Played a Mesa at GC..wow

[glpg80]

and actually, for the first time, i wasnt displeased at all. most if not all mesa's ive ever touched sounded terrible.

it was a single rectifier 2 channel 50 watter, but damn that thing was loud. ii played fairly well, and the voicing had ALOT of different tones available.

how do you guys recommend setting the output and channel volume on them?

i took some advice from code001 in getting it tuned in. treated the bass knob with care and the amp opened up big time in the mids. it really didnt sound that bad to be honest. it was through a mesa 4x12 slant cabinet.

i can see where people like them now.

also had the chance to play a mesa stiletto (sp?) but honestly the single rectifier blew it away.

anyways... cool amplifier. i might have to own one eventually. whats the difference with the mesa models? the single rectifier was stupid easy to operate. but i have seen dual recs and tripple recs with crazy amounts of switches and such. whats the difference in them? just more channels?

 

[glassjaw7]

Yeah man, rectos can sound great! Now throw some JJ's in there and a boost in front and watch out! Pretty crushing tones to be had.

 

[Code001]

Nice. I boost my rectos all the time with either an EQ or an overdrive pedal (OD is used as a clean boost - level max, gain nearly off, tone to taste). As far as models, there are 2 channel and 3 channel models. The 3 channel models can get buzzy and harsh. Stick with the older 2 channel models, the rackmount models or the Roadster/Road King, and you'll do fine. The Tremoverb is pretty nice, too.

 

[Qweklain]

anyways... cool amplifier. i might have to own one eventually. whats the difference with the mesa models? the single rectifier was stupid easy to operate. but i have seen dual recs and tripple recs with crazy amounts of switches and such. whats the difference in them? just more channels?

Singl rec = 2-channels/50 watts
Duel Rec = 3-channels/100 watts/2 rectifier tubes
Triple Rec = 3-channels/150 watts/3 rectifier tubes

The toggles are to choose the channel voicing for each channel. Clean has clean/pushed. Crunch/Lead has Raw/Vintage/Modern.

I had an older 2-channel Duel rec that to this day I wish I never sold. That thing was magic in a box.

 

[glpg80]

Nice. I boost my rectos all the time with either an EQ or an overdrive pedal (OD is used as a clean boost - level max, gain nearly off, tone to taste). As far as models, there are 2 channel and 3 channel models. The 3 channel models can get buzzy and harsh. Stick with the older 2 channel models, the rackmount models or the Roadster/Road King, and you'll do fine. The Tremoverb is pretty nice, too.

yeah i figured that once i had it dialed in, pushing it with an OD would be killer awsome. serious tone going on in those things. i never realized how different you had to dial them in.

i was amazed at how many tones could be had from this thing. was awsome. anything from a blues jam to doing mytic prophecy or liferuiner covers, or for my progressive metal band.

thanks for the tips as well both here and on another thread. glad i caught it and was able to experience mesa the way its supposed to be

ill definately be keeping an eye out for an older mesa. i doubt i could sell my 5150 for it, i still love my amplifier. but it was way cool the tonal possibilities available

anyways... cool amplifier. i might have to own one eventually. whats the difference with the mesa models? the single rectifier was stupid easy to operate. but i have seen dual recs and tripple recs with crazy amounts of switches and such. whats the difference in them? just more channels?

Singl rec = 2-channels/50 watts
Duel Rec = 3-channels/100 watts/2 rectifier tubes
Triple Rec = 3-channels/150 watts/3 rectifier tubes

The toggles are to choose the channel voicing for each channel. Clean has clean/pushed. Crunch/Lead has Raw/Vintage/Modern.

I had an older 2-channel Duel rec that to this day I wish I never sold. That thing was magic in a box.

yeah thanks for the info. ill probably be keeping an eye out for an old dual rec 2 channel

 

[titanamps]

the single rectifier has more in common with the tremoverb and rectoverb than the dual and triple rectifiers.

when i bought the one i had, i had the money in my pocket to get any one of the three of them (single, dual, triple). i walked out of the store with the single because i thought it sounded the best.

 

[gbsmusic]

the single rectifier has more in common with the tremoverb and rectoverb than the dual and triple rectifiers.

when i bought the one i had, i had the money in my pocket to get any one of the three of them (single, dual, triple). i walked out of the store with the single because i thought it sounded the best.

+1 I ran mine with a BBpreamp in front of it and it gave it a kick while warming it up a lot!

 

[glpg80]

the single rectifier has more in common with the tremoverb and rectoverb than the dual and triple rectifiers.

when i bought the one i had, i had the money in my pocket to get any one of the three of them (single, dual, triple). i walked out of the store with the single because i thought it sounded the best.

yeah thats interesting.

i liked the single rec tone alot better than some engl's that i have played and heard clips of. but to me, if the single had a little more compression and voicing options then it would be a 100% what im looking for. i believe that with an OD up front and some effects this amp would be one hell of a tone monster.

just wish i had the ability to get comparisons to some of the other models recommended in tone to the single rectifier that i had the chance to play.

i really wish i had more knowledge of the models available as well

o well, that will come with time. its official... im a mesa fan now.

 

[Mudder]

I had a single that I swapped V1 from a 12ax7 to a 12at7, and that amp purred, gain became much more usable. Very good amps if you like it loud.

 

[gbsmusic]

I had a single that I swapped V1 from a 12ax7 to a 12at7, and that amp purred, gain became much more usable. Very good amps if you like it loud.

I gotta tell ya mudder, that avatar is one of the best!!

 

[jasonP]

I owned a triple rec for a while and compared it to a couple amps. Honestly did the modern thing very well. Other then that I didn't like it. Cleans were dull and the more vintage vibe wasn't all there in my opinion. Just didn't do it for me. Great at that modern sound hard rock heavy shit. To me had a buzzy edge until you really cranked it up. I found this amp very tight. I didn't like the way the eq controls worked as well. Just my opinion.

 

[stephen sawall]

The older 2 channels ..... Dual, Triple, rackmount and the Tremoverb the one I have used for the last 15 years are by far my favorite Dual Rectifiers. I use a Tremoverb because the cleans are a lot better than the rest of them.

 

[James Lugo]

I have an old 2 channel Dual Racto and that thing just kills and is great for recording. I struggle most times getting rectos to record right but the 2 channel dual just sounds and sits right. Great amp.

 

[Mudder]

I had a single that I swapped V1 from a 12ax7 to a 12at7, and that amp purred, gain became much more usable. Very good amps if you like it loud.

I gotta tell ya mudder, that avatar is one of the best!!

I even catch myself leaning left or yelling at that cat.

 

[TX6Strings]

When you guys say "older" is there a date that should be looked for in years or a serial number cut off to tell the "good" from the "bad"?

 

[ericsabbath]

I've done a comparison with my ex-single, 3ch dual and stiletto deuce I in a mesa 4x12
the stiletto blew the rectos pretty hard
the single had exactly the same tone of the dual, but lacked the 100w punch

 

[droptrd]

When you guys say "older" is there a date that should be looked for in years or a serial number cut off to tell the "good" from the "bad"?

Yep, pre 3000 is the way to go for the early rectos. And, IMO, the lower the serial number the worse the clean ch. But, who the hell buys a recto for the clean channel?

 

[droptrd]

also had the chance to play a mesa stiletto (sp?) but honestly the single rectifier blew it away.

The Stilettos can be difficult to dial in and take some time and effort. But they can be deffinately worth it

 

[Vrad]

A while back (like 10 years ago), I was going to buy a Recto. After demoing the single, dual, and triple, I found the single recto to sound the best.

 

[Sevens]

I love my single recto on Vintage mode with a maxon OD808 boosting it! Nice and aggressive!