Mesa/Boogie .50 Caliber +

The graphic equaliser on guitar amp is great idea, but real bad is absence of separate gain for rhythm and lead channel.

I'm playing Epiphone/Gibson LP with EMG-81 and 85, through Randall 4x12 box. Pickups are strong, so clean channel is quite crunch, but I like it, because the rhythm channel sounds near perfectly. Lead tones are really howling, it smells bit of 80s, but especially with graphic equaliser you can set bass hight and all sound "seat at butt". Also the reverb sounds are amazing, god bless Boogies. THE GRAPHIC EQUALISER IS THE BEST REASON!

I buy it used, so I can't judge, but yeah, it need service sometimes.

...it's used...

I have this head about two years, but it was made maybe in 89-90. It's great amp for funky rhythms and heavy sounds.

I LOVE THIS AMP! HERE'S WHY;

I bought it new in 1989/90 I think. 50watts 2 x 6LC/5881.
2 Channels - Gain, Rhythym Master & Lead Master. Reverb, Presence and 5 band EQ. All Pretty Good. Just enough knobs. I run it with a Marshall 4x10cab. A Fralins equipped 88' Srat and a 88' PRS Custom 24.

The Clean channel has plenty of low end, with robust mids and shimmering sparkling highs. It goes from spanky, sparkling clean tone to a lovely, lush, smooth, bluesy overdrive on the clean channel. It goes from clean & tight to very spongey and lush around 6 and starts overdriving alot past 7. Depending on where you set the input gain. It can get a slight crunch to it, if you crank and tweak it just right, but it's really nothing like a proper EL34 marshall type crunch. Just a very vague approximation at best. This is all this amp really lacks. A nice gggraaaunchy crunch tone. Everything else totally rocks.

P.S. I'm saving for a Hot British Tone Bone.

The Lead channel can sound a little fizzy at low volume, but the distortion is very complex and sweet. The EQ works a treat. No foot pedal or amp modeller can touch it for complexity and 3D tone. Once you get used to it, this amount of complexity in your sound and you end up trading all your fuzz boxes in, cos they sound like cardboard. Turn up the master volume and the low end kicks in and it smooths out into to a lush, creamy, soulfull, really saturated distortion. That's total gas to play solos and crunch rhythym. It cleans up really nicely too. Into a nice, moderate overdrive with a little complex hair on your notes. It will do a pretty decent scooped 80's heavy metal sound, mated to a 4x12 cab. But it's too creamy and lush to sound exactly like a Marshall to my ears.

The reverb sounds pretty good to me. It's level drops back when you switch from clean to lead, just right. It can get quite deep, like your in a train station type surf sound. I usually set it at about 2-3. just to add a little realism.
In my opinion this amp isn't all that loud. It struggles to compete with a drum kit. The lead master volume channel is really loud though, but it gets too messy and muddy when you max it out.

It has broken once. I was putting effects in the loop and stuffed it somehow. Got it repaired. For comparsion, I also own a Marshall 8080 Valvestate 'beer glass rattler'. It's rather bland by comparison. The Marshall is much newer (but cost half the price) and it's knobs sound all scratchy and cut in and out, when ya turn 'em. It needs to be repaired, all the Boogie operations remain as new. It's over 12 years old!

It's never needed help from anybody. N/A

I LOVE THIS AMP!!
It's quite compact and petite. It sits perfectly on top of my Marshall 4x10. like what the other guy said you can make a Boogie sound roughly like a Marshall, but can you make a Marshall sound like a Boogie...Clean. Think not.

The overall sound and quality are excellent. Sweet, robust and complex, not quite Class A, but still pretty good, dynamic and spanky. If a little too polite to cut it in a band mix.

It's a very versatile and musical amp. It has a very sophisticated, classy, rich tone. That's great for pop, blues and jazz/fusion and 80's type metal. It's perhaps a little too creamy and classy and 'polite' to do the aggro rock thing with any credibilty (atleast to my ears anyway). You would argue that it's too 'polite', too 'musical mummies boy', which I guess it probably is. It doesn't always cut it in a band mix. I have to use an Boss EQ pedal and clean boost it a bit to give it bit more cut and slice with the band at times.

I just can't wait to try it out with a Tonebone HB on the clean channel. ooooeee! that's gonna rock.

I can have my cake and eat it too. Sweet, but robust sparkling bluesy cleans, graunchy crunch from the TBHB and stonkin' sweet, saturated, soulfull Boogie leads. Just gotta mike the little sucker. Rock steady brothers.

Just a plain tube amp. It's probably the most simple amp that I've seen. However, I do like the simplicity alot.

Im using a Gibson Les Paul with it and the tone is killer. The clean may be kind a dirty, but the lead is unreal. The high gain sound is so unique. It has a classic Mesa tone and I love the sound that I get from this amp. Once I tried this amp i didn't want to play anything else.

I would definately rely on this amp. I cradked a tube once, but that was my fault.

Great service.

Mesa is a solid company and the proof is in this sick amp.

This amp was made in like freakin' '89 or something. Old as crap. You've read enough reviews of this amp by now so you know what it can do. It was versatile enough for what I play, but the 50 watts just didn't seem to cut through a live setting like how I wanted it to.

I play through an ESP les paul body guitar..M-100 or something like that. It's super cheap but i've totally re-done it and nothing is the same anymore except for the wood..I have two EMG-81's in it. It has amazing distortion, pretty damn brutal, and if you use it just for a practice amp, it's great. loud enough to hear what you're doing but doesn't hurt your ears. One major problem I have with this amp is there is an incessant ringing all the time. It's pretty nasty but overall, unless you're recording on a weekly basis(like I am) it isn't really an inconvenience. The distortion is plenty brutal, just not loud enough. It naturally distorts past 3 and takes away some of that death metal crunch that i've been looking for, for so long.

I have had a few problems with this amp, but nothing that was anyones fault but the person who sold it to me..and my own. When I recieved it, the tubes were put in backwards or something and it ended up blowing. I had to have it re-tubed AND put in 200 dollars worth of work into it(which you could say it was totalled, because I only bought it for 300) but that wasn't Mesa's fault, or anyone associated with. This thing is pretty much built to last, even though it looks rickety as hell. I don't know if it was a fault of mine, or what but there was a rectangular shape cut into the bottom of my head for no apparent reason. It looked..well, stupid. It served no purpose and it was just another way for the tubes to get damaged. Which is another thing, I would always take a backup because there isn't a cover on the back of the amp. The tubes are totally exposed and if something bumps into any of that stuff, your fried.

Never worked with. Can't say. No warranty because I bought used.

I have been playing for about 6 years now, but I played about 7 hours a day. The main criticism I have of this head is that it doesn't get loud enough for the settings that I play. I love the way it sounds, but sadly you can have the most crushing tone in the world but it won't matter if no-one can hear it. This blows away any Rectifier I've ever heard but I don't think that's saying much since the Rectifiers are overpriced garbage. I have a 5150, and a VHT Pittbull, and I myself think the 5150 blows them all away. It has INSANE low end and pierces through the live mix better then anything else. Save up the few hundred more and go all the way with a 5150. Way better than anything Mesa has ever made.

See the other reviews for features list.
My experience with it was that it was simple - easier to dial in a desired tone than most amps.
The 8 is simply because there's no real extras except the 5 band EQ.

10 all the way. I played the .50 cal + as my primary amp from 1999 to present. I sold it and bought the combo version I like the sound so much. The thing about Boogie amps is the clean tone. With a pedal or two you can make most amps produce any style distortion you want. But getting a good clean tone is more difficult. The character of an amp comes out in the the clean channel. That's why I chose this over several Marshalls, a Rivera, and a truck load of Fenders. All the other makers were too bright, to edgy on the clean channel. I like a mellow, rounded clean tone. The other makers were just too thin. Of course - the amp distortion is Mesa all the way. You can run into problems with your levels depending on how you use the EQ. Some owners have had a separate Lead Volume installed ($100 or so) - probably a good investment.

Overall - 10+. I have played through this amp with an Ibanez AS200 (stock Super 58's), Epiphone Casino (stock P-90's), cheap Fender Squire Strat with a SD Lil '59 at the neck and Invader at the bridge. All guitars sounded great through this. I've been able to play everything from Pantera to John Scofield - all using little more than a chorus or overdrive.

Uh...Mesa...that about says it. Five years, several states, indoors, outdoors, in cars-trucks-planes. Awesome. The only issue I had is that the spring reverb crackles a bit when the amp gets vibrated. One drummer I used to gig with plays like an earthquake at all times, and I noticed it then. Never got a good diagnosis. Some thought bad spring, others said it was normal. Most times it would be fine so I left it alone.

p.s. I bought it for $425 and sold it for $450 five years later, only replacing the tubes in that time. Mesa's are a solid investment. Like a good car - buy it used to save the depreciation, and with a littl TLC it should gain in value.

I called them about the reverb question - got instant help (though they couldn't do much unless I shipped it...which is expected).
Otherwise no dealings.

I guess this is the ego portion where I tell everyone how great I am...

I've been playing 20 years. Self taught, so less than half of that time is worth anything as far as guitar playing goes. In the last 6 years I have gigged regularly, mainly for enjoyment. I have no aspirations for a music career - I just love to get together and play.

I currently play a 1981 Ibanez AS200, Mesa .50 Cal+. My effects train is: Guitar >>> Boss TU2 tuner >>> Boss OD3 overdrive >>> DOD chorus >>> MXR M133 Micro Amp >>> Dunlop Wah >>> amp.

I actually use the overdrive distortion on the clean channel most, as it has a more unique sound with the AS200. With other guitars I used the Mesa distorion more. Some form of gain boost pedal is a good investment, and a cheap way to simulate a lead channel. Your sound man will thank for saving him extra work leveling your leads.

I don't have any negative comments about this amp. When I recently decided to move to a combo, I actually considered a Peavey Prowler - Yes I said Peavey. I heard another player use one (he removed the Peavey name plate), and was suprised at the tone. I borrowed it for a few weeks and found that it's basically an early 70's Marshall. I was considering it to save a few $$, but I am so confident in the .50 that I bought the combo version of it instead!

I believe my Booge .50 Caliber plus is from the late 80's. I find the amp to be almost "perfect". Everyone knows the features: 50 Watts, Two Channels (lead/clean), Pre Amp Vol., Master Vol., Lead Volume, Treble, Bass, Mid and Presence knobs - Reverb, 5 band eq, effects loop etc, etc... Not to mention the amp is very light.

The amp is very dynamic with great harmonics. It also has a tight bottom end - it never seems to fold on itself like some of the Rectifiers I've played. The lead channel is one of the coolest sounds I've ever heard. Notes will sing when pushed and the amp will "clean" up when you roll your volume knob on your guitar. And did I mention for 50 watts this amp screams.

I do wish the amp had seperate EQ's for the channels though. It's impossible to dial in a clean tone and not compromise your dirty tone. And it would have been nice for the 5 Band EQ to been in the post stage.


My main guitar is a 335 Studio w/ a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and a Alnico in the front. The guitar seems to react well with this amp. It's a great combination for what I do. Effects wise, I've trimmed down my pedalboard and now I'm down to the essentials: Cry Baby Wah, Line Modulation for Chorus, Tremelo, Vibrato, Line 6 Delay for it's loop function and then straight into the amp. In the loop I have a Boss Delay and a new MXR noise gate. I need to go from a pretty clean sound to extremely dirty and over the top and this set up works. Am I 100% satisfied ? No. But pretty damn close.

As I mentioned before, I wish the 2 channels didn't share the same EQ and pre amp settings. This would make my life easier but if your me, nothing comes easy. The dirty channel is extremely noisy as well - this is where the MXR noise gate comes in. A definite life saver.

The music I play is reminiscent of the Pumkins "Gish" record and the Cult's "Love" era. I needed an amp that would do clean and dirty and the Boogie comes very close. I was a Marshall JCM 800 user for years. I would plug into the low input channel and use a box for crunch. It was cool but my Boogie kills that sound. It's a bit more lush and 3D. I belive that's due to the 6l6's.

I also suggest using a cab rated at 8 ohms to get the full potential of this amp. I have a 16 ohm Marshall 4x12 w/ 25 Watt Celestions. The sound is not quite as focused as my Marshall w/ Vintage 30's that has been split for 2 8 ohm outs. Scary good...

This amp in particular has been pretty consistent. This is the 3rd one I've owned. You know how it goes - You don't realize what you have until it's gone.

I recently played a show in town and there was a rented back line of Line 6 and bad Marshall's. Knowing that clubs rarely know what they're renting I took my head with me. There were 5 bands that night and everyone used my head. It took the punishment of 5 different sets and still remained intact. What really impressed me is that everyone sounded like themselves when they played through the Boogie. I know all the guitar players in town and have a pretty good idea of everyones tone. Some played direct into the amp - others used pedals. But the one constant thing was great guitar tone. So reliable ? Yes. And quite functional.

Ok not to be a shit talker but Boogie has been no help to me with this amp. The guys at the Hollywood store are cool but didn't really have any words of wisdom for me. "Just retube it and you'll be fine...". Funny thing is, after I did retube with Boogie tubes the amp lost it's vibe. That kind of pissed me off.

So I did a little homework. Here's what I found. The following is taken from an email from Eurotubes in Oregon. I had asked if using a set of NOS RCA's or KT 66's would improve my amp. Here was the response.

"Your Mesa 50+ uses a matched pair of 6L6's, four 12AX7's and one 12AT7. The 50+ amp's are fixed bias at a pretty cold setting so I would go with a hot matched pair of the JJ 6L6GC's which would be plug and play, four JJ ECC83S and one ECC81. There are no real KT66's being made and the only ones available are the russian and chinese tubes which are a far cry from the
original Genalex KT66 but these are quite expensive ( 250.00 to 400.00 a pair ) and I would not recommend running these in your amp unless the bias was modified from fixed to adjustable. The JJ tubes will get a better and more vintage tone like the RCA's than the sovtek tubes that Mesa sells".

Upon their suggestion I switched out the tubes and the amp got even better. The new tubes seemed to give the amp more balls. It was also suggested, if I wanted to go a step further, I should have a Bias pot installed for more tweaking. Which I'll be doing in the future. I would love this amp if I could dial it in just a hair more.

I bought my first .50 plus in 1990 and recorded and toured with that amp for 5 years. I bought my 2 most recent ones about 6 months ago and realized just how great these amps were. I've owned Hi Watts, Marshalls, Fender Bassman's and the Line 6 stuff and I have to say that this by far my favorite amp. They are so simple and yet have such complex tone.

I'm starting to think twice about leaving this review. My luck I'll check Ebay next week and see that these amps have doubled in price...

My 50 Caliber + head is the "Long Chassis" version. This choice was made since I didn't really like the idea of all those tubes crammed together without room to breath. My head has 2 channels plus a 5 band EQ. You can switch the EQ on/off with a switch on the head or remotely via footswitch. It has an effects loop, direct recording line out. In essence a pretty standard head configuration.

This amp sounds great! The only problem is that both channels work off the same "pre-gain" knob which can be problematic. My personal solution for this problem was to introduce a tube pre-amp with its own pre-gain & master volume. By using this preamp with the clean channel set at 3-4 I get a "dirty clean" sound. When I click off the preamp then I have a Fender type clean sound. The lead channel then sounds nice & gritty for solos, etc... It took some experimentation but I have a "3 channel" set-up now. ***Note: My 50 + has been used by friends & fellow musicians for over 10 years. It's amazing how every individual sets the controls on the head! All kinds of guitars have been played through it without compromise. Some people use it without EQ, with radical EQ, different treble, mid & bass settings, etc... Everyone is envious of my 50 + which is a tremendous compliment!

Very reliable although one time a resistor blew out & took a preamp tube with it. My tech informed me this was not a common problem & not to worry. Things happen no matter how well designed & built.

Excellent. They're busy people over at Mesa but they return my calls the same day & are very helpfull.

Overall this is the amp that I would never let go of. Ever. If it was stolen I'd need lots of antidepressants to get over it. Then I'd search for another. If you see one...buy it. You won't be dissappointed.

circa 90-92(what rep at mesa said)shorthead version.this amp nails the tone and sounds that i desire. i use it in 2 bands one being a ska/raggae(clean channel nice and bubbly w/slightly scooped eq.to get neo fender sound)other band radio rock and emo(jawbreaker,fuel,bush,the clash,knapsack,jimmy eat world,social distortion,etc), distortion channel is simply amazing!!more on that later..
2 channeled amp and NO, YU CANNOT SET GAIN KNOB ON TEN IN DISORTION AND GET SPARKLY CLEAN ON RYTHMN CHANNEL!!yu have to make up mind beforehand, it's a compromise, at first i was dissapointed; however, i'm not 15 trying to peel paint off walls insearch of the ultimate amount of gain while not having any amount of note clarity ; muddy is out, in fact less is more,i personally set my gain at 5 allowing me to access to the killer clean channel this amp has to offer. in fact this situation forced me to clean up my sound which is a good thing..
i use mine on a regular basis, giging touring basis, i've had amp for over 2 yrs and she does fine and this little 50 watt diamond will shred w/the best of them.have not had problem yet w/ lack of power,i usually have master knob around 3-4, 4x12 box miked
and then i call it a day. i also use 5881's instead of 6L6,the 5881's have less output than 6L6, this results in a more warm compressed rounded sound than the higher trebely oriented 6L6, try the switch, yu might like it.

my primary fiddle is the gibson les paul clasic w/ the hot stocked pu's. on the woodplank's a dunlop wah,voodoo lab sparkledrive(sounded awesome atraight out of the box, take that yu remodified ibanez tube screamin playin faggots!!ha! ha!)compression pedal and old boss chorus pedal. the 50 cal+ suits me just fine , in fact it is my sound. as far as my stlye,from blues to classic rock to radio rock this amp does exactly what i need it to do, it's very versatile,a matter of tweaking.. . one needs to know this because every room, bar,etc. will not sound the same and yu gotta know how to tweak those knobs for any given situation. this amp sounds killah!!my distortion channel's set up to be warm and punchy w/ clarity and attack, think metallica black album and tool, this is what i aim for at least anyway, smooth w/ the roughness..
clean channel-very bubbley and works very well w/ 5 band eQ, very fenderish sounding, once again tweaking is the key, very last page in mesa's manual located on line is good place to start w/ decent settings.
the 5 band eq is incredible one slight movement makes a world of difference whether you're in clean or distortion mode

hasn't failed me yet..don't do anything stupid and yu should be fine

still call mesa boogie on regular basis to pick their brains about tubes,speakers,etc. very helpful every time and they don't make yu feel as if you're asking dumd,obvious questions

i've been playing for 15yrs plus and so far this amp is the zenith, bottom line. i can get a wide spectrum of sounds out of mine and i trully love it. was going to get it modified but have grown to love it just the way it is.take advantage of the tone and volume knobs also on the guitar. in combination w/ amp set up to taste, i have my volume knobs on les paul pulled back to 5, tone knobs rolled back to about 6-8, this gives me AC/DC, social distortion, etc. amp cleans up very nicely to me. as i roll volume knobs forward on guitar, amp opens up from overdrive to nu-metal sound, totally gorgeous!!
would definitely replace if stolen.
compared it to marshall and to me i CAN GET A NEO MARSHALL SOUND OUT OF THE MESA BUT ONE DEFINITELY CANNOT GET A MESA SOUND OUT OF A MARSHALL!! also can't get a fenderish sound out a marshall either. the 50 cal+ is no one trick pony.
spend time tweaking,right down fav. settings(for pedals also) and you also will worship at the shrine of mesa, and remember it's not the arrow that kills you, but the indian, no one piece of equipment will make or break you,no matter what strat hendrix played, he always sounded like hendrix, soul cannot be duplicated, so find and do what works for you, if you don't like it sell it and past it on so some one else who can discover mesa boogie

Not very many features just standard clean and lead channels. Plus a really handy 5 band EQ. Simple but great!!!

I play a a wide range of guitars through this amp and they all sound awesome. You can get a huge lead tone which in my opinion destroys a rectifier or a crystal clear and bright fender sounding clean tone out of it.

I bought this amp used for $100 it looks really beat up but i had a mark III that was in perfect condition which just blew out on me and this amp is still going strong. Never have had a problem.

This is probably one of the best sounding amps i have played and it packs a huge punch. This was possible the best deal you can get except maybe getting a Mesa/Boogie TriAxis for $200 which i also have :).
-Mike Big

This is a 1989 Mesa/Boogie .50 Caliber+ head. It is an extremely versatile, hard working TONE MACHINE. I use it to play mainly Blues/Rock, but also it can easily be used for Soul, Classic Rock and much more. It is a split channel unit with an effects loop, DI, and on-board 5-band eq, which is controlled by a unique, footswitchable system. I use this with a Johnson Amplification 2-12 Cabinet, loaded with Vintage 30's. It is used to gig in medium to large sized clubs.
It has a 12ax7 front end, and uses two 6L6's for the power section.
This sucker is LOUD.

I use this amp with a '91 Les Paul, '92 Lucille, and a '74 Tele Deluxe. It sounds great with the humbuckers. It can sound as clean as any Fender, or as gritty as a Marshall. For the Blues numbers we play, I run a Snarling Dogs Blue Doo, and in essence, I have a third channel to work with. This amp is capable of much, but like anything else, you have to work on tweaking it to find what you're looking for.
I use an outboard eq pedal, and set my clean channel to taste. Then I dial in the Lead channel, and set the on-board eq to my liking.

I've never had a problem with it. I bought it used, and it looked like it had been rode hard, and put up wet. But I simply re-tubed, and was off like a rocket.

I have talked to the company a couple of times, and they were very helpful. They have a great web-site, and if every amp company had their owners' manuals available on-line, the world would be a better place to live!

I've been playing since the mid '70's, and have played through Marshalls, Fenders, Peaveys, and a Johnson Millenium. I bought this amp, because I'd bought my father a Boogie .22 Caliber Combo that I really liked. I thought that a similarly featured amp with 6L6's would be a good match, and I'm very pleased with this one.