Played my DC5 on 6 and 7!!!

[edward]

Wow! I was lending a hand playing at an outdoor gig and got the preamp masters at around 6, and the output master at 7 (there were three other guitars ). Loud but gorgeous! Girth and tone, oh man, just beautiful! I have never had the opportunity to gig at that volume before, and man was it fun! I only wish I had the thiele with me, but even with "just" the combo, it sounded amazing. This is one fine musical instrument, gents!!! Anyway, just thought I'd share.

Edward

 

[mikevirok]

All these great reviews are making the level of anticipation rise for the arrival of my DC-5 with each post I read!!!

 

[blacklight_uk]

No doubt about it the DC-5 comes alive when you turn it up! It surprises me how much brighter and BALLSIER it becomes! It's such a great feeling when all the Dual Rec guys come along with their volumes on 3 and you get to blow them away haha! :lol:

P.S. I owned a DR Roadster before so i know!

 

[Calamity]

Glad to hear it! I'm surprised you aren't deaf or anything :lol: I've turned up my DC-3 (the little brother, I suppose :wink to about 2 and 3 or 3 and 3 in my bedroom, and I almost had a heart attack. I mean, the floor was shaking like crazy :lol: Can't wait to gig somewhere where I can really crank it and share my heart attack with the audience :twisted:

 

[highwaynine]

< Napoleon Dynamite >

LuUckee!

</ Napoleon Dynamite >


:wink: 8)

 

[Monsta-Tone]

:lol: :lol: :lol:

It's a beautiful thing!

I read somewhere that Santana puts all of his knobs on 7. I tried that once in a big warehouse and almost lost my teeth.


Sooooo loud, but so beautiful at the same time!

 

[edward]

You guys gotta understand my joy and surprise here. I've owned this amp for almost 10 years, done lots of playing from here to there, mostly church ...which regularly includes high-energy youth-oriented rock and punk-style stuff (...and an occasional hymn). Then there's the "after-hours" jam that inevitably revolves around classic rock to blues-based rock (given we're all in that age range)
So the bottom line is every band situation has been indoor ...lively and high energy, but indoors with a full PA mix.

First outdoor gig for me ...whoa!!! The PA was limited to vocals and drums ...all the rest of the instruments were unmic'd, so we had to balance among ourselves and not get lost in the "mix." All told, it was not "deafening" at my settings as one may think, but my DC5 and the fine musicians I was with (of which I was trying not to embarrass their superb playing) all sang out loud and proud! By the closing tune (LZ' Rock and Roll), the mix was on fire. Not bragging, mind you, as I just try to hold my own ...I'm just celebrating!! Anyway, thanks for letting me share, guys. What a high compared to indoor gigs.

Edward

 

[zeroeffect]

The DC-5 rocks...no doubt about it. When I record with it, I put it in a closet and turn it way up. It's definitely at the top of its game when turned way up. I love my DC-5! It will never leave me (touch wood).

 

[mule#1]

I sure do miss mine

 

[MJ Slaughter]

Nothing like a good tube amp turned up loud enough to cause internal organ damage! I have a DC-10, not that much louder than DC-5, that I keep on the 60 watt setting. During recording of a demo I place it in another room door shut and cranked. Sounds great and I don't even have to monitor it in the headphones. Of course I may need to re-caulk some windows soon.

Has anyone tried a power attenuator on a DC-5/10 before? I don't mean for bedroom levels, that usually doesn’t work well overly used, but live shows with a little attenuation where you want all the power tube goodness without blowing the band off the stage. I don't like the idea of bringing another piece of gear to a gig but this is tempting.

 

[Paul Secondino]

I just got mine today and yes, it needs to be turned up to sound right. It isn't really a bedroom friendly amp in that the lead channel will sound grainy at low volumes . The Channel masters need to be at 2.5 or more or the amp will sound dark as hell. Once the channel masters go up past there, the power section is being fed enough signal to sound proper and the amp opens up.

The Rectifiers are slightly more bedroom friendly but they never lose their graininess . And the DC 5 while not offering a pristine clean does have a usable clean and that sound is probably the most capable mid gain tone mesa has created so far.

 

[Monsta-Tone]

I swapped out my Tone Stack caps, which are cheap IC brand with SBE 715 series Orange Drops and a Silver Mica for the Treble Cap.

This has made a world of difference on my Clean channel. Before I did it, I could never get a good clean sound. Now, the amp has just a touch of hair on the clean channel, but it sounds much more open to my ears.


They are much fatter than the originals, so you have to make sure they are tall enough to fit over everything else that is around them. Try it though, you won't be disappointed.