Out of Production amps

[the.rev]

something i've always wondered, why did Mesa stop making

the tremoverb?

the heartbreaker?

the blue angel?

i always wanted to get my hands on a tremoverb

 

[MrMarkIII]

Because folks stopped buying them.

Here's a Trem-O on eBay (not mine):
http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Tremoverb-RARE-combo-guitar-amp_W0QQitemZ130231522957QQihZ003QQcategoryZ10171QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[lyman]

i do agree with MrMarkIII, but it's not just that "people stopped buying them." it's a smart business plan to keep developing new stuff. companies know that a % of their past customers are going to buy their new offerings simply because they're new and they like the other stuff they've bought from that company. so if every few years you've got a new product line, you are probably going to make more sales. it makes sense from a marketing/sales point of view not to rely on the same 4 amps, as a lot of people will buy them once and stick with them for years (no new sales). just look at people's signatures: lots of folks have several mesas. i've owned 2.

and as far as discontinuing amps, they have to "make room" for the new offerings. i don't mean making physical space, i mean not having products that occupy the same niche in the market. then you're just competing with yourself.

and mesa started up selling customized, tricked out, fenders. modifying, engineering, and improving has always been what they've been about. so i'm sure they're going to be adding/deleting products for a while...

 

[TheRazMeister]

something i've always wondered, why did Mesa stop making

the tremoverb?

the heartbreaker?

the blue angel?

I always wanted to get my hands on a tremoverb

From what I remember the tremoverb was a 100 watt combo...I always thought that it defeated the purpose of having a combo to make it 100 watts. Too bulky/heavy, too many tubes, too much power. Everyone seems to like the sound however! 8) Regarding the other 2.. :?:

 

[siggy14]

Tremoverb was also a head unit, came in all flavors and before the roadking it was the flagship of the rectifier series.

something i've always wondered, why did Mesa stop making

the tremoverb?

the heartbreaker?

the blue angel?

I always wanted to get my hands on a tremoverb

From what I remember the tremoverb was a 100 watt combo...I always thought that it defeated the purpose of having a combo to make it 100 watts. Too bulky/heavy, too many tubes, too much power. Everyone seems to like the sound however! 8) Regarding the other 2.. :?:

 

[the.rev]

great post lyman, thanks for the info.

but they continue to make the dual and triple rectos, or will they always be around as long as there's a market for them or until they evolve into something else, not unlike how the JCM 800 progressed into the 2000.

or has that already happened with the road king/roadster?

fwiw, i think some people still just want to have just a big and loud, balls to the wall amp, without all the tricky stuff, that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[MasterTrax]

I have a few thoughts on the subject.

As the amplifier models evolve, I try not to think of them so much by name, but by type. Most of their amps are simply going through a refinement and revision process over the years. It's always interesting to me to see which incarnations of the many along the evolutionary path become classics over the years and which ones fall into obscurity. Sometimes the best one of a particular type isn't the latest version or even the most popular at the time....the players themselves decide this over the years. Meanwhile, I am grateful to companies such as Mesa and Orange, who are always looking ahead in order to keep things fresh and exciting for their customer base, and who have built great numbers of wonderful instruments for us over the years that we still buy and play and trade today.

 

[MasterTrax]

****, I sure do say "Over the Years" a lot...

...over the years.

 

[msi]

Another reason for the change is the cost to build. At the time the rectifiers went from two channels to three Mesa changed how the amps were assembled. Compare a two channels output tube sockets with the three channels. The two channel amps (and trem-o-verb) required a huge commitment of man hours to assemble. There are cables all over the place, and parts not assembled on PCB boards. Mistakes are easier to make on the two channel amps. They are also very difficult to service.

With the Three channel amps the boards can be populated very quickly and accurately by machine, then the amps canassembled and the transformers and potentiometers wired by hand. All board to board connections are almost all done with ribbon cables exclusively. The three channel amps can do with one relay what the two channels did with four LDRs. Likewise there is more switching via transistors in the three channel amps. The cost to build the three channel amps is way less than on the two channel amps. And quality control on the three channel amps is easier because wiring mistakes are harder to commit.

 

[TheRazMeister]

Tremoverb was also a head unit, came in all flavors and before the roadking it was the flagship of the rectifier series.

[/quote]

Good point about the head (although I've NEVER seen one )
But I think you answered the question if the roadking became the new "Flagship" More channels, more tones, more MONEY!!

 

[Murphy Slaw]

But.

On the other hand............

Fender still sells a lot of reissue 65 Deluxe Amps.

Basically the same amp for over 40 years.

I was kind of surprised to see the end of the Mark 1 and Mark 4. Even if they didn't sell a lot.

The Blue Angel is my gig amp. But I have a theory about it.

People don't turn to Mesa when looking for a single channel, non master gain amp. Period. The thought never enters their mind. That's what made me look at it. And what a beauty she is. Anyone who spends time with one, and understands non master gain tubes amps, will get it. I don't like high gain amps, but play a Mesa!

But I don't see it ever happening again. I'll probably have to move on to a Dr Z. or something if I want an EL84 amp with a non master channel.

Bottom line, it's all about the bottom line. Mesa is well known for high quality, high gain, very complex multi channel amps that weigh a ton!

And they do that better than anyone else!

Murph.

 

[phyrexia]

From what I remember the tremoverb was a 100 watt combo...I always thought that it defeated the purpose of having a combo to make it 100 watts. Too bulky/heavy, too many tubes, too much power. Everyone seems to like the sound however! 8) Regarding the other 2.. :?:

That's silly. Nearly the first Mesa was a 100w combo amp.

The Blue Angel I think was just a flop, basically. While it is a really cool amp (i'm still honeymooning mine, but I think it will remain with me) people don't go for a Mesa for a non-MV amp, just like someone said earlier.

When did the Tremoverb get discontinued? I wonder if the thought process was similiar to this:

1) build DR
2) build DR combo (tremoverb)
3) build RK
4) discontinue tremoverb
5) build RK combo
6) build Roadster Combo (new 100w DR combo)

Does that make sense? I'm low on sleep today.

 

[MrMarkIII]

...It's a smart business plan to keep developing new stuff. companies know that a % of their past customers are going to buy their new offerings simply because they're new and they like the other stuff they've bought from that company. so if every few years you've got a new product line, you are probably going to make more sales.
It makes sense from a marketing/sales point of view not to rely on the same 4 [products], as a lot of people will buy them once and stick with them for years (no new sales)...
And as far as discontinuing [products], they have to "make room" for the new offerings. i don't mean making physical space, i mean not having products that occupy the same niche in the market. then you're just competing with yourself...

Even the bright, shiny, "new-and-improved" crap is dropped like a hot potato if it doesn't sell.
All marketers would love for consumers to believe that marketing drives sales, when it's really the other way around.

 

[TheRazMeister]

From what I remember the tremoverb was a 100 watt combo...I always thought that it defeated the purpose of having a combo to make it 100 watts. Too bulky/heavy, too many tubes, too much power. Everyone seems to like the sound however! 8) Regarding the other 2.. :?:

That's silly. Nearly the first Mesa was a 100w combo amp.

You might think that's silly but I'd wager that 100 watters are by far the worst selling combo amps. Especially these days when sound men prefer low stage volumes.

 

[MrMarkIII]

Sound-men have always wanted low stage volume. They're control freaks over-compensating for abnormally small genitalia.

 

[Fixxer6671]

A 100 watt combo is silly in my opinion. Get a head and a cab. That is why these T-verb combos are cheap, and the heads fetch a few hundred more.