Opions with a Mesa Quad with a 20/20 Power amp

[JB6464]

I am currently running a Mesa 50/50 with my Quad preamp but still to loud. If i run the the 50/50 in 1/2 mode,it does'nt sound as good as the full power mode. To get the Quad to sound great, i have to open up the 50/50 about half way up. Now its blistering loud. Do you guys think the 20/20 would sound better at lower volumes ? Would the 20/20 make a good match with the Quad preamp ? Or should i look at some other type of power amp all together ? Any help and ideas would be great,thanks.

 

[Bobby Marshall]

I have the Quad and the Studio Pre. I haven't had the chance to run my Quad through my Peavey 50/50 but I was using my Studio Pre and Peavey 50/50 as my stage rig and I loved it. This is relevant to you since the Peavey 50/50 runs the same power tubes as the Mesa 20/20, EL84 power tubes. Just the Mesa 20/20 runs two power tubes per channel and the Peavey runs 4 per channel. Great sounding power section and IMO just as full as using a 6L6 based power section.

People seem to really like the 20/20. They sell used for more than the Mesa 50/50 sells used (or at least they used to).

Remember 20 watts is about 65-70% of the volume of 50 watts (since you have to reduce the watts by the power of 10 to reduce the volume by 50% - so 5 watts is 50% as loud as 50 watts). It makes sense that you will hit the sweet spot at a lower volume with the 20/20 but its still quite loud.

My other power amps are Mesa Stereo 95 watters but the 20/20 has always received stellar reviews and has always intrigued me. It is definitely on the short list of stuff I would buy if I have the scratch. 95 watts are cool for outdoor gigs but would be nice to be able to have cranked tones for a small indoor gig too.

If you get the 20/20 used and don't like it, you could probably resell easily and only be out the shipping from the first purchase.

Good luck,

Bobby