Should I buy a combo? Maybe a Mesa?

gearaddict

Been thinking about getting rid of my head/cab setup and getting something a bit more manageable. My main rig atm is a 100W head and 2x12 cab (H&K Switchblade and Marshall 1936v). But I still have my Orange TH30 head...so one option might be to go back to that and pair it up with a 1x12...maybe a Thiele? Or get rid of it all and go back to a 1x12 combo...was thinking maybe of splurging on one of the less expensive Mesa combos - like the 5:25 or the Rectoverb 25? Or go more cheap and cheerful with the new el34 Marshall DSL401.

Any thoughts?

stickyfiddle

I had a Mesa 5:25. Excellent amp, but the Mesa "thump" was not for me in the long run. YMMV but I think you'll either love it or not.

bazxkr

I was gonna suggest the Mesa 5 25 plus version...depends on budget of course

gearaddict

I've read the Mesa Express combos can sound a bit nasal due to the small cabs...did you find that at all? Any ideas how they compare to the Rectoverb 25?

I'm not that bothered about having millions of tones to hand so all the switching might be more of an annoyance to me than a feature...plus I do worry about the pricing...is it really worth it, or is it just because Mesa costs a fortune in the UK? Dunno.

I do see them being bought and then moved on fairly quickly...

KrisGee

Been in the same situation a year ago when started feeling tired of a head and cab setup (jvm410h+fatboy) and how difficult it was to move around.
Sold it for quite good money, threw in extra 50 quid and got myself express 5:50. Freaking love it! Sweet first channel that takes pedals extremely well and I use it for cleans plus rythm. Second channel is a bit muddy for riffwork unless treated with ts so I set its volume slightly above the first one and use it for solos only.
Great amp worth a try and can be had at a bargain price second hand.

jeztone2

I did a gig a while ago and a guy in the headline act had a Mesa 5:25 I thought it sounded really boxy & nasty. I wasn't sold on it.

simonk

I didn't really enjoy the 5:25 either. The 5:50+ is much better to my ears.

gearaddict

KrisGee said:

...got myself express 5:50. Freaking love it! Sweet first channel that takes pedals extremely well and I use it for cleans plus rythm. Second channel is a bit muddy for riffwork unless treated with ts so I set its volume slightly above the first one and use it for solos only.

Sounds a similar scenario to my Orange TH30 Pretty much a pristine clean channel which makes a good pedal platform (if you find the right pedal...it's a bit picky) and a none-more-filth dirty channel that maybe is tending too much to fuzz for sharper rhythm sounds but is great for leads. Although it does un-fuzz quite a bit when used at volume.

I might see if I can't get hold of a 1x12 that works well with the Orange and go down that route for a while...

gearaddict

A while back, I was thinking about a new ported 1x12 cab Zilla were doing which I think cost £325. Or for £100 less I could get the Orange 1x12 that would match the head...but I've heard bad things about it. Not sure why...

stickyfiddle

I didn't find mine nasally, but definitely a little boxy when set how I liked it tone-wise, which is "just into crunch" on the Blues channel. Ironically when set very clean or very gainy I found it sounded much better, but that may be because I'm less used to those sounds from past amps I've had. It's obviously not as nice clean as a Deluxe Reverb! Ultimately it was the lack of voxy chime, and tbh the lack of character in general, that made me decide to move on. They're good amps and getting cheap now, but a bit of a jack of all/master of none thing. Seems that often happens with the little Mesas.

gearaddict

Sounding like the Mesa Express might not be for me...also, I hadn't realised it was more of a blues-y lower gain amp. Possibly the Rectoverb25 might be more up my street but I guess it's still in a very small cab and I'm not sure about an el84 Mesa Rectifier...just doesn't feel quite right.

JayGee

gearaddict said:

Sounding like the Mesa Express might not be for me...also, I hadn't realised it was more of a blues-y lower gain amp. 

It's not. But it'll do that as well...

Nerine

I've been using my Two Rock combo recently over all my other head and cabs.

It's so easy!!

glt56

I've been using a 5:25, the one with the 12" speaker, with a Johnny Marr Jaguar and Duesenberg Starplayer+ and it sounds wonderful. Like all Mesa Boogies, settings are critical and it can take a while to work out whats right for you and your particular guitar. But they are brilliant, and incredibly loud little amps. Once you find "your" sound, they are most definitely keepers!

Juat a thought, maybe the boxy one has the smaller 10" speaker?  I haven't heard one used live so maybe..

timmysoft

I've been a big user of combos over the years, even when touring I used to rock a vc50 or vc30 212. I think if you have a decent combo with a well matched speaker in it then it's hard to go wrong, I've been loving my little peavey ultra 112, although sadly it does weigh more than a small planet. I don't find it at all boxy or hard to hear, but it does have a large cab on it for a little amp.