I would have to side with Eevil on that. The ACE is at least based on the Stage II version of the Stiletto. The closest I ever got to comparing the two was a Stiletto Stage 1 Deuce and the Royal Atlantic RA100.
That was more of apple to banana comparison. Similar color to the fruit meat but totally different taste. Both competing for the Brit side of the tone farm. I did not keep the Stiletto Deuce Stage 1 for very long, probably just enough time to realize it was not for me and also because I had a short time limit to return it to GC as I bought it online. Traded it in for a RA100 combo that cost me $750. Just an extra cost of $200 over what I paid for the Deuce. The RA was more of my thing. The TC sort of falls into the RA scope but that too is a bit different. Have the TC100 and TC50. Fun amps to play through.
A brief side note on both in general:
Not just the stock tube sound, what about alternatives? Since the bulk of Stiletto all the way up to the recent Badlander, the EL34 Mesa tube is the STR447. Made in Russia and is the EH EL34 tube. Recently Mesa did add in another variant to their offering. They have been working with TAD and PSVANE for alternatives to the Russian tubes and the Chinese Shuguang tubes. PSVANE is Chinese based product. Just for reference, this is the new EL34 tube. Not sure on the specs though.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...boogie-el-34-str-446-power-tubes-matched-duet
Back to opinion based content:
TC50 has a drier character to it compared to its big brother TC100. Awesome if you are into palm muting style. 6-string to 7-string will do. Nice features and such. Much better with the 6V6 tube than the TC100. 6L6 type, the 5881 sounded good in the TC50. I would stay away from NOS EL34 tubes though, plate voltage runs at 450 or a bit higher. I learned the hard way. Mesa did a decent job with the running the EH EL34 (Mesa STR447). I believe the same was stock tubes for the ACE and Stiletto line. ACE and Stiletto amps in general are EL34 power tube specific (this includes the variants: 6CA7, KT77). Based on the plate voltages, 480VDC, not a good candidate for the STR450 NOS Siemens EL34. Current production EL34 can handle a higher screen voltage than the NOS versions.
Those that run the ACE or other Stiletto can add or correct my statement on power tube choice. It does not have the option to run 6L6 tubes. Completely different preamp designs along with the tube rectification tracking. Has plenty of the features borrowed from the Rectifier platform of that era so I am interested in the ACE to some extent. The Stiletto Duece Stage 1 was not bad or anything like that. It was not providing what I was seeking the time I got it. Stage II or the ACE would have been more to my liking.
So, it is a tough call to make and that can only be done by you. If you cannot run them side by side and explore the likes and dislikes, does it fit your needs and desires? It would be hard to make the choice based on comments alone. Hint: Never ask me what I feel about the Mark V90. I bring this up as not all will have the same response. I do not want to bias the thoughts, drain the GAS tank or add to it. I would highly recommend some video reviews of the two at least to start. Does not make up for having it in the room though. TBH, I thought the Stage II sounds great in the videos I have seen. The ACE is on that stage as well. The Stage I was not what I expected. Perhaps some like that version over the other. Just like I prefer the RA over the TC, but if I did not have them both to compare, I would never have known which works best for me.
answer nobody here wants to hear but only that way you can be sure that you like that whichever remains after some time…
that amp had some really nice feel to it and raw quality of tone.. occasionally I still have a GAS for Stiletto Ace but… time will tell will there be one more Stiletto hoarded along the way
