Author Topic: Mesa Boogie (Read 387 times)

jacko · « **on:** March 28, 2012, 04:50:18 AM »

Anyone on the forum using Mesa Boogie kit? I'm thinking very seriously about moving on from my 'seperates' rig ( fender tbp1, QSC plx2402 and two EBS neo 212s) to an amp / cab setup and the Mesa M9 carbine has caught my eye. I'm thinking of getting the amp first then maybe later in the year (when the wedding season has paid dividends) swapping the EBS cabs for mesa PH 212 and PH210 cabs.
Anyone using anything similar that can comment on how the Mesa gear sounds?

Graeme

jazzyvee · « **Reply #1 on:** March 28, 2012, 07:57:21 AM »

I have all mesa cabs 2x10, 4x10 & 1x15.
I use either a mesa walkabout 300w head or my f1-x and same qsc as you. I think the sound of the mesa is great with alembics but ive never had any other bass rig so am not able to be objective with comparing to anything else. But if you are down my part of the country you are welcome to try the cabs out.
Jazzyvee

JuancarlinBass · « **Reply #2 on:** March 28, 2012, 08:07:54 AM »

Mesa/Boogie RoadReady 210 cab owner here. I use it generally on a biamp setup with the crossover at 800hz, along with (either) an almost/Mesa 2x15' original EV cab (identical to the Mesa one, but EV's) or a custom made 1x15' with an Eminence Kappa on it. Have used it alone a couple times for very small venues.

Sounds like heaven, weighs like hell.

tbrannon · « **Reply #3 on:** March 28, 2012, 08:08:43 AM »

Graeme,

FC should be weighing in soon- I know he has all Mesa gear.

Personally, I like Gallien-Kreuger amps. They've never let me down and although the EQ section on them takes some getting used to, but I find them pretty useful.

Also- before you commit to cabs, take a look at the fEarful cabs. I know that at least one or two folks here use them and swear by them and there is a TON of speaker design knowledge put into their design. There is a fEarful website and several megathreads over at Talkbass on them. I wouldn't be surprised if you found that a single lightweight cab would be all you need for your application.

FC Bass · « **Reply #4 on:** March 28, 2012, 08:21:20 AM »

I play their older stuff; Bass 400 (not 400+) Strategy 400 (full tube heads) and the old Diesel 2x10 and 1x15 cabs.

Sounds awesome and is quite able to make you deaf :-)
Great stuff!

They will be releasing two new all tube amp shortly (I think they're available from may) The Bass Strategy (12x6L6) and the Bass Prodigy (4x6L6)

sonicus · « **Reply #5 on:** March 28, 2012, 09:55:07 AM »

Graeme

I own a Mesa/Boogie 4x10 RoadReady & two 2X10 RoadReady
cabs . They are all loaded with EV 10's. I have to say that I am very happy with the results that I get with them in various amplification combinations. I sometimes use Alembic rack gear in a variety of ways with either Crest(FA-9 /VS900) or Yamaha power amps(P-2200) and sometimes GK Amps such as the 800RB /400RB etc ... The Mesa's that I have sound GREAT on their own ; however I have also been known to add other speakers such as Alembic A15's loaded with Gauss 4580's into the mix. I used to bi-amp but lately I have preferred to play stereo full range without crossovers but I often use an Alembic SF-2 or my old vintage green face pair of Furman PQ-3's to modify and shape my sound.

Wolf

xlrogue6 · « **Reply #6 on:** March 28, 2012, 10:03:14 AM »

My Walkabout Scout 12 combo is my primary gigging amp these days. My big rig is a M-Pulse 600 into a GenzBenz Neo 212, but it only gets to come out and play a couple of times a year, and at least one of those times I'm guaranteed to think Dammit, I could have just brought the Scout!. I've also got a GK800RB that I bought to repair and sell, but when it was fixed it sounded so nice I've kept it. So far I've only used it as a small rig, running the high amp through a 112 Thiele cab with an Eminence neo driver, but one of these days I've got to try it in biamp mode with the GenzBenz on the bottom and the Thiele on top.

jacko · « **Reply #7 on:** March 29, 2012, 05:08:09 AM »

Thanks guys. It's a lt of money to spend so I'm going to think very carefully and try out the amps and cabs before I jump. By a strange coincidence, our rhythm guitarist has killed his Bognor and while it's away getting fixed he's been loaned a 50 watt Mesa express 5.50 1x12 combo that sounded superb at last night's rehearsal. Mind you, my rig sounded great last night too :-(

The main thing making me think about changing is the Neo speakers. At first they sounded tight and punchy and obviously the lighter weight made them an obvious choice but lately they've been sounding a bit 'loose' for want of a better word. Apparently this isn't unusual for NEOs.

graeme

JuancarlinBass · « **Reply #8 on:** March 29, 2012, 05:45:10 AM »

Woa, woa, woa... can you add a little more to that? Just when I was considering changing some of the speakers (not on the Mesa rig) for NEOs... now that could be a major dealbreaker on my plans, and something they don't tell you in the brochures or catalogs... Anyone else with experience on NEOs to add to it? Please?

jos · « **Reply #9 on:** March 29, 2012, 06:06:18 AM »

Hi Graeme!

Mesa/Boogie makes great stuff I use sometimes Strategy 400 power amp and Alembic F1-X pre-amp? the sound is amazing (but they are heavy)! Before you buy any speakers please check out the Ampeg Pro Neo 410 together with Ampeg Pro Neo 115 (U.S.A) I think they are about the best speakers I have ever had! They have a great balance between the 4x10 and 15 and the tweeter have the right frequency, sounds really great together! I also like the fact that they are 8ohms??? I use sometimes (actually quite often) the TC RH750 head together with them and they sound great! RH750 is most likely the quietest amp on the market and really great sounding! I did try almost every lightweight head but this seems to be the best sounding, at least for me! Ampeg Pro 4 head is also quite interesting because of the crossover possibility! Its great to use it sometimes, but again its heavy!

J-O-S

jacko · « **Reply #10 on:** March 29, 2012, 06:32:03 AM »

Juan carlos. just my experience and limited to my EBS cabs....
I have a neo 410 that needed 2 new drivers last year - they had both started to sound a bit 'saggy' then developed a buzz that could be felt as 'scratching' when pushing the cones in and out. I replaced one with a genuine EBS driver that cost a small fortune and the other with a Faital. However, I found the 410 was sounding too harsh for my needs so I've been using a pair of 212s since. Just lately, they sound like the speakers have deteriorated somehow. The upper end still has a nice round punch but the bottom end just sounds overblown - almost 'farty' but not quite how a blown driver would sound. I've tried adding some compression but it doesn't seem to take away the perceived 'looseness'. As i said, this is purely my own experience. I've had these cabs since 2005 so it may just be an age thing but a friends slightly older XSTs sound as tight now as they did back then. There was some discussion on the eden forum around 2003 /4 when eden were planning to bring out neo cabs. They delayed the release because they weren't happy with the longevity of Neodymium magnets at that time. However, they since brought out a range of neo's so presumably they sorted their issues. If you look through the talkbass forum, there is some discussion about NEO vs Ferrite. Like I say, it may just be that my cabs are at least 8 years old and would quite likely have been some of the earliest neo drivers available to the public.. The other thing is, The EBS cabs are carpet covered - an ideal scratching material for my small herd of cats :-(

Hi Jan-Olof. Great to have your input. I'm trying not to go for a huge stack - remember I'm playing pubs and weddings nowadays and size is important at most of our venues so I'm currently thinking about a 2x12 and a 2x10. The Mesa 212 has wheels which makes it even more desirable given it's twice as heavy as the equivalent EBS neo :-)

Also, having re-read what I opened the thread with, I think I may hang on to my amp / preamp for now and change out the speakers sooner rather than later. Time will tell.

Graeme

JuancarlinBass · « **Reply #11 on:** March 29, 2012, 06:45:55 AM »

Thanks a lot for the info, Jacko, will definitely do more research before getting into those... I have speakers almost my age (40) on some equipment and performing nicely, I don't think it would be that fair for an 'only 8 years old speaker to loose the grip, but then again YMMV I guess...

Oh, and am also owner of some nice sounding but cat distressed carpet covered cabs. I could complain, but again, they (all 4 of them cats) own the house, not me, I'm just their kindly welcomed guest

jos · « **Reply #12 on:** March 29, 2012, 07:18:56 AM »

Hi Graeme!

If you are looking for something that is easy to carry then my recommendation is definitely TC RH750 head with RS 210 and RS 212 speakers I think you will like them! I do also play in small clubs quite much and need to carry the stuff myself! I my opinion the TC fit the Alembic basses really well, the sound is in balance!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is2V7Tl1vWM
J-O-S

rustyg61 · « **Reply #13 on:** March 29, 2012, 04:49:04 PM »

Awesome Jan-Olof! Great sound & playing!

briant · « **Reply #14 on:** April 04, 2012, 07:35:37 AM »

My practice/small rig is a Mesa Walkabout Scout combo amp (1x12). It's portable and lightweight. The tone is extremely versatile. It can do the disco smile slap tone, dirty overdriven rock, nice round/warm jazz, etc... a jack of all trades if you will.

My big rig is a Mesa 400+ and two Mesa Diesel 2x15 cabs. It's absurdly heavy and obscenely loud. It makes The Rock go in fantastic ways. I use input #2 and always have an overdriven sort of Entwistle affair going on. I get nothing but compliments/high praise at gigs so I guess people aside from me also think it sounds fabulous. This is all discontinued stuff but readily available used. Typically I see the cabs for ~$500USD and the 400+ for ~$900USD.