Your thoughts on the Stiletto Duece II

[yngzaklynch]

Looks like I'm buying one. Whats the general opinion of these by you Boogie players? Tried the Ace and dug it. Hoping this amp is the one for me.

 

[srf399]

I like mine a lot. Great amp for classic rock.

 

[Gibbyage]

Had mine for close to a week an a half.

Great amp. So many options its insane.

I play hardcore punk (American Nightmare, Carry On) and it gets the tone I like.

 

[Rocky]

I like mine a lot, use it for everything from modern country to hard rock/metal.

 

[xnatex]

Had mine for close to a week an a half.

Great amp. So many options its insane.

I play hardcore punk (American Nightmare, Carry On) and it gets the tone I like.

your band has a great sound. check out mine here: www.myspace.com/truthhurtshc

 

[Riff Blister]

It's a great amp. Built solid. It covers a lot of sonic ground.
I'm hanging on to my Deuce.

 

[yngzaklynch]

I've previously owned 2 Mk IVs. Although great amps and a blast to play through the mids have a slight nasal quality I didn't like. Will the Stiletto get close to the Mk IV as far as aggressive metal tone? Is it as easy to play through(sustain, feel)?

 

[Herbvis]

I switched from a Marshall to a stilleto recently. Here is my take.

The Stiletto is hands down the best amp I have ever owned. It has a wide range of options for the 2 channels. It is the sound I have been looking for. I can easily get the sound I want which is an agressive rock sound that borders metal, the sort of early gnr tone that I love. The cleans sound great choices of a more deep flat clean or a brighter clean. A great crucnh and an all out assault. Sounds great low, and when cranked it doesnt get the annoying thin painful treble pierce or the flat farty overloaded sound that I am not too fond of. The 50/ 100 watt power switch is a blessing. I finally feel 100% content with an amp for the 1st time.Brings a tear to my eye In a good way!!! I also noticed that when cranked, the natural sound of the guitar remains. So all of my guitars actually sound different and they all sound fantastic. THere is so many tone options I could ****! I also imediattly noticed there is more of a solid boom to the stilleto than any marshall I have ever played. The amp does Marshall better than marshall! I dont expect everyone to feel the same as this is strictly 1 opinion. I cant explain it, but this amp is just better than any thing I have played.

 

[yngzaklynch]

Nice!

 

[yngzaklynch]

So did you get a replacement? Or did you go to a different amp?

Of all the Mesa amps I've played and owned, the Deuce II is my favorite. I owned a brand new head for 3 weeks and returned it for a refund (kept blowing fuses and shorting tubes). Possibly defective.

Can do metal and has a decent clean. Definitely better than any 800, 900, or 2000 Marshall I've played.

Very good touch sensitivity for leads. Needs an FX button on footswitch. and possibly a fan like other mesa amps.

 

[Herbvis]

An fx button on the foot switch would be great. This is the first amp that I have actually used the fx loop on. Another improvement would be built in reverb. The solo boost switch is another great feature.

 

[jab]

the Ace is great - I'll bet the Deuce is even bigger sounding. Low on features, but it does cover a lot of sonic territory. Don't be afraid to use ALL channels (including your cleans) to find different types of rock distortion via maxing the gain on those channels or playing with overdrive pedals. These things go well beyond the initial Stiletto tone and sound great with some tweaking and experimenting with guitars, pedals, tubes, etc. - incredibly versatile.

 

[fbomb]

LOVE IT

 

[yngzaklynch]

LOVE IT

Care to elaborate? :wink:

 

[seymourstiletto]

once i got past the issue of it not having the low end of a rectifier and the month of knob surfing i can truly say i love the friggin amp and i would put it head to head against any amp on the planet !

 

[avi8r2005]

I have a Deuce Stage II that i just picked up a month ago. I have to say hands down, has to be one of the most versatile tube amps Mesa makes. You can get an awesome clean sound from it, gritty distortion to full out tear your face off gain. For only 2 channels, the thing friggin rocks. Tonal possibilities are endless with it. I also run a Voodoo labs sparkle drive pedal with it to boost it and it sounds killer through both channels. The only thing I don't like is the lack of low end. That can be compensated for though with adding an external EQ of some variety. I use the parametric EQ on my g major to boost it. The effects loop works very well on this amp too. Like others mentioned, wish it had a bypass switchable function from a pedal, but I can live without that feature. The pros of this amp by far outweigh the cons. I'll hopefully be posting another Youtube vid this week if anyone is interested.

 

[yngzaklynch]

Does it have less lowend than say a marshall Plexi or JCM800?

 

[ko112]

I can pick up a stiletto deuce stage 1 for dirt cheap - Is it worth it if I have a mark 4? I need something that covers more ground - like classic rock/modern stuff like foo fighters etc...

 

[Herbvis]

I think it has more low end than a Marshall. The low end seems more focused, not as "flubby". I am really happy with the thump of the amp. My gf even noticed the difference instantly when I brought the amp home.

 

[srf399]

That is a true test...

One amp manufacturer (can't remember who) actually has a bunch of women come in and they play the amps for them and that is how they fine tune the amps! If a women like the tone... it passes the test. LMAO

My Stiletto Deuce II killed my MKIV in the Woman test! I'm not BS'ing at all.