Which combo do you like best?

The Boogie Board

Help Support The Boogie Board:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
F

Framing Paradise

Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2007
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Location
Northern VA
Hey there!! This is a similar post I made on the EZ Board (the more responses, the better :wink: I currently have a VOX AD50VT since my Line 6 AX2 died last year. I'm ready to step up to the plate. Some data about me: I'm a part-time guitar teacher and solo artist. One thing I didn't mention in my other post are my influences. A few of my influences are: Dream Theater, Maiden, Nevermore, Sabbath, Symphony X, Iced Earth, etc. My game plan is to record my own cd. With this in mind, a combo amp is the ideal choice. The question is which Mesa combo do I buy? The Roadster looks appealing. Four channels with the Multi-Watt™ Channel Assignable Power feature is intruiging. I've read that the Road King is more tweakable (is that a word..lol). Then again, I don't feel I need many options. I typically like one main high gain channel and a crisp clean channel. A slight gain channel might be useful for an intro or bridge. All replies are appreciated :D
 
Do you use pedals?

Sounds like the Roadster would fit the bill. I had one for a week but returned it. Went up in flames.

If this the "one" amp you would own forever, why not the Road King. I like changing things around. I like EL-34s' in the British setting. Does killer Zep, The Who ect. So many different settings. It helps me pass the time in the winter months. Turning knobs. On my Solo 50 I was forever switching tubes around for different sounds. If your going to record your own songs then why not use all available options. Have I talked ya into it yet???

The RK cabinet is cool too. Open back for nice cleans and blues. Closed back for Metallica ect. Rectifier sounds. I love my RKII head and cab. I had the Roadster combo and I needed a roadie. It was a backbreaker. The Road King head is no light weight either but easier to move about. Best bet is try before you buy. Ordering usually takes three months. It did for me anyways.

Keep us posted and good luck.
 
The Rectoverb is a great amp and very affordable. Good cleans and great distortion channel. I recommend a head and a 2x12 though. However the combo isn't bad either. Add an OD out front to tighten everything up and your still below what a Roadster combo cost and easier on the old back.
 
Excellent and detailed responses :) I do need to check out these Mesa amps in person. The guy at Fairfax Guitar Center said that both the Roadster and Road King combos are special order only :( They did say that they had a Dual Rectifier and some other Mesa heads in stock. Regardless, I need to call around and follow up.

I'm not much of a pedal person. My previous two amps have had built in effects (so I've been spoiled...hehe). I don't really use much in the way of effects. I will ocassionally use chorus with the clean channel and use delay on the gain channel for a melodic/bluesy solo. Aside from that, I don't use much else (my wah pedal collects dust to be honest :wink: I plan on buying the Boss DD-6 in the near future (I had the DD-20; that was much more than I needed).

So the Roadster combo is brutally heavy?! I don't jam with anyone regularly so that wouldn't be an issue. I've got a studio drummer and vocalist/keyboardist that I jam with every fourth full moon :wink: What's most important is tone. If the heads sound noticiably better than the combos, I'm all for spending more for the best possible tone...The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of buying a head and a 2x12 cab.

I'm unfamiliar with the Rectoverb. Is it similar to the Lonestar? Or more like a Rectifier? Or 'c', none of the above...lol. I played through a Mark IV a long, long time ago. I liked the clean channel, but wasn't blown away by the gain channels. I'm keeping an open mind.

I've got a crazy weekend ahead. With that said, I plan on making some calls re: Mesa products. Thanks again. I'll keep you guys posted. Could you send me a link if any of you have samples of you jamming through your Mesas?

~Eric
 
The Rectoverb is a stripped down Rectifier. No Bold/Spongy option. No Tube rectification. No channel Assignable loop. 50 watts. Try a 3 Channel DR. Since they are available at your local GC. It will let you know if the options I listed above are for you. The DR and Roadster are going to sound similar on the Hi Gain channels but the cleans on the Roadster are going to be much better.

You also have a switch on the back to select between 50 and 100 watts on the Roadster. On the DR you can pull two Power tubes and 1 rectifier tubes to lower the head room down to 50 watts. If I was buying new, I would definately go with the Roadster over the DR based on the cleans alone.

As far as pedals go don't be afraid to throw a good OD in front of the amp. Good OD's (Fulltone OCD, Maxon 808, TS9DX, and my personal favorite TS808) enhance the normal Hi Gain of the amplifier and improve your tone IMO. When your in the store checking them out grab a TS808, find a good distortion you like on the amp in vintage or modern, set everything on the TS808 at noon, and then kick it on. See what you think

I have used both the DD-6 and CE-5 in the loop and my 2ch DR digested them nicely.

Most of all have fun!
 
I just got off the phone. Melodee Music has a Roadster combo :D They didn't have a Rectoverb. I didn't ask about the Road King (I'll check in person). I'll probably drive the sale person nuts because I plan on test driving everything 'Mesa'. I'll be popping by there Monday after work. I'll chime in on Tue. or Wed. :wink:
 
Personally, I really love the roadster as its extremely versitile. For the price tag (2099 I believe at GC) its worth every penny. Basically the same as the road king except some tube functions and progressive linkage for a LOT less.

One thing though, I have the 2x12 combo and it weighs a TONN (at least 100 pounds man!)

You won't be disappointed though.
 
mattmurray8 said:
Personally, I really love the roadster as its extremely versitile. For the price tag (2099 I believe at GC) its worth every penny. Basically the same as the road king except some tube functions and progressive linkage for a LOT less.

One thing though, I have the 2x12 combo and it weighs a TONN (at least 100 pounds man!)

You won't be disappointed though.
Click to expand...

Last night I was thinking about the weight debate :wink: A head and a 2x12 is certainly the smarter route if I jam with friends more often or join a band down the road. I don't know if Melodee Music has a Roadster head. What do they typically run? This could be pre-mature, but what cab do you recommend if I go the head route? From what I've read, the Road King has more bells and whistles that I wouldn't use. I'm siked about today :!:
 
DC-10 for 4 reasons:

1 Sounds incredible

2 It's way cheaper than the Roadster, between $700 & $1,000

3 It's much easier to use than the Roadster (had one), although the Roadster has many more options.

4 It is one of the easiest Mesa amps to dial in the tones you want. Most Mesa's take some time to find your tone, the DC is very versatile, but very easy to dial in.


Plus, you will have a tone that is all yours, since they haven't been built any in the last 10 years.

They are very receptive to tube changes as well, you can have a whole new sounding amp for the price of new tubes.



If 100 pounds is too heavy for you, get the DC-5, it's only 50 watts, but will keep up with a really loud drummer easily.
 
Pretty sure the Roadster head runs $1899. I don't have too much experience with Mesa cabs (just my Recto 4x12), but I'd figure on checking out the Roadster cab. I figure they were probably made to go together.
 
I ended up liking the 3/4 back cabs for my Roadster. The store didn't have any Roadster cabs to try out though. I tried out several cabs: The Rectifier cabs sounded sterile and fizzy to me. The Road King cabs sounded decent with a 6-sting but sounded HUGE with a 7-string.

Seriously, check out the 3/4 backs if you think you may go with a Roadster head... They are a big sounding cab! The 1x12 is what I went with. It has a C90 (90 watt speaker) so it should handle anything the Roadster throws at it, and it is relatively light...
 
I plugged into a Roadster yesterday afternoon. The Roadster sounded phenomenal! Channel 4 (Bold & Modern) nearly ripped my face off :twisted: The sensitivity of the settings suprised me (unlike some amps where you turn the treble knob a few turns and don't hear much of a difference). Channel 1 sounded both full and crisp. Channels 2 and 3 were top quality (though the majority of my time was spent on channels 4 and 1).

DC-10
Plus, you will have a tone that is all yours, since they haven't been built any in the last 10 years.
Click to expand...

The amp was incredibly HEAVY!! I can't foresee myself carrying that down two flights of steps to the basement :shock:

If 100 pounds is too heavy for you, get the DC-5, it's only 50 watts, but will keep up with a really loud drummer easily.
Click to expand...

I was going to previously ask the this question. If 50 watts can hang with most drummers, than I should be fine with 50 (granted most heads are in the 100 watt range--yet more to ponder).

Pretty sure the Roadster head runs $1899.
Click to expand...

That's exactly what they run (something I asked the sales guy).

I ended up liking the 3/4 back cabs for my Roadster. The store didn't have any Roadster cabs to try out though. I tried out several cabs: The Rectifier cabs sounded sterile and fizzy to me. The Road King cabs sounded decent with a 6-sting but sounded HUGE with a 7-string.

Seriously, check out the 3/4 backs if you think you may go with a Roadster head... They are a big sounding cab! The 1x12 is what I went with. It has a C90 (90 watt speaker) so it should handle anything the Roadster throws at it, and it is relatively light...
Click to expand...

Interesting. I too am curious about the Roadster cab. That was pretty wild about the comparison between the 6 and 7 strings.

I picked up the latest Mesa catalog while I was at Melodee. The Dual Rectifier sounds like good fit for me. I'm hoping Guitar Center has one when I head up there next Wednesday. I plan on calling the Fairfax and Falls Church locations to see which Boogies they carry. I'll update next week :wink:
 
Cool! The Roadster works well for me because it has several tones available in 4 channels. Perfect for a guitarist in a cover band like me! We play anything from funk to hard rock, so I have to have all options available!

Let us know what you decide on. If it's a boogie, it will sound good regardless... :wink:
 
So I headed up to Guitar Center (Falls Church) last Sunday. I plugged up to the Roadster - combo, Solo 50, Dual Rectifier, and Triple Rectifier. None of them disappointed. I narrowed my choice down to the Roadster. The versatility was the key. The ability to switch between 50 and 100 watts is useful. The Recto Tracking/Diode feature is audible and pretty cool. I put the Roadster combo on layway. Days later I made a switch to the Roadster head. I figured that moving the Roadster head and a 2x12 was easier for me than going the combo route. I spoke to a sales person earlier this morning. He said that the NJ store will be sending them a head (it's open box; but I'm fine with that considering Mesa's history of reliability and factory warranty). The sales person said that it should take just two or three days. They've got a 2x12 Recto cab on hold for me. My cell phone won't leave my sight :D
 
Awesome! A head and cab is much more transportable than a combo for sure. I've just got a 1x12 3/4 back cab and it smokes, so a 2x12 should sound awesome! Although, I wasn't too fond of the recto 2x12's though. The V30's are too fizzy and lifeless to my ears. The C90 or even a V30 in the 3/4 back cab sounds awesome IMO.

You made a wise decision!!
 

Similar threads

pjrake
What Would You Do?
Replies
16
Views
6K
stash49
S

Latest posts

Back
Top