Mesa/Boogie DC-5 Head

My amp was made in 1992, it's a 50-watt tube head, and I find it extremely versatile for almost any style I play. Mostly I play low-tuned stoner rock, southern metal and blues. The amp responds very nicely to the way I play the guitar. It has everything mentiones in the reviews above, it's kinda like a simplified Mark series head. I use this amp in my personal recording studio, at the rehearsal place and also live. This thing kicks ***!! It is built like a tank, never had any problems AT ALL. For those who think that 50 watts is not enough, let me assure you - this amp will cover all your needs live, I mean it screams!

I use this amp with:

gibson les paul custom (stock pickups)
hagstrom viking deluxe (stock pickups)
Ibanez rg - 550 (high - output bill lawrence pickups)

It is a pleasure to use this amp with all my guitars, it makes them sing. If a little more "modern" bite is needed I throw in a compressor before the amp. It suits my music style perfectly (I play mostly stoner rock (Down, Corrosion of Conformity and so on)), it has that dirty kind of distortion, a little old-school sounding, but very sweet. It can also deliver a rectifier-esque modern crunch, if required, but keep in mind that this is a more mellow - sounding amp.

The amount of distortion available is ridiculous. The overall level of noise is not too high, in humid environments the noise tends to get a bit louder, but it's not too bad.

The only problem with this amp is that you can't get really fendery type of clean sounds. It gets distorted very quickly, but by rolling off some volume you can clean it up. Once you get it clean, it sings like an angel.

Reliable as hell, it's 17 years old and still kicks ass, no problems whatsoever. I bought it with the original tubes in it and they still worked fine, but when I retubed it with mesa's str 440's.. man, the amp came alive! It started roaring like a beast!

Perfect!

Have never had to deal with them and probably never will. :)

I've been playing for 6 years and had this amp for about 5 years or so. If it were stolen I would (brutally beat up the thief and then) definitely replace it, because the amp has something special. The rectifiers sound awesome, but somehow dead when compared to this little monster. Plus, nowadays it's a great value for your money!

50 watts all tube provided by dual 6L6 power tubes and six 12AX7ss, 2 Channels, Rhythm (with push/pull gain boost) and Lead, Parallel Effects Loop, 5 band Graphic EQ, Seperate controls for each channel (gain, treble, mid, bass, presence, reverb, master) and Master Volume (labeled output level). Also included are speaker mute, slave jack and level control for use in a rack system (ie mainly using the DC for a power amp), 3 different speaker jacks (one 8 ohm, and two 4 ohm), and rotary knob to select which channel the Graphic EQ is on. My only qualm is that the boost on the rhythm channel isn't footswitchable, and that there are seperate footswitch for channel switch and eq/reverb switching.

Nothing short of amazing. Takes AWHILE to get used to the EQ and gain structure, but once you do, it becomes insanely easy to use. I own two guitars; a Schecter Spitfire and an Ibanez RG321MH, but I despise using the latter (see my review for it). With my Schecter and it's stock not too impressive pickups, I can coax all sorts of sounds out of this amp. The clean channel can go from acoustic-esque cleans, to Metallica (no lie!), and the Lead Channel is to die for not only in sound, but in versatility. I have the gain around 6 on the lead channel, with it's master at around 4, and I can go from playing John Petrucci's "Damage Control" or anything from Lamb of God, to rolling off the volume, throwing the neck pickup on and playing Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary." Keeping the gain low, with the master low I can easily do more Hiwatt like sounds (and when I say this, I mean Pink Floyd, Rush, King Crimson, etc.), to early JMP like Marshall sounds (but I don't think I've seen a JMP with THIS amount of balls!). Of course, turn up the gain, increase the master, and turn up the output level, and you get the gnarliest, crunchiest, ballsiest signature Mesa sound that doesn't get muddy, and cuts through the mix with ease. With a decent guitar and quality pickups, the amp opens up even better allowing a broader range of tones.

My setup's basically my guitar into a wah then into the amp. I don't own any effects (aside from the DS-1 I used with my practice amp), so I haven't tried it wet, but dry this thing is amazing! For the price, you can't find a better head.

PS - For my style, I play assorted rock and metal (mainly metal), but and influenced by lots of classic rock, blues, jazz and even some classical. I also run this into a Mesa Rectifier 2x12 cab, closed back, loaded with vintage 30s. I was thinking of eventually buying a 4x12 (looking at Avatar cabs right now), and buying some effects (lots of delay pedals, phaser, and chorus), so I'll update after I've had some time to play around with them.

14 years old and still works well. I haven't had any problems in the 2 months I've owned it, and I doubt I will (knock on wood). Plus, it's a Mesa, and when have you heard of a Mesa crapping out halfway into a show?

I haven't gotten in touch with Mesa personally, but I bought the footswitch for it through their yahoo store, and it arrived in about 3 days, perfectly shipped (they even gave me a 16 or 20 foot cable for it!).

Overall, this thing is amazing, purely amazing. From super clean jazzy chording, to Ozzfest approved brutality, it packs a whallop, and rewards you with killer tones.

HOWEVER, MAKE NOTE: Mesas are tricky to EQ. It took me nearly a month and a half after getting this to finally find an amazing tone (of course, it sounded great before this, but...well, you know the feeling of a watershed moment). A lot of guys scoop mids and play really low tuned, but in all honesty, no amp should have this done to it. For nice chunky, yet cutting sounds, I keep my gain around 6, treble around 7, mids around 8 or 9, bass at 3, and the GEQ with a Frown (boosted mids, above the midline), and it rewards me with thick, creamy, dynamic distorted tones that sustain for days. Scooping the mids takes all the flavor out of the distortion, and makes it sound less than amazing (again, still great, but it's not the best with scooped mids). Trust me, you can get brutal with this (I did some Meshuggah and Dream Theater [a la Dark Eternal Night] with this amp and it stayed tight and punchy).

ALSO, like a lot of Mesas, the signature punch and sustain LIES IN THE PREAMP. When initially EQing, set the gain (lets say for a hard rock tone) around 4 and keep the Master around 4, don't crank the master and crank the volume; it'll sound good, but that Mesa signature sustain and punch will lack a little. Keep the channel volume moderate, the gain where you'd normally have it, but turn output level up to get it really cookin!

For under 1200 bucks I assembled a nasty rig that sounds amazing for practicing, and unbelievable for gigs. I highly recommend these amps over anything that's new in stores, especially for all you rock and metal players.

AMp is from the mid 90's I think it has 2 channels - Rythem (clean channel but can be EQ'd to crunchy distortion) and Lead (which is for full blown out distortion). A third crunch channel is added to to the rythem channel when the gain knob is push out. Has all the features an amp head should have for inputs and outputs. I play at home mainly. Hopefully will gig with it soon so the audience can be an awe of my guitar tone.

I have jackson and Ibanez Shredders. I like playing thrash (metallica, testament) and modern metal (Lamb of God, Hatebreed, Killswitch engage). The amp isnt noisy at all and I can make this amp play any style. Of course the gain EQ on the lead channel is tailored to metal. The lead channel has Extremely brutal distortion and i do agree with other reviews that it sounds like the older dual rectifier however, I like this amp more since it has a warm tone, something that the dual and triple rectifier lacks. Thats the reason I love this amp and grew tired of the Rectifier models.

I have been playing for close to 9 years. I've owned almost every type of amplification gear from line 6 modelers & digitech modelers, to the best solid state amps - Randalls, Peavey Transtube, beringer, and most of the best well known high gain tube amps - The peavey xxx, the 5150, 6505, Randall Hybrid tubes, The mesa DC-3 (not really high gain but can be EQ'd to it), Mesa Nomad 100, Mesa Triple Rectifier (lacks a warm tone and sounds thin), Dual Rectifier (sounds full but lacks a warm tone). IN the end the DC-5 won out. It sounds like a Dual Rectifier with a warm tone and has more EQ options along with a reverb setting. Its no wonder Mesa stopped putting these out since they were going into the rectifier territory for a cheaper price.

this amp is very versatile it can play from rhythm distortion(zz top) to a lead distortion(metallica crunch)

it's features are great wish it had an additonal boost- but you can get it w/ eq, reverb pedal

sounds can get a nice warm tone to a clean tone- or even a hevy distortion

best i've heard and i've owned a jcm 800, mesa tremoverb,single rec, as well as a soldano, and vox

this seems to be able to do alot more with the tone then the rest

it seems better built then my tremoverb and single rec- it doesn't have the little switches that can break when gigging- it' built like a tank-

but i've only had it for a week

n/a

i would buy another and would recomend this amp head to anyone- i will say this playing through a 2 x 12 mesa cab w/ 30's seemed to be a little muddy- i switched to my freda cab- and it has a tight bottom end

this amp can get you any tone you want- clean to crunch-i've own several different amps from marshall, mesa, and saldano- this seems to be the most versatile w/ tone

if there was something i would add i would have one pedal that did everything clean, rhythm, lead, eq, and reverb-

i first was playing it through a mesa 2x12 rectifier-a little to mudddy- i switched to my freda cab and there you go a perfect match

it has a nice tight low end w/ out any muddyness and is very clear and crystal on the clean channel

only had a week- seems very well made - had a tremoverb and a single rectifier both combos- w/ the little switches which broke gigging-

this seems like a tank- give a 9 cause i don't know completely

n/a

been playing for 14 years- own a soldano head and a vox amp- my guitars are les paul, prs, and ibanez jem and rg(from the late 80's)

yes i would buy another- and recomend anyone to get one-

the sound is great-nothing to hate yet-

this is the sound i've been looking for- don't pass them up if you see them- especially the heads- you can find a match of cab that suites your taste-

I have an earlier, 1985 model- but it has all the features others have summarized. I have the 50-watt head, hooked up to a vertical, cloased-back Recto cab (has two 70 watt Celestion Vintage 90s). This is called the 1/4th stack config... For clean and dirty channels, you control GAIN, TREBLE, MID, BASS, PRESENCE, REVERB, and MASTER. You can also get a third, 'rhythm boost' by pulling the GAIN pot for the clean channel. There are inputs for guitar and footswtitch also on the front panel, along with a master volume control and a assignable 5-band EQ.

THE EQ and channels are switched by a footswitch, and there is a jack on the back to also have reverb footswitchable. The back has a FX LOOP with % WET/DRY being assignable, a direct out for recording (along with a speaker mute switch for recording), plus two 4 ohm and one 8 ohm output jack.

So as you can tell, this amp has features aplenty, and is pretty similar to the template of Mesa's newer F-50/100 series. As with any Mesa, the controls are sensitive, take tweaking, and probably don't correlate with other amps you're used to... for example, a god starting point would be to set the TREBLE/MID/BASS all on 3, with PRESENCE at 5, REVERB at 2-3, GAIN around 5, VOLUME at 3, MASTER to however hard you wanna rock!!! This amp is a dream for tweakers, one of the main motivations for my buying it was that it seemed so controllable and versatile (lay-out wise). My one gripe is that, at beadroom/pratice volumes, the clean headroom and gain of disotortion are somewhat compromised. Or if you boost the volume enough, your precious hearing will be compromised. A 1/2 power switch would probably be on all the time for me.... maybe should have looked into just getting a lower-powered DC-3

Ok, so a little about the context in which I use it to start.... I'm a high school student, although I feel pretty mature and well read in terms of music and my gear. I use this amp with my Hamer Monaco Elite, a handbuilt Les Paul replica (maple top, mahogany body, ceramic Seymour Duncan Custom/Custom Custom p'ups). I use this for everything from bedroom practice to occasional appearances at my temple services (accompany chior) to pratice with my alt-rock band, to concerts (miced/unmiced) with said band. This thing never gets buried in a mix, always impresses people in a practice/live settting, and the direct out and speaker mute have worked perfectly for recording.

In terms of style, I play some classic rock (ie- Zeppelin, Clapton, Hendrix, Rolling Stones), some metal (Tool, Deftones, Glassjaw), to folk/rock/reggae (Guster, Dispatch, Marley)... For all applications, this thing rocks!

This amp uses dual 6L6 tubes, along with 6 (yes 6:) 12AX7 preamp tubes. I really like the 6L6s, as they give the clean channel tons of headroom and chimyness. Reminds me of a blackface F*nder, it's not quite as good, but for a high-gain Boogie, I'm impressed. I have set this channel and rarely fiddle with any of the controls, because its plenty loud, very articulate, and deals with my MXR Phase 100 in the FX LOOP very well.

The dirty channel is the cat's ass!!! Now, if you want a Marshall crunch, please buy a Marhsall --> you'll probably be very happy with it. If you want a high-gain Rectifier scream, than this amp is perfect! It's said to have a similar design for clean to the Mark IV and for dirty the Rectifier series. Seems good to me, this is definetly the sound I was going for. Adding too much BASS or TREBLE will fuck with the sound, even putting them above 5, which I think is a reason this amp puts off people who adjust incorrectly. This amp is no one trick pony, but it's hard to get away from the Rectifier-type sag in the disortion. One trick I have found is to boost the MIDs, and you can get a barkier, middier breakup similar to a Marshall...

I've only had it for about a year, but so far so good. Seems like it's built like a tank, the guy I bought it from toured nationally with it, and other than the tubes, it was all original. Still in near perfect condition... The preamps tubes are contained in a shelf behind the power tubes, so it's a bitch to get to, but everything is well protected. I've actually had to take out the chassis just when I'm retubing.

Luckily never had any issues that I'd have to contact Mesa about, I've heard good, bad, and ugly... warranty is long gone, but the MESA tubes are still easy to come by. By what I've heard, calling or visiting the CA factory is the best way to get informed and speedy service.

Been playing for over 1/2 my life (11 years), and I've been with my band for 2 years now. This is my only amp, which I bought to replace my 4x10 Fender Hot Rod Deville. The Deville is probably better for blues, but this is better all around, and certainly better for metal/rock. As a student, my budget is pretty limited, and I think this is the best you can do for $1 K. Shit, I think this'll give much more expensive/boutqiue amps a run for their money too. This definetly beat a new (Series Two) Dual Rectifier in a comparison between friends, and the clean is better than any other Marshall or Mesa I've come by. If someone stole this I be happy that I live in VA and with a conservative family, grab the shotgun, and raise hell. I can't imagine replacing this amp, although when I have more years and (hopefully) cash, there's so many great amps out there.... that being said, I think this amp will become sought after like the older Mark IVs are now, and I will hold on to this one for a while!!!

See below for features - they are well documented by others. I have the 1/4 stack configuration with a 2x12 vertical cab with vintage 30s. Plenty loud for 50 watts. I wish there was a 1/2 power switch. In order to get the best tone out of this puppy, it needs to be pretty damn loud. A little too loud for band practice, actually. Oh well. Wear earplugs and let it rip.

I play this amp with a Les Paul Classic with Seymour Duncans (JB in bridge; '59 in neck). I play mostly straight up rock. Right off the bat, I'll say that I do not care for the lead channel at all. I don't like the way it's voiced. When I switch from the clean to the lead, it sounds way too muddy to my ears - sounds like I go from a great amp into a so-so amp. But I'm sure many people love the lead channel. I think I prefer the tone of marshall power tube saturation as opposed to the mesa preamp tube distortion. The lead channel can sound like a rectifier if you engage the EQ and scoop the mids. But, like I said, I don't like that sound, so I never use the lead channel.

But the clean channel on this amp is to die for. I set this amp up for a pushed overdrive sound and use pedals with it for extra grind. But I don't pull the channel 1 gained for the pushed channel. I keep it on clean, but set the gain to "10". Sounds great for classic rock. Then I set treble and bass around "7" and mids at "0". This is a very mid-voiced amp, especially with the Les Paul, so I kill the mids entirely on the amp. I don't use the EQ at all.

The only problem with the way I use the amp is that I can't get ultra-clean because I'm using the clean channel with the gain on 10. But I don't care - the tone at that setting is so killer. My singer can't play guitar for shit, but when I sit behind the drums and listen to him play through the DC-5 on these setting, I think "damn, who needs another channel - that sound f'in amazing!"

Regarding the tone of the lead channel, I even tried replacing the pre amp tubes with 12at7 and other tubes, but the lead channel was always too muddy, compressed and saturated. Not my thing.

Extremely reliable for a tube amp. No biasing required. Plug and play. I've never had a problem.

MESA customer support is fantastic. They are patient and really want to help. For a company that size, they are doing a fantasic job. Leave a message and get a call back in an hour.

I've been playing for almost 20 years. This is my first real tube amp. It blows away anything else I've ever used. I'm really pleased with it. My only gripe is the lead channel, but it's a MESA and MESAs have a unique tone on the lead channel. It's good for soloing, but I prefer an overdrive and compressor for lead work. Either way, you can't go wrong with this compact, powerful amp. You get a lot of reliable amp in a small package with the DC-5.

Don't know exactly the correct year of production (i can't find the serial number on the chassis), but it's surely in mint conditions.
This amp is the one i was looking for, it's the best piece of gear i could play for my style...i play ska-core in an original band, and every feature of this amp suites perfectly my needs, sparkling clean and great amount of gain in the lead channel, for great solos and big reefs!I've bought it used here in Italy and it comes directly from U.S.A. so i have to turn into a 110v adaptator.
2/3 channels (it depends on the push-pull option of the rythm channel) indipendent reverb and eq for each channel and a post pre-amp 5 band eq. also footswitchable like the reverb...only 50 watt...but no-one will tell you the difference between this 50 watt mesa and a 100 watt marshall head...there are 6 12ax7 in the preamp section ...what a great amount of gain...

Every, and i say every kind of style...with a good setup (guitar, fx, cabs..) this little jewel can cover every style(thanks above all to the 5 band eq), from rumbling metal to jazz...

only 4 words...IT'S A MESA...

I wrote 'em cause i've lost my front logo(i'm in Italy, remember), and they answer me quickly, sending me the serial number with whom order the logo from my mesa local distributor and with everything else i needed!

the best amp i've ever owned and played...i dreamed for a life to own a mesa, and this is my first one...this is the great sound i've always tried to achieve with my old solidstate amp through Boss MT-2...i love for example mike einziger sound and now with my dc-5 it's possible!

A "10" rating would be a Badcat and a "4" rating would be a Fender Deluxe, so The Boogie DC-5 falls inbetween.I dig the slider EQ but I wish it had a seperate Eq setup for each channel.I also wish that the boost was a channel itself -That would eliminate the need for a Tubescreamer.I play Alt.Texas Country which is basicly ZZtop with Country style licks.I play with a 52' reissue Telecaster so the distortion channel even when on 10 ,is still a warm sound with the voicing and harmonics that make up great solo's.

New as they were made I think. In addition to the features you'd expect and others have listed, there is a recording output with speaker mute for silent recording. Not great but can be worked with. You have your slave outputs. Also nice to have a dial for the amount of your effects loop to be mixed in. 50 watts as said by many will blow away any 100 watt amp out there, made my old JCM 900 4100 seem lacking in that area.

I primarily us a 1999 ESP Eclipse, yes ESP, with a Duncan JB and '59, I get great in your face hard rocking tones through the JB and with a flip of the switch and roll off the tone and volume the '59 sings sweet and smooth. I also have an ESP Eclips arch top with stock pickups, drives just as hard but tends to feed back with these pickups. I also run a 2003 Gibson Les Paul standard through it and these pickups do not drive the amp near as hard as the Duncans, very round sound with the Paul, very warm and responsive. I've ran my strat through it and get strat tones, trust me if you dial it right, it will do it. Life sucked when I had it in the shop for a fuse problem and I had to run through a Marshall solid state.

No problems here. Had to get the fuse socket replaced, but that was an issue of me letting bad things happen to the head, replace the power tubes, other than that never a problem.

No contact outside the web site where I downloaded the user manual.

I've been playing for almost 10 years now, I've owned the starter crate and peavey's to the JCM 900 Marshall, ESP and Gibson guitars in hand and this amp fits nicely with them. I read once that if you want to sound like Hendrix get a strat and a marshall, I want to sound like hard rock, so I got a GIbson and a Mesa. This amp rocks really really hard, but if you back it off it will do what you want it to. If it doesn't just try something else, but I need to stock up on two or three more DC-5's so when I'm 80 I can still be happy.

Loaded for mid 90's model year. Check other ads for exact features

My setup includes Gibson ES-325 1971, Fender Telecaster Plus 1990, Rickenbacher RB-360,VOX wah ,Boss Delay.Mainly my style is straight a head rock rythmn with no effects only the Boogie drive from the pull out of the clean channel with Boogie reverb at about 6.The crunch in the lead channel easily gives me more than my lead players 50 watt Marshall head and 2 x 12 Marshall cab. The Gidson /Boogie combo is especially sweet as is the Dual Lace sensor red humbucker on the Tele Plus. I have yet to find a sound that I really like on the Rickie thru the Boogie but the Rick is not my main guitar and rarely gets played.Poor Rickey just sits there and looks pretty.I play thru a 1 x 12 Boogie/Theile cab with a 90 watt Celestion Black Shadow. I have pulled the back off the cab as I found it too focused directionally. I have also used a Marshall 4 x 12 cab in the past and although it was fun , it was not my sound.I would like to try the new Boogie 2 x 12 cab .The DC-5 IS A LOUD AMP!. I wish it had a quarter or half power switch.I have heard that you can put a volume pedal in line in the effects loop and then crank the master to get your power tubes cooking. I have not tried this yet but will soon as that in my opinion is the best Boogie sound.
Overall the DC-5 IS EXTREMELY VERSATILE sound wise and for my straight ahead style of R@B/ rock my band allways packs the dance floor and gets many compliments on the fine sound.

Only had to change power tubes once in 1998. Havn't touched anything before or since.I never take a backup and have not needed one.

I have never used them although I do not like the fact that they won't reply to email. I live in Canada and phoning them for a question is a waste of money!

My first gig was in high school so I have been playing nearly 30 years. This is my second Boogie and I won't ever sell it. If lost or stolen I might try a different model. I do find the DC-5 HAS TOO MUCH POWER. I would look at other Boogies as the products are very good overall.The Boogie is not for everyone and you must take the time to find your sound with it.When I bought I treid everything from Marshall to Matchless, Vox to Fender , Soldano to Traynor and overall this is what got my cash. There are many many fine amps out there and no one is perfect. The DC-5 offered me the best feature/sound/price combo and I have never regretted the decision to buy it.

Features are listed in previous reviews, no need to go over this again

I use American Deluxe Fat Strat, Hamer Studio. I've played all kinds of music including the new rock. Been playing for 23 years. This is one of the best amps I've owned. Not noisy at all. Note this, you must try the Mesa 6l6 str 454's for this amp. Also, use thier 12ax7 russian 2's. I've tried everything in the book and I keep going back to these even in my Marshall. You'll hear a drastic difference in the complex harmonics of this amp. I almost sold it until I tried the 454's. Very warm and brown. The clean channel is clean as thier Mark 4. With the clean pulled and gain maxed it sounds very clean crunchy. Good for the Stones type of sounds. The Distortion will crush with the best of them for new rock stuff.

The best I've owned, I've owned it for 3 years and dropped it off my 4-12 on the front corner of the amp. My band mates acted like they saw a car accident. It did'nt break just dented the corner SLIGHTLY.
I made sure the tubes were all secure and turned it on. Worked perfectly! Love this company

Unreal, the best ever. I've called them in the past with questions about the tube locations and they've called me back within the day or no later than 24 hours. I recently blew a tube (remember - use thier 454's) for some reason I don't know, called customer service and got a message back within 4 hours that I'm all set because thiers are warranteed for 6 months. No questions asked, done deal, tubes will arrive soon. I think I'm a lifer on this company.

I will be looking into thier new Lonestar amp coming out soon! Thier new f-50 is great! Temptation is there. This amp is a super deal used if you can find one. I wish it had a bias switch for el 34s but what more do you want. I also own a Marshall dsl 50 head which is pretty good, but I keep going back to this one. The Marshall is mainly a backup until I get another Boogie.

Dual Caliber DC-5: 50 watts, all tube (two 6L6 power tubes and six 12AX7 preamp tubes), 2 channels (Rhythm & Lead) with "Pull Boost" on the Rhythm channel, footswitchable and channel assignable 5-band Graphic EQ, Effects Loop with mix level control, recording output with silent recording mute switch, headphone output, two 4 ohm speaker outs and one 8 ohm speaker out, slave out, Footswitch for channel switching and EQ on/off...The DC-5 was designed with the same Rhythm circuitry from the Mesa Mark IV and the same Lead channel as the Dual Recifier.

I use a 1995 Fender American Fat Strat and a PRS CE-22 with my DC-5: The Strat's bridge position humbucker sounds incredible, thick and warm. The Strat's single coil pickups excel on the Rhythm channel with the Clean and Pushed modes, but is lacking a little bit in output power to match the Lead channel. Clean and pushed sounds with the Strat are reminiscent of Fender (SRV, etc.). The PRS CE-22 is a perfect match for the DC-5. Clean channel is smooth and warm but tends to break up slightly at higher volumes (due mostly to the pickups on the PRS, not the amp). The Lead channel is good for anything where distortion is needed, from low gain blues leads to massive Rectifier crunch. When used with the assignable Graphic EQ, the Lead channel is unstoppable, and in my opinion sounds better than the Dual Rectifier itself. The DC-5 is crisp and clear and is one of the most versatile amps I've ever played. This amp is loud for only 50 watts, but is a little low on headroom at higher volumes. Other than that, this amp is sweet.

This is the most reliable amp I've ever owned. I dialed in the sounds I wanted with ease. This amp comes with me to all my gigs along with a Marshall 1960 cab with Celestion Vintage 30's. At low volumes the DC-5 excels with a 4x12. However, at bigger gigs where higher volume is needed, the DC-5 breaks up easily and it's 50 watts can easily be overcome. My best solution for this is to use a smaller speaker cab, such as the Carvin Legacy 2x12 (also with Vintage 30's). The cab is tight and punchy and will help the amp punch through rather than breaking up. As far as the amp itself, I have never had a problem with it. It is very well built.

Never had to contact the company.

I've been playing for 8 years. I currently own a 1972 Fender Twin Reverb and a Carvin Legacy 2x12 combo. The DC-5 blows the Legacy away. The DC-5 stomps on the Twin as far as raw power is concerned, and the DC-5's clean tones are right up there with the Twin. I've played through JCM-800's and Plexi heads which have a more defined crunch tone, but lack in the clean tones. The DC-5 excels in both.

50 Watt head (sounds like 100 watts)- Two Channels - All tube - Six preamp and Two power tubes - Effects Loop, Graphic and Parametric Equalization - Recording Output - Headphone Output - Switch on channel 1 for clean/crunch - Footswitch

The DC5 is one of the most versatile amps out there. Great clean tones right up there with Fender. Distortion can be dialed in from mild vintage style to brutal rectifier. Very warm sounding amp. Can easily compete with most other 100 watt amps in shear volume. I am running the DC5 into a Marshall 1960 4-12 cab loaded with Vintage 30's. I use a Gibson Les Paul Studio as well as a Fender American Deluxe Fat Strat. They both sound fantastic.

Never had any problems to date. Seems very solid in construction.

Never had to use them.

I have been playing 15 yrs. I have owned a number of Marshall combos as well as Marshall half stacks. I like the versatility of the DC5. Marshalls sound great overdrivin but lack a bit when it comes to clean tones. The DC5 gives you the best of both worlds. I highly recommend the DC5

This amp is in MINT condition. It's maroon in colour, which I've been told, is very rare. I know very little about Boogies, so it could be ancient...or new. I DO know that every guitar I play through this thing sounds the same. Strat...same as my Les Paul. I thank Christ that Hendriz didn't use a Boogie!!! If he HAD, we'd really never have heard true Stratocaster sounds coming from him. Listen to the first "Sea level" album. It's EXCELLENT....but the guitar sound is so fuzzy, and round.......so un-Strat-like. Strats have scooped mids. The Boogie fills it all in. Very un-deelish.
Ya'll KNOW what features this beast has!
I wish it had separate inputs for the clean and dirty channels. I'll just put the damned things in myself!! lol
This amp is used for sessions and concerts.

'61 Strat with mid-fifties Tele neck, 68 Les Paul '59 Sunburst
'55 GoldTop. Roland GR-1 Korg A3's.
I have to play all styles. This amp sounds like McDonald's burgers....everyone eats it up. It is almost adequate for clean sounds. Good God...I get a better clean sound from my mid-70's black Yamaha "Twin-looking" combo, and it's Solid State. For dirty...GIMME MY MARSHALL!!!! lol
You see...what comes out of the P.A. is NOTHING like what comes out of the amp speaker. Regardless of the brand or style of the microphone, the amps' sound is CHANGED. Anyone who disagrees.... go back to doing sound at the Ramada Inn. One thing I have to say about the Boogie, is that microphones seem to LOVE the sound they make. With my other rigs, I could have mind-blowing stage sound....and out front it'll be washed out. Plug the Boogie in, crank her up, and it's really THERE, and in the appropriate area of the sound spectrum. But it sounds generic, no bottom end, no top end, round mids....NO CHARACTER. Like I said before...every guitar sounds the same when played through these babies. Not to dump on Carlos...but his sound now is so....uh..."Rockman-like"...that it's nauseating. That's the Boogie for ya.
The Boogie is a good amp, no doubt about it. But if Randall Smith was a REAL guitar player (I don't mean a dope who OWNS 20 Pauls and Strats), he'd HEAR what's wrong. If he spent as much time PLAYING a Strat, as he did building amps...he'd REALLY know. Hey...if I spent as much time building amps as I did practising.....I'd be able to do it. We can't be everything, so we choose out path. Randall's is a most noble one. I respect that. But the sound just AIN'T THERE, baby!!

I've so rarely had gear go down that this is barely worth commenting on. Boogies are robust, so the added piece of mind is good to have. The sound is the most important consideration however. I will unload it the instant someone makes me the right offer. I'd be willing to pay for excellent sound...the reliability I already HAD. Ya know...I feel like I paid $120,000 for a Hummer...but really needed something that goes from 0 to 60 in 4 secondes and pulls .99 g's on the skidpad!!

The Boogie people are very supportive.

I've been playing for 40 years.
I'f it were stolen, I'd kick some thieving-ass. Then, thank them for saving me. And then, I'd rob that mother----er who stole it from me, take the $$ and buy a Marshall.
Why I like it: reliability, AND status (very shallow of me, yes...but...
(Phil Collins got the Genesis gig not because he was the best...but because he had the best jokes. That was what got him the gig. He is great, and so were the others who auditioned. But the jokes did it for him. So whatever edge we can get, we'd BETTER get. If a bunch of guys, me included, are vying for a high profile gig, and I'm hired because I have the best gear, that's good enough for me, dudes! They want McDonald's...they's gonna git it! lol
Why I dislike it: Generic "Rockman" sound.

- Amp was in production in early in 90's
- I use two of them with two Marshall 1960's to play big sound rock n roll (Sabbath, AC/DC,...etc).
- Two total independent footswitchable channels
- Playing out with a loud rock band professionaly, 50 watts sounds like 110watts
- Using two of them I have ground shaking power with enough wide range of tone using six preamp tubes (each head), master volume and a main 5 band eq

- Play a gary moore sig les paul with stock burstbucker bridge pickup.
- Quiet amp dist or clean when not playing.
- You can get this cutting tone but not compressed like a dual rec.
- Clean channel chimes at high volume
- I set the main eq (both channels) with the mids cranked and almost peaking treble and semi peaking bass.
- Distortion is very controllable but packs a rugged rawness thats hard to find with most amps in production now.

I would never play any amp without a backup, but over a years time on the road never have I had any problems but replacing tubes.

I was able to get the schematic from Boogie because the amp was out of production and out of warranty. Those guys will help you with anything but internal modifications.

I've played professionally for 5 years.
I would replace this amp if it where stolen.
I love this amp, I can't seem to find the tone primarily, and can't find the price secondarily.
To use two of these heads I made a circuit with DPDT Relays to use one stereo footswitch pedal that fits in a single rack space which will change channels on both heads at once and switch the main eq on both heads at once.

50 Watt head, two channels. Tubes: six 12ax7 in the preamp and two 6L6GC for the power amp. Parallel loop, graphic and parametric equalization, recording output, switch on channel 1 for clean/crunch. The only problem is that this switch is not driveable by pedal.

GREAT sound. Channel 1 goes from absolutely clean to hard distortion, with very much bite. Channel 2 is for distorted sounds only, but has more mids than the other one. The sound is very fat; you will have no problem obtaining any kind of distortion, for bluesy crunch to Metallica' s punch. No noise at all. Very loud, you would never believe it has 50 watts; on stage, the band will hear only you!!

No problems so far.

If it only had a footswitch to control the gain boost on channel 1, it would be perfect.

Many have already listed these. Standard tone and gain controls, push/pull on rhythm channel, master output level, graphic eq and footswitch. I use the EQ, which is foot switchable on/off, for extra gain for solos which is really nice because you can add additional high end to be heard above the rest of the band.

All in all it has everything I could want and nothing I don't.

I play through a host of guitars including 90's Les Pauls, SG, G&L Asat, 70's 335, 60's Gretsch, and Big Apple Strat. My styles range, but I'm a roots blues, rockability, rock and roll player at my core that does a lot of rock stuff.

The clean channel is very clean in my opinion and works for some of the ballads and rockabilly I play. Pulling out the gain on the rhythm channel gives you a slight overdrive similar to 70's Twin Reverbs which I previously owned. I've never had any issues with the guitar getting too much distortion on this channel.

The lead channel with the overdrive cranked works wonderfully for loud rock. Its less crunchy than you might get with some Marshalls but it's something I really like for the rock stuff I play most often.

Reverb is nice and clean and no noise.

I use a Marshall 1922 with Celestion Greenbacks as well as a 1960 slant cab. With the 1922, you get a very driven sound at lower volumes while the 1960 gives me a bigger sound than that.

I fully rely on this amp and have been using it with the current tubes since I got in 1997 (5 years now). It's been transported around for rehearsals and gigs and never gave me any trouble.

I did get some unwanted sounds for a short time which I found were coming from a bad cable that was losing its connections.

I've heard from other Mesa owners that these things just don't break down. Most of the problems come from old or bad tubes.

I've got to add that I've kept the original QC tag on the power cord. It's got the signatures of all the people involved in checking the amp out.

I've been playing for 22 years and really fallen in love with this amp. It's a good amp for most styles of music. If you want to get a real nasty crunch sound for metal, you will probably need a pedal to get you there, but the overdriven distortion is great for me.

I would definately buy Mesa again because as I've mentioned, it does everything I need it to do well.

They are pricey which is why I'll give them an 8 here. But most premium tube amps out there are close in price if not more.

The amp has all the features I could ask for, there is nothing I wish it had built in, in fact I don't use the Reverb or pull gain boost on the clean channel. Mine has a headphone jack which I don't use- the quality is inevitably much poorer than through a cab, but it doesn't even say it has a headphone jack in the manual I downloaded. I assume it's an older version of the amp. The graphic EQ is like having a third channel, in fact it's exactly how I would set up the third channel if it had one.

I'm playing a Gordon Smith G-60 (Les Paul) through it with a Duncan Distortion in the bridge. I play punk ska, which it suits perfectly. The clean is quite nice on it's own, but with the graphic EQ scooped it takes on a great sparkly acoustic tone which I use most of the time. In the distortion channel I have it set for a high gain Marshally overdrive which is good for Insomniac-era Greenday, which is my favorite sound on the amp. With the EQ I set it for in between NOFX and Less than Jake (mark 4-Recto) Which I use quite a lot as well. If necessary it can be extremely brutal when cranked.

It looks like it will last a long time, I don't know how old the tubes are but the only trouble I've had was a minor short causing the whole tube to glow red hot, which was solved by putting it on standby for a few minutes. When necessary I will replace the tubes with exactly the ones it currently uses (12AX7 and 6L6)

Never contacted them

I've been playing three years, I also own the Gordon Smith and a recto 2x12 cabinet. If it were stolen I would Buy one again, failing which I would look at a single rectifier or a mark 4.

1996 (newer style) head. This amp had all the features I was looking for to play live. I was A/Bing an old Super Reverb and a Soldano to get the best I could for both clean and distorted but it was just too much to manage two amps live. The Rectifier sounded great but really lacked the warmth on the clean side so I started shopping for an amp that could do both. The Carvin Legacy was my first pick until a friend turned me onto the DC-5. Two channels, both with identical controls including a gain and reverb setting. You can pull the gain on the clean channel pot to get an extra '70's overdrive type of boost. In addition it has a 5-band sliding EQ (foot switchable) that is like adding a BBE - it just expands to sound beyond explanmation.

I play Les Pauls and I like the "Big MESA" sound. This amp goes from Black Face Fender cleans to Rectifier with no comprimise. The only drawback I've had with the amp is that it's not designed to be played quiet. You have to turn it up to get the distortion to stop sounding fuzzy. Playing at practice level (with an acoustic drum set) is fine but for dinking around the apartment the distortion is a wash.

The amp was 5 years old and needed both preamp and power tubes replaced. I guess that's about right for a well used amp. Other than that, no grief.

MESA's customer support isn't always that swift for returning phone calls (I've heard this from others) but they got back to me within a day 2 of the 3 times I called them

I have owned one of every big amp at some point along the way. This is the second DC-5 I've purchased and in my opinion, there's not a better made of more versitile tube amp on the market. Not to say anything bad about MESA Boogie but the DC series is far superior to the Nomand series that has replaced it. If you think you want to buy yourself a new Nomad, save yourself several hundred dollars and buy a used DC-5 or DC-10 and $60.00 worth of new tubes.

Two channels, footswitchable, with a push/pull gain knob on clean channel. Others below have either had this modded or wished it were so from day 1. I agree. I must ask though, to those who have modded it, does you get an ugly volume boost when you hit the pushed? It would appear that they don't balance, hence not being on the footswitch. I'm in the dark though.

YOu know all the features.

It's a little limited [largely coz of that push/pull thing] because whilst yes it kicks ass clean and dirty, that's all it does. A third channel would be nice. I hear they've done that in the Nomads, with mixed results?

Ok if anyone actually reads this stuff I desperately want some feedback on it. You can find me at ddss@tig.com.au .. This amp was bought by me in part due to having heard from a million people that boogie build tanks. But this thing has failed on me numerous times. The first time I had the chassis entirely replaced [that was under warranty, thankfully] but this time is much less happy. First off, there's four little relay chips [why don't they just use normal switches? I'm not an electronics guy so I have NFI] that interact with the footswitch etc. One of them blew. Fine, blow away.. but tonite at a gig I got fire and smoke coming outta the power supply and one of the tubes resembled one of those light globe shows they have at the museum where you touch it and the light follows your hand. I'll go to the museum for that, not to a gig. I may be showing my ignorance and it could just be a stupid valve but I just had em all replaced etc and I think the bias is automatic on this amp. So if anyone else has had this kind of crap happen, let me know -please-.

I'm in Australia so it's an NA for me

great if it'd work for a week

Not exactly sure of the model year, but I'd guess it's mid 90's since that's when they stopped making these. This amp is totally versatile. It's capable of great clean sounds, dirty blues tones and bone crunching distortion. Has 2 channels, clean and distorted, with a gain boost on the clean channel. Also has a 5 band grapic EQ which is nice cuz it eliminates the need for my EQ pedal. Has everything I need in an amp.

This is the perfect amp for the hard rock style that my band plays. The tone on this thing blew me away the first time I played it. The clean channel sounds thick and warm and the distortion can go from bluesy crunch to hard rock muscle, and this thing has plenty of muscle. I use it with my two Ibanez guitars, a GAX70 equipped with DiMarzio humbuckers (evolution bridge, PAF pro neck) and a Talman with stock pickups (soon to be replaced). Either guitar sounds incredible through this amp. It's really good at bringing out the individual sound of whatever guitar you plug into it.

Haven't had a problem with it yet and don't really anticipate any major ones. It's out of warranty so if I have any problems I'll either fix it myself or have a good amp tech do it.

haven't dealt with Mesa/Boogie yet, but I need to see about getting a footswitch so we'll see what happens.

Overall, I'd say this is a very well built amp. The previous owner toured a lot with this one so it's seen lots of action. Even so, it still works great. For the price, I couldn't ask for a better amp. Heard these used to retail for like $1300 so this was one hell of a find. If someone stole this head from me, I'd have to track them down, beat the living hell outta them, and then take my amp back. I'd definitely buy it again. In fact, I might buy another one to use as a backup if I can find another. If you play any kind of rock music and need a great sounding head, do yourself a favor and get one of these if you can find one. You won't regret it.

bought this used on ebay. it was made maybe around 97? this head is very versitile, although the mesa boogie high gain sound suits had rock/metal better than anything else. this head has three channels. the clean channel, the dirty channel which is activated by a push pull knob on the gain knob of the clean channel, and the roaring distortion channel. seperate eq for both channels (the dirty channel assumes the eq of the clean). bass, middle,treble, prescence, gain, volume and reverb for each channel, and then a seperate master volume knob to turn up the whole shindig. effects loop. imputs for 4ohm, 4ohm, and 8 ohm cabs. silent recording out, headphone jack etc. this has it all. and of course the graphic eq. im not good with alot of knobs. i go crazy.... its not even a graphic eq its more of a i dunno what to call it. all the knobs are wacky as all mesas. i play with them for 6 hours and play guitar for 5. i have one problem with this amp, the dirty channel is not footswitchable. you can footswitch reverb and both clean and distortion, but you can activate the dirty channel. i believe one of the reviews below has a guy that said he got a mod to be able to do this. considering i play very dynamic indie rock and sometimes a bit of metal or punk rock type stuff, it would be great to activate all channels. im not into backing off the volume knob..

i use a 72 gibson sg standard, mini humbukcers i think. the frets need work so it doenst sound as good as it should. but it sounds good. im still fooling around with the knobs.... still trying to pinpoint it. i get sick of it but im sure it will be worth it. the clean i got so far, it sounds awesome and doesnt break up at all. . the distortion is heavy. breaks up differently than marshalls, which im used to. i like it though. very versitile amp.

looks tough. looks mean.

havent talked to them. they have helpful manuals on their page.

been playing for 4 or 5 years. i have a msrahll jcm 900 im borrowing. i like jcm 800s, i have a sovtek 50 watt. sovteks are ace. id buy this again if it was 550 of course! try this. sounds good. hands down loudest amp ive owned. louder than my marshall 100 watts

Dual channel, rhythm and lead with a pull boost knob (gain) on the rhythm channel. Also, a master volume, well, it's called "output level", which controls the overall volume of both channels, very cool because you can get really good sound at moderate volumes. Five band EQ assignable to rhythm and lead channels or lead only. Two 6L6's in the main power section and 6 12ax7's in the preamp section. Effects loop on the back as well as recording and headphone outputs. I bought the amp new about a year and a half ago and have used it primarily for recording and have jammed with friends a few times with it. I came close to getting rid of it a few times when I first started using it because it's definitely not just a plug and play amp. It takes time to learn the nuances of how various tonal and volume settings affect the overall sound. Once I spent the time to get to learn how to get what I wanted I was and have been extremely happy with it.

My primary guitar is a DeArmond JetStar and I also have a Carvin SC90 and a Fender California Fat Strat with a Dimarzio PAF Pro. Basically, I prefer humbuckers with a bright, cutting sound. The DeArmond has particularly bright humbuckers and single notes on the high e and b strings chime like bells. I get what is, for me, an absolute perfect rhythm crunch. I like my rhythm sound to be clean enough so soft picking/strumming allows chords to retain their character while being right on the edge of breaking up. Also, when I want to bear down and get the strings flopping around and pushing the amp I want to be able to get a nice, warm, crunchy distortion which this amp has in spades. The lead channel, for me at least, is really only useful for, drum roll please, single note lead stuff (hence, why it's called the "lead" channel, duh). Notes sustain for days and there's all kinds of nice skronking harmonics dancing around all over the place...nice. There is a caveat here, though, you HAVE to spend time with this amp to be able to get what you want, it's definitely there, but, you have to get to it (which is why I give it an 8, I don't like to work, dammit!).

Guessing, based on Mesa's rep and the way this thing is built it will last a long, long time without any significant problems.

I had to order a footswitch from them and received it in a few days, no problems. Really haven't dealt with anyone regarding a problem though.

I've been playing now for twenty-five years and own a Carvin Vintage33 combo as well as a Marshall Valvestate 30W combo (have to do a bit of travelling for work and the Marshall is a good hotel room amp). Since I've spent the time to get to know this amp and can tweak my ideal sound out of it, I'd probably buy it again, although, I played a Bhudda combo which I liked a lot which I might consider, but, overall, my Mesa freaking kicks the llamas ass overall.

LOOK BELOW FOR THE FEATURES AND SUCH. I PUCHASED THIS AMP IN EARLY 2000. IT WAS USED, BUT IN MINT CONDITION. THIS IS THE MOST VERSITLE HEAD I HAVE EVER OWNED. IT CAN BE SUPER CLEAN, TO RECTIFIER DIRTY.
THE ONLY THING THAT WOULD MAKE THIS AMP BETTER IS IF THE PULL KNOB ON THE CLEAN CHANNEL COULD BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE CHANNEL SWITCHER. AND DONT LET THE FACT THAT THIS AMP IS ONLY 50 WATTS FOOL YOU. TO GET TO ANY AMPS SWEET SPOT YOU HAVE TO CRANK IT, SO THIS AMP GETS A LOT SWEETER, AT A LOT LOWER VOLUMES. AND YOU DONT DROWN OUT THE REST OF THE BAND, OR GO DEAF IN THE MEANTIME! AND 50 WATTS FROM MESA IS LOUDER THAN MOST OTHER COMPANIES 120 WATTS. I NEVER TURN THIS AMP UP PAST 4 ON THE MASTER, AND 5 ON THE INDIVIDUAL CHANNEL LEVELS.

I PLAY AN ASSORTMENT OF IBANEZ GUITARS THROUGH THIS AMP. AND EVEN IN THE SUPER DIRTY CHANNEL THE CHARACTER OF THE INDIVIDUAL GUITARS COME THROUGH. I PLAY FROM P-FUNK TO EAST COAST OLD SCHOOL HARDCORE TO METAL TO EMO. THIS AMP DOES IT ALL, VERY WELL!! THIS AMP IS THE BEST OF ALL THE MESA AMPS COMBINED. IT HAS THAT SWEET CLEAN TONE OF THE MARK 4 TO THE MODERN DISTROTION OF THE RECTOS. AND SOMETHING THAT THE RECTOS HAVE SORELY MISSED, UNTIL LATELY, CHANNEL SPECIFIC REVERB!!! MY PERSONAL FAV DISTORTION TONE IS THE RECTO DISTORTION. BUT IT RULES IN THE FACT THAT THE MARK 4 CLEAN IS SO MUCH NICER THAN ANY CLEAN FOUND IN A RECTO HEAD. I HAVE KNOWN MANY PLAYERS TO OWN THIS SAME MODEL OF
HEAD, AND WE ALL HAVE DUG IT. THE REVERB IS NICE, IT HAS A SMOOTH TAIL AND ISNT SUPER BOINGY LIKE OLD FENDER REVERBS.

I GIG WITHOUT A BACKUP. JUST ALWAYS TAKE EXTRA TUBES AND FUSES TO THE SHOW. NOT CAUSE THE AMP IS FLAKY BUT CAUSE THE LITTLE CLUBS SOMETIMES HAVE CRAPPY WIREING.SINCE PURCHASING THIS AMP I HAVE GIGED ABOUT 3 TIMES A MONTH FOR 6 MONTHS, AND PRACTICED ALL IN BETWEEN, THIS AMP HAS ROCKED ON, NO PROBLEMS!!

TRIED TO CONTACT THEM, NEVER HEARD ANYTHING BACK?!? THEY MUST BE SUPER BUSY. BUT WITH EQUIPMENT THIS SOLID YOU HARDLY NEED ANY CUSTOMER SUPPORT!!

IVE BEEN PLAYING 15 YEARS AND I HAVE OWNED OTHER HEADS AND RACK GEAR. THIS PEACE BLOWS EVERTHING ELSE AWAY! I WOULD DEFINATLY BUY THIS AGAIN AND HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT BUYING ANOTHER, JUST TO KEEP AT THE HOUSE. I COMPARED THIS AMP TO TONES OF OTHER AMPS FROM SEVERAL OTHER COMPANIES. FOR THE $ AND THE TONE, THIS CANT BE BEAT. AND ON A FINAL NOTE, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT I BELIEVE THAT MESA DISCONTINUED THIS AMP CAUSE IT WAS ORIGIONALLY MEANT TO GET PEOPLE INTO OTHER, MORE EXPENSIVE MESA GEAR, BUT WHEN PEOPLE FOUND OUT HOW MUCH THIS AMP RULED AND HOW MUCH MORE VERSITILE IT WAS, THE PLAYERS JUST DECIDED TO STICK WITH THE DC-5. (THE NOMAD SERIES IS NOTHING LIKE THE DC SERIES, I PERSONALLY DONT LIKE THE NOMADS AT ALL.)

My DC-5 head was made in 1994. This amp is really versatile,dues to the differently voiced channels. The Rhythm channel delivers clean to crunch sounds (big crunch sounds !) while the lead channel gives you distortion and sustain en masse. The Rhythm channel has a pull boost feature which not only adds more gain but also changes the whole channel's voicing. My amp was modified to have the pull boost footswitchable. EQ and Reverb are footswitchable by factory.
The amp has all I need : Gain,Treble,Mid,Bass,Presence,Reverb and Master controls for each channel. The Mid control in the Rhythm channel acts very effective from 0-4. From 4-10 it's another gain control to add a different texture to the Rhythm channel. I use this amp with a 4x12 cab and it smokes. Oh,don't forget the 5 band equalizer (post-preamp - the tone controls are pre-preamp) which gives you the ability to shape distortion sounds from Santana to Cannibal Corpse.
This amp uses 6 12AX7s and 2 6L6GC tubes (50 watt).

I mainly use a 7 string ESP LTD with Seymour Duncan pickups. I play metal and it suits this style very well. Like I said above the DC-5 is a versatile amp (The Rhythm channel is derived from the Mark IV,the lead channel comes from the Rectifier series). Great clean headroom,it's a bit noisy on high gain settings,but that's normal for tube amps

I can't really judge its reliability,I've owned it for a month now. I had to resolder a little wire inside the reverb unit. But that was easy.

Customer support is handled through Trius-Audio (http://www.trius-audio.de) in Germany. They are quite fast and helpful and they offer a (german) messageboard at http://listen.to/mesa-boogie

I've been playing for 7 years. I love this amp.

This amp has great options to work with. It has 2 completely independant channels, and a pull boost on the clean channel. The 2 channels, and the EQ + reverb are footswitchable, but the boost on the clean channel alone is not. I dont really see that as a problem though. Its got 6 12AX7's in the pre-amp, and 2 6L6's in the power stage. It cranks out 50 Watts of class A power.....which is way more than I even need. This can get loud as hell!! When it comes to sound this thing is pure tube heaven. It really sounds amazing.....and its easy to dial in any sound that you want. You have total control over your sound with this amp. It has all the other basic features too, like the presence control, and the classic 5 band EQ sliders.

I use a Fender strat with a humbucker....and it sounds really great. I can get a really thick and fat tone. The lead channel in this amp is really heavy....lots of gain going on. This is what Mesa/Boogie does best....they're known for their liquid smooth, in your face searing metal tone. On the lighter side of things, the boost on the clean channel can crunch up really nicely and give you anything from a blues sound.....to a fatter classic rock sound. I used to own a .50 Caliber + Boogie head, and that sounded really good, but it just lacked the versatility that this amp has. I needed two independant channels, and total control over my sound. That is what this amp gives you. I am totally satisfied with this amp.

This thing is built like a tank. Really rugged construction, and I dont think that it would break if I tossed it against a wall. Mesa/Boogie is known for building reliable, trustworthy amps.

Although I haven't had any problems with my amp to date....I have called Mesa to ask questions and to get information. The service is really good and friendly. The only problem is, that there isn't too much customer service. I think there is like only 2 or 3 tech support guys over there!! This makes them really hard to get a hold of, as they are always busy with callers. You can leave a message though, and they almost always call you back. Its only due to the availability that I give them an 8 instead of a 10.

I bought this amp for a great price, and it is totally worth every penny, and more. Ive been playing for almost 6 years now, and this is the best amp i've owned to date....easily. Its totally versatile, and can accomodate any type of music that I want to play. I mainly play more modern music, anything from alternative, to punk rock and metal, and this amp can do it all with ease. Im Boogie core from here on out.

I bought the head in 1999, and it was made in 1998. I got it at a pawn shop for $599.00. I play jazz/fusion/blues and it covers all of these areas. I rarely use the lead channel;its too heavy. I put a 12AT7 in the first position pre-amp and it sweetened the tone up alot. I wish the lead channel was more of an overdrive than balls-to-the-wall metel, but I guess the rhythm channel can do that. It has plenty of power, and I rarely turn the master above 3.

I use a PRS with humbucking pick-ups, and there is never a noise problem. Sometimes I get radio interference when I play at high areas (Queene Anne in Seattle) but no serious noise probs.
Overdrive in channel one is perfect, lead drive is a bit too much for me, but perfect for scooped metal riffs

Never had a problem. Built to last...forever!

Very busy these days, but extremely friendly

(as of the time i am writing this, the dual caliber series is discontinued and has been replaced by the nomad series). This amp has all the features you need, ever! however, it is still incredibly simple to use. This amp covers all styles of rock, and can also do jazz and country easily. The features are 2 channels. Rhythym (clean) features Gain (pull boost), Treble, Mid, Bass, Presence, Master, Reverb. Lead (distortion) features the same controls as the rhythym channel but with out the pull boost. There is also a 5 band graphic eq, and output pot, which controls overall loudness of the 2 channels. It also has an effects loop w/ level. and slave output w/ level. also 2 4-ohm spk. outs and 1 8-ohm out. It has 50 watts, 2 6l6, and 6 12ax7, with tube driven accutronics reverb. It has everything you will ever need and still sounds amazing and is simple to use. it also has a footswitch to activate the graphic eq and switch clean to dirty. the eq can also be set as lead only, rhytghym and lead, and rythym only.

I use a carvin dc-127 with this amp with duncan invaders and run it through at bbe 462 in the effects loop and use a crate 4x12 cab. i mainly play thrash/death metal and let me tell you something, THIS HAS THE BEST POSSIBLE TONE EVER FOR METAL!!!! goven you use it with the bbe, which improves the tone of anything you use it with. The clean channel can give you the cleanest tones (think roland jazz) but can also give you the deepest and warmest jazz tones. The rhythym channel also can give you the perfect mid driven blues tone and even a punchy rhythym distortion tone. The reverb is great, not splattery and wobbling like fender, but long, smooth warm trailing tone. The distortion channel with out the graphic eq is santana. sustain for ever! clarity and punch is the sound here! it cannot give you a scooped mid tone but gives you a huge warm fluid overdrive perfect for solos. When you use the eq on the lead channel, this is where the mayhem enters. give it the fabled "v" curve and turn the gain up to 8, treble 3, mid 2, bass 3, use the bbe, and you get a more brutal saturated distortion more heavy than metallica circa- master of puppets. And it never looses definition!!! This is better than any other drive channel, by anyone. then take of the eq and you got the perfect lead channel!!

THIS IS A MESA BOOGIE!!!! along with soldano, mesa boogie has the best reputation for reliablility.

I talked to them a couple times and they are always willing to help out with any questions. Even after i was done they still wanted to continue talking to answer any other question i had. very nice people.

you can get the deepest and heaviest distortion sounds, the cleanest sparkling clean sounds, and everything in between. i dunno what else to say, this is the best amp for the money.

Gain, volume, low, mid, high, presence, and reverb for each channel plus a 5 band equalizer, and a master volume.

The sound is pure tube heaven I dont know if im more taken away by the lushish clean tones or the monstrous distortion Another great thing is that you can get sweet bluesy overdrive on the clean channel, everything sounds so good

ive only had it for like 3 weeks but from what ive heard mesas are built ford tough

Sweet sounding amp that broke my wallet but was worth every penny i got tired of messing around with cheap crate amps and cheap fenders overall this amp just sings and id recommend it to anyone

This amp is very versatile. It is a 50 watt, all tube (2 6L6's and 6 12AX7's) head. It has two discreet channels, but there is 5 band graphic eq that can be switched on and off for BOTH clean and gain channels. Plus the clean channel can get you some very dirty blues rock tones. It also has a headphone jack, speaker mute and silent recording jack. An effects loop with mix control knob, and a "slave out" which allows you to use just the pre-amp section to run a larger power amp. I play metal and this amp suits the style very well. It covers other tones well, also.

I use 2 main guitars with it. One is a Jackson King V standard (check out my review of it) with a Duncan "Full Shred" humbucker in the bridge. The other is a Ibanez RG470 with a Dimarzio "Tone Zone" at the bridge. The V is very dark sounding as it is, so right now the Ibanez sounds a little better through this amp. But with time I'll get the Jackson going on it. This brings me to the amp itself. The amp basically has 4 foot- switchable sounds, throught the use of the eq. believe it or not it, sounds really good at "neighbor friendly volumes." However, it gets better when you set the master anywhere between 2 and 8. Thats the cool thing about Boogies: they sound better BEFORE they hit 10. I think thats why I don't like Marshall. They only just begin to sound "good enough" at maximum volume. This amp is great for metal. You have to tweak though. The controls are very sensitive. Use the eq mode in conjunction with the tone controls. The distortion is brutal. Go to channel 1 and you get sweet clean tones to a heavy crunch, via the push-pull gain knob. It should satisfy all styles of music. The cool thing is that Mesa sends you some examples of settings to start with in the instruction manual.

I would never gig without a backup. But this does seem to be a sturdy amp. The wood that the chassis is made of is very thick and put together very well.

I have dealt with the company and they seemed to be more than happy to answer my questions, no matter how stupid. The cool thing with Mesa is that they encourage you to do some of the repairs/maintenance yourself, i.e., changing tubes. Most companies tell you they want a "qualified technician" to do something simple like change tubes or replace a screw or you'll void the warranty. Mesa lets you do it yourself so long as you use Mesa tubes. This is fine by me, since their tubes are inexpensive anyway. I did run into a problem with the sales rep, though. He seemed to blow off the dealer I was purchasing the amp from, a few times. That irritated me.

I have been playing on and off for about 5 years. Aside from the guitars that I mentioned earlier, I play the amp trough a Kustom 4-12 cabinet and when I play loud I use a Boss NF-1 noise gate pedal. Occasionally I'll hook up my BBE 462 sonic maximizer. I would buy this amp again. I think it's a great amp for a great price. You get the best of both worlds: the gain from the Dual Rectifier and the clean tone from the Mark series. I don't really know why I wasted time on anything else. Although my Crate Blue Voodoo was a good investment.

DC-5 head played thru boogie 2X12 half-back cab...price for head $1150 This combination doesn't sound very versatile to me, the clean channel is weak and the over-drive channel is mushy. I also don't like the sound I get when I pull the knob out in the clean channel. At high volumes, it doesn't matter whether your'e playing a strat, tele, prs or hondo...it all sounds the same. I previously owned a DC-5 combo and the sound was a bit darker, richer and fuller...obviously the cabinet is making a difference here...I came home from viet-nam half deaf in one ear so that may be the reason I can't dial in the tone I would wish to play with every night. As it stands right now, I fiddle with the controls every day, and I've yet to be satisfied.

Playing a Japanese strat which has been customized further by a very knowlegable luthier...SRV pickups, complete shielding in the cavity, etc...everyone loves my guitar, still doesn't sound good to me through this setup..playing everything from retro rock to blues, to originals. Parties, weddings, occasional club gigs...not much variety in this rig I think....the best sounds Iv'e been able to coax out of it have been thru the clean channel, using the 4 position toggle of the strat for jazzy sounds. It would be great to get some feed-back on dial settings for a fender-ish type sound in the clean channel, and a Clapton w/ Cream in the gain channel (even though I'm playing a strat).

I'll give a 10 here...the whole package is built like a tank, never had a problem ever.

Extremely helpful and reliable service from people that really care about what you think of their equipment, they've never failed to contact me, and as I live on the west coast, they always seem to call about 6-6:30 p.m. figuring I will be home from work...cool. Even sent me replacment tubes hoping that would improve my situation.

I've been playing since 1969. Blues, rock, some jazz, some alternative rock. Don't own any other gear now. Bought boogie cause I heard great things about sound quality and realibility, should have explored more selections in the boogie category or even different brands, my loss. I wouldn't buy this particular setup again unless my ONLY concern was that I could depend on the gear holding up under stress.

I love the independent controls on the channels, effect loop works wonderfully, very, very loud for a 50 watt amp.

The clean channel is typical Mesa, nice, but not as exciting as my Vox tube amp. The lead channel is better than my old Mark III that I sold to buy this amp. My favorite sound however, is the pull out switch on the clean channel. It screams. I play this amp through a Boogie 1-12 Black Shadow cab, or a Marshall 4-10 cab. depending on the room.

It's a Boogie, 'nuff said.

Again, it's a Boogie. Their support has always been fantastic. They even call you back, which is rare these days.

I would buy it again, it's everything that my Mark III lacked, which is basically total control over the sound, and better overdrive sounds.

Others have listed the features. It has many modern features like line out, parallel effects loop, assignable eq, etc. I do wish the pull boost on the rhythm channel were footswitch selectable.

I play in a blues, blues-rock to jazzy vein with an appreciation for crunchy overdriven sounds as well. This amp has a decent clean sound-Fenderish without quite the warmth of a Fender, but more well defined than my blackface Fender Pro Reverb(sounded great run through the Pro's 2-12 speakers-much better than the Celestion for clean). I like the overdriven sound of the rhythm channel boost, but you can't switch it in and out without massive alteration of volume levels. For me that makes it impractical to play clean and then call up a slightly more overdriven sound.(The rhythm crunch will not clean up sufficiently if guitar volume is lessened). The lead channel is that boogie thing. Massive cascaded overdrive. It sounds like hell to me at lower volumes, but at loud volumes it has that boogies fat sustain. It's not a versatile overdrive to me. All the character is in the pregain range between about 1.5-2. Any more than that and it hardly matters whether you're playing a Strat or a PRS. That's my general complaint about the overdrive channel-it genericizes the sound and doesn't allow enough of the nuances of playing to come through. This amp is loud, loud, loud for 50 watts. I played next to a Matchless Chieftan 2-12 at a show the other day. The Matchless was scorching-sounded great(beautifully overdriven and dynamically responsive and my Mesa was barely had it's tubes warm at the same volume. To some this is a blessing, but for me a tube amp sounds best when the tubes are working hard. This thing gets really loud before it achieves it's best sound and I'm rarely in a situation where I can play as loud as it needs to get. Overall I wouldn't buy this amp again.(I wish I'd saved for the Matchless) It has lots of features, but I think I'm a one channel amp guy who will use pedals(Tube Screamer and Rat) to get more distortion if I need it....

It's well built. The knobs lean out from the front of the amp and I invision one being knocked off very easily. I had a Studio .22 with similar configuration and did break a knob off the front. My guess is that this amp is as reliable as other boogies and that means very reliable...

No problesm with it, but I haven't used it too much due to it's volume.

I wouldn't buy it again. That's as much as measure of my finding out what I like as anything else. If they could take the sound of a Mesa Maverick's first channel and put it in place of the overdrive channel of this amp I'd be happy with it. I tried a Maverick and liked the first channel a lot except for the fact that it has absolutely no low end. You'll think the low e string fell off your guitar on that amp, but it's got a beautiful chimey crunch to it that I like a lot.

50W All tube head with 2 channels (clean/dirty), independent tone controls, reverb, graphic EQ, parallel efx loop. Cab is 2X12 closed back with Celestion Vintage 30's. Looks like a small half stack.

I play original music which varies from clean & jangly to heavier Jane's Addiction type crunch. This amp covers all bases. The clean channel is very "Fenderish" warm and complex. The dirty channel sounds like a Marshall. Lot's of gain, very smooth and sustained tones. I got this amp to replace a '59 Bassman re-issue and a Marshall JCM900 combo I used to use together.

I've gigged with it around 8 times a month playing 2-3 hr sets for 7 months without a problem.

I spoke with someone about switching from the stock 6L6's to 5881's and they were very patient. It seems they understand how demented guitar players can get about tone and gear. I ended up liking the stock 6L6's better.

This is the only amp I've ever found that has a great Fender AND Marshall sound in one amp. It's 50W, but I've never had it above 3. The matching 2X12 cab get's great half stack sounds without the size and weight. Plus the casters roll like you wouldn't believe. IMO it's the best gig amp I've played.