Moshaholic
New member
Came in this past Friday...!
So ya this is the second quad that I have ever owned. I should have never sold my first one 7 years ago but I didn't have the Strategy 500 either.
This new Quad I just got is pretty and clean with only very minor rack rash on the bottom and ZERO rash on the face, sides and back.
I put some tubes in her and WOW!
Loads of gain and smooth liquid leads and classic chugs... It takes a little time to get the EQ and push pull knobs all tweeked but this is a monster preamp... It didn't come with a foot switch so i have a couple of old Mark III switched plugged into the back to access the lead modes.
I was having so much fun I didn't even try out anything but Lead 1 and Lead 2...
Lead 1 is really gainy and edgey and has the classic MK IIC+ and Mark III lead grind and buzz saw tone if you want that. Lead two is like thick and warm and a little more darker and you can play legatto with you pinky effortlessly... I do a V pattern on the EQ but I keep the mids REAL...I don't go extreme scooped at all like that AJFA tone as I really never dug the tone on that album after having RTL and MOP first ...
Anyway, this preamp and power amp combo left me thinking the best years for teh toanz for Mesa are just way behind them now IMO...
This preamp paired up with a Strategy 500 is so thick, musical and brutal at the same time that I can't believe they stopped making this stuff???
Why??? This older stuff just has it tone wise and the "musical inspiration" is just over the top...
Even the newer MKIV's I have tried were were just ok but they didn't sound like the really older ones I tried with the "rough old school Mesa tolex".
After rocking this set up all weekend (paired with a VHT and Uber Kab) I'm not convinced the new MKV will even come close to the thick warmth and smoothness of this yester-year stuff, but I could be wrong. I will have to play one when they finally ship out...
I know there are LDR's in the Quard preamp, so does Mesa still use LDR's in the later Mark series stuff??? Or do they use differnt circuits/parts to get the gainz going in thier newer stuff because this old school stuff has me floored...
I have had 3-4 triaxis pre's and they just dont have the same tone of the Quad Preamp at all... I think the strategy 500 has a lot to do here to... That power amp is way bigger sounding than anything else I have had or played rackwise...
Anyway I love this thing and I going to be looking to buy up 1 or 2 more of these pres in the future when I get some extra cash since they are not a production item...
Hail to the glory years of teh Mesa (Boogie)!
xgx
