Mesa Boogie 5:50? Or other combos sub $1K

[ThurberMingus]

It's tax return season, aka: time to step my amp game up. I'm in the market for something under $1000, combo form, 1x12 or 2x12 and loud. I noticed that I can get a 5:50 for a pretty decent cost, it seems versatile enough and the fact that I can get a 1x12 that I can use with my Orange cab (oriented vertically ) seems pretty tempting. But every review is either "great for my bar band" or "everything from SRV to Hendrix!". Do any fuzzbreaux have experience with Mesa amps? I haven't switched channels on an amp in forever, but the prospect seems kind of fun, especially now that I've been jamming some heavies with a friend of mine.

I'm playing either a Jazzmaster or a Mustang (and soon a Telemaster) into a Fuck and some other pedals, so pedal agreement is important. I play like, kinda shoegaze but not really. More like post punk but more ambient, or like sweet sunny day surf jams a la Alvvays. And also now technical mathy post hardcore metal type shit a little. A distortion channel seems cool right now.

What does ILF think of this amp? Should I say fuck the world and buy that giant Silverface Bassman Twin across town? Should I cut my fucking arm off? Should I just become a lowly blues rock dad with a hard rock background?

[PeteeBee]

No experience with mesas other than my buddies. I think it's a stiletto? Some sort of 410 combo. Sounded really boring for how large, heavy, and expensive it was.

I'm looking at an ac15 or 30 for the reasons you listed. Tax return season, loud great sounding combo for all the same types of music because we're so cool, and I also have an orange cab to hook it into for extra speakers. Right now I'm loving the idea of the ac15 and actually using all the volume of it. I've never had an amp I use more than 50% of the volume knob. I'd like to change that.

[ThurberMingus]

I have always been interested in a Vox, plus there's one locally, but it's bigger, and I hear a lot about reliability problems, but they sound great and are aesthetically pleasing. Run on sentence, I'll think long and hard about it!

[D.o.S.]

Mesa amps can be super rad. It's like pretty much every other high end amp company, they have some misses and some hits.

I say it in every Mesa thread but I really think the F-100 combos are criminally underpriced on the used market now.

[larsbars]

I've actually been look at 5:50 heads myself to pair with my 410 cab, they seem like a hell of a deal. From the research that I've done, they check a lot of boxes for me: great fender style cleans, takes pedals like a champ, 5w option for apartment fuckery, 50w option for playing with a band, Mesa reliability. Vox amps are also really rad, but they're a very different kind of clean, volume is a little more difficult to handle, and in my experience pickier with pedals.

[odontophobia]

Mesa amps can be super rad. It's like pretty much every other high end amp company, they have some misses and some hits.

I say it in every Mesa thread but I really think the F-100 combos are criminally underpriced on the used market now.

Thought I might find you here, dropping this truth bomb.

F-100 has a 60w mode, still louder than hell, pal. So if you're looking for that 5w to love on it won't help you.

That said. Woof. F-100 is the jam. Definitely has a better clean than the Dual Rectifier series but still has a very serviceable distortion channel (it actually has a "dirty" mode and then the "Contour" mode adds in a little more crunch/compression for the Boogie style distortion that people come to expect from Dual Recs).

I picked one up for $550 this winter. It needed new power tubes but I ended up buying a kit off of Euro Tubes. So sub $700 after tube change. But I had some Eminence Swamp Thangs hanging around so I ended up selling the V30s out of it to my buddy for cheap ($100 for the pair), so after tube swap I ended up paying basically $600.

So go find you an F-100. 2x12 combo. Be loud as hell. Clean is good, takes pedals well, use the varieties of the dirt channel to play nicely with your pedals, as well.

Has an FX loop if that's your thing. Also has direct recording/headphones out. So you've got that for your at home stuff.

Only one warning. HEAVY AS FUCK.
(in every way possible)

[PeteeBee]

I think I'm a little biased because I live 20 miles from where Mesa's are made. Not necessarily biased for them, but locally they hold a really high resale value. Everyone just says "and if anything ever happens, you can just drive it over and they'll fix it."

[ThurberMingus]

The recording/headphone out is great, that'll boost up my home recording/personal enjoyment levels to the max!

I'm leaning towards the F50 though, because 1x12 is easier to deal with that 2x12, and I don't want to totally blow my bandmates out of the water.

I think the headphone out is the deal sealer. Who knows, maybe I'll get into effects loops too!

[ThurberMingus]

Welp, went to the local guitar shop to try out some amps, they had a fucking F50 in stock. I'm sold. The gain channel on that amp is ridiculous.

Now if that tax return would just show up...

[odontophobia]

Welp, went to the local guitar shop to try out some amps, they had a fucking F50 in stock. I'm sold. The gain channel on that amp is ridiculous.

Now if that tax return would just show up...

I just did a preliminary tax estimate. Outlook is not good. Looks like I owe this year. Woof.

[D.o.S.]

[ThurberMingus]

Ouch, that's rough. I'm always glad I'm low on the food chain when tax season comes. My boss (and virtually every business owned ever) loathes tax season while I reap the benefits!

[ThurberMingus]

Double post:

This amp is FAT sounding. I've never used an amp that has that much CHUNK to it. I'm gonna be sticking to the clean channel mostly, as the Fuck with my JM sounded heavenly, but that dirt channel is no joke. Makes my Marshall (DSL100) sound like a dumb toy.

[PeteeBee]

This amp is FAT sounding. I've never used an amp that has that much CHUNK to it. I'm gonna be sticking to the clean channel mostly, as the Fuck with my JM sounded heavenly, but that dirt channel is no joke. Makes my Marshall (DSL100) sound like a dumb toy.

That's awesome. Love to hear some clips when it's yours!

[ThurberMingus]

If I can figure out a good way to get okay sounding clips you're on!