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themaddog « Excellent tube amp »
Published on 06/07/11 at 07:33This is a 50 watt tube amplifier, although it's name is a bit of a misnomer; in spite of being called a Single Rectifier, from my understanding it does not have a rectifier tube, and has a solid state rectifier, unlike the Double and Triple Rectifiers. That being said, this amp is powered by two 6L6 tubes, which can be switched out to twin EL34 tubes via a switch on the back of the amplifier. It uses a complement of five 12AX7 pre-amp tubes and features two channels, each of which can be set two different ways. The first channel can be set to clean or crunch, while channel two can be set to vintage or modern. It does not have any reverb or a solo boost, and a footswitch changes between these two channels. To change manually between each channel (without the footswitch) there is a switch in the back. There is also an effects loop with controls to set how much effect goes within the loop.
Each channel has EQ settings, master volume control, and there is a main output for both channels.
UTILIZATION
Just dial up the controls and you'll be in tone heaven. I have the manual, but never really needed to bother with it. It is well suited for the studio. For a live setup, additional effects equipment will likely be needed for most modern styles of music.
SOUNDS
This amp has plenty of high gain, and within a studio environment have never needed to put distortion in front of it. For live use, I've paired it with a Line 6 POD XT for consistent results.
It is plenty loud, and although this is obvious, the user should be aware that the quality of the sound of this amp is intimately tied to the quality of the cabinet to which it is connected. I generally use mine through Peavey cabinets with Sheffield speakers, and for the studio I have an open-backed Mesa Boogie cabinet with a Black Shadow speaker that sounds incredible. The variety of tones this amplifier is capable of producing is incredible.
Anybody who tells you this amp isn't loud enough because it's "only 50 watts" is either full of crap, deaf, or both!
OVERALL OPINION
The build quality and tones on this amplifier are excellent, especially for a studio setting. Connect your favorite switchable effects equipment and you've got a serious live rig. In the time I used it live, in spite of keeping a tiny solid-state back up amp with me at all times, I never had it fail on me.
It would be nice to have more channels or built-in effects, but that just won't happen with a Mesa Boogie amp at this price level.
Probably a large portion of the costs goes to paying for the Mesa Boogie name. I will say this, you hardly ever see these amps come up for sale used, and there's a really good reason for it! In my opinion, there's no better amp manufacturer than Mesa Boogie.
Each channel has EQ settings, master volume control, and there is a main output for both channels.
UTILIZATION
Just dial up the controls and you'll be in tone heaven. I have the manual, but never really needed to bother with it. It is well suited for the studio. For a live setup, additional effects equipment will likely be needed for most modern styles of music.
SOUNDS
This amp has plenty of high gain, and within a studio environment have never needed to put distortion in front of it. For live use, I've paired it with a Line 6 POD XT for consistent results.
It is plenty loud, and although this is obvious, the user should be aware that the quality of the sound of this amp is intimately tied to the quality of the cabinet to which it is connected. I generally use mine through Peavey cabinets with Sheffield speakers, and for the studio I have an open-backed Mesa Boogie cabinet with a Black Shadow speaker that sounds incredible. The variety of tones this amplifier is capable of producing is incredible.
Anybody who tells you this amp isn't loud enough because it's "only 50 watts" is either full of crap, deaf, or both!
OVERALL OPINION
The build quality and tones on this amplifier are excellent, especially for a studio setting. Connect your favorite switchable effects equipment and you've got a serious live rig. In the time I used it live, in spite of keeping a tiny solid-state back up amp with me at all times, I never had it fail on me.
It would be nice to have more channels or built-in effects, but that just won't happen with a Mesa Boogie amp at this price level.
Probably a large portion of the costs goes to paying for the Mesa Boogie name. I will say this, you hardly ever see these amps come up for sale used, and there's a really good reason for it! In my opinion, there's no better amp manufacturer than Mesa Boogie.