New Studio Caliber (my first tube amp!)

[bigfoot]

Hi

I bought this amp on ebay a couple of months ago and I really love it (this pic is from the internet, but mine is exactly the same, same tolex too). The thing sounds amazing! I've just put new output tubes in it (they were quite old so I got some JJ EL84's) and it's like an even better amp than before! Can't believe how much I can hear my different guitars! The clean channel is beautiful and it takes pedals really well. I've never had a tube amp in all my years of playing, but have always wanted a Mesa Boogie... It was £500 off eBay, a good introduction to the valve world and Mesa Boogies, I think I got a great amp for the price

Does anyone know when it was made? Am I in the right part of the forum?!? A lot of Studio Calibers were made in the 80's I think, and some look a bit different, I've heard some have slightly different pre-amp stages? (like the 22+??)

Cheers
Greg

 

[himmelhund]

Looks like an F-series to me... I have a Studio .22 and it only has one row of controls... no real channel switching, just an extra boost stage that kicks in via the foot pedal... I think you have a channel-switching amp from the F-series. I think they made an F20 but if you have two EL84s in the back it might be an F30, dunno.

 

[MichaelC4]

Not an F series. The Studio Caliber has no EQ. All its bigger DC relatives have them.

 

[bigfoot]

there are 6x 12ax7's in the preamp stage and 2x EL84's in the output stage. it says 'studio caliber' like the pic, and has exactly the same tolex as the pic! the only manual i can find on the boogie site relevant enough to it is the 'studio cal DC-2'. i'm thinking post 1990? not sure! it looks like an F-series but i thought they had EL34's or 6L6's?

 

[MrMarkIII]

The amp pictured pre-dates the F-series. They're from the early-to-mid 90s like the Maverick, with the pretty much separate channel pre-amp tubes.
The F-series has four 12AX7s, shared by the channels, and does not have tube-driven reverb.
The F-series also has the multi-pin DIN-style foot switch which plugs into the rear of the chassis. The example pictured still used the old-style but more robust (IMO) single MXR type foot switch box with a 1/4" cable. It plugs into the jack right below the input.
"DC-2" is just an updated name for the "Studio Caliber" to put it into the DC camp and further differentiate it from the older Studio 22.
So the chronology is:
Studio 22 --> Studio Caliber --> DC-2 --> F-30.
The Studio 22 circuit is mid-80s, closer to the Mark series. The Studio Caliber and DC-2 are very close if not identical. The F-30 is a different animal, a different model.
All have two EL-84 power tubes.
... And that's all I know.

 

[MichaelC4]

i'm thinking post 1990? not sure!

The September 1991 Price List has the Studio .22 still listed.
I've got a September 1996 and it lists the DC-2 Studio Caliber.

The only way to find out when yours was made is to look inside to see the month and year written in marker.

 

[bigfoot]

where would i find the date inside?

there's a little bit of quiet hiss going on, which is apparently normal for tubes. but there was some intermittent crackling the other day, my friend advised me to buy a new 12ax7 and switch out my preamp tubes one at a time to see if it's a dodgy tube.

does anyone know which position from left to right, are v1 - v6, and what each of them do in this type of boogie amp?

i've read the position closest to the input jack is usually v1, but i'm not sure. and what does the PI tube do, which slot is it?

cheers

 

[bigfoot]

well i used a bit of assumption and changed what i think is v1 (closest to input jack) with a new electro harmonix 12ax7 (sovtek?), it sounds much better now. i changed the tube and turned the amp on, there was no crackling or anything, and there seems to be less hiss, it also sounds warmer and clearer. the lead channel also sounds much better, you still can't get that metallica crunch without a TS9 and some EQ, but it's loads better. the gain is high, the distortion is smoother, and there is less noise all round.

i've been playing for a couple of hours and still no crackling, seems like the change might have done the trick.