Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Solo Head

This one was made in 2003, I bought it used, have it about 9 months. It is versatile amp, can get many different tones. 3 Channel amp, ef loop, nice features, solo option. Have more power than you will ever need, this is actually the bad thing. You must crank it up to get that really warm tone, but that is impossible. When you turn the volume to 9 o'clock, you will be the only one that is heard in the band.

I use a PRS Custom 24 guitar. I wanted this amp for so long. I was the biggest mesa fan of all times. But now that I got it...not so impressed. Clean channel is ok. Can get some good tones, but far away from really good. Distortion is not even close as you would think. Moody as hell, much bass. Even when you put it down on 9 o'clock, it still has more than you need. Distortion...i can't describe it...defenetlly not for metal. In a bad way too loud, screaming in a bad way.

You can depend on it, as much as on any other tube amp.

Had a few questions, they never answered me.

This amp is not even close as you think it should be. Could be used only for some classic rock sound. But if you are in to that, better go for a marshall, or some mark series amp.
If you are into hi gain sounds, go for peavey, engl, or something like that. You get better, and fatter tone quality for half a price.

Ok amp, but way way overrated. It should cost around 1000 ???, not 2300???. It doesn't mean it is good if everybody plays it. I made that mistake, don't you made it too. Way overrated and overpriced, better go for something else.

I have owned the 2001 3-Channel Dual Recto for 8 years. ALL TUBE!!!

*POSITIVE*
The front panel is very straight-forward. 3 channels - independent master, gain, prescence and 3-band EQ on each channel. Each channel is also equipped with a mode toggle switch so you can play around with different tones.
The back panel is a tad bit more confusing, but if you take it one section at a time, it's very easy to understand.
*The slave out if very handy for direct recording or running a seperate power amp.
*Speaker output jacks are self explanatory.
*The effects loop section is where I got lost when i first got the amp. Everyone's tone tastes differ so just experiment with some different effect units and see what you like. I typically run my amp completely dry w/ no effects in the chain.
*The external switching jacks are used with MIDI devices that utilize a switching system(ie, Voodoo Labs GCX)...very handy when you're using multiple preamps, effects...
*My favorite part about this amp is the fixed bias switching, along with the selectable rectifier mode and power setting(bold or spongy).

*NEGATIVE*
*This amp doesn't have a ground lift, so if you run a switching system like I mentioned above, you may get a little his...it's a bit annoying, especially when you're in the studio.
*This thing needs reverb!!! If you're like me, and you don't use any effects at all, it's still nice to have a nice big sound that only reverb can provide.

Even though the good outweighs the bad, but because of that I can only give it a 9 for the features.

*First off, as it is with all tube amps, do not expect this to turn you into a guitar virtuoso. It's the exact oppsosite. Tube amps expose every single flaw with your guitar playing. You have to work to get those solos to sound good.*

Let's get techy! I play in a hard rock band(nickelback, sevendust) and I need tight punchy rhythms with searing leads. This is how I run my Dual Recto:
Tube selection play a HUGE roll in tone!

** PLAY IN THE 6L6 POSITION, TUBE RECTIFIER MODE W/ THE BOLD SETTING**
PRE AMP
V1 - JJ ECC83(standard)
V2 - JJ ECC83(high gain)
V3 - Tung-Sol 12AX7(standard)
V4 - Tung-Sol 12AX7(standard)
V5 - JJ ECC83(standard & balanced)

POWER AMP
2 - JJ GZ34(rectifier tubes)
2 - JJ KT88(outer sockets)
2 - JJ KT66(inner sockets)

FRONT PANEL:
Red Channel(great rhythm tone)
PRESENCE: 10:00
GAIN: 2-3:00
LOW: 9:00
MID: 12-1:00
HIGH: 10-12:00

Orange Channel(fabulous lead tone)
PRESENCE: none
GAIN: 3:00-max
LOW: 12:00
MID: 2:00-max
HIGH: none

Green Channel(best clean tone)
PRESENCE: 1:00
GAIN: 12:00
LOW: 11:00
MID: 12-1:00
HIGH: 2:00

I've experimented with all makes and models, and have read extensive reviews...simply put, I did my homework! This combination of tubes sounds great for a good solid rhythm, tight and focused leads, and the cleanest, warmest, fattest clean you'll ever hear!


I run an Ibanez S7320, equipped with a Seymour Duncan Distortion in the bridge postion, and a Seymour Duncan '59 in the neck position, into the Mesa Dual Rectifier, into a Marshall 1960A 4X12 w/ Celestion Vintage 30's. If you play a similiar setup, you will not be disappointed!

I've gigged extensively all over the country and have never had any problems. But I do carry extra tubes with me just in case! The mesa workmanship and craftsmanship is second to none, so I never worry about it breaking down.

A buddy of mine, who was faithful Marshall player told a joke. "You always have to have two Marshall heads. One on stage, and one in the shop!" That is not the case at all with my mesa head, or any I've ever owned.

I've contacted the techs at Mesa and have gotten swift responses to my question...usually in the same day...it was always about tubes and channel settings.

I've never had my Dual Recto worked on, nor has it ever been in the shop. Just remember, a tube amp will turn on you in a split second of you don't treat it kindly and gently.

I would buy it again in a heartbeat if it was stolen! Overall I can only give it a 9, but only because there is no reverb option, or a ground lift. Other than those two items, this thing is a 10!

100 watts, 3 channels, loads of gain, decent sustain. It is a very versitile amp. I liked the cleans. As for everything else, complete garbage. This amp is the most TONELESS amp on the market. Absolutely NO note definition, sounds like a hair dryer, and much too much bass that can never be dialed out. And incredibly overrated. Just because ever band you see uses one does not make it a great amp.

This amp has no tone. If you're playing only one note, that's fine. Anytime you play more than 2 notes, they blend and become one sound, not two notes played as a chord. There enters the ****** "hair dryer" distortion that isn't even great for metal. It's loose as hell. And too much woofy bass that refuses to be dialed out, even with the bass at 2. People say that it sounds great cranked, but with 100 watts it's almost impossible to turn it past 4. Most people today are complete idiots. The most wattage you will EVER need is 40 to 50. It's impossible to get power amp break up with this amp.

Overall, terrible tone. Buy a 6505 or 5150, you'll achieve your goal better sounding and cheaper.

Never dealt with.

Again, never dealt with.

All hype, absolutely NO NOTE DEFINITION or TONE. Awful bass, takes a year by itself to actually find a decent setting. An overrated piece of ****, shame Mesa. I am a Mesa fan, but more along the Stiletto lines or Lone Star.

All you little metal/posthardcore *******, go with a 6505. And you'll actually sound good.

I have read certain reviews stating that this amp has more features than necessary, I find this hard to believe as I am a total novice when it comes to understanding amps and this one is VERY easy to understand and very useful to use. The 3 channel, five button floorboard is a doddle to set up and comes with enough instructions to use with immediate effect. I still have a bit of trouble with the effects loops (a bit of squealing going on) but I take that as my limitations, not the amps. It's a bit unusual not to see a reverb function, but I am not complaining because I have other things to look after that side.

I am using a Paul Reed Smith CE 22 which I serious considered parting company with due to dissatisfaction with the sound I was getting out of my Randall Head. As soon as this thing went into the dual rec it was like instrument sexual magnetism... These two were made for each other and should spend the whole of there lives together. The sound of the amp can best be described as Schitzophrenic... The clean sound is stunning clear,warm and bright. Anyone who barks out that this baby is a one high gain trick pony truly is as dumb as a bag of hammers. But the reputation of the High gain sound is warranted and then some!! The shear anger and agressiveness of the crunch is awesome... It sends shivvers down my spine just thinking about it. Plus the extra features of he Vintage and Raw sounds really round up the plusses and I cant fault the sounds at all.

Obviously the amp is spanking new so I really hope I dont need to comment on this for a while yet.

Not had to deal with Mesa yet

I will probably never own another make of amp again...

Has most of the standard features, however it is missing a reverb. 2 channels, orange and red which are footswitchable.

I'm playing an esp ec1000 with an emg 85 in the bridge. It is a very revealing amp, so if you're a sloppy player you'll definitely hear it. The clean channel is nice. Not fender clean but that is to be expected. The gain channel is what this amp is all about and this is where it shines. Nice bottom end with suprising top end clarity. I'm not going to name the artists that use this amp, but the list of hard rock and metal artists rocking this piece of equipment is quite lengthy.

I've owned this amp for 2 years and the only I've had to do is replace the tubes. It seems to be of a solid build and I expect it to last for a long time.

I bought this amp from http://mesaboogieonline.com and have had to call Mesa once. They walked me through the problem (tubes were dead) and were very easy to deal with.

I've played on and off for 10 years and out of all the amps that I have owned, this would be on the top of the list. For hard rock or metal I don't see how you can go wrong.

at first glance the amp looks pretty bare, volume presance bass mid treble gain. and for the first two days that you own the amp you'll think to yourself "what the ****! No reverb?" untill you read the manual and lear how to used the back of the amp. the spongy/bold and rectifier switches switch turns your amp from a low headroom tube monster that bares its fangs as they drip with saturated vaccume tube ditortion into a gain addict hell bend on getting its next fix and then into a slick haird salesman whose clean lines will make you buy anything. add in the baziliion combinations of vintage/clean/raw/pushed/modern variations and tehres enough variety to make your head spin. 9 because of the non traditional features, not a 10 because of the lack of traditional features. yes, it has no reverb =[

if you bought the amp you already know what kind of sound you want. you just dont go out on a whim and throw 1.5k down on somthing you havent researched.

it sounds great with all the guitars ive played through it, each one has its own unique quirks to it, youll just have to play around with it.

but believe the hype, the brutal distortion is there, the bassy punch, the raunchy mids, the singing gains... all of it



the best advice i can gove on getting the saound you want form it is to
1. read the manual

and
2. call a friend who plays the drums and jam. Its 100000% easier to find that sweet tone you want when you can tune the amp against the sound of a drummer.

the amp is not a one trick pony as some people say, but youll never find that out untill you crank it. people who buy this amp for bedroom shred and so on will be pissed off when thay realize that this amp sounds liek **** with the volume on .5

in terms of tones its got everything that I've found i need, a clean chanel that distorts nicely for some kick *** blues and jazz

a pused channel for that long-haired-tight pants 70's and 80's rock

to a gain thats is so raounchy that you feel as though you should appologize. like after every palm mute you feel as though you should find and old woman and say "excuse me but im so sorry that my amp sounds so damn bad***." then because of how bad*** it sounds you'll continue to chug the shit out of whatever instrument your runnign through that beast.



but seriously the amp nails all the tones that youve heard people on the raidion play it for


metallica, the darkness, all time low just to name a few

so many tones are possible with this amp


JUST MAKE SURE TO READ TEH MANUAL!

built like a motherf****** level 70 warrior speckin prot and fury

for non -WoW players


its built liek a tank. ive had no trouble

havent had to deal with them

hell of a sweet amp, betles cover bands probably wont liek it, but then again, ive never seen a beatles cover band buy mesas, so i guess thats a problem noone will ever have


the average rocker will love this thing to death

so will metal heads, blues masters and just anyone looking for great tone and great playability

for being made in the mid 90's it has alot of features

Ok first thing is first change out the ****** Mesa Tubes because they make the amp sound very grainy and who ever leaves them in and thinks that the stock tubes sound good does not know what they're talking about. So my secret for my tone that I get from mine is from the JJ tubes that I ordered from eurotubes.com and right now I have (5) high gain 12ax7's and (4) 6L6GC's which will truly bring the amps true tones out. And the orange channel either on crunch mode or clean mode is actually really full sounding after I swapped the tubes out, and the red channel is really amazing with brutal lows and the way to sparkling highs and also what I have noticed is that Eminence speakers sound better with this head than Celestions in my opinion.

Mine was made in the mid 90's and still preforms like a champ

Any time I have called Mesa to ask simple questions they always are very polite and if they have do some research about a certain question they will call you with in that hour.

For the price range you can not go wrong also you can run the amp in solidstate mode or all tube mode and the amp can take almost every tube for the power section. I have owned a 2005 peavey Jsx, 2002 Mesa Road King Series 1 which is probly one of the most versatile amps ever made and now I currently own a Rivera K TRE and this Dual Rectifier and of course the Rivera has more gain but also alot more money and the Rivera is spec out for certain speakers and is not a fixed bias amp like the dual rec but I like each amp because is good in it's own way.

This is a 1999 model, so it is a 2 channel example (not the later 3 channel models). The channels are named 'Orange' and 'Red'. My configuration is currently set at 'Orange' for clean sounds and 'Red' for gain settings. The channels are assignable. By this I mean that each channel can be given a tonal characteristc - such as 'Vintage', 'Modern', 'Clean' or 'Variable High Gain'. This function is accsessed via a switch on the back of the head and allows for customisation of your channel settings. This is made easier by the fact that each channel has the same controls (Gain, Treble, Middle, Bass, Presence, Master) and channels are footswitchable.

Regarding the effects loop, Mesa are quite renowned for their complex operating systems. Shared by both channels is the 'Active Loop Master control' which controls the over all level of effects. When it is engaged in this function, a yellow LED on the front panel illuminates. There are various settings for the effects loop (which can be altared via a pot on the back of the head), but I have settled on the setting 'Red Auto' - which just seems to push the valves more.

Speaking of valves, this model comes with 5 12AX7 preamp valves, 4 6L6 power amp valves and the two rectifier valves, of which the designation escapes me. There is a feature that allows you to switch the bias between 6L6 and EL34's (again, via the rear of the head). Thus adding to the flexability of the amp. There is no denying the fact that Mesa amps are loaded with features, and all the supporting paraphenalia from Mesa does a good job of explaining the features, but the only real way to get to grips with the features on offer is to get out there and play one (if you can!).

I would not say that I have a simple set up, but I do not have over kill either, before I start, here is a list of effects I use:

ProCo Turbo Rat
Boss Bass Flanger
Electro Hamonix Small Stone Phaser
Electro Harmonix Mini Q-Tron Envelope Filter
Jim Dunlop Crybaby Wah
Boss Pro 21 Band Graphic EQ (Rack)
Boss Pro Stereo Noise Surpressor (Rack)

In terms of Guitars, I play a 1990's Fender Japanese Strat (with Stock Pickups), a 2003 Mexican Fender Tele (again with stock Pickups), a 2005 Gibson SG Special (Open Coil Stock Pickups) and a 19?? Gibson Les Paul Standard with EMG 81's and 85's.

The first thing I noticed with this amp is that IT WILL NOT COVER DODGY PLAYING *cough cough*. Every sound your guitar makes will come through your speakers. At the risk of sounding unimaginative, the Strat sounds like a Strat, clean and bright and the Tele sounds choppy and sharp. The clean setting on the Mesa really brings out the character of these guitars, as when set right, the clean comes very close to a Fender clean - I could imagine running this head on clean through an old Blonde 4x10 and not being a million miles away from a Bassman. Increasing the gain adds a little purr behind the clean so we are now into Plexi clean territory, and with the gain pushed all the way, you can do your best Hendrix impression until you achieve Rock superstar status or you asphixiate on your own sick - either way it sounds rather nice. The Strat and Tele when used with the high gain settings do not translate well. This is only my opinion and preference, but I do not like single coils when played through a high gain setting - they squeal, hiss and general sound brittle - however like I said this is only my personal preferance. I am sure if you like the sound of high gain single coils, this would work wonders.

The SG just sings through this amp - the cleans are warm and full, giving just a little bit of break up when pushed, but the real joy on this channel with the SG comes when the clean gain is set to 10 - it does not do a bad impression of a JCM 800, only with a little more gain, and with my TurboRat in the front end, I can get all those desirable classic rock tones - lets break out the big haircuts and little trousers people!

Channel 2 is pure Mesa - you know the tone that every amp emulator tries to tries to copy? This is it. Humbuckers make this channel - I find gain set to about 3'clock is the best setting, as (with the right EQ) you get all the gain, bottom end and top end definition and well as mid punch. Push the gain any ore than this and you get a horrible kind of 'mush' sound where you tend to lose your tone for the sack of bags of gain. Again this is down to taste, but I like to keep my tone, even when I am playing at higher gain settings. There is no doubt about it, Mesa's forte is the high gain sound, but for me the real surprise is the clean channel and how versatile it is.

Before I go any further I must apologise to Active Pickup enthusiasts -but my Les Paul with the EMG's does sound awful through this amp. I bought the guitar with the Pickups already installed because it was a bargin price at a closing down sale. I was using a Carlsbro Nu-Tone Stack at the time and thought the guitar sounded bad because I was not playing through a great amp. I think I was wrong because it still sounds bad through the Mesa. For me, the highs are too harsh, the lows to wooly and the mids do not exist - maybe I have a duff set of Pickups, I change the battery in a regular basis and it still sounds pap.

I would not say that I have a musical style, I just like good tone, and the Mesa does deliver - you have to spend a little time getting your head around all the features and find 'your sound', but the reassuring thing is, you WILL find YOUR sound. It is plenty loud enough for any gig and still sounds good at lower levels for rehershals etc.

I am giving this a 9 only because of the potential pitfalls of too much high

Soild construction, no tears (as I bought it flight cased) and looks like it is 9 months old, not 9 years. I would gig without a back up as it has just been seviced by a qualified Mesa Engineer in Suffolk. Needed revalving - but it was the first time since the amp was new, so I guess its pretty awsome.

Well well well, it can't be all good can it?

Bought the amp used of eBay - it did not come with a footswitch - not a problem I thought, I will buy one. Could not buy from Mesa online as they will only ship to the US. Had to speak to the UK distributor, and despite the fact I was dealt with by a very friendly operative, was staggered to find out that a single button, single function 1/4" Mono jack foot switch with the words 'Mesa Engineering, Rectifier' printed on the cost ??79.95 plus postage and packaging. Come on Mesa, we all know your gear is pricey, but nearly ??100 (including postage) for a footswitch? Thats a bit like daylight robbery.

I am giving a five for the friendly, almost apologetic operative, but thats only because he was nice - Mesa's approach to the niche market leaves a bit to be desired.

Been playing 15 years, I have listed my guitars and effects, so I wont list those again, but in terms of amps I own:

Mesa Dual Rectifer Solo Head,
Marshall JCM 800 2204 with JCM 800 4x12,
Marshall JCM 900 4100 Dual Reverb with JCM 900 4x12,
Vibtage 1970 Marshall 4x12 with Original Celestion 25watt Greenbacks
Orange PCC 4x12 with Celestion Vintage 30s
Carlsbro NuTone 250watt Head with 600watt 2x12 Flared and 400watt 1x15 Nutone cabs
Randall RG 200 2x12 combo.

To be honest, the Mesa stands out from them all - it has the growl and headroom of the JCM800 and the gain of the Randall. It is like all my other amps rolled in to one. There is a reson great amps become great amps (Fender Bassman, Fender Twin, JCM800, Plexis et al) and I firmly believe that in years to come, this amp will be up there with the greats, if it is not already. I only wish it had reverb. If it were lost of stolen, I hope my insurance would pay out, because I would get another one.

three channel amp each with three modes, pretty good, at least better than most amps for the price.

The myth about mesa/boogie amps is that they are muddy, boomy, and just harsh sounding, but that is not true. I bought this amp in search of that gut-wreching punch and high slice, i found it. mesa's take alot of time to get the sound you want, you have to play around with it for days, but once you dial in that tone, its perfect. clean channel is not that impressive, you realy cant get it super clean at high volumes, but when on the pushed mode, its a very classic, mild gain, just perfect for that older stuff. I play metal and blues and this amp works perfect. like i said you have time and paitence.

very reliable, i dropped the head and cab down the stairs and worked perfect the next day.

mesa sure beats the competion for the price.i've owned alot of different amps and mesa seems to have such an aggresive sound to it. most amps out there try to get the gain through the roof, but mesa works on the heaviness and the crushing tone. if yo have to the money buy it now. take my word, go to a mesa dealer and try one, you'll love it.

This amp was made in 2005 or 2004. I got it in early 2005. This amp is not versatile at all. It is a one or two trick pony. However those two tricks it happens to do very well. This is a 3 channel amp, FX loop, no headphone jack. It has more than enough feautres for me. (I dont use the FX loop that often). I use this amp at home, band practise, and at club shows. It has WAY more than enough power. This thing could shatter your ears if you're not careful.

As I said above, this amp has 1 or 2 usable sounds. I have had it for 2 years now and Im just beginning to unlock all the tonal possibilites with Channel 3, in my opinion the only channel worth using. The distortion, especially in the modern setting, is absolutely brutal (in a good way) and shrill. I do not like this setting as I am not a metal player. I switched to Vintage mode on this channel and I find it much tighter, punchier, and well-rounded.

I play 2 guitars through this amp and they both sound very good, although a lot (and I mean a lot!!) of tweaking is needed to get maximum tones. The two I play are a PRS Custom 24 with HFS pickups and a Vintage Hot Rod Tele with a single coil, and a Seymour Duncan mini humbucker. Most on the tele I use the bridge pickup and it sounds great. Switch to neck and it sounds REAL creamy and fat. Almost Les Paul-like (no kidding!) I mainly use the bridge/neck pickups on the PRS. Depending on what I am going for they each have different sounds.

The style of my band is along the lines of Tool, Deftones, nine inch nails, and the like. That is why I dont use the 'modern' setting as I feel it just rubs my tone right out. I do a lot of rythym/lead combos (only guitarist) and I need to hear those notes as does my band. I run the presence quite high on channel three. (About 3 o'clock).

Overall the sound quality is really good, but its very much a love/hate amp and its not for the faint of heart. It takes a LOT of work to get good tones and there are many factors that go into it (I run a number of pedals).

Hell yes. I have had to replace the tubes once in 2 years. I do not run it very hard though. Totally would rely on this thing, and I do gig without a backup (until i got a new silverface to run side-by-side). This amp has never broken down, thankfully. I have heard back road reliability stories on this amp but I have never been affected. 5 year warranty is very nice to have.

never dealt with them.

I have been playing about 12 years. I run the PRS, VHR Tele, through a Framptone amp switcher, into a Zvex Fuzz factory, an Xotic RC booster, a Deluxe memory man, a stereo memory man, digitech whammy, and a Boss TU-2. I also have a Boss EQ in the FX loop of the mesa.

I really hate the clean channel on this amp, I really think it sucks. NO headroom! That's why I got a Vintage Silverface. But overall the Mesa is very good. If it were lost or stolen I would probably buy a Marshall JCM. I have never owned marshall. At the time the Mesa blew everything else in the store out of the water.

3 channels, no effects (it's not an Hughes & Kettner), solo switch for volume boost important. Pretty straight forward stuff. Ability to switch to EL34 tubes is nice, or take 2 power tubes/1 rectifier tube out to run at 50W.

Ch 1 Clean: clean channel sounds fine, but in "clean" there isn't a lot of headroom. In "pushed", you really get the headroom but the breakup also starts coming in.
Ch2/3: the same except for the presence control in Ch 3 is more active. For overall distortion sound, this is a great amp. I fell in love with it while playing an American style Strat and various Gibsons at GC. When I got it home, I noticed my strat doesn't sound as good (it's a Vintage, not the American. Oh well). The distortion is great but there is an element of "fizz" you get on the higher strings that I can't seem to dial out. I run the gain at 9-10 oclock adn it's still pretty distorted. This is not an amp that cuts like a knife, but rather bludgeons you like a blunt instrument. It doesn't really stand out in the mix, but it does provide for a very full sound. If that is what you're looking for, great distortion wall 'o sound, it's great. The Stileto seems like the exact opposite - it slices through your brain, almost painfully so. For classic rock a bit hard to tame, but overall I'm happy with it.

No problems.

Pretty good. You get customer service's voicemail most of the time, but they will call you back sometime that day.

In the world of high end tube amps, I'm thinking this is an 8. If I were a thrash metal player, I'd probably give it a 10. Always in the relentless pursuit of tone and quite frankly haven't found anything better yet. Dialed in a few great tone on Splawn, Marshall Vintage Modern but I didn't get the 3 channels and solo boost. I play through the V30 1 and 2 12 Roadster cabs. Built like a tank. No reason to ever sell the cabs, but will keep experimenting with heads. Too bad Mesa couldn't make a Recto/Marshall mix. They say Stiletto is an attempt at that but I can't get any bottom out of Stiletto. And it's hard to get the top out of recto.

This Dual Rectifier was made in 1999. I play in a hardcore/post-hardcore band and this amp is more than enough as far as versatility goes. 2 channels (but there are 3 available channels you could assign to the 2). Clean, Vintage, Modern. Great effects loop, no headphone jack. The only feature I wish it had was an additional 8 ohm output. I'll explain later in the "Sound Quality" portion...

All tube, 100 watts, use it at the jamspot, and when playing shows. *shrug* Chances are, if you're looking at buying a Mesa/Boogie, then you know ALL about the features that a Dual Rectifier has.

If you're looking to hit a tone, be it a Fender-ish clean, Marshally crunch or balls-to-the-wall high gain massacre, this amp can do it. SOOOO much variety. The clean headroom is amazing, and the distortion is insane. Again, if you are looking at getting one, you know what they sound like, and what they can do.

I'm running a Gibson SG (with a Seymour Duncan Custom SH-5 in the bridge), and a G&L ASAT Classic. This amp sounds great with single coils and humbuckers.:]

Now, the reason I wish it had 2 8 ohm outputs is that I'm running this amp with an Orange PPC412 and an Orange PPC212 (both are rated at 16 ohms). Mesa/Boogie tells me that I can run them from the 4 ohm outputs without damaging the amp, but I would feel better if I had the impedance matched up properly, rather than a safe mismatch.

I run an ISP Decimator through the loop, so the amp isn't noisy at all. Even when I'm not running the Decimator, the amp is fairly quiet, considering how ballsy it is.

As stated above, I play in a hardcore/post-hardcore band. Imagine Thrice meets He Is Legend meets Glassjaw meets Misery Signals, and you're sorta there. This amp is perfect for the job.

Lots of people claim that the tone these bands rock is all gain, all scooped, and whatnot. Here are my settings that make my heart melt:

Vacuum Tube Rectifier
Bold
Red channel to Vintage
Presence: 12:00
Bass: 1:00
Mid: 2:30
High: 11:30
Gain: 2:30

Here's the only beef I had with the amp. When I got it, there were stock 12AX7A's in the pre-amp, and the amp sounded harsh and brittle. So, I threw in some a JJ Tesla in the 1st preamp stage, NOS JAN GE 12AX7's in the next 2 slots, and then Chinese made 12AX7 in the remaining slots. Stock Mesa 6L6's in the power section. HUGE difference.

It's a Mesa/Boogie. These things are built like tanks.

I've had to deal with Mesa/Boogie on 2 occaisions. First, it was with my old F-100 as I was having impedance problems. They weren't open when I initially called, but the following day, one of their techs called me back and discussed the issue at great length, making sure I understood it all. The second time I had to call Mesa, was to track down the back retainer bar (the aluminum one that protects the tubes), as the Dual Rec I bought didn't have it. I was expecting Mesa to charge me like $50 for the bar, and they said that it was just $6. :]

I've been playing guitar for about 6 years now, and the gear that I own is as follows:

Yamaha (Soldano) T-100
Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier (2 Channel)
Orange PPC412
Orange PPC212
Gibson SG
G&L ASAT Classic
Line6 DL4
Boss TU2

If this amp were stolen or lost, I would probably have a coniption. I love this amp...so much. I would definitely get another 2 channel Dual Rec. Maybe one from '96...

The ONLY thing I dont like about this amp is that I can't remove the front baffle to customize it. Even then, meh.

Everyone who knows Mesa will know this amp and its dual channel monstrosities. Both channels can also be altered by a switch on the back making the sound muddy (spongy) or hellatight (bold). Orange and red stand for 'semi' clean channels whitch can be distorted with the gain switch. Ofcourse you got yer standard 3way eq plus the presence button to determine how well you are able to put some high-body in this ultra blubbery massive powerbox.

There is no point in arguing over taste... I play an extreme form of metal and am not fond of the mesa distortion options as they make a slightly detuned guitar sound very unclear. I love what this thing does however when you take distortion from digitech because this amp boosts like no other. This is not an amp to get a versatile guitarsound with... just the best clean you can imagine. Either clean channel set without a lot of gain and only half the volume make your pants flap and your walls shake.

Anecdote... I bought this amp 6 years ago. It had been used around the house for about 3 years and as soon as I got it, RectumFryer was unleashed at least 3 times a week for some 5 hours. After that it was used for 2 cd recordings, 70 gigs and 2 4-week tours. 3 bands played their entire set on it each and every night because we all prefered it over the 5150 and triple rec that had been rented. Footswitch didn't last the tour (it was ruined by Cephalic Carnage feet) but as soon as I had found a decent guitarsound to record a third cd... the tubes went. After replacing them I found a sound only slightly better than on the 9 year old beat-up tubes. RELIABLE AS HELL!

no experience with that because of a guitarcentre in my hometown... just replacing the tubes.

I have compared this amp (i.c.w. a Jackson Kelly (duncan design hb's), Marshall JMP1 pre-amp or digitech RP1 distotion) to 5150's, Marshall 9100's, JCM8 and 900's, multiple Randall's and triple recs... nothing comes close... maybe the triple, and I have yet to test the JCM2000 but I think I can expect what will be the conclusion of that. If you have normal E or D tuned guitars the distortion in this amp creates a very pro buzz and run this thing through some decent vintage Celestion speakers and you're unbeatable. So much so that on live video recordings another guitarist will be pushed aside in every frequency.

C'mon, You know the features. Has everything but Reverb.

This is the rock and metal standard. Like it or not, Rectifiers are here to stay. So many people use them which means if you want to be different, get a Laney VH100R or something. Dual rects don't have the high compressed gain of the 80s metal years, but they have a low end that has yet to be duplicated. I find this a very enjoyable amp all around. The Marshall TSL is very special too, and with reverb!

Never a problem.

Always great support from Mesa, no matter how big they've grown.

Great amp. This isn't the only great amp out there, try out as many as you can.

Mine was made in 2004. It is a pretty versatile head; however, a good chain of effects (maybe including a Holy Grail, and a zvex FF, and keeley Boss DS-1) you can replace this versatility feature. Reason why it gets a 9 here.

I really wish it had integrated compressor and noise gate.

This amp is ONLY good at high volumes, not good for studio use as most claim. (try Fender Devilles, Mesa Mavericks, or Dr. Z Carmen Ghia)

However, Is the best for live performances (BIG GIGs).

Service on this amp is expensive. Stock mesa tubes are cheap quality. I found mine to work better with EHX 12ax7EH in the pre, and Tung-Sol in the power. This REALLY makes a difference in noise.

For noise, chek your line, cables, effects, power supply, etc.

Its shameful. channel 2 sounds very similar to chane 3. Channel 1 is beautiful, but it doesnt respond well with effects chains with alternating distortion phases. It doesnt have reverb either.

The distortion is brutal, but is almost overpowered by the increasing noise. My setup is top notch. even powerful noise gates (and I have quite a collection) cannot get rid of the noise. For live applications, a boss NS-2 will do the trick (very poorly).

Active EMGs seem to accompany better this monster. Vintage mode would go better with a couple of gibson burstbuckers.

As ALL the mesa products I've owned, the tubes are made to last about a year of regular playtime. ALWAYS carry a set of new tubes when you travel. INVEST on your tubes. MOD your amp (this will make it go from a regular noisy amp to the ultimate tone monster. Modded rectifiers are some of the best sounding amps ever.

They are the best.

Dont waste your time or money on this like I did. It sure looks cool, but at the end, what matters is the sound you produce, and not having a bulky piece of equiment wrapped in blck leather and shielded with a sparkling aluminum diamond plate.

Amp was purchased in 2006 and is a 2005 model. I play modern rock in a cover band and I play original instrumental guitar compositions. This amp is perfect for my taste in music. I do wish the clean channel had reverb but I honestly get along without just fine. This amp has more than enough power for any venue. I also have a 100 watt Mesa Dual Rectifer triple channel. I bought the 50 watt amp as a backup when my 100 watt experienced some power problems and needed serviced. I use the 50 watt amp exclusively now as I can push it at club volume without a Hot Plate or like device.

This amp can be noisy, If you dont have a Boss NS-2 or the like than you are going to be a sonic mess. I use moderate gain and use a TS-9 modified by Analogman to push the tubes in this amp. THE KEY TO GETTING THE SOUND I WANTED WITH THIS AMP WAS CHANGING THE TUBES TO EL-34's. This amp only requires 2 tubes ( vs 6 in the Dual Rectifier) so this is a rather painless monetary investment for much better tone. I will never go back to 6L6's. The EL-34's give more organic tone to my ears. I played the 100 watt amp exclusively for 6 years and now only use it for rehearsals and as a backup. Using a TS-9 or a ZAKK Wylde OD pedal in front of this amp is just brutal. The clean channel is not noteworthy but is good enough to get by with.

I have had no issues with this amp in the last six months since I purchased it. My 100 watt head did require servicing after 5 years but was covered by warranty. These amps are easy to maintain. Just change the tubes when your sound gets dull or when your amp makes an audible " click" sound when powering up. It takes all of 6 minutes to retube this amp. I have done it at gigs between sets without being in any rush. This amp does not require biasing. If you have owned a Marshall, etc you already know what a hassle biasing creates. I have a backup amp that I bring out of paranoia but this amp is easy to maintain if you keep extra fuses and power tubes in your gig bag.

No issues with the 50 watt amp. My 100 watt amp was purchased at Guitar Center so when it died I just took it back to them and they shipped it to an authorized repairman in Akron,Ohio. I had the amp back in 2 weeks. The work was covered by warranty and all I had to do was spring for new tubes. Having your gear break down can induce panic and despair but Mesa does a great job of helping you solve your problem and I could not have asked for more.

I have been playing for 22 years since I was eleven. I own 2 Les Paul Customs, Peavey Wolfgang, Musicman Axis SuperSport, PRS Singlecut, Cort Nz-1 ( a great guitar even though it says Cort on the headsock!), Ibanez Rg3120, Ibanez Mike Mushok Baritone, Jackson Dinky Xl and a Taylor 314ce acoustic. I use a mountain of stomp boxes which are mostly modified by Analogman ( www.analogman.com). A ts-9 through this amp with a Boss DD-20 delay in the fx loop is all the poop I really need. I have used a BBE Sonic Maximizer ( stomp version) thru this amp but did not care for the results.

I love this amp because it has great tone and is easy to maintain. I will sell my 100 watt Dual Rec triple channel before I would part with this 50 watt 2 channel.

GET EL-34's AND SEE WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT.

The amplifier I am submitting for review is the ORIGINAL 1989 Dual Rectifier solo head by Mesa Engineering. It is a two channel tube amplifier. Many others have detailed it's features. The feature I like best is the ability to switch from spongy to bold. My only complaint, and a very minimal one too, is the lack of reverb for the clean channel. But this is a very minor issue, because Fender makes great amplifiers for clean sound. Also, I think if Mesa thought it would add to the amplifier they probably would have engineered it that way. They did not and certainly Mesa has a reason for that.

The Dual Rectifier solo head is used for professional recording and live performances. Loud? Absolutely. Reliable? Always. Change your tubes when you need to.

This amplifier works, in my opinion, for every music style out there.

My main guitar is a 2001 Les Paul custom shop 1960 historic without binding and with custom wound/exposed coil humbuckers.

Here is what I can say. I play through this amp and have my volume knob on 10 on the Les Paul. I set it on its stand leaving the guitar volume on 10 (not the amp), and ... no feedback, no noise. Amazing!

The Les Paul through this amplifier is absolutely amazing. I am very spoiled, but I have suffered through crap amplifiers and worse guitars over the years. You can be a phenomenal virtuoso guitar player, as I am, but through crap gear people won't listen. Case in point, DO NOT try and make it with a cheap Jackson and a Crate Blue Voodoo as your rig. You will fail. Tone really is everything.

My main comment here is on the gain channel. It is the best sounding distortion out of any amplifier I have heard, which is about all of them except the Soldano and Bogner heads. For lead guitar, this is THE AMPLIFIER to own. The harmonics and sustain are the best in the world.

The clean channel does what I want, which is to be clean. The footswitching is silent and immediate between channels. The option to color tone from "spongy" to "bold" makes this a very versatile amplifier as well. And, so you know, if you want a solid state clean tone, the amplifier can be switched from vacuum tubes to silicon diodes. I don't use this feature, but it is there if you want it.

All in all, for distortion rock guitar tone, the Dual Rectifier solo head is the best.

This amplifier is built like a tank and if you dropped it 50' on to concrete it would still work after a tube change (not that I have). It has never broken down, my tubes last for years, and it never will break down. The only way this amplifier would fail is if the user was an idiot who let it be used as a place to put your beer, and of course spilled beer into it.

One important point: make certain after playing for a while you let the tubes cool down before moving it outside if it is cold. The tubes will shatter. 30 minutes is enough time, and if the bar owner or another band says otherwise, kick them in the teeth!

Purchased from a musician in Knoxville via eBay for $1100, in 2001, I must say this has been the smartest purchase I have ever made. In fact, to me this amplifier is more important and valuable than the $2500 Les Paul I own. If someone steals it, they will be skinned alive. Then I would buy another USED rectifier. With the guitar, Gibson builds them every day, and if you have the cash, you can get a great Les Paul custom shop. I don't believe Mesa builds rectifiers like they did in 1989, as the year of this amplifier. Not only is this an awesome guitar amp, I believe it will be a true investment as the years past.

I purchased this amplifier because it is what Metallica stands by. I did NOT even bother to check it out when I bid on it. That is how much I respect James and Kirk's opinion on gear. I was not let down, and if are thinking of buying this amplifier, stop thinking and just do it.

This amp was bought new at Guitar Center in November of 2005. I knew the tone I heard in my head was lurking in this beast somewhere, and Guitar Center was having their No Interest thing (for 90 days on Mesa) so I took the plunge. Very happy to buy it new, as they now have 5 Year Warranties. Yeah Mesa.

3 channels, solo boost, FX loop, runs all cab ohmages, 5 button footswitch, it's got it all here. I can't think of anything I would want on this amp that it doesn't come with.

I play this amp in my hard rock band Bipolar through an Avatar 2x12 cab with Vintage 30s. I also put it through a THD Hot PLate, and quite frankly if you're NOT playing it through a Hot Plate there are 1 of 2 things going on. 1) You complain that you Boogie sounds like shit or 2) It sounds great but you are completely deaf. This thing NEEDS to be pushed to sound how you hear it on all those great sounding recordings. But it's too God damn loud for stage, hence the Hot Plate.

I play it with 2 Ibanez SZs and an Iceman. All have EMG 81/85s in em. I run a TC Electronics G Major through the effects loop with the "Send" cranked, as it's the only way to run that G Major without it sounding stupid (I forget why that happens with the Boogie, oh because it's a parallel FX loop and not serial). I use the G Major because it is completely transparent and doesn't color the tone AT ALL. I control that with a Rocktron Midi Mate.

On to the sound (by the way I gave it a 9 simply due to the "clean" channel)

Channel 1: If you play this thing loud (as you need to for good distortions) you're hopefully not buying it for the clean. The clean is "Ok sounding" when the volume is below 9 o'clock. You get over that and it's starts to break up. Maybe that's cool when you want it to, but I want my clean to be CLEAN. Fortunately, I don't play much clean in my band, and if I did I sure as hell wouldn't be buying a Boogie (and I don't know who would).

Channel 2: I use it for just a bit less gain then than CHannel 3. There are some really great sounds in here, again if you're working the power tubes. I use it for leads in some of our slower tunes, and of course during tunes where I don't need rip your face off distortion and I don't want it clean either.

Channel 3: Where its at. The reason you buy a Boogie. Stupid amounts of gain if you need it (I have mine at 12 o'clock). I find with this channel more than the others it's really tough to get a good sound out of it. You TOUCH anyone knob and it changes every other knob. I've had this amp 6 months and I've just now gotten the sound I'd always dreamed of out of it. I through the cab downstairs in my sound room, ran a mic and speaker cable upstairs to the head and the back of my computer. I can sit, isoltaed from the sound, in front of the computer, and tweak my knobs til I get the perfect sound. I even bought a Sennheiser e609 and built a bracket for it so that everytime I play I use the same mic in the same location. THIS is how you get a good sound out of a Boogie. Oh, and turn your output to at least 11 o'clock to get those tubes working.

Lastly, the way to get a good sound (unless you never play mic'd at a gig) is to do it just the way I said. I played with a GREAT band 2 weeks ago (who I won't mention by name) who's Boogies sound unreal on their album. I walked up the front of the stage and sure enough, they sound fantastic. As soon as the sound guy put em' through the PA, they sound like crap. Why? Because standing 4 feet away from your cab with your ears 6 feet above the speaker cone is NOT how your amp sounds when mic'd. That makes it sound great on stage, but through the PA they sounded like garbage. If you play mic'd, get your sound dialed in mic'd. Honestly my amp leaves something to be desired on stage, but I know out in the audience it's ripping people's faces off. Anyway, just some good advice for you.

I don't gig with a backup ($1700 is a bit much to drop on an amp that HOPEFULLY won't get used) but it really does feel very sturdy. My other guitar player just got a Krank endorsement, and that thing feels like a paper weight compared to the Dual Rect. Plus, it now has a 5 year warranty, so how the hell can you argue with that?

I havn't dealt with them, but I hear they're great. BUT, can't really say anything here I havn't talked with them.

I've been playing 8 years or so, and I'm on the verge of making this my career. My last amp was a Carvin MTS which really is a great amp (GORGEOUS CLEAN) but the distortion tones are a bit anonymous. I knew I needed that Dual Rect for the tone I was looking for. Anyway, I'll soon be getting these things at cost, so that comforts me knowing that when it does break or get stolen, I'll have some more on the way on the cheap. That said, the ONLY amp I might consider other than this one is the Bogner Uberschall. I havn't played one, but I love em' when I hear em. However, that amp ALWAYS sounds like an Uberschall, and I guess if you ever wanted to have a different amp tone, then the Bogner wouldn't be for me. So we'll see how Mesa treats me for awhile.

Only thing I dislike is that their isn't a bit more head room on the clean channel. I know I'm pushing it, but c'mon, just gimme A LITTLE more clean.

I bought mine in 1998 used of off a friend. He bought it about a year earlier. This amp can cover almost all styles of music from jazz to most metal. If you play grindcore or death metal like I do you may need something like an EQ or the BBE to tweek it. An overdrive also helps.

It has two channels, an effects loop that is assignable, and channel cloning. The channel cloning is not available anymore on the three channel versions. What a great idea that got lost.

I wish that gain was bit more brutal and that it had more punch to it. Try other cabs with it. I have the Mesa oversized cab and that is OK, but the Marshall with 75watt celestions sounds tighter.

I have used this amp to jam with many people. It has more than enough power. It can drown out most other amps and drummers.

I give it a ten for its incredible power and versatility. Even though it needs a push for the grinding that I like, it still dominates!!!

I use an Ibanez S470 that I have had for 12 years. It has a Seymour Duncan Invader in the bridge and a bridge postion JB in the neck. Like I said above, it will suit most styles, but needs some tweeking for grinding. There is minimal noise from this amp.

The clean is very clean for the most part and can get some sizzle to it. I personally like that.

This amp is very reliable. I would gig with it. I have not had it break down on me. I just had it gone over for the first time in eight years and in that period of time, I have had no problems.

I have called Mesa before. They are very nice and helpful. Great customer support and assistance.

I have not had it repaired. There has been no need. As far as the warranty, I do not remember how long it lasted for.

I have been playing for 16 years. I have owned Crate, Marshall, ADA (remember them), Peavey, and Mesa. The Mesa has been the best so far. The only thing that I have played that is very tempting is the Randall MTS.

If I lost it or if it was stolen, I would not replace it since they are not made like this anymore. If I found a used one in good condition then I would.

Current touring-recording rig

Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Solo Head
2 Channels
5 12AX7 pre amp tubes
4 EL-34's
2 5U4G-A rectifier tubes. {recommended by Mesa tech for metal sound}.
Channel switching,Effects loop? Yes / Headphone jack? No


* What features do you wish it had?
A lower price tag. {Although it did feel great when I finally bought this amp because I wanted one since the first day I tried one out at the Rock Walk in Ca. 13 yrs ago}.
Secondly, this is not a "wanna be a tube amp modeller" that does not produce hiss. This amp, as all high power tube amps create some degree of noise. However this can be completely eliminated with a Rocktron Super C Hush unit. {And no I am not a salesman bitch}.
So in short, I guess a built in gate would be cool.

Are there features you never use?
The volume knob.. it just stays cranked. ;) Really, I like to experiment with everything. You have a ton of versatility with this product and I recommend taking the time to teak.

* Where do you use this amp?
I have played shows all over the midwest and time and time again people are complimenting on the Boogie. I am not being conceited, Mesa deserves all the credit. Refer to my rig description and you will see that I use no pre-amps, effects, or other signal processing units. {other than my cry baby}.

Does it have enough power for you?
This thing will make your ears bleed. Yeah, it's loud enough.

Guitars-
Dean * Z series explorer stlye with stock Zebra pickups.
Jackson * Professional series shark fin v.
Ibanez AE with Fisher active electronics.
Effects-
Rocktron [Rack Mounted] Super C Hush unit
Dunlop Crybaby Wah pedal

This amp will get almost any tone you want if you take the time to dial it. This amp is loaded with enough options to be 5 different amps in one. There is more distortion than most people could handle unless your into death metal or grindcore or something.
If you like Metallica, Pantera, Nuclear Assault, Megadeth style of music, this amp will do it right out of the box with no signal processing.

Again I say..."This is not a "wanna be a tube amp modeller" that does not produce hiss. Or noise.
This amp, as most high power tube amps create some degree of noise. However this can be completely eliminated with a Rocktron Super C Hush unit.

I play mostly metal in my band CREEP but I also have a cleaner, melodic side as well and love acoustical compositions.
Check out Creep music at:
www.cosmeticmutations.com/creep or www.myspace.com/creeplair
New cd, and sound samples coming soon!

Reliability

* Can I depend on it? ABSOLUTELY!
* Would I use it on a gig without a backup? I do all the time.
* Has the amp ever broken down? The only time I ever had a problem was at a show the sound guys crossed the main power over on the stage and it shorted out my rig. EVERYTHING got smoked, and my amp blew a fuse. Panic stricken I used the foil off of a pack of Camels and wrapped the fuse and jammed it back into the head and it worked fine!
* NOTE
{I do not recommend doing this}.

Boogie has been awesome working with me as far as ordering parts, and giving me advice.
Great Job!

US Domestic Support: (707) 778-6565

* We are open 9:00am-5:00 pm Pacific Time,
Monday through Thursday.

* Phone: 707-778-6565
Fax: 707-765-1503

* Mesa/Boogie,
1317 Ross St.
Petaluma, California
94954 USA

I bought this amp used with the 4X12 Recto cab used for $1400 about five yrs. ago.
I feel I got a great deal. If it were stolen I would try to replace it.
I pray that doesn't happen.
The only reason I gave the amp an overall 8 was -1 point for hiss, and -1 point for inter-galactic price tag.
I have compared Mesa's to a lot of other amps and honestly wouldn't be happy with anything else.
If I were to add anything it would be a direct out for recording.
{But that wouldn't sound like a Boogie cranked on 10 then would it}?
P
E
A
C
E
~jR

I bought it brand new last year(2004). 100W.
I use PRS cu24 and cu22 with it, and this baby is versatile enough for all kinds of dirt sound I want.
It has 3 channels, LOOP, LINE OUT, channel switching and you can use EL34 or 6L6 power tubes. It also features 2 kinds of rectifier types.
All those features are enough for me, not as complicated as the roadking which I own, but it's enough!

I use two PRS and one EBMM with it. I just want to say they sound perfect. I know a lot of people think dual recto sounds muddy, lacks definition and the low ends not tight enough. But IMO if the dual recto has lots of definition, as tight as the Uberschall and the Powerball, it can't be named DUAL RECTIFIER, it'll be named crap. I use this baby to play all kinds of dirt sound, like blues, hard rock, classic rock, pop, metal. The clean channel is ok, just ok. But who cares, the baby is famous for its dirt.
To compare with the old 2channels dual recto, the 3 channels dual has more bites and attack, sounds kinda cold. Two different animals.

It's never broken down.

I don't need it.

I've been playing 10 years. I've owned a few mesa amps, The dual rectifier and the mark4, mark2 C+, tremoverb, blue angel are the best mesa products IMO. They are Not as pricey as the uberschall, herbert and some boutique amps, but these amps are very reliable and sounds incredible. All I want to say is the DR is the king of distortion.

I believe i bought this amp in 1999. I allmost had to
put all my money in it to buy it, quite expensive BUT it
is a great amp.
I play different styles, Rock, hard - Rock, metal (not often), etc. For this music its a great amp, but thats my opinion.
It has two chanels, sometimes i wish i had 3 channels, but i have
solved the problem with a Duecetone from proco.

I play now on a Jackson Kelly, with hardware upgrade to EMG pickups 81, 85, with mid control. Im thinking about to buy a Fret King Corona 70, it also sound really great on this amp.
The amp suits perfect to my music style.
The variety is ok, like i sad i use a proco Duesetone with it so
i have enough variety, when u dont have a other overdrive pedal i recommend it because 2 chanels is really not enough.
I dont know what other people say but i dont think there is
a amp that sound so good clean!!!!
The distortion is really High gain!! So more than enough gain.
- One side note i have to make, the amp isnt really still, it has a low noise when my guitar volume is out.

Really great, it never broke down or anything.
Just buy new tubes when they are used up, and play!!!

Don't know, never used any service of Mesa Boogie.

I use a Jackson Kelly with EMG - Looking for a more allround guitar
-> i think its gonna be a fret King.
I use a Rat Duecetone from Proco and a Morley Bad Horsie Wha.
Still looking for a good reverb.
If it would be stolen i would buy a new one if i can pay it.

I believe I got this 2001. I think that alomst all styles can be played on this amp,I have like a latin funk rock reggae type os style and it does the job.Its a basic three channel with the fxloop.For as long as I had this amp the power and sound only gets better.

I use a American Telecaster with a lace senser,it has pretty good punch.The clean channel is crisp and clean the distortion rocks the house. I took this rig of mine everywhere to our shows and small partys and even in the rain the dualy always does the job.

I think I blewout A couple of tubes after the first two years, but ever since then no problems.I would definitely use this amp with no backup maybe a backup guitar.

One year warranty it should like five years cause you never know what could happen.The guys at the mesa shop were cool and gave me a couple tips.

Its a good amp none the less you cant go wrong.If it were stolen I would get another one no question! I would say the only amp that would probaly give it a run for its money is the OrangeAmp.The Mesa sounds pretty good running with Px4 I like to mess around with it.
All in all The Mesa Dualy is a fantasic piece of work!

My amp is a 2000 model bought new. The amp has two channels. The orange channel allows you a choice between vintage gain and clean. The second channel is the red channel which is your modern gain selection. This amp has amazing features. The effects loop is pretty nice although I dont use it much. Only modulation effects work well in the effects loop because distortion or EQ effects are too noisy. I love the spongy and bold switch. You really notice a difference in sound. The bold switch makes the sound very heavy and punchy while the spongy gives you a more van halen sound. The sound tends to sag a little (very useful for lead guitar).

I use an epiphone les paul standard with this and a fender lone star strat. Both guitars have seymour duncans. This is the greatest amp ever. The sound is absolutly perfect for everything I play. This amp can play country, blues, jazz funk and especially any kind of hard rock, metal grunge. I love the clean channel because of the gain setting. When you crank it you get an old marshall/fender sound. Great for blues. The vintage is great for classic metal and any classic rock. This is also the channel I use for all my leads because the harmonics are fantastic. The modern channel is more punchy and really hits that modern rock sound(Soundgarden, Metallica, Dream Theatre). My last band I was in played lots of styles of music and the amp hit everyone just perfectly. I play the amp through a 4/12 marshall. The amp gets very loud!! I have played it on stage many times and have had no problems being heard. I have also played the amp on several cab configs. It sounds excellent on 2/12s and 1/12 inch speaker cabs!! You need to buy this amp because it is the best that is out there and I have played a lot of different gear. Mesa will always be the best in my opinion because it is such a versatile amp.

This amp is very reliable. I only had a 12 ax7 go out on me and had it fixed and it has never had any other problems. I have had the amp for about five years and it is a tank. The amp took a spill off the cab once from our drunk nut ball drummer. It never even scratched it in fact I picked it up and it played fine. No problems what so ever. The amp is sturdy and built very well. I have never had to change the tubes in the five years I have had it probably should some day. The tubes are excellent though because they really keep their sound and dont degrade. So except for the minor 12 ax7 the amp is extremly reliable.

I never have had to deal with the company. I heard they are nice people though. I wish the warranty was longer(1 year)

I have been playing for 11 years and have owned marshall, fender, crate and roland. None of this gear matches up against mesa. Not even the slightest bit. Great sound, versatility and reliability. I love how the amp has inspired my playing because I never get bored with playing around with different settings. I cant emphasis enough how versatile this thing really is!!! Take a lot of time and really play with this thing. It is the best sound ever. I will never sell it and if somebody stole it I would buy another one and then find the guy who stole it and take it back. Then I would have two!!!! HEll YEAH!!!!!!

This is an update to my 03/09/2005 review.

I have since re-tubed the amp with a full set of JJ/Tesla Tubes from Eurotubes.
6L6's for the power
GZ34 Rectifier upgrade - this upgrade is worth it
ECC83S in V2-V5
ECC803S in V1 - this is the secret weapon

This set up is amazing! The amp now sings with much more clarity and thanks to the ECC803S in V1 it is quieter with no loss of definition. They say that the gain is lower but i dont notice a drop in gain; instead I notice a clarity in the gain. The amp in a whole is more "warmer and rounder"

I never realized what a difference tubes can make, call Bob at Eurotubes or just read the site. The amount of information is amazing.

One thing I really love about the reveiws for this amp is that most people say they LOVE THE RECTO or HATE THE RECTO!!!!Nothing is in the middle on this amp opininion wise.When these first came out I COULD NOT DIG IT.mid 90's 2channel (orange/red).Features great"modern"rock tones that cannot be duplicated by the roadking or the 3 ch model D.R....close but no cigar.My story with this amp is simple.I went to the local g.c. to look at a roadking head that was "on sale".I know the R.K. is well built and the foo's took em to rock in rio so I figured they could cover alot of ground and be reliable..I might add,.Before their last tour they had triple recs/ac-30.Before that it was the dual recs/and a heart breaker for dave.As I was playing around with the Roadking,A kid next to me plugged in to the dual rec.He instantly had that signature higain thing those amps do so well.It was great sounding right off the bat with not much fuss.At first I thought maybie his boogie 4x12 cab was diffrent.So I plugged the roadking in to his cab and tried very hard to copy the feel and tone of the dual rec thinking it was possible...NOT!!!After fiddling and fiddling trying to get the roadking to do one thing really really well,I gave up and bought the older used dual rec and saved $800.00.Accept no substitute.There are some good tones in the R.K. but they are just good verses the one or two great tones on the dual rec.I was after the foofighters colour and the shape tones amoung others.This nails it.I like the three channel triple rec as well and the tones are in the ballpark but this dual rec has a bit of a certain magic mojo with less knobs and stuff.Features do not equall tone in this case.Has enough features even if it had one channel.

I only use the D.R. with lespauls at the moment.I bet a p-90 l.p.would be cool.The clean is not the reason you should consider a boogie in my opinion.Try a vox/matchless or a hiwatt or a fender or a jc-120.If you want to avoid spending time and money,Never expect one amp to do everything.I use this for modern heavy distortion.There might be things that kinda sound like it now or mabie the Diezel is this or that but I v'e waited this purchase out to find this is really the amp defined the 90's higain rock tone.....mxpx,blink,foo's,godsmack,creed,Rammstien,Jerryfinns productions and anything else.The recto is not like any other amp.It can be a date stamp for music at this point in time because so many hardrock hit records have been made with these.They are a genre onto themselves.

A tank.

Hot and cold.Better than most.

I have many amps and I want to break it down to a few that are the best of a class.This was a landmark amp for mesa...some would like to forget that it ever happend im sure.Nothing else is like it.Not even the mesa triaxis can do it with its"recto mode...come on!!Who are they fooling?.I own a hiwatt dr 100w custom,matchless hc'30 sn#007..victoria deluxe..a rockaforte 18w and daniel 45.I play many styles.The bottom line is women need many shoes and purses and men need many diffrent guitars and amplifiers and effects.

Take a look at one. Damn that for fun. I uesed to like farting around with all this. Not really my bg, but I think the idea was god. I Love options, but more they add value - and for the sounds thing dials up - well... It's overkill and selling hopes to fools... If you get sold on all the buttons, knobs and lights that is.

Teh Good features were, the retifier switching, and Bias switch for quick tube tastes... The rest, well I thought just thinned the sound out.
8 for features (1 lost for no Class A A/B selection, the other lost for no neg feedback selector) - but a 4 for anything that "SOUNDED" good.

I have 1 Ibanez seven String, 2 RG's with Evo's. 2 Les Paul 58's prems, 1 Strat, 1 Tele, 1 Rickenbacker. No FX. Just a cable.

The only thing that could work this amp was the Gibbo's.
Channel 1 (Clean):
Way average. Not impressed. Flat, basic EQ shape. no sparkle no shimmer. I ahve heard marshalls sound better than that. Rated: 5

Channel 1 (Pushed): Better, but not really bluesy. Not chewy sweet, a bit more brittle bite. Rated: 6

Channel 2: Raw and vintage are just diluted versions of the modern option. Basically I just trashed this channel. I am not sure what it is trying to imamate, or create but it was not really good for any style ? sounded cheap. Again, just flat. No honk or guts.

Channel 3: Same as above for Raw and Vintage. Useless!!! But, The Modern channel , with the Solo boost on, fu*k around with the FX loop pots, and power it as ?BOLD? and you have you Boogie sound. This is where you money comes home. Still not great, really some punch and sparkle on the lower to medium mid?s.

This amp has bass, and power, but not rich ballsy punch. Rated: 8 Nearly perfect for sound I bought it for.

Seems sold. Always a bit dubious about that many features screwing with tone, my tech's head and my wallet. But had it for 8 months and hit it hard twice week for 3 hours a hit - solid.

Who knows. Not even sure Mesa support anything outside the US. Most American companies shoot themselves in the foot by voiding all ther Warrantees outside the US. Why make em power rated for another coutry and sell them when you're not even confiedent enough to warrantee the goods. Gives me faiths in the product too! NOT.

For a real vanilla flavoured all-round stage beast that has the saturation and really basic clean sound, this is really it. No extra OD pedal required. Not a great lead amp. God knows why anybody thinks it is. Nu-Metal ? Just smooter you sound in tin foil.

Mine was stolen ? I will not another one. I tried the Stiletto and that has some reasonable sounds to?more in the channels I wasn?t impressed in with Recto, and fail miserably on the channel where the recto shines! Go Figure!!! HA!

They?ll get a tight mix one day. So Stiletto is out, again unusable in most cases. The Recto has a boutique price but not a boutique sound. I am buying a Bogner Ecstasy head and quad as a replacement.

NOTE: Make a Marshall sound fatter ? USE THESE QUADS! They are great. Leads me to believe that the head might have sounded average through a standard market quad!

mine is a 1998 model. There are so many features on this thing that it first scared me. I always thout that the more features you have the more it sucks out tone. I was pleasantly surprised here. The dual rectification option is kick ass I can brown out the sound and crank the mother fucker. The fact that it has a el 34 option is also ideal to me I have been useing groove tube e34ls and they work great here which I was also concerned about. Are there features I wish it had NO!
Is it versitile I would say so.

The sounds are what I was looking for a long time ago. The clean is cool it is in a whole realm of its own (its kinda fat and a little gainy it works with my sg in a good way.)The vintage gain I don't use
I use the modern gain channel. Ok heres the kicker I don't play Nu-Metal,Power Punk or Faggoty AfI shit either(I honestly thought the lead singer was a chick he sounds like one). I play rock inspired by
Zepplin, Sabbath,Purple, The Clash, Bad Religon and Metallica. So why am I useing a rectifier instead of a marshall. Simple That amp has my sound. As soon as I heard it I knew it was the perfect companion for my Sg. I also use les paul classics for back up. It compliments each guitar and makes each one sound unique. Oh yeah here's another tip
don't crank the eq (read the manual). I never have any of the eq past
1 o'clock including the gain. I think the rectifer has a cool unique
sound it may not a apeal to everybody but it does to me.

It hasn't broken down so I gues it is reliable. I droped it out of my car once and even the tubes were still good (oh shit I forgot Im using groov tubes)

They know their product very well and will always tell you some cool things you can do with it. Except for one qirp They will only recomend their tubes (Go to eurotubes.com they are the supplier of JJ tubes my groove tubes are actually repackaged JJ tubes. groove tubes dont make their own tubes.) Buy from Euro tubes they can make you're rectifier sound dynamite)

I have been playing guitar for 12 years. I used to own a marshall jcm 800 (cool amp not my sound I heard in my head) I am not in a professional touring band but I do play shows and I will tell you this amp has not let me down. Any one who complains about this amp being muddy (wow are you kidding me It has a fat sound but muddy where are you're settings on 10). I use it with a mesa tradional 4X12 and a marshall 4X12 lead at the same time and a dunlop cry baby classic. Im happy.

Distortions - As usual mesa did a great job with the distortion on the amp. The problem is that for the price it is basically a 1700 dollar distortion pedal.
Clean - It sounds like you are playing through 2 plastic cups attached to a string, dull and boring.
Channle swithing - The biggest joke on the amp. Nothing sounds sweeter than that loud pop through your cabinet, when you change from one channel to the next. I contacted mesa and even has the amp at a service center to be checked and they stated this was normal. They even had the balls to list some of the famous people who are using there amp. But I bet for damn sure they are not being sent to a service center.

DIstortion - Awesome for power chords but does not generate clean solos or single notes.
Clean - Empty and Hollow Like the tech i spoke to at mesa
Channel Switching- Pop POp Pop need I say more.

They state how these amps are built like tanks. Remind the army never to purchase from mesa. Amp was broke from day one and because the lack of supply of thier product have a nice ride to your local service center.

There is no reliability for a company that doesn't stand by there product. The employies at mesa are worthless except their Secratary who seems to be the only person whose voicemail you do not get.

Just 2 things 1 for anyone thinking of buying a boogie amp and one for mesa themselves.
1. Don;t just buy this amp because everyone you see on tv is playing it. Just remember they are playing through multi million dollar systems and any flaws with the amp is the least of there worries because they have seven back ups and pro techs. Do not buy in to the hype just go to a guitar shop and play wha tsounds the best .
2 For mesa I hope a company never come out with a distortion effect that matches the rectifier ditortion because if they do mesa better try making pop corn machines.

This review is for a 2 Channel (1995).

2 Channels (orange & red), effects loop, channel cloning (a great feature), Bold / Spongy switch. Everything a normal guitar player needs.
I mean honestly folks, what else do you need. I love when people say "well it could use another channel or maybe 20 more tubes", or even the kitchen sink. Be for real. Guitar players use 2 sounds - Clean or Dirty and the good players mostly use one, so think about it.

I have had this head (and recto 4-12 cab) for over a decade and have finally figured out how to use it - seriuosly. This is for all the idiots (including my self) who say "This thing sucks and has no tone" Have any of you people actually read the manual??? The tone controls are VERY dynamic & will dramticaly alter the tone from bad to worse if you think you can set this thing up traditionaly (with everything at 10 as most people do). PEOPLE THIS IS NOT JUST A METAL AMP!!! It can do anything, you just need to understand how the controls work with each other - thats right each other. I now get huge clean tones & mild crunch tones as well as over the top high gain modes.

I play mostly Rock & blues, and run the head via a 4-12 recto or 1-12 cabs. Guitars are the standards Les pauls, Strats & a 335.
Effects are plenty, Boss trem, chorus, delay, phaser, ts-9 & a budda wah. all very quiet, and the effectsloop is dead silent as well as the amp itself in either mode.

I used to get a very harsh distortion/overdrive until i took the time to read the manual, there i found out how the presence controls actually work inconjunction with the gain & treble controls. Now gone is the harsh distorions, and the clean is clean, loads of headroom & clear. I can get SRV tones with my strat out of this thing now, as well as very cool Santana like lead tones. I can also get some very cool Larry Carlton tones with my 335 (although i know no one will belive me). Mesa actually states that if you crank the gains to the max you are basically bypassing all the tone controls, most likely resulting of the bad tones everyone below is commenting on - again please take the time to read the manual!

10 years of gigging and playing at home with no issues.
Only thing that i have done is change the tubes.
very reliable

Everytime I called or emailed with questions, they have always returned my call/email.

I was on the verge of getting rid of this amp for something else, until i went to the Mesa web site. It made all the differece. I have a new love for this amp, and i wish everyone would stop calling it a "Metal amp", it is simply not true. I have seen country players using them, as well as other non-metal players. the fact is the Most Mesa's are over-engineered and thats fine, you just need to learn how to use it once you have it. If you are not getting a good tone, you're not being patient.

Every feature almost imaginable ( no reverb on the dual solo heads )
But is more than a complete package for a tube head.

I like em personally

Never personally had a problem

One of those company's that respect all of their customers

Ok here is where I rant. First off the dual rec's are a unique sounding head with a very uniuqe eq set up ( Half a recto equals a dimed marshall ) except for one thing it is a totaly different sounding beast than marshall (even with el 34's). So far in this numerous reviews people have been stomping on them. Look if you don't like them that's cool buy an amp to suit you're needs ex if you want a Zakk Wylde sound buy a JCM 800, if want a tight thrash sound there are amps that nail the tone in spades. Just because it has a dimond grid face doesn't mean it will cover every metal tone out there and it isn't designed to give you a fender clean. Plain and simple it's a mesa boogie with a mesa boogie clean (sounds pretty fat usually) and a mesa boogie crunch. The dual recs are more agressive than other mesa boogies in sound but that doesn't make it a complete metal amp.
Otherwise it would have been called The Metal Machine or something stupid like The Doom Box Enforcer. In fact it is called the dual rec stands for the fact you can change the rectification of the power section from silicone diodes (more agressive) to rectifier tubes (old school sag) vintage sounding. Now does this sound like a feature in a thrash metal amp no. In short if you don't like an amp thats cool it's not you're sound people hype the dual recs because it apeals to them soundwise so no Mesa Boogie is not some corporation trying to swindle you of you're hard earned cash on overpriced items. In fact they are pretty reasonably priced for tube amps If you really think about it. An amp is a lot like beer you like some and others you're not to fond of you don't see me on harmony central trashing St Ides Malt Liqour.

This amp has more whisles and bell than any other amp (that I have used). The footshitch is without a doubt the best and smooth. Also, with three channels you can dial up soo many different tones. The power was good. Actually less than what I thought. We play very loud. Sometimes I think too loud. I do think that my Marshall DSL-100 and my TSL-100 has more.

The sound is ok, i guess. I have three PRS guitars, McCarty, custom 22, and a CE-22 w/trem. I think that the distortion is uncontrolable. Sometimes it's muddy and changes. Hard to say what I'm hearing but, uncontrolable is how I see it. The first, and I mean the FIRST time I played it after bring it home, it broke, blew up, something like that. I played it for two hours and then in a split second, it lost 90% of the volume. I was using a Marshall 1960A and 1960B cabs. The tone was still there. I took it back to the store. I tried out a Triple rectifier, same deal. I played a Peavey JSX, that was sitting beside the Boogie. The peavey sounded better and had less noise than the dual and the triple rectifiers did. I thought WOW, this peavey sounded better...a PEAVEY!

As I said, it messed up the first time I played it at high volume. I would not play this without a back up. Actually I would not play and amp without a back up (tube amp anyway). Just because it's a BOOGIE and cost more don't mean it's good!

Didn't give a chance. I can say the store was great!! They took it back. They told me they would do whatever it would take to make me happy. We did hook it up and it was still messed up.

I have been playing for 25+ years. I have been "clubing" since the age of 19. If it was stolen, I'd kick some major butt just because of the price of it. I would never buy another Mesa/Boogie. I always though that the Boogie Dual rectifier was the top shelf of amps...I was wrong. My Marshalls DSL-100 & TSL-100 are far better, without much noise. Now that I've got the PEAVEY JSX, I think I will be better off. I sure did like the way it looked but, thats all! For $400.00 more than the Peavey and less tone and control, I'll stick with what I have now. I can say again, the footswitch on the Mesa/Boogie are the best I have seen.

not sure when was made???

we play death and doom metal so guess that's why I have this amp!! haha. just use it in solid state, bold mode on modern (orange) channel 95% of time and clean channel for the rest. no effects... is more than loud enough. played through a Marshall 1960V with vintage 30's.

use emg81 in bridge pickup and an Emg85 in neck pickup but normally just stick to 81. have just changed all the tubes as the Mesa ones were a bit muddy. got JJ's in at the moment but might try some others when these die!
have put some KT88 instead of EL34's or 6L6's and they're flipping loud and fat. the amp smells hot though! haha.

one other thing I switch the loop active on at the back which lets me use the pot on the front as an overall master and push it that bit further. makes it a lot more potent without overload...

If i don't play well the sound can get lost with all the gain though, guess I'd better practice some more! haha

just one blown tube and fuse as part of it in the 2 years Ive had it. play for 5 hours a week at rehearsal, nice and loud...

don't have money for a back up!

never dealt with company but my fathers and electrical engineer so we can work out most stuff between us...

been playing it for two / three years? can't remember, first 'proper' amp. been playing guitar 'properly' for 4 years now. I love playing it loud and well and feeling the volume. is the best at gigs when it's miked up and the crunch covers the whole venue ;)

other band mate has a 5150II wjhich sounds a bit harsher but think it's down to not very good Sovtek 6L6's in there. we'll see what new tubes do? the two amps work well together in recordings etc

sounds good for heavy-metal/hard/moder rock fans. 3 channels : overdrive(raw) channels sound great at low volumes. Clean channel can be a little crunchy if you want. Good for recording cause you can use lower volumes but for live, d'oh I don't recommend that.

I use Ibanez RG series, Fender stratocaster and Gibson SG special.
I play british modern rock to punk rock and this is my gear for recording.But I will never use it for live cause the sound at lower volume is blurry, muddy, what can I say.But at lower volumes(which I use for multi-track recording) are cool.You can get loads of tones which are all so posh and original.Not noisy but hummy!Distortion is brutal as well for heavy metal fans if you maximise the gain control.

No idea.

Not yet!

I've been playing guitar for 6 years and I have loads of guitars, amps and tonnes of pedals. My question is: we all see that Mesa produces good amps but they are all expensive for the sound.They can honestly compete with Marshall's sound but can they compete their price as well? Don't think so!

These are covered amply in other reviews.

A couple of notes to previous reviewers:

Spencer- George Lynch is a wanker but Satriani is not? Hmmmm. Both are excellent players IMHO, Dokken's inherent cheesiness notwithstanding.

Michael- No, Zakk has ALWAYS used Marshalls, modified or otherwise, except for a brief flirtation with Metaltronix amps in the '80s. It is only in your fevered brain that "Zakk Wylde is a f*ckin liar!!!". Lay off the Crystal-meth. Your post made my brain hurt.

John Petrucci- IF that was really you, you are an oustanding player but I notice that as of 2004 you are playing through a Triaxis, which is a whole different animal.

Mud, bass, mud, bass. Can't cut through a band mix, only bury the rest of the band with sheer volume. Great if you are playing nothing but two-note chords using drop-d, drop-c, drop-whatever, but NOT good for solos or chords involving more than two strings. Low volume= Sounds like ASS!!! Clean channel sucks. I'd much prefer my Marshall JCM800 or even my Crate Blue Voodoo120(with a nice overdrive pedal), which is less than half the price.

Man, look at these reviews! It's a love-or-hate amp, that's for sure. Personally I don't QUITE hate it but I SURE AS HELL don't love it.

- Bought used, brand new condition
- 3 channels: clean, 2 overdrive
- No effects

Enough features, very versatile, but could have used at least a reverb for the price.

Using an Epiphone Les Paul w/ stock pickups and a Music Man Petrucci 6-String w/ custom Dimarzio pickups.

Sounds absolutely beautiful. Very quiet, toneful, and the clean, when not pushed too hard, is especially dynamic in response to the playing style.
The distortion goes as far as anyone should ever need, and Ch. 2 on vintage mode with the gain and presence backed off, using the neck pickup, can acheive a very nice SRV-like blues sound.

I wouldn't be afraid to gig without a backup, or even chuck it down a flight of stairs.

Never dealt with them, but heard great things.

Been playing 3 or 4 years, I can't remember. Would shoot the guy if stolen. I love everything about it, but, again, could use at least a reverb. I was comparing this too a Marshall TSL100, but went Mesa because Marshall's quality control seems to be lacking lately.

This is a 2004 Dual Rectifier Solo head. It's so versatile I'm convinced that the only other amp that could be any more versatile is the Road King. You can get any sound you want out of it. It has three full independant channels w/ different modes on each Channel one has clean and pushed. I assume you know what a normal clean channel sounds like so I'll skip that but the pushed mode gives you a nice classic first Aerosmith album sound when tweaked correctly. Channel two offers raw, vintage and modern. Raw has excellent bluesy soloing capabilities, while vintage can go from an awesome classic Alice Cooper warmth to an over-the-top gain onslaught of Megadeth shred tones, the modern mode in channel two is a little too pingy for me but some might appreciate it. Channel three uses the same modes as channel two. I've only used the modern mode in channel three, and let me tell you, it's a gain monster. Turned down it's loaded with preamp gain but when you start turning it up past 9:00 it gets extremely ballsy. Giving you more bottom end than Anna Nicole Smith befiore she dropped the cow.
This amp has a built-in variac with the spongy or bold feature. Bold (what I usually use) gives you a really tight end and loads of headroom. Spongy offers a more scooped low end and mid range(for those of you that are into In Flames or At The Gates).
The amp also features a silicon diode or vacuum tube rectifier. The diodes give you maximum headroom, and the vacuum tubes give you more of a vintage feel supplying that warmth to your sound that your looking for. I try and use all the features on the amp to give it a full workout.
I use this amp in my bedroom playing to albums, at band practice, and jamming at other friends' houses. It gives me all the power I will ever need.

This amp sounds great. i use an epiphone Les Paul Standard w/ EMG 81 pickups in it. It develops no noise unless you play at loud volumes, then you get the normal feedback. I must warn you though, because it's a tube amp, the louder it gets the more your sound will cange. So if you buy this amp you may dial in your sound at a normal houselold level, and then get to band practice and turn your amp up, your sound will completely change. My suggestion to this is to get the amp a little louder once and a while to develop your live sound. There's no point in buying a 100W monster and leaving it at a normal room level and micing it through your P.A. fool around with it as much as posible. I use this amp through a Berhinger stereo cabinet because i can't afford a Mesa cab yet. It sounds awesome with a $300 cab, imagine how it will sound through the real deal.

Extremely reliable. Never had aproblem with it. I'll change the tubes when they need it.

Mesa's customer support is excellant. If you call them when they're not open, they call you back the next day.

I've been playing for 10 years and i've used several solid state and tube amps. I tried a Marshall TSL100 and a Mode Four. They sound nothing like this miracle of an amp.

This is just for the guy like 2 reviews below about the midrangy weak sound. Even though you played through the VHT, mesas usually sound best through their own cabs. I thought the same when i bought my Dual but that was through a Marshall. Now i know marshall is more midrangy and won't stand up to the VHT but when i went to the Mesa, things just clicked. All stars aligned. And the EQ's aren't like normal eq's. It took me some time to get used to them. If you use them like a normal eq that would be on lets say a marshall, or peavey, or Bogner, of course you would get that piss poor sound. I did too. Try to sit with it for a little bit. You will definitely change your mind.

This amp has it all, every parameter of each channel can be tweaked, i especially like the voicing switch (raw/vintage/modern). My only complaint is that the FX loop controls seem over complicated. The solo button on the f/s is a great idea!

I use a Gibson Les Paul, SG, Ibanez Cutlass Custom and a Fender Cyclone. This amp sounds amazing! My last amp was a tsl 100 and this totally beats the crap out of it. I mainly use the middle channel on the vintage setting with gain about half way. I also really like the pushed setting on the clean channel, you can get some really cool rhythm sounds from that with a higher gain setting. Everyone has an idea what a dual rec should sound like but the thing is it is up to YOU what it sounds like, i have had the thing sounding like a twin, a plexi and an AC30 (not as convincing as the others). I cannot fault the tone of this amp!

I had a few problems on the last tour we did with fuses. The amp comes with a 2amp fuse and the fuse blew twice (mean fiddler and cardiff barfly if anyone knows about their dodgy power!). Put a 2.5 in there and it hasnt budged since. The amp is very reliable apart from this minor finishing glitch.

Great manual. Havent had to deal with any other support.

The amp is great for hardcore punk/metal but it is great for any style you throw at it, you just have to spend time getting the right sound. My dual rec has just come back from a UK tour being used by my band (The Mingers) and Leftover Crack. The amp stood up kindly to all comers. I am a former Marshall lover, but the TSL grew tired and had to be replaced so i thought....why not!

Has anything you need. Two completely seperate channels, good effect-loop and many options for switching channels & fx-loop. In terms of controls to tweak this amp it has it all. In terms of sound I can only recommend the clean channel....

I play a Strat with a Peavey EVH PU at the bridge, a B.C.Rich Bich and a custom 7-string guitar. The clean channel of this amp sounds excellent. It has that special sparkle and sounds simply great. Nothing to improve hear. It breaks up to early for my taste but thats the only negative. Now the distortion channel: Quite the dissapointment. Mesa has the reputation to have an excellent fat and smooth distortion sound. To me thats not true. I play that amp through a VHT 4x12 box, because the amp stands in our rehearsal space.
I was so happy to see this famous amp sitting there someday because the guy from the other band bought it. I have to admit that there is nearly NOTHING I like about the distortion channel. It sounds very harsh and midrangey and has not enough gain for my taste, although my PU is quite hot. To me the distortion channel sounds not American at all. It sounds very marshall-like: thin, harsh and weak. The only thing that is good about the channel is that it cuts through VERY well. I give the clean channel a 10 and the distortion channel a 4. It's okay but nothing more.

The amp seems quite reliable. It gets played at least for two rehearsals a week and at quite high volumes and so far it never failed.

Never dealt with them.

I play for 8 years now and studied guitar at the MGI which is the german version of GIT. I play everything from Jazz to Death metal and usually play in several bands. I build custom guitars and have owned alot of amps. Additionally I do alot of mixing&recording so I have quite educated ears. I really tried to like this amp, but I hate the distortion channel so much that I often take my 5150 with me to the rehearsal room so that I do not have to play the Mesa. I like amps with that FAT and smooth American distortion that simply sounds HUGE.
Pinch Harmonics ala Steve Morse or Petrucci are quite essential for my style as well. This is an area where the Mesa is OK but not as good as other amps I played. In my opinion if you search for the huge and fat distortion channel Mesa is famous for then check out a Peavey 5150 or Triple XXX or a Soldano. They are far better in this respect. I could imagine that this amp sounds great in a band with two guitarists as it cuts through quite well and sounds not muddy. I am the only guitarist in my band and for that application the Mesa is way to weak and thin sounding. I would only use it for the clean channel on recordings, etc. because here it REALLY lives up to it's reputation. If you search for THE distortion look elswhere....even marshall sounds fatter and smoother....To be fair: I think this amp is a good amp. The distortion channel sounds very brutal and harsh which might exactly be what some players are looking for.
But it is not nearly as good as it's reputation and especially not as good as it's high price....

Dam this thing does it all!

I got the Head and a Les Paul classic the same day. All I can say is WOW!! I also have a Jackson sl1 soloist and the LP blows that thing away I am sad to say. Anyone complaining about this amp needs a new guitar, with the LP this head is GOD!!!

3 days old so I dont know.

I am 39 and have been playing since I was 14. I have owned Peavy, Marshall, and Laney amps over the years and have wanted a Mesa for many years. God I wish I had bought it sooner. What an awesome amp!! Anyone want to buy a Laney AOR 50w head? This amp rules!! Never heard such awesome sounds in my life. It will do anything!

2004 three channel Dual Rec. Like most other high end high gain amplifier reviews, if you are reading this, you probably know most of the features. I play through a 1995 PRS Custom 24, which has the older Dragon I pickups on it. These are a little mellower than the Dragon II's, but the Dual makes up for it. Although it doesn't just jump out at you as the dream amp some people make it out to be, it has to be tweaked. Just a simple change of the Vacuum Rectifier/Silicon Diode can make a world of difference. This amp has a lot of knobs and buttons, and turning them with patience and temperance will help you find the sound your looking for. The Fx loop is extremely workable, the SOLO/OUTPUT feature is nice, and the equalization in all three channels is rather good. The Bold/Spongy switch on the back kicks ass, and adds a lot of feel to the amp. The bias switch is also pretty cool, even though I haven't really used it, as Str 430 6L6's suite me just fine. Another thing I liked was if you feel it's overpowering, removing the two center power tubes cuts the power in half, to 50 watts, allowing you to crank it and get breakup at reasonable volumes. If you want that power section lit, then all four tubes can deliver it, and straight put foot to ass.

I mostly go for newer rock sounds, but not death or nu metal by far. I like a good high gain sound, but not at the sacrifice of my tone. As I said before, I'm using an older PRS Custom 24, and it gets a good variety of sounds. The clean channel, although not a Twin Reverb, sounds pretty decent to my ears. Some people say it sounds compressed, but I think it's because they didn't crank it enough. When you really open up on the clean channel, it becomes warm, and gets more saturation by careful adjustment of the gain. Switching to the pushed mode will put you in a little muddier sound, but if you know which knobs to twist, and which pickups to use in your guitar, then it is very workable. I find channel two to also be very warm, although not quite my style. People don't buy a Dual for its channel two, they want it for what is in channel 3. Although I must say I wasn't just flat out amazed, the third channel of the amp provides more and more great sound as I get to know the amp. The 4X12 oversized Recto cab I'm running it through gives it a lot of low end, but also has a lot of clarity and voice. This amp can't just be maxed out, and I find my best sounds by turning the gain down and letting the power amp do more of the work, and letting the preamp run a little cooler. I think a lot of people miss this about the Dual, you have to let the power section open up to get that great crunch from the speakers beginning to distort. The more you open the amp up though, the more you have to tweak it, and that takes time. Of course, you lose clarity initially when cranking the amp, but its going to sound a lot different with an output of 2 than 7. If you take the time to tailor the EQ and gain at high volumes, you find a true rock disortion with as much gain as you like, low end to spare, and plenty of top end. Although it doesn't straight cut through the mix, I didn't think a mix involved hearing one thing distinctly over another? The Dual provides you with more of a feel than just a shiny, flashy sound. If during a performance, one of the guitarists playing a Dual stopped, you'd immediatley lose that vibration in your chest cavity, and wouldn't know what happened. To me that's what a high gain amp is about, that thump in your chest or balls that makes you know what you're listening to. The Dual provides plenty of it, if you know where to find it.

This amp is built like a damn tank. The only problem I have had with it is blowing the light bulb on the front of the amp. It was a simple fix, and was still under the five year warranty.

The service at Mesa is second to none. On the two occassions I spoke with them, they were friendly, knowledgable, and informative. The five year warranty kicks ass, but I doubt if you have to use it in that time, as Mesa products are all built rock solid.

I have been playing for four years, and am quite satisfied with this amp. If it were stolen, I would bag enough groceries to buy another one, just like I did on this one. Although its not an Uberschall or Budda, it's a working man's high gain amp. Not all of us working on minimum wage can afford upwards of $2500 for a head alone, and the Mesa provides reasonable pricing with quality materials. This amp truly is high gain, and works great for contemporary hard rock and metal. If I were to tell Mesa one thing, it would be to work on the clean a little more. But, when you buy a high gain amp, what'd you expect? You truly aren't paying $1500 for a combo, you're paying it for that modern mode in channel three. Overall, I'm extremely pleased with this amp, and hopefully will hang on to it for quite a while.

Great, every thing you could possibly want, I wish other amps had everything so well covered.

I play modern Rock styles. Im not really convinced with these amps, they sound quite buzzy and don't cut through the mix live like other amps like Soldanos and some Marshalls. Also it is THE noisiest amp I have ever had, I really find this quite objectionable. Really nice low end though but otherwise it creates a wall of mush. Ive had good luck in the studio with it for recording solos.

Never had any problems.

I've been playing for 15 years and used many amps. I would not replace this if it got stolen. It would be good to see tha back of it actually. Before you buy check out a Soldano. There was a previous comment about not believing the marketing crap from Mesa Boogie on these amps. I think they are over rated.

Ok well,I had a laney amp ,it was just a 12 inch speaker 100 wat amp,it was ok,but one day i braught my mesa home along with a 4x12 recto oversised slant cab . Well,at first i was tryingto get a good sound,i diddnt really know the amp,So iv just been messing around with it.Well,iv had it for about 4 or 5 months now or something,and..Who ever mochs this amp deserves to be punished ..Like im not even kidding,you have to have a nut sack for a brain to say this amp is shit.Just fuck with the settings for a while . Anyways this thing has 3 channels . Clean . and 2 hi gain channels,but,you can set one of the high gain channels to soft,and the other one to hard,but i use a volume pedal so i only use the orange channel and the clean channel,..uhh..my setting for the orange channel is on vintage,im not a lead guitarist . I play rythm . Im also in a band called MindsEye , I play a ibanez rg7421 GN XL 7 string guitar .And i use a whammy pedal and a wah and soem other shit i dont feel like listing,.But anyways,this amp is very versatile,you can pull off any sound,and it walks over my dads 62 tremolux hehe ^_^,uhh what else,of course its point to point wired and fully tube amp,trust me,you want ballz tone,grab a mesa .

Well,this thing sounds a lot like korn,well,fuck man,this thing can sound like anything if your patient and fiddle with the settings..As i said i use a whammy pedal do get a really chunky low sound,i use the 1OCT^ | 1OCT pedal down mode,the first one,it gives me a chunky ass korn sound,but yeah,this thing screams with ballz.Its uber thick ,and when your playing live it doesnt have a shitty tinny sound that makes peoples ears bleed,this amp is pretty much a god send to your hard rock / blues / Whatever you want player. All the channels are fun to experiment with so give it a try.

Well,i havnt had any problems with it,well,if i hit the top of it lightly i can hear a buzz in one of the tubes or something,i dont think its a big deal though..And i haul this thing around to gigs and stuff,its pretty sturdy feelings,and it comes with amp covers.So,sall good,good shit,if u want,go spend a couple grand and beat the shit out of people / animals or whatever,i bet u anything i holds up

I have no clue,havnt had to call them .

Wellp folks , You want a kick ass ballz to the wall metal / anykidna music amp ??, Well go at least try one if my review doesnt help you,if you want you can add me to msn or mail me at life__is__peachy@hotmail.com . good shit,well,yeah,i give this thing a 10 everywhere,not only cuz i own it,jut because it deserves it,if anyone says this amp sucks,they are jelouse cuz all they got is a marshall or a peavy or someshit,or they dont know how to adjust the settings like us real players hahah,ok,peace out 10

this is a followup review 1 year later...

follow up

It can fall off of the truck and live. I watched this happen 2 days ago!

I am posting a followup review. It has been another year with the amp, and I have found the dream tone! I finally tried the imfamous KT66-HP tubes from groovetubes. Holy crap! Why, didn't I try this before? I was very worried about the bias deal. KT66 tubes need hot bias, and the mesa is not adjustable! They must bias hot anyway. There is no better power supply section than in this amp. Well maybe the RoadKing, but that is one serious upgrade... I now have my mid knob a little lower with the new tubes, but there is the dream tone. Those low-mids that I thought where so liquid before, are even more-so! I tried the Number 4 on the GT tube rating system. This is a more distroted number than I was hoping to get, but is the sound! I can't argue. Try KT66 tubes!!! I would like to try theese in the Mesa 400+ bass amp! Balz.

I think this is a 1999 model? if you're reading this, you probably are familiar with the features, so I'm not gonna spend hours listing them. At first, this head looks extremely versatile. However, after playing it for a while, you'll realize that the clean is mediocre at best (which hurts the feature score). i know some of you only play with distortion - yeah, great. i write a lot of stuff with chill picking for the verse, and then hardcore distortion for the choruses, stuff like that. So, I want to have a clean sound that sounds pretty good. I mean, I'll deal with the Dual Rec clean, I didn't buy it for its clean sound. That's why I'm gonna end up getting a Whirlwind AB/Y switcher and running a fender twin reverb for clean stuff. Ok, also, when you switch distortion modes, I've found that I have to do a lot of readjusting with the eq - which is not cool. my band just started gigging, and i don't want to have to run over to my amp and re-adjust it after every song - give me a break.

I've been playing guitar for about 12 years, i started pretty early, and am in college now. First off - don't spend hours and hours reading reviews - go out and play this amp . . . loud (please don't play it on "2" at Guitar Center). ALso, I think the 2 channel dual rec sounds better than the 3 channel. The 3 channel is more versatile, but I think the 2 channel one sounds a little thicker. that's just me, though. i use three guitars. Main guitar - 2000 Gibson Les Paul Studio - (498T in brdige). For more hardcore songs, I use another Les Paul Studio with the EMG 81/85 setup, which is pretty cool, but these blow for clean. I really like the 81 though, its worth a shot if you play all out metal/hardcore/whatever. Third, i've got a strat lying around (emphasis on lying around . . . ), that I only use for recording really clean stuff. I play through a 4x12 mesa Recto cab (the oversized one), and have a Sonic Maximizer in the effects loop. Ok, I think this head sounds pretty impressive for heavy distortion, but that's all I use it for. I don't really like the mellower, vintage/orange/whatever settings. Its my opinion that Dual Rectifiers are only really good for intense, heavy distortion. I'm sorry, I really think this amp compromised on its clean and "vintage" distortion sounds. I just don't find them that usable - and for 1,500 new, come on (i guess that's the price for a 3 channel, but still). I got mine used for 900, so I was happy. I gave this amp a 7 because I'm really happy with the modern/red distortion mode. I run a Sonic Maximizer in the loop, and the distortion is huge, thick, etc. Before this amp I had a Single Rectifier and a DSL 100. There basically wasn't any clean - the clean broke up wayyyyyyy too early. again, rectifiers suck for clean, so whatever. Also, I wasn't impressed with any of the distortion sounds. maybe I got a bad unit, i don't know. One of my good friends gave me a really, really good deal on a DSL 100 (got it for 300), which was a good amp at first. But, it had a shared eq for clean and distortion. again, this made the clean suck, but i'm mostly focused on distortion. THe distortion started out pretty good, but suddenly it got really harsh/trebly (the whole ice-picks in the ears thing). that sucked. I never took this amp in to get it checked out, I just got the 2 channel Dual Rec, and now at least i have a good heavy distorted sound. I'm still not totally happy though - that's why I gave it a 7. In my opinion, it sounds good on one setting, which is the setting i need, so i'm pretty happy. Still, for the money, it should do more. There's no way this amp deserves a 10, no way in hell. I mean, if you want a really good amp (that deserves a 9/10), get a Bogner Uberschall. I played one once - unbelievable, I can't describe it. But, these are at least 2,500. Can't someone build a versatile, good sounding hard rock amp that costs 1,000? Marshall Mode 4's don't count, they are a disaster. Hey, maybe you should get a Mode 4 if you're a "nu-metal" player. nu-metal . . . uh, right . . . . . is nu-metal another name for commercial rap/rock stuff? Like Saliva, Click, Click, Boom - one of the worst songs ever written, besides Creed stuff. ok, these guys do have record deals, and I don't yet, but still, these guys can't be serious.

its been fine so far, my first gig with it should be within a month, so we'll see what happens. I'm gonna lose it if this thing goes dead, and I have to plug in the DSL 100.

never talked to them, sorry

Overall, this amp kicks ass for thick, heavy, super saturated distortion. But, if you want over the top distortion - use EMG 81's. The Gibson 498T has more detail, but obviously less output. I really like playing lots of palm muting, heavy stuff. So, the modern channel is pretty good for me. But, I wasn't impressed with the mellower distortion settings. I've had this amp for over 6 months, and play every day. I've spent a lot of time tweaking it. I hate it when people on this site go into Guitar Center, play an amp on "1", then write a full blown negative review. I also hate it when people say stuff like, "this amp can nail it all! Cream, Stevie Ray, Hendrix, its all there! 10!". come on. Anyway, if you are only looking for all out distortion, try this amp out. Uh, if someone stole this, I would track the guy down, and then would probably get shot. Would I risk my life for this amp? are you kidding me? maybe someday, if I get signed, I can get that Uberschall. that's it for this review, good luck.

1994 Mesa Engineering Dual Rectifier. Two channels, three modes (clean, vintage high gain, mordern high gain), channel cloning, paralleled effects loop w/master volume control, slave out, bias switch (6l6 or el34), rectifier select (vaccuum tubes or silicon diodes) This amp is more evolved than most other amps that I have seen, and the tone from it os wonderful! Since Mesa amps are fixed bias, there is no bias pot inside the amp. I've heard that installing one will make this beauty sound even better.

This is one truly remarkable amp. Very versatile. I've never played through an amp that can range like this one can. If you're into rock or metal, this is your baby! I run a Charvel series 4 into the DR and a Mesa Rectifier 4x12 and it sounds like a dream. The clean sounds real bluesy, and with a little twist of the gain knob, a subtle clip is in the mix. Sounds like older 70's rock. Flip the switch to high gain, and you're screaming out some 80's metal. The red channel's distortion becomes even more brutal yet. There could be more usable low end, since turning the bass up past 2 'o clock turns the mix muddy, but it still thumps. If you clone the orange channel to modern, the bass gets deep, but then you don't have a clean. It's something that I can live with though. These amps sound totally different in different places. I guess it depends on the voltage to the wall plug, and the atmosphere.

I'd like to have another as a backup, since you just never know about anything. Sure, it's been good so far, but who's to say that it wouldn't take a shit during a gig? This is my first Mesa amp, and I don't know how they act when subjected to high volumes for extended times. I guess I'll find out soon enough....

Never had to deal with them, but heard they are good about things.

Very good overall. If it was stolen, God please have mercy on whoever stole it, because I wouldn't. That's my baby you're messing with. I love that this head is so easy to use, but I don't like that it doesn't have reverb. That's what the recto-verb is for, right? Compared to other amps...I like Marshalls, but they lack the punch that the DR's have. The only other amp that even comes close to that sound is a Hughes and Kettner Triamp, but not many people I know have $3K to drop on a head.

Ya know....I see a lot of douchebags below bitching about this amp. Guys with their "Tom Anderson Drop Top" guitars expecting to hear a fucking choir say "AHHH" when they turn the power on. Get real fuck. This amp is a balls to the wall wail-on-the-top-of-your-stack amp. Not your grandpa's amp with angelic clean tones. This was made for one thing only.....balls to the wall rock and roll. If you can't handle that, then go get your Grandpa's 67 Fender Blackface and sit around playing with yourself and leave the rest of the rock world alone you idiots.

I use a variety of guitars with my two channel recto. Mainly a Les Paul Custom and a PRS. The Modern channel is just f-ing killer!!! Whoever said this thing sucks is a fucking moron who must play thru a 10 watt Fender practice amp. Grow some balls and step up to the real deal. The clean isn't for you sissies who thing that a twang is a guitar sound. This is nu-rock clean. Everything about this amp says nu-rock. Not Elton John you fairies. Would you go into a store looking at something that has diamond plating on it and think..."I wonder if i can sound like Eric Clapton on that amp?"

Never had a problem with it. I've had it for years and never did anything but change tubes. I see some people below bitching about how cheap these are made. These are point to point wired with some pc boards in them. That's not cheap there you fucks.....
Point to point wiring takes time. Just because these don't cost $10000 and two years to get, because the guy who makes them is a fat ass who works on it only when he wants to, doesn't mean that it's a peice of shit. There is such a demand for these that Yeah, they do get mass produced, but come one and get with it. If You were Randall Smith what would you do? The same thing asshole!

Very friendly. Some of the best customer support I've ever dealt with.

Killer....
I've played...gigged with...jammed on...tried out almost every amp you can think of. Fender, Peavey 5150's(yuk) Crate, Marshall, and this blows everything away. Don't get me wrong, every amp has it's place with a certain crowd, and I'm not putting any amp down here. It's just that Mesa kicks ass compared to everything else.

I have traced this Dual Recto back to at least 1995, possibly a 1994 model, which are supposed to be the best sounding Rectos made. It is the 2 channel version with a much better distortion than the newer three channel models. 2 channels, parallel fx loop, master volume, 3 band eq, channel cloning (kicks a$$) sloid state or tube rectifier, diamond plate front panel. The only thing I wish this had is another channel so that I could run a clean, dirty, and a full blown distortion without having to flip switches in the middle of a gig. But I already had a three channel head, and I sold it. They suk. The fx loop rocks, since you can have an effect on channel one (say for instance, a chorus pedal for a super tight clean sound.) and when you switch to channel two, it bypasses the pedal ( so your distortion doesn't have the effects on it.). You can aslo footswitch the fx loop whenever you want to. Another thing is that I would like a two button pedal, instead of having to buy one for channel selection, and another for the fx loops. I'm thinking of a moddification to make a two button switch work. (Email me for details).

I'm running a Samick Artist series guitar thru the head right now ( yeah i know,not the best guitar, but hey - it works!) with stock pickups (hot- by the way). I have JJ Electronic E34L's installed in the power section, and this thing ROCKS!!!I'm running it thru a Recto Cab that I had customized with 2 Celestion Vintage 30's and 2 Mesa Black Shadow Custom 90's. The distortion is downright killer, and smooth, yet creamy. Good for the nu-metal or newer alt-rock. (nickelback, linkin park, etc.) I tried Mesa STR 420's, and some Mesa STR 430's in it, but the JJ E34L's have a bite that the 6L6's don't have. The clean channel suffers all the way around ( I have a solid state Earth head out of the 70's that sounds much better on clean.), but still sounds good. Kinda Middy, but the e34l's take care of that a little.
The amp is kinda noisy when turned up, but not as noisy as others. I had a Crate Blue Voodoo 120 that was WAY noisier than the Recto. As long as you can deal with some white noise when you're not playing, you'll be fine with it.
I've messed around with this head trying to play about every kind of music, and it will do them all. AC/DC to Limp Bizkit, and everything between. Jazz, blues (killer for some blues!!!) and even a country twang. I love this amp!!!

VERY dependable. When I got it, the original tubes were still in it, and they were at least 7 years old. It still sounded good, but new tubes brought it back to life. I crank 'er up often, and have not had and problems with it so far.

Mesa's customer support is great! I needed a manual for the amp, and I got one the next week. No questions asked. Everytime I called them they were busy, but they always returned my call within the hour.

I've played for ten years, and always dreamed about the tone that I get from this monster. If this puppy was ever stolen, I would track it down and break the thief's kneecaps with a baseball bat. Marshall's don't come close to the sound that Mesa's have. Unique....very unique. I've seen some amps out there with tons of features that no one will ever use, and this isn't one of them. Just the good features.

very basic features. effects loop, slave out. speaker outs.. 2 channel independant masters, bias switchs and rectifier switches.

i love this amp. i use 6550 tube insted of the 6l6 and el34. even tho i do like the thing with el34 its just not the right sound all the time. i use a EH pre amp tube in V1 and chinese in the rest. i have tried GTs, JJs, sovteks, and Ehs work for me. getting some telefunkens and mullards to try :)

the vintage high gain channel is a fucking gem.. it is amazing. i can get soo many tones out of it.. the modren channel is good for one thing.. metal mayhem. if this amp only had the vintage channel i would still have it.. if it only had the modren.. i would have most likliy passed it by and gotten a soldano avenger or SLO

i use EMG loaded gibsons. going thru a wah pedal and 2 boost pedals(ds-1, ts-9)

its been great for me. when i got it the fx loop was fucked.. still is.. tubes were old but whatever i like to hgave spare tubes everywhere.

i would love another one but i am not limiting my amps to DRs.. i would like amps from most other companies.