Owner of a new F-50

[beyondthislife]

Hey guys,

I've posted around here a couple times and I am glad to say I can legitimately join the ranks of a Boogie owner. I just picked up a new F-50 today and played around with it for a little bit. It's awesome and I've got to play in the school play tonight so I can't wait to show up with this tone monster. Anyway, I have a couple questions.

1. In the back of the amp I feel something like a leather pouch on the bottom of the amp and I think it's got something in it. What the heck is up with that?

2. Is the pop when switching from channel 2 to channel 1 or vice versa normal? It's kinda loud and I don't want to be hurting anything.

Well, I'm sure I'll be coming up with more questions soon. Thanks.

 

[John C]

Hey guys,

1. In the back of the amp I feel something like a leather pouch on the bottom of the amp and I think it's got something in it. What the heck is up with that?

The pouch covers the reveb tank for the amp. I believe the pouch is supposed to insulate the tank from vibrations from the cabinet.

Sorry, the last Boogie I had was a DC-3 and I just can't remember if or how much it popped when changing channels. Hopefully someone else with more experience with the F Series amps will chime in.

 

[freddycaster]

the thing in the pouch is the reverb tank - you're gonna need it
I have an older one and it doesn't have the pop - maybe just a tube break in thing

 

[Brewski]

My F-50 pops a little when switching. I wouldn't be concerned about it hurting your amp. Depending on whether you use it during a song, may be a small annoyance. It could be a break in thing.

 

[dumeril7]

The pop is because Mesa uses relays for channel switching. They have some circuitry in there to mute the pop, but its not always 100% effective. On my F-30, its not bad enough to really bother me.

Congrats!

D7

 

[Charlie]

Don't listen to these people about the pouch being there for the reverb tank.

They are all liars.

The pouch is there so you can put your weed in it!

:lol:

Just kidding of course! Congrats on your F-50 I just got mine a few weeks ago and I'm loving it. I had to re-tube my preamp because I didn't like the stock Mesa tubes. Not sure if they were bad or what but it sounds fantastic now.

Don't do drugs.

 

[recto-robbie]

I have read in other threads in the past of people stating they had some pop in their amps with the f50. I believe some had mentioned they could get rid of it by cycling the channels back and forth a couple times with the footswitch. Just thought Id try,,,good luck

 

[noicee]

hey congrats on your mesa boogie f50!

I own one, and i love it

Im pretty sure hte popping sound you hear is only whn you change channels for the first time after turnign the amp on, right?

I asked someone on a forum, and they told me not to worry about it.. so im guessing its alight.

Enjoy your f50, its a beast!

 

[Schmoog]

as an ex-f50 owner, I can tell you what the pop is. I actually spoke to mesa about it just cause I was curious. what happenes is that static electricity can build up in the switching relays slightly, and that static will release causing a pop. I had a pedal that did this also. usually if you change the channels about 20 times or so when you first turn it on, it will discharge the static, and you'll be pop free

 

[beyondthislife]

Cool stuff. I had just gotten it home and checked it out so a couple of switches should help. I was so impressed tonight. I didn't really play around with the F-50. Actually, I didn't play one at all. I played an F-30, did some research and bought one while I still could. I'm used to solid-state amps and modellers so when I cranked up the clean....oh lordy. I was so proud of my amp.

Thanks for the quick answers!

 

[Russ]

Congrats on the purchase. A first tube amp can be a real eye opener, so can little annoyances like the static pop. These are things you just learn to live with for good tone. Fortunately, the answers are usually simple.

 

[beyondthislife]

Ah, another question.

Even though the amp was new, it had a little rip in the grill. Is it easy/possible to replace the grill with the mesa logo on it so it looks new?

 

[freddycaster]

the grill can be replaced - just so happens I have an extra if you're interested - logo and all
it's black and in mint conidition $50+shipping
I just ordered a new one (tan) from Mesa $150 + $20 shipping

 

[hal9000]

Hey guys,

I've posted around here a couple times and I am glad to say I can legitimately join the ranks of a Boogie owner. I just picked up a new F-50 today and played around with it for a little bit. It's awesome and I've got to play in the school play tonight so I can't wait to show up with this tone monster. Anyway, I have a couple questions.

1. In the back of the amp I feel something like a leather pouch on the bottom of the amp and I think it's got something in it. What the heck is up with that?

2. Is the pop when switching from channel 2 to channel 1 or vice versa normal? It's kinda loud and I don't want to be hurting anything.

Well, I'm sure I'll be coming up with more questions soon. Thanks.

Congrats on the new amp! Have you seen this: http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=885856

Here's my quick and dirty on the F-series:

This is for getting exceptional low volume performance and adding an overall master for both channels for a few bucks:

 

[Surfcaster]

Congrats on the new amp. Another F50 owner here. I really like the amp, great cleans and mean overdrive. My only real complaint is that the while the distortion channel sounds great at higher volumes, it's not that great at family friendly volumes, so I've gone to using the clean channel with an MI Audio Crunch Box for distortion when playing at home.

Thanks for the info, Schmoog. I notice the popping sometimes on my amp and don't at other times...Mesa's explanation would explain that.

 

[Charlie]

Finally got to play mine a little more today. I'm REALLY liking the sound of the clean channel dimed. Great breakup and it cleans up nicely if I play softly. I should be getting my Hot Plate sometime this week I can't wait to try it.

Btw has anybody tried their F-50 out with the 5881 tubes that Mesa sells? They claim it's a rounder sound then the 6l6's they ship it with.

 

[nemesys]

I use those 5881s in my F-50. The stock 6L6s combined with the C90 speaker are a little on the bright side for my taste, and the 5881s tame the highs nicely without introducing any muddiness. The tone is rounder, and a little more mellow, especially on the cleans. They also aren't quite as sensitive to pick attack as the 6L6s are.

They seem to run a little hotter than the stock tubes, which honestly could be my imagination -- they haven't caused any problems, in any case.

 

[Charlie]

I use those 5881s in my F-50. The stock 6L6s combined with the C90 speaker are a little on the bright side for my taste, and the 5881s tame the highs nicely without introducing any muddiness. The tone is rounder, and a little more mellow, especially on the cleans. They also aren't quite as sensitive to pick attack as the 6L6s are.

They seem to run a little hotter than the stock tubes, which honestly could be my imagination -- they haven't caused any problems, in any case.

Cool man thanks for letting me know about that. I think I'm going to get myself a pair of 5881s next paycheck. Worst case scenario I'll end up with a set of backup tubes.

:lol: