Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Solo Head Triple Channel

I bought a Mesa Dual Rectifier 3 channel Solo Head new this year so I assume it is a 2005.

If you have read any of the other posts on this site then you know how much this amp has to offer. I seriously recommend reading the manual in depth (it's available for download through the Mesa site if you buy one used) however because there is so much to know in order to get the right tone. This is not a plug and play head. You need to know what you are looking for and how to tweak everything.

As mentioned this model has 3 channels with an effects loop and solo option for a little volumne boost to push your gain over the top.

The clean channel could use a little reverb but, a Boss Digital Reverb gives me all that I need.

I play an Ibanez SZ720 with Duncan IBZ pick-ups and let me say this....do NOT buy a Mesa head unless you have the guitar to play through one. As great as it is it WILL NOT compensate for cheap pick-ups or a shoddy guitar.

So far the only minor disappointment I have is that at first I couldn't get enough volume from my clean channel without turning up the gain giving it a grittier sound. I've solved this problem by clicking on the solo option with the level set high enough to bring it up to the same as the other two channels.

The tone is amazing whether pounding out muted chords or running leads. As I said above (along with everyone else who has taken the time to learn this amp) it takes some work to find the tone that suits you. A Mesa Recto Cab carries a heavy low-end already so I've found that with my rig I need to keep the low down about 8-9 (picturing the setting as a number on the face of a clock) or it makes the tone muddy. The mid's I had a harder time tweaking because I need to keep a chunky palm-muted sound but, crisp enough for leads. So far I have had the best luck with it set slightly below the low around 8. The Treble I have set higher at about 12. I found that anything lower and I lost some of the distinction between individual notes. This can also be resolved by boosting the presence a bit.
As other users have also mentioned this amp only sounds good when you are pushing plenty of volume through the tubes. The harder you work them the more natural overdrive you get.

So far the only issue I have had was with the footswitch. During the last song of a recent gig I switched from channel 2 to channel 3 but, noticed immediately that something was wrong. Looking down I was shocked to see every light across the pedal illuminated. After a few dumbfounded seconds I began clicking the switches that should not have been lit and they switched off eventually giving me the channel I had originally selected.

This (so far) has been a one time occurance and I am at a loss as to the explanation but, other than that I have had no problems. The Tolex is a little delicate but, then again a little nail polish has fixed the few small dings.

I have not yet had any interaction with the company. The warranty is pretty sweet though and I was able to find a list of authorized service centers pretty easily.

Over-all, I'd say this amp lives up to everything I was hoping for and dreamed about when first learning how to play. I played Marshall for a long time but, finally made the decision to put up the extra money to step up to the Mesa level and I have not been disappointed. I would absolutely buy another one if it were ever lost or stolen.

You all know the features to this product, if not scroll down or visit Mesa's website.

I use 2 guitars right now on "the Mesa". A custom Les Paul and a Ibanez with modded pickups. This is the most amazing amp EVER. If you get bad tone out of it, you're an idiot. Granted it takes time getting used to the knobs, but once you get it, you'll be overwhelmed by it.

Most of the fools on this site don't know squat. They are stupid metal heads who look at an amp as a toy. I, on the other hand, am not a metal-head, i used to be, but not anymore. Notice how every "metal-head" on here says "this amp doesn't have enough gain". I found the solution to your problems. 1) Call Mesa, ask them why you have no gain. 2) They will tell you the following: "You have too much bass in your eq.....Mesa is ALREADY a bass heavy, HIGH GAIN amplifier....turn the bass down between 10-12 oclock." I know this because I called them and asked them. They told me that, i did it, and it worked. I have crushing tones now. The bass is still there (at 11oclock on my tone) and it's still "punch you in the face". It's not a traditional solid state amp, you CAN NOT have the bass set to MAX and the Gain MAXED. If you do, well then you're gonna get crap for tones.

I've played through all kinds of amps before i bought this one, and nothing compared. And now that i've been playing on it for a year and a half, i know i could never be parted from it.

It's reliable. Tubes suck and so do blown fuses. Be sure to have spares.

They are awesome, although their hours suck. They know my amp better than i do, it's incredible.

I've been playing guitar for over 6 years now. Music my whole life. I've owned Marshalls, Ampegs, and Line 6s. I've owned over 8 guitars. If this amp was stolen, i'd die. I would buy it again, but i'd try to find this amp first. I don't know if could save up for another 7 months to buy it. I love every aspect of this amp. The way it looks is intimidating. I swaped out the Red Power light for a Crystal Purple light....it's rad as shit.

Plenty - all listed below already. Controllable solo boost is brilliant.

This is a tough one. I must admit I bought this amp because of the hype/buzz around it and didn't give it a full work-out at the store when I bought it. "It's a MESA it must sound amazing" - wrong! For months I've struggled to get a decent sound out of it. You turn up at a gig/jam with a MESA and everyone assumes that you will be a fantastic player with an incredible sound - so anything less makes you look pretty stupid and as the other reviews on here show it is easy to sound really bad through this amp. There are some many options that you have to work through lots of bad settings to get to the good ones. The manual talks about the "sweet spot", but doesn't tell you that until you find it you are screwed! The EQ works in a totally non-standard and non-intuitive way, so forget everything you think you know from your other amps. But once you get it sorted it's pretty amazing.

The main things that turned things around for me were getting a decent cab and setting the EQ way down. I'd been running through a Marshall 1936 2x12 and that sucked the life out of the sound. I'm now using a GENZ BENZ G-Flex 2x12 and it rocks! I've taken the gain down to around the halfway mark and put the presence close to zero. This has really helped. I've also stopped using the Modern mode on any of the channels and stuck an MXR ZW44 as a boost in front of the amp. I tried a BBE Sonic Maximiser in the effects loop but that sent everything a bit OTT.

I can now get huge tone and that ideal "clean distortion", if you know what I mean. Every individual note sounds distorted and "heavy" but they don't run into each other in a noisy mush. It still isn't the best amp for shredding - I'd say the 5150 is better for that - but if you want a fat quality tone that cuts through and impresses people then this is it.

I've had other MESA gear and it was unreliable trash (e.g. NOMAD series). The Dual Recto seems rock solid though. I still take a backup (5150) to gigs just in case.

Never needed it

The most frustrating amp I've ever owned - but it can sound amazing if you work at it. Worth the effort.

its awesome...more than enough for me.

everyone with the tight metal tone problems....ok, i play through a gibson sg voodoo...WAAAY too much bass....but i run directly in through a boss eq pedal, and then a boss noise suppressor..i use the the eq as a volume boost and i also take out some of the lows but i leave everything else in the middle...then as far as the amp goes, i leave my bass at 11:00, my mid at 11:00, treble at 1:00, presence at 12:00, master at 10:30, and gain at 2:30..sometimes 3:00. but thats it..i had a lot of trouble tightening up the sound but its because there is just too much tone ...and trust me the other guitarist uses a line 6 and they sound nice on their own but even when our volumes are matched perfect all you can hear out of his is really high notes and thats about it...

take care of it and it will take care of you...

havent had to yet but you can only get ahold of them at certain times and you would think that...oh well...i dont know..theyre getting a 5

ive had it for quite a while now and ive been playing shows since i bought it and it has held up fine...any problems that i ever had with it live were because of the place we were playing and not because of the amp..(bad wiring, wires everywhere, bad grounds..) its made for some interesting times though...picking up local radio stationes during a show...some people would get mad but i dont..i like noise.

$3600 (AUD)
Features: 8
Paid AUD$3,600 new in Australia, sold for $3,000 almost 2 years later on Ebay with 4 brand new EL34 tubes.


Excellent features - see other review for a more detailed description. High quality build and presentation (best looking amp out there IMO).


The one feature I do (did) not really like was the fixed bias switch (EL34/6l6) although it is cool being able to choose the type of power tubes used. The rather cold bias does not bring the best out of this amp. I think it might be a bit of a con to get you to use the over priced Mesa tubes (mesa dont actually manufacture tubes but select them from other brands and put a messa logo on them). An adjustable bias would allow the amp to truly shine. If I had the time and money to install this mod I would have done so and maybe I wouldnt have sold it. BUt in the end I was just happy to get rid of it and start again (with a FRAMUS COBRA!).

A deep switch like the one on the COBRA (and ENGL) may have also helped to tighten this amp up a bit.

Sound Quality: 6
First. This is a good amp and they CAN sound great. But it didnt suit me. BE YOUR OWN JUDGE....My opinion is based on a desire for heavy metal, TIGHT, responsive, articulate, brutal distortion.

I enjoy a variety of styles but mainly play heavy metal (i.e.death, power, speed, thrash, shred, all metal...). I use a Gibson Les Paul, EMG 81 in the bridge...and forced to use a tube screamer as a boost (also tried metal zone, + others), Boss GE7 EQ, digitech RP2000....and more. Tried the mesa cab but traded it for the oversized Marshall mode four 400 cab which sounded better to my ears + $600AUD cheaper.

Sadly, I sold the amp. IMO it is not really that good for fast, heavy, articulate metal. Great for limp bizkit, linkin park, foo fighters, papa roach, korn, punk pop, teeny bopper shit, nu metal.... but not for shadows fall, killswitch, chimaira, slayer, vai, satriani etc.(I know killswitch, metallica etc. have used them but they also used boost pedals, EQ and $$$$$ worth of gear behind it ... which at this price is totally unnacceptable to me, isnt it designed for metal? You should be able to plug in and get that sound without cheap pedals)

DISSAPOINTING. Believe me, I tried VERY hard to love this amp. It was like being with this really hot, popular chick, everyone wants her, your blinded by the beauty, status and prestege, you lust over her but when she's finally yours you realise that shes not that good and you start to look elsewhere....lol. At times I thought it sounded great and I was quite happy, but overall unsatisfied especially when considering the price, 'tricks' I had to do to boost/shape the tone etc.

I could get close to the sound I wanted by using boost pedals and graphic EQ but this created unwanted noise, and feedback at volume. I tried hush, noise gates etc but this just $ucked tone. Frustrating. Friends and other bands were using much cheaper amps (eg. 5150's) and getting a better, tighter metal tone, better harmonics etc. without ANY pedals!I was in denial at the time but can now admit being a bit jealous. I would have a go on their amps (im talking about amps now, not chicks! lol) and not want to swap back (not that I let them know)

It wasnt untill I started playing in a band that I really noticed the amps flaws and decided to sell, thankfully I got a great deal and didnt loose out too much (it cost lessthan $1 a day!). On the other hand, the guy who bought it played rock (foo fighters kinda stuff) and loved the amp... It can sound great alone, in the studio or with vocals, but throw in drums, bass etc. and its a different story.

I did everything to try and keep it, different tubes (Sovtek El34 made it sound 100% crappier!) looked into mods etc. Mods are really expensive in Australia and not many people want to touch these amps. The guys who offered to do mods didnt seem very experienced with mesa, it would have been a gamble. If I lived in the USA i would have taken it to Voodoo amps for sure.

Oh and they are right about the clean channel, dont but it for this as its not great although I personall dont mind a dirty clean sound.

The volume levels alter dramatically between modes/channels and the effects loop is absolute shit.

I give it a 4 without clean boost pedals and a 6 with pedals and EQ. If I was into simple strumming power chord type rock, grunge or nu metal slop and didnt need an tight bottom end, I might give it a 7 or 8.

Reliability: 8
At first it seemed to be a totally reliable, trustworthy amp. I did take extremely good care of it though.

BUT......

* It did blow some fuses mysteriously, had it serviced under warranty and they found nothing wrong with the amp.It had the wrong fuse installed (fast burning). Im not sure if this was the initial problem or if the music shop had given me the wrong fuse after the first or second time. Anyway, they put a new fuse in(slow burning. It was fine for another 6 months then blew agin while playing at bedroom level. Wiered. (first time it occured in a rehersal studio, other times at home).

It also had this problem around the same time with one of the power tubes glowing RED HOT. Again they couldn't find any problems within the amp, the tube was only slightly worn, they replaced it any way (charging me $40).

BUT, they are built tough.

Customer Support: N/A
Never dealt with mesa USA personally. Their Australian warranty representative was helpful but did not 'have time' to mod my amp, fair enough but disapointing. He also gave me some advice saying not to use EMG81 pickups if I want a tight bottom end. Cant really take this seriously because the 81 actually made a huge improvement over the gibson bridge humbucker to the distortion, and how many pro metal players choose to use 81's (how many dont? lol).

Overall Rating: 6

Been playing for 16 years. I would say that I have a fair amount of experience. Believe me, I tweak the shit out of this thing. Yes the controls are extremely sensative and you can find some BETTER tones if you tweak, and tweak, and tweak but in the end I was just not satisfied.

Mainly used Marshalls before the mesa, now own a Kick ass Framus COBRA, which are actually cheaper than mesa in Aust.(satisfaction at last!). If it was stolen or lost I would be very pissed off, eventually get over it, claim the insurance and buy a different amp (COBRA).

In the end I sold it for AUD$3,000 (after spending $170 on new tubes the previous week) and bought a brand new COBRA for AUD$3,300. MESA realy hold their value and are quite easy to sell, they're very popular, and not so common in Aust. due to the overly high retail price (AUD$4,595). So if you do buy one and decide to sell (at least in Aust) it is no big deal. You will get a decent price (as long as you take good care of it).

I really wish the Recto had what I was after, I tried, but in the end simply had to move on. If the distortion was tighter (without having to use pedals) I would have been very satisfied, everything else was ok.

If your thinking of buying one, try it out. And I dont mean in a music shop. Try to borrow or hire one and play it over the weekend. Let the novelty, beauty, and hype wear off, then decide if its really what you want. You will either love it or decide to move on as I did (it just took me a couple of years to face facts).

Dont get me wrong, its a great amp in many ways (construction, its somewhat versatile, trademark rock/soft metal tone, # of features) but it is not for everyone.

DONT THINK IT WILL BE PERFECT FOR HEAVY METAL BECAUSE ITS IMPRESSIVE METAL GRILL AND PLACE ON METALLICA'S STAGE. Looks can be decieving.

Submitted by Bradman006.

150 Watts Class A/B Tube

This amp is great although it is very intricate and requires learning to use almost as much as learning to play the guitar.

It would be nice to have a headphone jack in the back of it--its a bit loud for an apt.

I play a 97 Gibson SG with a stock 490T on the Bridge and a PRS Dragon 2 Bass in the neck. I play the Triple Rectifier 3 Channel through a Standard Recto Cab, but have also played through Marshall 1960A?s with the GT-75 Speakers. I look for a tone somewhere in the hard-core to hard-rock arena. Before owning this amp, I had a 1996 Tremoverb. After a couple of partially frustrating years of changing pick-ups (JB, SH14, Dragon 2 Treble, EMG 81), twisting knobs to no end, adding pedals (including the Aphex Aural Xciter and compressors), I believe I finally know what I wanted to hear out of this amp.

I did blow a fuse once when I first recieved it from the shipper on ebay--but have not had any issues since (that was 2 yrs ago)

I called the Mesa tech-support line and the guy called me back the same day after hours!! I was impressed!! I must have talked with the guy for an hour about my questions in finding the tone I was looking for.

It has always seemed that I have been unable to produce the mid-range girth in the Modern voicing (Channel 3) without compromising the hugeness of the Dipped-Mid?s tone that everyone buy?s this amplifier for. In the manual it suggests an instant gratification setting of 12-1 on the Bass, 7-8 on the Mid?s and 12 on the Treble. My experience with this setting has been the Mid?s are obviously non-existent and the bottom-end is great, the treble is thin and very compressed-feeling with little or no attack. Logic would tell me that I would need to turn up the Mid?s to meet my preference of the aforementioned desired result. What I notice as I turn up the Mid?s is that by the time I reach noon on this control the ?Chunk? is completely gone and the strings are extremely focused and difficult to play. For some reason no matter where I place the Mid-Range knob, there is a hollow-ness in the Lower-Mid?s where you get the nice, big attack that you hear in the recordings. Recommendations in the Mesa manual suggest that you place the Treble control in the 11-1 range ?For the most balanced representation of the 3 regions?. I have noticed that as you turn the Treble from nothing to 12 or more the clarity of sustain is increased but the signal, intern, is thinned out and the entire spectrum of the mid-range is thinned to hollowness and no attack. This thinning starts after the 10 range on the Treble dial. Right @ the 9 spot I noticed that the girth in the Mid?s was introduced. By the time I reached the 10-10:15 region more than enough clarity of sustain while retaining girth in the notes and harmonics. As of this minute I find my best settings with the Bass in the 12-1 region, Mid?s in the 10 region and Treble set to the 10-10:15 region. I keep the Presence @ 11-11:30 to bring out clarity and growl, Master set to about 10, and the gain is usually between 1:45 and 3:00. I sincerely hope that @ least 1 person reads this and is able to shave months of frustration off of their never-ending tone quest. Also, I have read some postings that down the duals and triples, saying that they are crap and cannot be used for metal, and bla, bla, bla. I would like to be quoted as I say ?The only thing I have ever found Mesa guilty of is sacrificing ease-of-use for versatility.? The one thing that all should know when using a Mesa is that it will challenge you to know what it is that your ear is hearing before it will give it to you. It is not a Marshal or other amp that can have the Bass pegged, Mid?s off and Treble @ half to get a good even tone. I would like to encourage all out there who are discouraged with this amp to keep on it?the sound is in there, it just takes the right key to unlock it. Also, before you spend everything you have trying to buy new pick-ups, stomp-boxes etc?. Remember that you didn?t spend $1800 for something that you should have to. Pick-ups, stomp-boxes etc... are great to accent what you are doing?but the bottom line is that you should be able to get almost right on without them.

It was made in around 2003 purchaces from machine head music in surry england, The amp is fairly versatile having the three different channels with three different modes within the orange and red channels and the clean having two. There are almost too many features, it has EL34 6L6 Bias selectability, Built in variac and solid state rectifier. Very good effects loop. I uses this amp both in the studio, at home and with my mates in a classic rock covers band and a progreassive 80's rock/metal band.

I use this amp primarily with my PRS Custom 24 and a Gibson SG standard, initially it suited my musical styulings very well and i was able to dial in tones similar to a mark IV which is the amp i really wanted but to be honest could not justify paying the money for it. Initially it souned great but as time went on a problem surfaced and one of my resistors had blown causing the volume of the amp to drop from 100 watts to 30 watts. before this the tone lost all of tits bottom end and, wen t tinniy and sounded really lame and brash, i changed the preamp tubes to 12AX7 ELECRO HARMONIX which are better than mesa , but with no joy. i Bought this amp to get a close john petrucci sound and for a while i did but now it sound like a 10 watt peavey practice amp.

I Must say that I hate mesa boogie as a company and the way they deal with overseas customers, buying amps is a little like running a car. I live in london england and here all the techs are very good but all dont really know how to repair mesa boogie circuits as mesa are stingy and difficult and make their circuit diagrams difficult to get a hold of. Furthermore in the uk it costs us #100 to revalve the power section with mesa valves, so at the slightest hint of any problem mesa just say "replace the valves", the problem is we pay twice the price for evereything in the UK. I used to have a dual channel head and even that had its fair share of probelms. MESA BOOGIE are i am afraid not what they once were, they are now more akin to a big corporation and lack the customer care or international service of soldano, bogner or cornford. There is only one liscend mesa boogie repair man in the whole of the south of england and he is an old fart who doesnt know fuck all about sound or amp tone. He just used to fix televisions. Another gripe with mesa is they arent very road worthy, they use the finest leather etc which is all well and good in the showroom and in your bedroom but when you are in a proffessional stage environment or at a rehearsal they are very fragile to superficial cutes in the leather and scratches to the grill. Once again i played mesa exclusivley for 5 years and its taken me this long to realise that sound is not what it is all about. Its all about reliability, customer service and dependebility. My mesa blew fuses all the the time before the TONE WENT SHIT. If u live in America then mesa would be fabulous, but in england we pay twic the price for everything ang get no customer service, mark at westside is sucking his own nob about how mesa boogies never break, but the fact all products are susseptable to breaking.

CRAPPY, IN THE UK MESA CUSTOMER SUPPORT IS ZERO, YOU may as well be in IRAQ. My buddy playes marshall hand wired series (which is amazing) and he had a slight problem with a faulty pot, and marshall have repair centers and well informed service centers all over the UK. America is fairly far away especially california, and hence if i have a problem i am half way round the world from people who can fix it. If you are buying a chevrolet instead of a bmw in Europe it is gonna be a real headache for maintenence and Parts, same with mesa. I am gonna get it fixed and go back to my trusty marshall tone (different but still an awsome hi gain sound with the JMP1) deftones, Iron Maiden and Dave mustaine all sound pretty decent in metal with marhsall. Mesa isnt the only way in high gain boys and girls! and the marshall factory is only a 2 hour drive from my house.

I have played for many years and used and abused, Marshall,Mesa, Randall, Cornford and Fender Amps. MY BIGGEST ADVICE TO ANYONE IS if you live in the UK look for a UK amp manufacturor. I loved the mesa sound but i am selling my Dual Rec for a Marshall EL34 100/100 and jmp 1 rack system. I know mesa is all hand wired and shit but it doesnt mean shit to me, if an amp sounds shit i am not gonna keep it, and after paying close to $3500 for a dual rec, (thats what we pay for em over here with shit service)Marshall and cornford are the best for the English! I cant wait to sell it then i dont have to deal with westside distribution and mesa boogie service reps with too much pride and not enough focus. If u are British Buy British Amps and you will save a lot of hassel.

This amplifier has a ton of cool features. Having this amp for over a year, I am still surprised by the things I am learning about it. I really like the 3 distortion modes (raw, vintage and modern) on the 2 distorted channels. This feature lets you dial in just the right sound for your music. Anything from classic fuzz to bone crushing distortion can be attained! The clean channel has 2 voice selections (clean, pushed) that can be used to take you from crystal clear clean to that early pushed gain sound. The effects loop is really sensitive, so it takes quite a while to figure out the right levels and configurations for using processors. The solo boost on this amp is amazing. There is a spongy/bold selection switch on the back that allows you to go from a warm, classic gain to a really powerful gain that incites feelings of armageddon!

Using my Gibson Les Paul Studio, I can get any sound out of this beast. Have played in several genres with this amp, including metal, punk, classic rock, this thing is built to handle any style you can think of! Beware cranking the eq and presence on this thing, because it will give you way more than you are used to with other, lesser amplifiers. I get the best sound out of this thing by keeping all the eq below 12 o'clock, except for treble which I run at 1 o'clock. Without the presence on, you unlock a totally new beast. I am the type of person that really enjoys high gain, no matter what style I am playing, and this amp really does not disappoint in that area. It has gain for days. But when you wanna lower the gain for a more polished sound, it will do that without problem. Having owned most other "high end" brands, I can truly say that this monster crushes them all. I would suggest taking the time to read the manual a few hundred times. There are so many options that you really need to learn before you jump out on stage with this thing. I have owned mine for a year, and I am still learning what this thing can do. Any sound can be achieved from this mammoth beast.

I will admit it, I am too cheap to buy a road case for my amp. But touring all over the United States with my Dual Rec unprotected has not phased it a bit!! It has been through falls, bumps, jiggling, drunk roadies, and STILL cranks out the tunes! I have not changed my tubes since the day it came to me direct from Mesa, and it still purrs like a lion. It has been through many temperature and climate changes, lots of moisture, and came out unscathed! I have total faith in this thing, enough so that I sold my back up amp. Don't need it when this Goliath is built so tough!

I got mine straight from Mesa as an endorsed artist, and they were great! Never had to speak with them after I received it. I have talked to them about different tubes and how they would change the sound, and they get back to me asap! They are the greatest!

After 13 years of touring and owning several other amplifiers, I can say that this is the only thing I will own! I have played other "boutique" amps, and none can hold a candle to Mesa's craftsmanship. As long as you take time to know your amplifier inside and out, you will not find a more versatile amp anywhere. I have owned Fender, Marshall, Budda, VHT, Peavey 5150(total crap), and NOTHING compares to the Dual Rec 3 channel. I have played through a Bogner several times, and after being told they are the best, I was really let down. But my Mesa NEVER lets me down! It never ceases to amaze me. If you want to get the best amp ever made, then I suggest you go out and buy a Mesa Boogie Dual Rec 3 channel!!!

I bought this amp new in 2005 with the standard 4/12 cab for $2,700. I play mostly hard rock/ heavy metal style music; being influenced by bands such as Tool, In Flames, The Deftones, A Perfect Circle, and Alice In Chains. I'm not too much of a shredder; more of a melodic leader myself. This amp includes three, footswitchable, channels that include clean, overdriven (which can be pretty bad-ass), and the bone-cruching heavy distortion that it's known for. There is no headphone jack, i would imagine because of the amount of power this amp pushes out. I use this amp for everything! Live shows, recording or just for the occasinal jam. For a long time I've been looking for an amp that could produce beautiful, mind-blowing tone, serious bottom end, and the right amount of power to play in any type of condition; outdoor, indoor,etc. I've tried Marshall, Saldano, Line 6, Randall, and Peavy and this amp stood out more than any other.

Right now I'm using a Gibson SG fitted with High-output, Burstbucker pick-ups. This amp together with the Burstbucker-fitted SG creates exactly the sound I've been looking for. It has enough heavy gain to crush a small town and still maintains a tone that could make your mother cry. I've found this amp's sound to be consistant at some of the highest volumes. The only problem i've found, really, is that it doesn't sustain that well. For the amount of gain that this thing pushes out, it's pretty damn quiet. For some people the clean channel might not be the greatest sounding but combined with some reverb and delay it's the perfect clean sound for me. I use a Boss digital delay, digital reverb, phase shifter, and flanger. Because this amp has no reverb of its own (which may upset some people) i usually keep the Boss reverb on all of the time. Some people may think this might be a tad risky, however this amp's effects loop is amazing! None of my effects (besides the phaser because I increased the effect's depth) decrease the volume, or the quality of the sound/tone. This may be different with other owners due to the types of effects thy use, but with the ones i have (all Boss), it's perfect. I even use the Delay and Reverb together when playing in channel three!!! and it still maintains tone and volume perfectly!

I've had this Amp for a while now and I've never had one problem with it what so ever.

I've called up Boogie a few times and everytime All of my questions have been accomidated with the exact answer i was looking for.

I've been playing for a little over 7 years and out of all the amps I've tried this one came through with flying colors. If it were lost or stolen i would cry because my pockets can't handle anymore and I would have lost something great. However, i would definately save up for another one. I love everything about this amp. Everything I've stated has been my opinion. Everything this amp has to offer suits me and the sound i wanted to get perfect, however this might be totally the opposite for some people(which you've probably read). My best advice is to try out as many amps as you can because you can't take someone else's opion on something this important and crucial! I, personally, love this amp.

9 'cuz there's no reverb. but you can sorta get a reverby tone out of the amp, and computers can add reverb while recording.. but the thing is.. this amp has VERY good distortion and can be made to be anything from huge low end to blazin' high end solo. when i first got my amp.. a 2005.. i couldn't get the tone i wanted out of it. twitching from the tubes to the diodes makes a bigger change than you would expect. the guy at guitar center said the diodes would be better but i like the rectifier tubes better. i play anything from hardcore to black metal and some death metal. if you get this amp you have to realize you have to be patient. having the gain half a milimeter than it should be will make the distortion sound wak.. basically you just have to mess with the knobs and turn them a tiny bit to make it sound good. if you look in the back of the user manual.. they have a some good sugestions for getting good tones.none of them are in the modern setting but all you do is switch the vintige to modern if you want good low end. if you want a good high end gain then keep it on vintige 'cuz it's got a tighter feel. also.. i strongly suggest that you have the master volume on the indivual channel as low as you can without cutting out that sound and turning up the master volume for the whole amp up. that gives you WAY better tone when playing over drums, or just louder in general. also. i STRONGLY SUGGEST YOU GET A MESA CAB! THEY'RE NOT ONLY A COUPLE INCHES TALLER! (WHICH GIVES MORE BOTTOM END) BUT THE MARSHALL 1960 CAB'S CUT OFF THE GAIN AND THERE'S NO DEBTH AT ALL!! i was going to get a marshall 1960 cab but compared to the meas 4/12 it sounds like ass. too many people just assume marshall makes the best cabs 'cuz they've been around for ever but the mesa cab was just soooo much better. i dont' know about the mode 4 cabs though 'cuz they're taller than the normal marshall cabs. the mesa's also come with casters.

GREAT distortion, and i play with en epiphone explorer. it even has pretty good clean sound.. if you go by what the back of the book says for the settings. 'cuz my mother's making me to freakin' jazz band this year.. and playing through this cheap washburn hallow body it doesn't sound half bad for jazz. but i'm not a jazz finatic so it works for me. got a way better clean than marshall's hi gain.

this thing's a tank. the only thing kinda cheasy is the metal bar in the back. but unless someone stuck a knife through the back and broke a tube this thing's indistructable. one of my buddy's got his knocked over in a show and everything still worked after that so yah..

never delt with them.

excelent amp! in my mind the best out there. i've played an assortment of marshalls but none of them had the low end i wanted. this amp will do me for life. the only amp that's played well aslo is the good 'ol 5150, but still not as good of a low end. the orange rockerverb 50 is pretty cool too. but i'd get a dual rec over the orange 'cuz they're cheaper and have good high AND low gain. but if you don't wanta spend that much money.. i'd recoment the 5150 2 or the 6505, both by peavey. but there's payment plans. which is how i got mine.. 'cuz guitar center has the "guitar player's card" or something liek that. when i got it it was no interest for a year. now it's 15 months. but if you don't pay it of in time it's 25% inerest. so yah. hah.