Probably buying a Mesa Badlander 50 head......should I???

[tallcoolone]

I would disagree with that in a big way. They got the Stiletto right with the Stage II. All that amp needs is slightly more low end and it's a top tier EL34 rock/metal amp.

I’ve owned that amp 4 times lol. Yeah it is solid but IME more of a gig amp than an at home amp. Little grating at low volumes by itself. Not the easiest to play either.

I also have wondered about the Badlander being a ‘better’ Stiletto SII but the last few Mesas I’ve had (Triple Crown, Royal Atlantic) I was pretty disappointed in

 

[67mike]

I dig mine… great for what it does, tho I can see it being polarizing.

You could always just get a load box tho if you want to run IRs with your current amps.

Excellent. Yes seems it is like the Silver Jubilee....either you absolutely love it or you hate it.

I already have a Captor X that I love using for recording.

The little 50 watt mesa is tiny compared to my Marshall Heads, it is 12 to 15 lbs lighter, and don't need to drag a cab /captor X around town if I don't want to. Plus I am not taking my Vintage Marshalls out to jam or play a shithole bar.

 

[67mike]

I’ve owned that amp 4 times lol. Yeah it is solid but IME more of a gig amp than an at home amp. Little grating at low volumes by itself. Not the easiest to play either.

I also have wondered about the Badlander being a ‘better’ Stiletto SII but the last few Mesas I’ve had (Triple Crown, Royal Atlantic) I was pretty disappointed in

Royal Atlantic was a bit of a dud....weighed a bazillion lbs too. My JCMs just fricken smoked it and kicked it right in the balls!

 

[tallcoolone]

Royal Atlantic was a bit of a dud....weighed a bazillion lbs too. My JCMs just fricken smoked it and kicked it right in the balls!

Agreed—so was the TC IMO. They each lasted less than a week b4 hitting CL

 

[67mike]

Agreed—so was the TC IMO. They each lasted less than a week b4 hitting CL

Haha.....yup.....the lead guitarist in my Bro-in-laws band has a 100 watt TC and my BIL's Silver Jubilee blows it away.

 

[Jimty]

I’ve owned that amp 4 times lol. Yeah it is solid but IME more of a gig amp than an at home amp. Little grating at low volumes by itself. Not the easiest to play either.

I also have wondered about the Badlander being a ‘better’ Stiletto SII but the last few Mesas I’ve had (Triple Crown, Royal Atlantic) I was pretty disappointed in

I’ve found my Stiletto S1 to be good at home volumes - I live in surburbia (semi-detached house) and usually play around 85 decibels max to avoid upsetting the neighbours. My controls are as below - using the Output as a master volume. Running the channel volumes high was the key for me. Definitely need to watch the presence though and it took a while to dial in - was a bit ear fatiguing until I figured the controls out. Greenbacks were also a good idea.

 

[67mike]

I’ve found my Stiletto S1 to be good at home volumes - I live in surburbia (semi-detached house) and usually play around 85 decibels max to avoid upsetting the neighbours. My controls are as below - using the Output as a master volume. Running the channel volumes high was the key for me. Definitely need to watch the presence though and it took a while to dial in - was a bit ear fatiguing until I figured the controls out. Greenbacks were also a good idea.

View attachment 403517

I LOVE that Croc skin on those amps!!! Badass.

 

[skoora]

How about the UAFX pedal Knuckles? Pop that in the return of one of your amps. Get that and the Badlander and see which one does the ticket?

 

[67mike]

How about the UAFX pedal Knuckles? Pop that in the return of one of your amps. Get that and the Badlander and see which one does the ticket?

Good thought but that pedal is $569.00 plus taxes here in Canada and I my JCMs don't have loops.

Rather put that cash into an amp.

 

[grimmchaos]

Excellent. Yes seems it is like the Silver Jubilee....either you absolutely love it or you hate it.

I already have a Captor X that I love using for recording.

The little 50 watt mesa is tiny compared to my Marshall Heads, it is 12 to 15 lbs lighter, and don't need to drag a cab /captor X around town if I don't want to. Plus I am not taking my Vintage Marshalls out to jam or play a shithole bar.

Thats part of why I like the amp... I usually use a vertical 2x12 and it sits nicely on top. My Bogners and MW Recto don't. Lol

 

[67mike]

Just bought the Badlander. Should have it by next Tuesday.

 

[bubbastain]

Just bought the Badlander. Should have it by next Tuesday.

I decided I'm going to get a 50 watt Badlander as soon as i get a new place to live/set up my gear. I just picked up a JSX head and I'm really digging it. Just a different flavor than my VTM.

 

[67mike]

I decided I'm going to get a 50 watt Badlander as soon as i get a new place to live/set up my gear. I just picked up a JSX head and I'm really digging it. Just a different flavor than my VTM.

That sounds like a great plan!

 

[DECEMBER]

What type of music are you playing on this amp?

I do a strange mix of 'metal', ethereal, and electronic dance music. Bright, sparkly clean cleans and heavy chuggy riffs with a lot of synths and analog drum machines.
I actually just traded the Badlander the other day for a EVH 5150 III 6L6 50W plus some cash. The clean channel is too dark for me, but I still have the Mark V for cleans. I'm just using channels 2 & 3 plus the Mark ch3 for different flavors of high gain. Preamps switchable with a Tri-Parallel Mixer, both power amps running returns from a stereo FX chain. The 5150 is working better for me than the Badlander and the same EQ (in the loop) settings are working for it and the Mark, so that's good. It's funny, I have four artist signature pieces of gear from artists I have no interest in.
My music: DECEMBERmusic.org
The two most recent songs are with the Mark V. High gain thru reactive loads and homemade IRs, clean thru mic'd speakers. The Badlander didn't make it into any final recordings in the 7 months I had it.

 

[67mike]

I do a strange mix of 'metal', ethereal, and electronic dance music. Bright, sparkly clean cleans and heavy chuggy riffs with a lot of synths and analog drum machines.
I actually just traded the Badlander the other day for a EVH 5150 III 6L6 50W plus some cash. The clean channel is too dark for me, but I still have the Mark V for cleans. I'm just using channels 2 & 3 plus the Mark ch3 for different flavors of high gain. Preamps switchable with a Tri-Parallel Mixer, both power amps running returns from a stereo FX chain. The 5150 is working better for me than the Badlander and the same EQ (in the loop) settings are working for it and the Mark, so that's good. It's funny, I have four artist signature pieces of gear from artists I have no interest in.
My music: DECEMBERmusic.org
The two most recent songs are with the Mark V. High gain thru reactive loads and homemade IRs, clean thru mic'd speakers. The Badlander didn't make it into any final recordings in the 7 months I had it.

My Mark V went bye by. Most unreliable amp I have ever owned. It was versitile though.

I'll give the Vadlander a go, like I say I have a bunch of Marshalls that are my main noise makers.