Mesa/Boogie V-Twin Rackmount Tube Preamp

this unit is extremely easy to use. very easy to dial in a very nice tone, clean or distorted. no issues.

bloody spectacular. I run mine through a mesa 50/50. Can't add much that hasn't already been said EXCEPT that if you run crap tubes in the unit, it is going to sound like crap.

I run a 1960 RCA vintage black plate 5751 in the clean channel and a Raytheon 1959 black plate in the dirty. The reason I run the 5751 in the clean is because the clean channel is so awesome, it has a tendency to overwhelm the dirty channel. If you have two equal tubes, your clean (at half volume) will be louder than the dirty at full volume.

I get a kinda Eric Johnson meets Santana sound and every gig I have guitarists coming up to me and telling me how amazing my tone is.

Again, this unit is not MUDDY. If you run crap valves, your going to get crap out of it. Simple as that.

Haven't had a problem.

never had to deal with them.

however, don't order mesa tubes.. they're Sovteks rebraded. Go vintage for best results or JJ's Tubes for a baseline quality control.

incredible unit at a great price.

already rewieved in other rewiev, here's a quick rundown:

every mesa piece of equipment is not easy to tweak, but this is simpler than other bigger guns, so i'll go for a full 8, two channel hi mid low pres and gain for each one, three modes to further expand the musical horizon inside this little box, the manual is simple and useful with starter sound to understand the nature of the beast :P clean sound are easier than crunch sound, and this pre cover a broad range of sound, from scooped clean to oversaturated gain, except extreme metal

lacks an extra eq, that many mesa have, the famous 5band that is soooo helpful in tone quest but an extra outbouard eq is a simple add-on and much more powerful

pure mesa sound reminiscent of petrucci and metallica, i like it! the cleans are godly, i tweaked a bit and was going mad with it just adding a little delay to get that " where the street have no name clean " is easy to overlap the two channel to get purring blues sound that get you jamming for days, :) i use this pre with a boss gx700 to add effect eq and a little bit of solid state crunch to reach extreeeem gain, into a 20 20 mesa power amp, it sounds very bright! the guy i bought it from had it in a rack with some kind of marshall power amp and it sounded dull in comparison, the rack version of the v-twin is far more powerful than the pedal version, way more nicer sound and very effective eq onboard!

it's a bit noisy, but just when i'm silent, and a easy job for a noise gate, but nothing serious,
i'm using this preamp with a fender stratocaster
and an ibanez sevenstring with humbucker

i have to say that tweaking crunch sounds is difficult and you have to learn how the eq works in higher gain region, it's hard!

IT IS STEEEEEEL
:P
however, the pots are very exposed and if you don't treat them with proper care they could bend, behind the unit there are two smaller pot that are a easy damage if you do not keep the unit in a rack, so pay attention!

i'm using it without a tube backup confidently, but the gx SS pre section give me alternate backup sounds, i trust this little tank!

great company, they answer question even technical ones.

in italy the repair center is utter crap
so i service the unit myself
( the warranty is long void :P )

but no repair needed till now ( knock on wood )

i play a broad range of style, rock blues metal and every sound i can think of is inside this little box, just a little short of gain, but i prefer SS gain after 2 o'clock anyways :P

i've been playing for 15 years and i was always interested in rack gear, mesa is my guitar hero gear and so i found my tone heaven in these realms too!

you know? here in italy this is the best you can buy for the money, if you want mesa, the other rack pre are far abowe any serious amount of money the working musician can afford, maybe evilbay is helpful in finding these :)

it lacks a post tone eq to shape in a better way gain sounds

i compare this directly over the pedal version
and i sense great win in the rack incarnation
better high and himid , much more presence, it sounds real!!!
so real it's a dream!

Super easy to use as there are 2 clearly marked channels set up as solo and clean. Both channels have identical simple controls including the traditional gain/main volume controls, treble, mid, bass and a way cool presence control. What makes it even cooler is that each respective channel has 3 settings that are selected by a small toggle switch. Solo channel has blues, nice distirtion and a way thrshy distortion setting while the clean channel has settings for vintage, bright and scooped sounds. Effects patch is just that, also a direct out for recording and a headphone out for late night jamming. Have not yet figured out how to work the footswitch options since I didn't get any footswitches yet. The simple solo to clean swith seems pretty straightforward but there also seems to be a more complicated way to remotely switch between all six channel settings. Also a stereo output for both channels. I have my rack on top of my horizontal 2X12 cabinet and that whole set up is on top of my Leslie 120 speaker - point being that the controls are at eye level when I am standing up and easy to access quickly. I would find it difficult to bend over to adjust the controls if your rack set up is closer to the ground like waist or knee high.

The V-Twin is an all tube pre-amp and indeed that warm thick tube sound is evident as soon as you start playing. I am playing a Fender American Fat Strat, seymour duncan pearly gates double humbucker in bridge and two stevie ray vaughn texas special single coils at mid and neck. I go from these thick and punchy warm clean settings to some serious sustain and almost violin sounding tones with the overdrive settings. I finally figured out what the mid and neck pick ups on my guitar are for! I think what helps make the pre-amp is that I bought a Mesa all tube 20/20 rack mount power amp with it ($999 for pre-amp and power amp), and also got this amazing 2X12 Ear Candy BuzzBomb cabinet to play both through. The 3 independent sound settings on both channels give you six all analog/tube sounds at the tip of your fingers. You can also blend the clean and solo channels for additional tones. Stereo output too which works quite well with teh 20/20 stereo power amp. I only get hum when I am way close and set on mid/neck pick ups - I think they may not be shielded so well because the 2xhumbucker is super quiet even when gain is cranked.

So far so good. Had it 5 months with no issues. I did however get a solid rack unit to mount it in and it has never left the bedroom since it arrived so it had been pampered. I will say that this this is solid. You can tell just by the way your guitar plug fits into the input, and by how sturdy the switches and knobs are. Very cool stainless steel design, super minimal but built like a tank.

I had to call the company for advice the day it arrived as I wanted to run the 8ohm stereo out from the 20/20 amp into two independent 16ohm 12in speakers. Left a message and they called me back that night. Even though I purchased used on eBay they were most helpful in talking me through the speaker choice and wiring set up.

Ahhh, this my friend is a total game changer. I knew I was getting a good amp when I bougth this based on the Mesa reputation, but I didn't know how truly amazing it would make my guitar sound. If you are struggling with the luxury of having extra cash to splurge on a new amp, and are considering a shiny new digital set up, take your time and try out one of these all tube workhorses. Don't waste your cash on some digital modeling amp. There is no imitation for the real thing and the V-twin rack mount is just that. Thank you Mesa Engineering!!

I use the v twin through a lexicon reflex and a marshall speaker sim. its ease of use and set upp is fantastic. ive never been more at home with a piece of kit.

It's all there, the clean channel is so sweet and musical. ii use a tube screamer in front of it for a little crunch and then for a little added gain for soloing. the solo channel just blows ur head off. i use a prs single cut trem, a 1994 prs custom 24 and a les paul standard through it and the tone of eache guitar just sings out.. love it

ive only had this a short while but it was in my mates studio for years and theres never been a pick of trouble with it. its hard for me to guage though cos it will be used in a lie situation now so i'll keep u updated

havent had to use yet so ive no comment about it.

i play in several styles, i play in a choir that covers all styles from ballads, wrship, praise, southern gospel and american gospel styles. i also play in a christian rock band which has a classic feel too so it works brilliantly in that scenario. i lean towards paul kossoff and gary moore in my playing styles and the v twin is more than capable in these catagories.. i love it

Couldn't be simpler to use. 2 main channels(clean and overdrive) with 3 switchable modes per channel. Each channel has it's own eq section. You can get more than enough gain for any style music. A cool feature is the mix mode which allows you to mix both channels together(with a seperate volume) or just turn it to either channel and you have a very usable lead boost.

I give the sound quality a 10 because you can get a ton of useful tones just by turning the knobs. I use it with a Mesa 20/20 power amp and have never needed more volume. I run it in stereo with a Lexicon PCM 70 effects processer into a Marshall 4x12 cab. This thing kills the newer rack units from Mesa in tone.

I've owned it for about 6 years and have never had a problem. I feel very confident that you could gig with it and not have a backup.

I've talked with the guys at Mesa several times and they were very helpful and knowledgeable. It is hard to talk to anyone at other manufacturers, let alone getting someone with knowledge.

I play mainly classic/modern rock. I've been playing for over 20 years. If it were lost or stolen, I would immediately go in search for another one.

Has a lot of features so it can be a little hard to dial in unless you get the switches just right. Needs to have the footswitch to make it all work.

Every sound I was looking for in a preamp and sounds great with headphones. Not as fat as the studio preamp tone but definately better for everything else. If you want the mesa mark 2 sound get the studio. If you want a recto sound but clearer then this thing rocks. Great high gain tones as well as clean. That's why I bought it. I've used it with a 2:50 as well as a 2:90 mesa power amp and it sounds great through either.

I've had it a couple years with no problems. Doesn't need a backup but always carry a couple extra tubes just in case.

Mesa didn't have a manual up for a while and it made it hard to get all the specs on but it's there now on thier site..

With a less paul or Ibanez Talman with lipstick pickups it sounds great. Without the manual it's hard to understand everything but with the manual it's pretty easy. Don't confuse this with the pedal model I've had both and this one is much more useable versatile and with the two channels three way switches and mixed mode has too many different configurations to go over in this. Don't get me wrong for blues and santana type stuff the Studio and quad preamps are better but for cleaner blues (more marshall type tone) to metal this thing RIPS. I've been playing for 15 years and have owned Carvin X100B Marshall 800 and 900 amps and many many preamps. I still love my ADA but this is much better and can use outside effects, also I prefer the preamp and effects to be separate so each one is distinct and natural. I use this with a G Force and 2:90 currently. I do wish they made a quad version of this.. Once you get it set up "right" it's inspiring to play. For the money it just plain works...

Well, the sounds depends on what settings you use and how you plug your pedal. I tried to pass it by the amp input by plugging my guitar in it and in amp after, but there was a conflict of preamp, and I got to choose my amp or pedal, but the pedal alone can't suit my style ( I'm playing Heavy/Speed Metal...). If your playing blues or classic rock, you'll find it really nice, but MetalHeads such as me will throw it on the wall(even though it will not break!). So I passed the preamp by the fx loop and tada! that's a miracle. What I do is that I boost the lead channel of my amp with the clean mode of the preamp, it had tight and it sings! Now, my pedal and amp come in a pack.

This is one of the most amazing stomp you can buy. It has 3 channel, 2 footswitchable, gain, presence, low, mid, high and master. There's even a out to plug directly in a mixer or plug headphones on it. Mesa didn't forget anything! The only thing I found a bit disapointing, is that the eq is universal, which means work for all channel, but if you really need that, buy the rack version, it corrects it!

The preamp is unbreakable, the only little things is that i bought it used, and the led of the blues channel is all ****** up, but I don't care, since I don't use this channel. And the adapter... I'll need to buy another one because the AC adapter seems to get out of the hole... but that's not a big problem if you're not dancing on your V-Twin.

Haven't dealt with them, but so many people are saying they're really helpful ( or maybe they're paying them.... aha!)

The only thing I'll tell you is that the other guitarist and the bassist of the band didn't even wanted to try a mesa/boogie before. Now, only the pedal itself changed their mind, they're both boogie now! Could I make it obvious?

Dialing in sounds is extremely simple; standard EQ and drive knobs. I rate it a 6 because you need an external channel switcher to change between all 6 available channels. Mesa only offers a footswitch to select between one clean and one drive channel. However, I do take into consideration that the Triaxis was created w/ midi control and is better suited for those already using midi in their rig. I don't like the fact I have to spend even more to change through all the channels. The manual is classic mesa material. Easy to follow w/ a corny joke here and there.

I can't put a number on sound quality because everyone has their own opinion. I think it sounds fantastic for what it is. Compared to a rectifier, the sound is ALMOST identical. Only thing different is you can't get ALL the highs or ALL the lows the recto has. Only one end of the spectrum. I used this unit through a mesa 50/50 poweramp. ---- One other note, the direct outs on this unit sound awful whether used for recording or running through a PA. Maybe with several thousand dollars of equipment it sounds good, but the average musician can forget about it.

Extremely reliable. I never encountered any problems w/ this unit. However, when I sold it, it arrived to the buyer w/ a broken tube. It was well packaged, but I assume UPS threw an extreme beating on it. I never broke a tube w/ it bouncing around in my rack in the back of a cargo trailer.

Mesa has great customer support, but sometimes you have to leave a number and give them a couple of hours to call you back (thus the 8 rating). I actually bought this particular piece because someone @ Mesa recommended it as their best pre-amp (this was before the recto preamp was available).

Each and every day, I go behind the woodshed and beat myself because I sold this unit. This will continue until I find another one. It's a shame they quit producing this unit.

Easy? No-brainer. I bought this used, and downloaded the manual from the
Mesa site, and was up and running within minutes. My only problem is
having to decide which way to use it, not because I can't figure it out,
but because I can't decide, they all have their strong points.

I'm currently using it in an effects loop configured in a MOTU 828MkII.
No noise problem in the clean and blues modes, but quite noisy in the
metal/crunch modes. This can be worked around, though, by turning down
the treble and mid (a solution for me, since I'm running bass, cello
and Stick through it).

Like the Bottle Rocket, this preamp doesn't neuter a bass signal; the
sound of my electric upright is clear and punchy on the low notes, the
way I expect it to be.

Another top-quality Mesa product. Dependable. Built like a tank. I'd
definitely be comfortable with this on a gig without a backup.

Mesa Customer Support (and Sales Support) are top-flight. When I called
for advice (before I bought the V-Twin), I told them that I'd seen a
couple of different units on eBay. Knowing that they probably wouldn't
make any money off me, they were thoroughly helpful anyway. Big points
for that (and big thanks). I wound up having to buy the channel switch
from them, and received it in a matter of days.

I play improv-jam music, sometimes loud/noisy, sometimes ambient,
sometimes in-between, and this unit is perfect everywhere.

If it were stolen, I'd track down the schlub who stole it, and... don't
get me started! If it were lost, I'd never admit to being that stupid;
I'd have to find some poor schlub to blame instead. :)

very nice cleans , crunch or even big distortion , need a good EQ or enhancer like ultrafex to really boost the unit !
i use it with my rg 7620 and sa 1260 + rocktron xpression +marshall 9100 2x50 watts +2x12 v 30 NOS cabinets .
it suits very well to my style eventhough i am making death metal melo style, blues at home...and everything between !

may buy a rectifier preamp to have a much more overdirven sound , but , this one is very loud and powerfull, could be a little bit more agressive to really make me touch heaven ,but i am not far from it !
judge by yourself here :
http://www2.serveur4u.com/jnogier/the%20gear.htm
some samples and videos of the v-twin!

very versatile preamp , 2 channels , with 3 voicing on each channel.
6 switch to change the voicings with a switcher unit!
stereo effects loop with volume and footswichable activation.
lot of things in this single rack space unit.
go and see the mesa boogie user manual available on their website to see more.

seems to be unbreakable....love it

never delt with them?

love this unit , not expensive .
would try to buy a rectifier preamp , because this one is pretty difficult to find.
i will keep it even if i buy a more expensive preamp!