which amplifier for me

[archimonde]

hi guys,

i have cort x-custom electric guitar ( basswood body,rosewood fingerboard,seymour duncan sh2 jazz - seymour duncan sh8 invader pickups) , fender champion 300 dsp amplifier , boss OS-2 and boss Gt-8 .
i play guitar for 6-7 years.i'm OK with this setup but i want more.I usually play progressive rock , hard-rock, some kinds of metal ( progressive metal, trash metal , heavy metal ..), instrumental rock,,blues . (like Dream Theater , Pink Floyd, Metallica,Joe Satriani , Gary Moore,Led Zeppelin etc. )
i like Petrucci's sound.On Gt-8 i m trying to get him sound but it is not enough.
so i decided to buy a Mesa Boogie amplifier.But now i cant make a decision.

firstly, if i buy this thing i must sell my other equipment ( boss gt-8,os-2 and fender champion 300dsp ) so i will have only amplifier ( maybe one booster ). And i have approx. 800-900$ money.

i m looking for some models,

M/B Express 5:25 (1x10 , 1x12)
M/B Express 5:50 ( 1x12 , 2x12 ??)
M/B F Series F-30 or F-50

i still cant make a decision, i live in an apartment so i cant use on higher volume.so i think 5:50 is not good idea ( low volume , not sound good i think)
5:50 uses C90 speaker , 5:25 uses E50 speaker becouse of speaker, if even i use it at low volume and 5:50 will sound better, 5:50 will be a better choice.
a little quesion: on 5:50 2x12 , can i use speakers stereo ( left and right) or like 1x12 only mono ?.
if you say buy 5:25 , are there huge differences between 1x10 and 1x12?

And what about F series?

is buying one of these amplifiers ( and selling my processor and amplifier) a good choice?
or wait 2-3 years , save up more money and buy better amplifier?(like mark v )

thanks for yor advice.

 

[Old BF Shred]

Similar questions come up on this board all the time. :roll:
There is only one way to tell.....go try the amps for yourself. 8)

No opinion from anyone here matters more than your ears.
If you do not have a Mesa dealer near you, then I feel for you...maybe clips on You Tube will help.....a little. :|

You seem to like to play metal and hard rock....the Express can do this but not as well as a Rectifier or Mark V.
If you listen to the amps, you will likely prefer the more expensive models. Most people do.....

Sometimes, one must compromise and settle for what they can afford. At least with Mesa the quality is top notch in all their models.
I know this can be a tough decision, but you are the only one who can make it. :wink:
I wish you.....
Good luck

 

[Elpelotero]

you can get a really nice Mark III right now and it will do all of what you wanted, except it can be a bit loud unless you drop it into 15watt simul-class mode.

 

[archimonde]

@Old BF Shred

i wish there is a mesa dealer. but i live in turkey , in turkey there are too few mesa amplifiers .

So i'm listening from youtube. There are good videos for express 5:25 but i think they arent enough.

yes i want to buy mark v or rectifier but they are too expensive for me , now and i want to start using
mesa boogie amplifier and i think any model of mesa boogie amplifier is at least 10 times better than my current amplifier.
(and i think a boogie can better than gt-8 + fender champion 300,or only gt-8 with headphones )

in several forums(including this) , i read mesa boogie express 5:25 is good for metal with a booster ( or od/ds pedal).
From the videos ,burn mod can do that with booster. But still i dont know.

my budget is limited so i must look for cheap ones. and i will buy used amplifier. On ebay , i saw some express 5:25,5:25,F-30,F-50. F series are much more economical than Express series . But if you are strongly offer Express series , i ll ignore F series.

unfortunately i cant compare them so i m asking you , you guys may be have a chance to compare them and may give some advices.

@Elpelotero

Thanks for your advice but it is expensive for me, and near of mark iii price there is mark iv and i think mark iv does better
than mark iii.( for me i think)

thanks.

 

[Sixstringpsycho]

If you can find one do not rule out a DC-5 or DC-3. I own a DC5 and can get close to petrucci's lead tone. These models tend to be economical as well. I am unfamiliar with the express series but I know a DC would be a good fit for around the same used price.

 

[UltraGary]

The used market for RectoVerbs has them pretty cheap now (approx $800 - $1K for head or combo).....and for a hundred or two more, the Trem-O-Verb is my favorite Boogie at a steal-of-a-deal price. Both of these amps are very easy to dial in great sounds that can cover ANYTHING!

 

[archimonde]

thanks for all yours interest.

now DC-3 or DC-5 looks fine for me.But dc3 or dc5 i should buy.i cant volume up too much.so maybe dc3 is enough for me.are there any difference between dc-3 and dc-5? im also looking at rectoverbs but they are a bit expensive( tremoverb too).
are rectoverbs(or tremoverbs) can give sound which i wanted?

beside dc's i m looking at express and f series but i think dc s are exactly what i want at my price range.

still im confused.

 

[droptrd]

+1 The DC's will do the hard rock metal thing very well and thier value is low right now. Also Ive always liked the F30's better than the F50 - especially in a combo. But the F series can lay down some brutal tones.

So my opinion is to go with a used F30 or DC3 or DC5. The expess series is very simular to the F's and DC's but the are still very new and hold a Higher $$$ value at the moment.

If you can find one do not rule out a DC-5 or DC-3. I own a DC5 and can get close to petrucci's lead tone. These models tend to be economical as well. I am unfamiliar with the express series but I know a DC would be a good fit for around the same used price.

 

[Old BF Shred]

The DC series, F series or maybe a Nomad could be more economical alternatives. Most decent distortion or overdrive pedals will sound really good through a good quality tube amp (which Mesa's are).
I really like my Stiletto and Cal 22+ as is, but I sometimes run a pedal in front of those and they sound great that way!

Get what you can afford and then try the pedals.....I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Again, good luck!

 

[archimonde]

so i should buy dc5>dc3>f-series
(some people prefer dc5 to dc3 )

i think nomad comes after f series?

what do you think?

soo, should i keep my gt8 or sell all of them and start building an analog setup?

will gt-8 and dc5 be a perfect couple?

thanks a lot. You guys are awesome.

 

[droptrd]

Been a while since ive heard a DC3 but I know i always liked them. The DC5 is a bad *** mofo - especially with a closed back cab. The F50 are terrible in a 1x12 combo. pretty cool with a closed back though. F30 with EL84s is a great amp with any cab.

As for the GT8, if it was me, id ditch it and start building an analog board. But thats just me.