Mesa Boogie Stiletto Ace 2x12 Combo

Handbuilt in Petaluma, California. The Mesa Boogie Stiletto Ace is a very well rounded el34 based amplifier. Offering two channels with 3 distinct voices assignable to each, the Ace can cover a lot of ground. The ability to switch between Rectifiers allows you to dial in two totally separate feels-- Tube rectification for more sag, or diode for tighter tracking. No onboard reverb but an effects loop is present. You have the ability to switch between bold and spongy on the power switch to allow for more variac-esque sounds if you prefer them. Footswitch features a boost which can be adjusted on the amp.




UTILIZATION

There are a great number of options available when dialing in either channel. The tonal real-estate that Mesa Boogie offers in the Stiletto Ace is brilliant--I've never felt so over-served as with the current lineup of amplifier Randall Smith has been producing. The amp is very easy to dial in. The combo, while being excessively heavy, is a great all-in-one option for the gigging musician. I have gigged actively with the Ace for over a year now and feel very confident that it will stay in one piece.

SOUNDS

The clean mode is can operate in 3 modes: fat clean, tight clean, and crunch. The fat and tight clean modes share many similarites with the fat clean offering more low end emphasis and a less compressed feel. The crunch mode on channel 1 is duplicated in channel 2. both offering a wonderful mid gain spectrum between dirty blues and classic rock territories. Channel two continues with two additional mode: tight gain and fluid drive. tight gain is a great rhythm tone for modern rock and alternative styles, while fluid gain is ideal for soaring lead tones and high saturated riffing. The amp is considered bright by many. I feel that the amp may take time for some to dial in to taste, and will require patience as with all Mesa Boogie amplifiers.

OVERALL OPINION

The amp is brilliant. Great feature set. Great sounds. Beautiful to look at. The Ace is no longer in production but can be had for between $900- $1200 used. If the Ace is too bright for your tastes , you may consider Mesa boogie's Royal Atlantic amplifier. It shares many traits with the Ace and possesses a darker gain tonality as well as attenuation and onboard reverb.

I love this amp because it takes the best of what I enjoy in an amp. The sweet midrange of a good British amp and the heavy thickness of a solid built Mesa Boogie. My favorite amps from Mesa have to be the Recto's but this is an amazing amp. It does what Marshall has failed to do in getting a huge versatile amp. Everyone has to modify Marshall because they have a good starting point with the JCM 800's, JMP's, and Plexi's. However, you have to get them modified to sound like anything off of your favorite record.

This amp is basically the standard of Mesa's British tone. It is an absolute stellar combo and heavy and pile bricks. You can't get a bad tone out of this amp. I'm sure someone will try but Mesa really has done their work to make it idiot proof.

What I like about this about also is that it takes pedals very well. Throwing a tube screamer of some like a clean boost and you will have this amp sizzling. This amps has many features that are prominent to Mesa such as the Recto or tube switching and the sponge/tight setting which changes the variac and loosens the amps or tightens the power section of the amp.


UTILIZATION


Mesa/Boogie Stiletto Ace 50-watt, 2 x 12", 2-channel Tube Combo Amplifier Features:

Handbuilt in Petaluma, California
50 Watts, Class A/B power / 2 x EL-34, 5 x 12AX7, 1 x 5U4
Fixed bias for consistent, maintenance-free performance
Two fully independent channels with six modes (Channel 1 = Fat Clean, Tite Clean or Crunch (Cloning Channel 2), Channel 2 = Crunch, Tite Gain or Fluid Drive)
Channel-assignable Dual Rectification with Recto Tracking (diode or tube tracking)
Independent gain, treble, mid, bass, presence and master controls per channel
Bold/Spongy "Variac" switch
Output Level Control (over all channels when activated), footswitchable
Solo Level Control (over all channels when activated)
All-Tube effects loop with Send Level Control (over all channels when activated)
True "hard" bypass switch that removes fx loop, output level and solo level controls from signal path
Slave Out with level control
Fan-cooled (combos only)
External switching jacks for channels 1, 2, and Solo
Aluminum chassis
2-button Footswitch (Channel 1/2 and Solo)
Slip cover included

SOUNDS

This is a rockers amp. You will blown the hinges off the doors when you crank this thing up. I have been on the wrong side of this amp a few times where it just lit me up and thump my chest. The best feeling I got with this amp is a Les Paul and clean boost like pedal in front of it. This amp gets that pounding feeling but a full bodied warm tone. I find this amp not to be much of a lead amp per se but rather a solid rhythm guitar player amp. It doesn't cut through as much as I would like if I was the only player in the band, but it does thicken the walls of the sound for the band quite well.

OVERALL OPINION

This amp is no slouch at all. You feel the pain of this amp when you get this thing cranking. I really like the deep thick tone that it has and being built by Mesa Boogie you know that it is going to knock over some heads.

If I were a rhythm guitar player in a band I would look to this amp. It is rather inexpensive to be hand built. At new they come in at around $1900, but you can find them fairly inexpensive on the used market right now. I would recommend some to try this amp out against other Mesa's if that is the tone you are going for. This amp may not be for you if you are used to the Rectos or the Mark series. It has the similar characteristics to Mesa but it is its own beats.

Fantastic sounding amplifier. This amp is British voiced for that high midrange tone that is very familiar in Marshall, Hiwatt, and Vox amps. I would say this is a spin off a Marshall tone but in a Mesa Boogie thick distortion sort of way.


What I like about this about also is that it takes pedals very well. Throwing a tube screamer of some like a clean boost and you will have this amp sizzling. This amps has many features that are prominent to Mesa such as the Recto or tube switching and the sponge/tight setting which changes the variac and loosens the amps or tightens the power section of the amp.

UTILIZATION


Mesa/Boogie Stiletto Ace 50-watt, 2 x 12", 2-channel Tube Combo Amplifier Features:

Handbuilt in Petaluma, California
50 Watts, Class A/B power / 2 x EL-34, 5 x 12AX7, 1 x 5U4
Fixed bias for consistent, maintenance-free performance
Two fully independent channels with six modes (Channel 1 = Fat Clean, Tite Clean or Crunch (Cloning Channel 2), Channel 2 = Crunch, Tite Gain or Fluid Drive)
Channel-assignable Dual Rectification with Recto Tracking (diode or tube tracking)
Independent gain, treble, mid, bass, presence and master controls per channel
Bold/Spongy "Variac" switch
Output Level Control (over all channels when activated), footswitchable
Solo Level Control (over all channels when activated)
All-Tube effects loop with Send Level Control (over all channels when activated)
True "hard" bypass switch that removes fx loop, output level and solo level controls from signal path
Slave Out with level control
Fan-cooled (combos only)
External switching jacks for channels 1, 2, and Solo
Aluminum chassis
2-button Footswitch (Channel 1/2 and Solo)
Slip cover included

SOUNDS

This is a rockers amp. You will blown the hinges off the doors when you crank this thing up. I have been on the wrong side of this amp a few times where it just lit me up and thump my chest. The best feeling I got with this amp is a Les Paul and clean boost like pedal in front of it. This amp gets that pounding feeling but a full bodied warm tone. I find this amp not to be much of a lead amp per se but rather a solid rhythm guitar player amp. It doesn't cut through as much as I would like if I was the only player in the band, but it does thicken the walls of the sound for the band quite well.

OVERALL OPINION

This amp is no slouch at all. You feel the pain of this amp when you get this thing cranking. I really like the deep thick tone that it has and being built by Mesa Boogie you know that it is going to knock over some heads.

If I were a rhythm guitar player in a band I would look to this amp. It is rather inexpensive to be hand built. At new they come in at around $1900, but you can find them fairly inexpensive on the used market right now. I would recommend some to try this amp out against other Mesa's if that is the tone you are going for. This amp may not be for you if you are used to the Rectos or the Mark series. It has the similar characteristics to Mesa but it is its own beats.