermind, not worth it.

 

[vertigo_]

oh snap! its on...

 

[Storm]

All I can say is that I love my Roadster. Leadwise it lacks a little bit and I use vintage channel three. I plan to get a Maxon OD-9 to fix that little niggle up.

Ciao ...

 

[Artiefufkin10]

Its amusing how people cite Ch3/vintage as the roadster's "sound" for lead tones. I picked up on this right away and agree 100%.

 

[vertigo_]

yep...people who are still looking for a good lead tone in roadster use chn3/vintage!

 

[Laskyman]

You can get some sweet lead tones in channel 3 vintage mode.

Believe me, there are also great lead tones in channel 4 as well (Vintage or Modern). I run a GT8 via 4CM, and front end my lead channel w/ a tube screamer sim. Adds a touch of gain without too much additional level, tightens it up, and isn't noisy.

The preamp tubes Mesa is using are lousy in V1. Pick up a Tung Sol 12AX7 (reissue) and the amp completely changes. The top end smooths out, the mids warm up, and the bottom end tightens up

When "dropping" in a diferent variety of preamp tube, is it really as simple as removing and replacing the tube? Where can I get a tube diagram of the Roadster?


Laskyman