Mesa/Boogie Express 5:50 1x12

I have a 2008 model - I purchased it New in May 2008. I tried it in the shop , and became instantly impressed by the sound and the simplicity of how to tweak the amp. It has two channels, with two voicings, and they sound great. I had a Mark IV when I purchased this, and comparing the two, I liked this amp over the Mark IV.

The only thing it could have is the ability to switch the loop of/on it is loud enough , and it has jack's for switcing channels etc, from a midi switch.

Basically you will not need too much more than this

It sounds damned good. If you cant get good sound in this amp with reasonable good gear in front of it, you cant tweak.....

I don't feel like writing like i was going to get a Phd in guitar amps here.

Sounds good ....

Heavy, seems solid - beleive it will last for a while.

They are quick and replies immedeately when you contact them - gives you detailed and helpful answers.

Depending on your target when buying an amp. I feel it is a 10'er ,

Pulling new tones is a daily adventure. I especially like the dual channels and the spring reverb. Sent a couple of pedals ebay way

This amp sounds great with all my guitars. (PRS Custom 22, Les Paul Standard and Mexi Strat). It is especially fond of single coils. I never knew how good my strat could sound. Works wonders from clean to dirty. Not really a metal amp but that is of no matter to me. This amp is loud!!! I have scaled back to the 5 watt setting at church but much prefer the 50 watt setting. To each his own on that one. If you are like me and love the punch of the push pull setting and your venues are small then some attenuation is in order. Mesa is a high gain amp so when you crank it there will be a little noise but nothing to distract you. You do need to realize this is not a plug and play amp. You have to be willing to spend the time to dial in your tones. If you want to plug and play get a Fender or a Marshall....(not downgrading those amps they are great)

Too new to tell but based on other reviews that speak to the reliability was a selling point.

returned calls in a timely manner on a few questions I had after purchase.

Been playing off and on for about 30 years. Took a long hiatus and have been back playing steadily for about 2 years. I primarly use a PRS custom 22 and a Fulltone OCD, Keely modded AD9 delay, cry baby wah, Digitech digidelay and can get most any sound I can dream up. I love the fact that this amp can give you a world class tone but be prepared to practice more cause she is very revealing.

Everyone already has described the features of this Express 5:50. Bsacially, two independent channels eacah with two modes, and separate controls for each channel. The "new" features from Mesa on this model include the Contour control and the 5 watt single ended switch. Having owned so many Mesas over the years, what I miss on this amp are- Solo control, a variable line out/record out, and the FX level control. Since Mesa has those features on so many of its amps, and could add them here, I have to knock them down for not including some of those existing features on this model.

I am going to go out on a limb and consider myself a fair judge of Mesa tone. I have owned a Mark IIB, Mark IV, Road King, Rectoverb, Nomad 55 and Lonestar over the past 25 years of playing Mesas exclusively. I happen to live 2 miles from the factory and am a loyal Mesa user. I play in a cover band, and have to cover tones from the 60's to today, in all genres. I play a Tom Anderson Hollow Classic (strat style), A Tom Anderson Hollow T w/3 P-90's, a 335 and a Taylor T5-C2 Koa.

Having played Mesas for so long, I knew I needed to make some changes to get the most from the amp. I replaced the stock Mesa Black Shadow with a Cel. V30. That smooths out some of the upper mids and shrillness inherint in the Black Shadow. I also replaced the Mesa tubes with TAD's. Those two changes opened up the amp instantly, making it richer, more complex and smoother sounding.

It is hard to believe but I have moved from a Road King to a Lonestar to the Express. Some would say that is like going from a Porsche to a Nissan. However, I love the lead tones on the Road King, but the rectifier series clean tones are thin and weak, and that amp was just "too".. too much of everything. I love the Lonestar clean tones, pure heaven, but the lead channel didn't have enough bite. I really dreamt of an amp that had Lonestar cleans and rectified lead tones.

The Express comes very close, and is perhaps the best balance between those two tones. The clean channel has a rich, full clean tone. I can compare it to the Lonestar and to my '82 Fender Concert (Rivera era, P2P wired). With the contour set just at 11:00 and left on as part of the tone chain, it is ever so close to the Lonestar. Without an A/B comparison, it is fabulous sounding on its own. In an A/B, the Lonestar has a little more sparkle/soul/depth.

Same on the lead channel. There is more gain, moving closer to the power, presence and grind of a Rectifier series. It doesn't quite get there, and in an A/B comparison, a Rectifier hits you harder, and has a tighter response. However, the Express' lead channel is architected more like the Rectifier than it is to a Mark or Lonestar series. It has a faster response, more gain, and a more present bite.

I realize that the architecture necessary for Lonestar cleans isn't the architecture needed for Rectifier leads, so kudos to M/B for getting as close as they did. For my needs, this is a very good compromise.

The amp also responds well to pedals- I use a Fulltone Fulldrive 2 and an MXR Distortion III to add more bite to the clean channel, for OD and chunky rhythm parts. It also handles my Lexicon MPX rackmount digital FX just fine.

The only other amp I have owned that has a better balance of combined cleans and lead tones was my Bogner Shiva. I wish I still had that amp, but this baby is a lot lighter, less finnicky and I don't have to worry about it as much.

Yes, there are amps out there with slightly more pure and beautiful clean tones. Yes, there are amps out there with more killer lead tones. However, there aren't many amps out there with both brilliant cleans and killer lead tones. Putting this amp in a class with a Bogner Shiva is saying something, especially for the price. The Bogner is better, but for the price, size, weight, this amp is much better than it could or should be in this price point. I didn't expect the cheapest amp in the Mesa catalogue to be this good.

The only Mesa amp that has ever let me down on stage in 20+ years was the Road King. I find them to be reliable, and if you read the manual, don't abuse the amp and change the tubes once a year, you don't have to worry. I expect this amp to be as reliable as all my prior Mesas.

That said, this really is my back up amp. My main amp is an '82 Rivera era Fender Concert 50 watt head that has been heavily modified. Clean channel has been "blackfaced". Lead channel has extra gain stages and tone push/pulls, and rocks Mesa and Marshall tones. I run the Fender head through the Express' speaker. Given the Fender is 25 years old and so heavily modded (and hence not as reliable as I like), I like having the Mesa combo available to switch over to if the Fender decides to take the night off. However, my band mates often can't tell the difference on the clean tones, and I enjoy just playing the Express.

I live in Petaluma. The gang at Mesa are great. Over the years, they have given me extra bits- casters, new footswitches, etc... I know they may be harder to work with from a distance as they are a small operation, but they have always been friendly and helpful to me. However, being closed on Fridays isn't always that convenient, when everyone else is open and working.

I've been playing in bands and out live for over 30 years (holy crap, my 30th high school reunion is this year. I am really really old). I play primarily Tom Anderson guitars. I have other Mesa amps and a vintage Fender Concert. I have a custom built footpedal with a Dunlop 535Q wah, BBE Boosta Grande, Fulltone Fulldrive 2, MXR Distortion III, a custom built loop/switcher for putting each of those in/out of the signal chain and A/B the signal to my tuner, and a midi footcontroller for my Lexicon MPX-500 rackmount. I also have a Korg rackmount tuner which I A/B the signal to for silent tuning. I have played nearly every Mesa over the years, as well as Fender and Bogner. I have spent nearly $2,000 for some of my amps. This is probably the cheapest amp I have bought in 20 years. I don't say that to brag, but to consider the bang for buck and relative value of this amp.

I love the tones of this little amp, and find it to be a near ideal marriage of Lonestar-ish cleans and Recto-ish leads. I sure wish it had the Solo control, FX levels and a line out/record out features of those amps. If it had those, I would consider it nearly perfect. So far, the Bogner Shiva is about the only amp I can think of that is better at balancing top quality clean and lead tones, and it is much more expensive, much heavier, and much more "finnicky". For $850 used, this is an unbelievable bargain and I doubt that any other amp in this price range has this quality tone combination. Don't forget to change out the speaker and tubes to get all this amp has to offer!

I picked up the Mesa 5:50 express a few months ago. Kicks serious ass.

The 5:50 stands for the pimpin' switch in the back of the head to go from a buttery-sweet 5 watts in Class A single-ended configuration, to a 50-watt Class AB push-pull setup. Obviously the 5 watt drops off a tube and works less efficiently, but it really, really makes wonderful harmonics (see sound quality below). The 50 watt mode is pure balls in your face. Cranked on clean, it will not breakup in this push-pull configuration.

Anyway, so it's new. 2007 made I think. Pretty versatile. Has 2 modes in 2 channels (4 "channels" total). The first channel has 'clean' or 'crunch'. The second channel has 'blues' and 'burn'. Each channel has a gain, treble, middle, bass, reverb, master and contour control (more later).

The reverb is all tube!

The following are footswitchable: channel->channel2, reverb on->off, contour on->off.

There is an effects send/return loop in the back. This send is line level so it's mostly meant for high quality rack mount gear and pedals, not really your average stomb box as it will override their input. I have had perfectly fine experience running a DOD digital delay in the loop w/o problem, but a Voodoo Lab MicroVibe didn't sound too special so it depends per effect unit.

Beside using the incorporated footswitch, there are 4 separate 1/4" inputs in the back to hook up external footswitches per reverb, channel, etc. Very handy.

There are a plethora of speaker-out jacks. You can match any speaker or cabinet to this as via the available out jacks in the back.

The included speaker is a Celestion Black Shadow. I'd say it closely matches a vintage 30, but with much more sparkle and middle. From what I know, it's made special for Mesa.

The contour setting mentioned earlier is a very cool feature. When enabled, it rotates across a 'V' graphic EQ shape. Far left, adds middle, retains your bass/mid/treb setting. Far right it scoops out all the mids for that classic Mesa V tone.

This amp is pure tube. There are 2 6L6 power tubes (well mounted, not PCB-mounted like many other manufacturers) and 5 12AX7 preamps (reverb, gain stages, effects loop, etc). Even though this is an open back cabinet (which is good since Mesa is known for its huge bottom end; boxed it will rattle the tubes loose literally), there is a "kick bar" that protects the power tubes from being touched and damaged when gigging or handling. The pre amp tubes are all covered by heat dissipating aluminum tubes that also protect them. Very nice. The reverb tank is at the bottom of the cabinet and wrapped up nicely. The back also has a nylon canvas pocket which contains the footswitch and cable lead (connects via a long MIDI cable).

The amp itself is extremely sturdy. Feels like super dense plywood joined tightly together. The bump pads on each corner are genuine leather, and the tolex is very thick. The grille cloth is very resistant to breaking...overall this thing will last me, assuredly.

Let's go on to sound...

First let me cover what each channel sounds like before I start ranting about how nice this amp sounds.

CLEAN (channel one, mode 1): This channel spanks Fender clean across the room, with a whip! This channel was obviously taken from Mesa's Lonestar, which is, in my opinion, so far exceeding the sonic expectations of what Fender has been providing. This channel is very 3-dimensional. If you stand to the side or away from the amp and play, you will notice that certain notes and frequencies cover a surround spectrum around you. If you play jazz or blues or use pedals, this is it. Try Gain: 10-12, treble: 12, middle: 9, Bass: 11, reverb: 10:30, master and contour to taste. Try this is on the 5-watt mode. There is the average white noise as with all tube amps.

CRUNCH (channel 1, mode 2): This is the same as the previous channel but with hair. Not too over the top, but still clean. Feels open and a 50/50 mix of pure CLEAN and a ts808/OCD. I dont really use this channel too often though.

BLUES (channel 2, mode 1): This is where the love is for me and this amp. This is instant SRV tone, among others. This is a slightly compressed, harmonically-spitting, touch-sensitive channel that will not stop playing after you put the guitar down. The sustain on this channel makes me cry. Beautiful.

BURN (channel 2, mode 2): Get the KY cuz once you turn on this channel you'll be fartin' condoms. Pure sonic assault. The gain goes nowhere as high as a dual rectifier, though the amount on tap is highly sufficient for metal (one of my styles is death metal, and it's great). Too much more gain than this and your guitar so washed out that you may as well be using a POD or other heretical device. Turn the contour all the way to the right for this and you will get that classic tone from Entombed's Wolverine Blues. This isn't the fizzle-type of distortion such as with a Metal Zone, Grune pedal, etc, but rather Mesa's own Hard clipping distortion, more of a dark and gritty creamy fuzz. Play it to understand.

Wouldn't even consider a backup, but possibly tubes since I play alot.

Excellent customer service as I had a few questions during a call once.

Warranty is 5 years. Tubes I think are 6 months, and speaker is 1 year. Hope I won't need it.

I have been playing for close to 13 years. I own a Fender American Deluxe strat (S/S/S). Jackson Performer custom (with DiMarzio FRED's), various other electrics, acoustics, analog synths, pedals, etc. I've gone through many amps, cheap to expensive fenders, peaveys, marshalls, etc. For a while I was drawn between the sparkling clean of a Fender for blues (with an OCD pedal or driving the tubes), and a Mesa for overdrive (metal). Now Mesa has a perfect clean on their express and lonestar's so fender is history for me.

If it was stolen, I'd buy the 5:25 and maybe a triple rec as I get bored with the same thing, but would like to stay with this amp.

I wish it had more gain in the BURN channel but I manage by diming the gain and hitting it via the front with an OCD running in 18volts, max level, no drive to push the tubes really hard. Sounds damn near close to a dual rect to me.

You know the features if you're reading this review.
5 12ax7's, 2 -6L6's...2 channels, 2 modes per channel

CHannel 1: Clean and Grind
Channel 2: Blues and Burn

5 watts switchable to 50 watts. 5 watts sounds great, but 50 watts is much more detailed and full of bass, to my ears.

I traded in a '62 Princeton in perfect condition for this amp, +$150...so of course I was looking for the same killer clean, some tube distortion, capable of being louder than the Princeton and its 10"speaker. The clean channel slams the Princeon, almost...its definitely better, but the 62P was the best clean I had heard. Thus, I love the clean on this mesa. The Grind feature I use ALL the time, practically. I turn it to about 1 o'clock, maybe 2 on the gain, and dial back my guitar's volume slightly...either a brown fender or tweed sound out of Grind (+ reverb!). Channel 2 hosts the Blues mode, which to me is comparable to the famed "SRV" fender sound, coupled with the reverb and a decent amount of gain, its a pretty killer sound from my John Suhr V60 low peak pickups, as well as my Gibson SG standard. The burn is a good, solid distortion, but for intense gain and more dynamic pick response I usually play a Mesa Bottle Rocket over the amps gain settings. Perfect for me. Burn could use more gain or something of that nature, but with the pedal I'm cool. I'm a tone freak, so more distortion is not always the answer...but I need to feel it in my soul, thats for sure.
Versatile amp!

rock solid. you can look at the components and see its a WELL crafted amp. I'd use it without a backup, but I take good care of my things.

Mesa/Boogie.

you can call their #, and talk to people.
PEOPLE! in this day in age, thats insane

5 year warranty. (transferable I believe)

been playing for 13 years. This is the best amp I've ever owned, by far...but I've only owned a 15w fender entery level amp, a Fender Deluxe 112, a '53 Princeton and a '62 Princeton. Most versatile amp I can afford, thats for sure! I wish I would have gotten it custom from Mesa (Green Crocodile with Silver grille 1x12 combo with 1x12 extention), although the black is very nice, and the faceplate looks classy. First night out, I received 5 or 6 comments from a DEAD bar...haha.

The express 5:50 1x12. Mine is a 2007. It is a very versatile amp.It can go from country to chicken picking-blues 70's 80's 90's wooooh 20000000's rock- southern'hard'metal ect.It has 2 channel's plus contour.Series effects loops.3/4 birch plywood cabinet.Features are great.5 watts to 50 watts.5 watts will blow your bedroom away and 50 watts will rumble your home. And it's ALL TUBE. Thats right tube spring reverb.The front is shaped like a lonestar look's great The footswitch is 3 button with awesome lights.

The clean can go from strumming to a great sweap thrust.It has a crunch switch on 1st channel.Very very Stong powerful channel. The clean on 50 watts at high volumes does not break up.Great punch. Channel 2 has a blues channel great for SRV' Clapton ect. Flip the Switch down WOW all kinds of rock with great impact.There is a catch to getting all this.The way you set your tones.I use a fender american strat and tele deluxe.Clean choose your tones you will find that sweet spot.But the burn is love it or hate this channel.Use gain around 3oclock treble 10 or 11 mid 7 to 8 bass 10 to 11 contour 3oclock or more.If with single coils if you go any higher with the tones it sounds harsh and thin. Please note For very low volumes keep on 5 watts.The amp has a little noise but not much.This is a great amp.Plus only around 55 to 60 LBS.

It's a mesa i can depend on it.Back up, I'll find out.This amp is handbelt. Tough as nails. You will have to look at craftmanship to know what i'm saying.

All you have to do is call. Very helpful / Friendly. Real People.

I've been playing for 27 plus years.If it was lost or stolen I have Ins.It would be replaced. If you have noticed i did not mention but 1 other amp.I'm not here to knock or to praise other amps.Great amp is all I;m going to say.

New for 2007, the Mesa Engineering Express line replaces the F series.
Extremely versatile, 2 channels, 2 modes per channel (Clean/Crunch-Blues/Burn), included footswitch for switching channels, turning tube-driven reverb on/off, and turning contour (boost/eq) on/off.
5 12ax7 preamp tubes, 2 6L6 power tubes, effects loop, and the incredibly nifty ability to switch between 50 watts class A/B and 5 watts class A (single ended).
Used in my livingroom, so the 5 watt setting is ample, at 50 watts an obscene amount of power is on tap.

I'm playing with 2 Teles, an Artcore with Seymour Duncans, and a Schecter with EMG's. Short of a Mesa Roadking/Roadster or the Lonestar it's about as versatile a tube amp as I've come across.
The clean and reverb appear to be lifted from the Lonestar series, and they are absolutely top-notch.
Fantastic blues overdrive and classic rock sounds, and plenty of gain for Metallica-style metal (to my ears).
Some have complained that it doesn't have as much "Rectoish" gain on tap as the F50 it replaced, and that may very well be the case.
However, there is gobs of gain available, and the clean and reverb easily trump the F50 and every other competing amp in this price range.
Convincing jazz, blues, pop, rock, country, and metal tones are all available.
Gets noisier under higher gain, but so does every other tube amp, and less so than the F30's and F50's I've played.
I've been impressed with nearly every Mesa amp I've played through, but this was the first I absolutely had to have.

A lot of white noise was present when I first got the amp home, regardless of the level of gain or master volume. Called Mesa customer service and they quickly helped me trace it to a power tube. Local Mesa dealer (where I purchased the amp) gave me a new set of Mesa 6L6 power tubes, no questions asked.

Been playing at a very amateur level for about 2 years, and I sold off 2 amps I really liked (Flextone III and Fender HRDx) when I found the Mesa 5:50.
If it were stolen or lost I'd make an insurance claim and replace it, only other amp with a similar place in my heart is the Lonestar Special, and I'm not sure it's worth the extra $500.
Suppose it'd be nice if it had the headphone jack like the F Series, but I have a Vox DA5 that is an outstanding headphone amp.
Compared it to a number of ther Mesa products, the Fender Supersonic, and the new Vox AC50 head with matching 2x12 cab. The Vox was tempting, but doesn't have near the versatility or quality of the Express, and costs more money (despite being made in China). The Supersonic is a nice amp but the Express series trumps it in every area.
I've owned a lot more amps than I've needed to in the last 2 years, and I can't recommend the Express 5:50 enough.
Expensive but worth every penny.

This review is my initial impression of a new Express 5:50 1x12 combo. This is a two channel combo with two different voicings in each channel. The amp includes a footswitch that allows you to switch channels and turn reverb and contour on and off. Amp controls allow you to select from either 5 watts class A (1 6l6) or 50 watts class A/B (2 6l6s), and there are effects loop jacks and jacks for external switching. Relative to some other Mesa products this amp has a very simple layout and is fairly basic controls. One thing it lacks that you see on other Mesa amps is the Solo function. I use this amp mainly for playing classic and contemporary rock in small clubs. I generally play a Les Paul 1959 reissue.

I love the 5 watt setting and get some incredible tones, but generally play the 50 watt setting to more effectively cut through the mix. It does that very well at the latter setting. The amp works very well for a variety of types of music and is remarkably versatile.

Let me say, first of all, that I am a big Mesa fan and have used mostly Mesa products over the last few years. I have owned and played a Nomad, a Road King combo, a Road King head, and a couple of Lone Stars, so I am comparing the Express mostly to them. I have come to the conclusion that the Express, the cheapest and lighest of all the Mesas I have owned, has the best tone. The channel 1 clean is especially good. I have never been thrilled with Mesa clean channels and this is the first Mesa I have owned that has the kind of ringing, crisp clean tone I have been looking for. Channel two, with the Burn setting, produces the classic Mesa rectifier distortion that Mesa fans are accustomed to getting. The other modes, crunch on channel 1 and blues on channel 2, are also effective for specific purposes. I am so pleased with the tone coming out of this litle amp that I plan to sell both my Lonestar and my Road King.

Since this amp is new I have no basis for opinion. However, I have owned six or seven other Mesas and have found them to be very durable and reliable. I can't remember ever having had a problem with one other than a bad footswitch cable in a Road King combo

Mesa folks are helpful but they are very hard to reach. You almost always have to leave a message, but they always call you back within a day or two. The only repair work I have had done was replacing the cable I mentioned above and it was shipped to me inside of a week.

I have been playing semi-professionally for 30 years. I currently play a Gibson Les Paul 1959 reissue, a Fender Nocaster custom shop Relic, and a Peavey EVH Wolfgang. If the Express were stolen I would replace it with another Express 5:50 combo or head because right now it's the best tone I have ever had. There is nothing to "hate" about this amp, and a whole buncy of stuff to like. The only thing I would like is to be able to footswitch the voicings as well as the channels, but I guess that's not practical. Also, I'll probably want to get an extension speaker cab for it at some point.

Brand new for 2007. I play Rock/Pop/Jazzy melodic stuff with some psychedelic elements mixed in from time to time. This is a two channel tube amp (6L6) with one 12" C90 speaker. Each channel has independent gain and EQ structures. Each channel has two switchable modes: Ch 1: Clean/Crunch Ch 2: Blues/Burn. Also, footswitchable reverb (per channel) and contour (EQ). Effects loop and power is switchable from 5w to 50w. This amp has the versatility that I need.

This is a wonderful sounding amp! I was looking for an amp with a good clean tone and a variety of overdrive/distortion options for live and studio work, that was not 80 pounds, and was not a Lonestar (the other guitarist I play with has one already). I come from a rock/blues background and do not go in for the heavier music that has become increasingly popular over the last 20 years. I opt for cleaner tones with a preference for a nice tight overdrive that doesn't cross into recto territory. I play a Gibson ES 333 and also a Gibson Les Paul Standard. I went through my single-coil phase years ago and have ended up with these two humbucker-equipped guitars which serve me well and provide excellent flexibility between them. Okay, now to the sounds:

Channel 1: Clean - This is my favorite mode and was what sold me on the amp to begin with. To my ears it has a 3-dimensional quality and a sensitivity to dynamics that is exactly what I was looking for. With the bridge pup on my ES and the reverb up slightly, I could sit and play beautiful lead lines or jazzy chords for hours! This channel gets a great loud clean tone that should cut through any band mix except for the most vicious aggro stuff.

Channel 1: Crunch - A very nice mild to classic overdrive that I use for a slight overdriven rhythm sound. I really enjoy this mode a lot, and wish that I could have this and the clean tone available at the same time for gigs, but oh well, that's what pedals are for! This mode is great for rhythm playing and brings a smile to my face everytime.


Channel 2: Blues - I prefer this mode on this channel. It is well named, and is just...bluesy! Describing tone with words is difficult, but it is a very nice low-to-mid-gain lead tone that is smooth unless the gain is almost maxed out, when it can border on the obnoxious.

Channel 2: Burn - This mode is the high-gain liquid-sustain lead tone that is very popular with guitar heroes of all stripes. It invites fast playing and string-bending and for such a sound it tracks very well with pick articulation. This mode is not my favorite, but that is a taste thing only. It sounds awesome and I'm sure it will turn up on one of my recordings someday.

Overall, this amp covers the styles that I need it to and it does it well. Is it noisy? Not enough to be annoying or overly noticeable.

Can I depend on it? I sure hope so, but I will carry a back-up. MESA is known for their quality and they support their gear, so this will not be a problem. I also live 1.5 hours away from Petaluma, so I can drive to them if I need to!

I haven't had any dealings with the company except that they did call me to find out how I was liking the amp! You have to appreciate that kind of personal touch and it shows an attention to customer satisfaction that is very valuable in this competitive day and age.

I have been playing 30 years this year - wow! I mentioned the guitars already, but replaced a PV Delta Blues with this Boogie (the DB is also excellent, but not enough power in a band situation). Right now I would replace it if lost or stolen (ask me in two years, I might feel differently) What do I hate? Nothing! What do I love? The tone, the build quality, the fact that it is compact and doesn't weigh a ton. I compared it to other Boogies, Fenders (amp quality is not up-to-snuff these days), Marshalls and also to a PV JSX (also excellent, but wanted something else besides another PV). I was almost sold on a Boogie Stiletto ACE combo and for sure that amp is awesome; it looks sweet and sounds great too. It is also an EL 34 sound, so a Marshall vibe (but with a great clean tone) versus the Fender-ish 6L6 thing that the Express has going. I wasn't too bothered about that until I played them back and forth for an hour. At the end of the day the Express won out because it sounded better for the music that I play. Also, the lack of reverb on the ACE, the 80 pounds that it weighs and the $400 that I saved with the Express were deciding factors. I haven't had any buyers remorse about it and am very glad that I made the decision that I did.

2 channels with independent EQ, Reverb, Adjustable Contour, and Master Volume. Reverb and Contour are Footswitchable for each channel! The footswitch is GREAT. On the clean channel the channel and contour LED's are GREEN, and on the lead channel they BOTH turn RED! When no Contour is selected the Contour LED is OFF. The REVERB switch has an LED, Purple.. Classy looking!

You can also Have the contour assigned to footswitch, full time on or full time off independently. You can also adjust how much contour you want for each channel. VERY nice.

-Switchable 50W Class A/B and 5W Class A Modes.
-2 voicings per channel for a total of 4
-SERIES FX loop
-TUBE driven Reverb

I'll take off one point because the silent recording/headphone feature is now gone.

I'll get this out of the way, it's a good sounding amp. I think it's more geared towards Strats vs. Humbucker guitars. Think of it as a meaner Lonestar. In general for STRAT guys I'd say it's an Improvement over the F-50, but for those of us that like to CHUG with Humbuckers, it's a step backwards. I like the things they did with it, I think they just took it too far. Here are the modes (From cleanest to dirtiest):

Clean(Chan 1): This Mode RULES. It is a fantastic clean sound and now with the reverb being driven by a tube circuit(I can hear the improvement. Warmer, more 3D) it sounds very nice. If you hanker for fender cleans but want a boogie, this is a contender.

Blues(Chan 2): Also quite nice, especially in 5W mode. It'll sing and I think a lot of guys will love the 5W for recording. However I do NOT think the 5W setting will hang with a band, not even a quiet one! It's living room volume at best. It's got the bite and sting though. I'm not saying it's going to compare to dedicated amps for that purpose, but it's cool.

Crunch(Chan 1):Sounds nice, but basically a less gainy more wooly overdrive sound than burn offers. Some guys think on lower gain settings it's pretty blackface sounding. I prefer the clean mode for that sound.

Burn (Chan 2): This channel was the real let down for me. If you're looking for the F-50 or rectoish crunch, look ELSEWHERE. It's not there! Sure it can get kinda heavy, but it's a totally different sound. It's more Lonestar/Marshallish to my ears. I think it works well with a strat as a rhythm sound, and it's an improvement over the F-50 in that regard. For humbuckers though, I feel they lost the magic. The previous model could do from clean and blues to metal, the last stop on the "Express" is Hard Rock IMO. For metal you'll need to take another train...errr I mean amp. Did I mention I think the "Express" Name is stupid? Anyways.....

I Only had it for a week. I used the FX loop one time and then the amp started fading in and out. A boogie Tech cited "corrosion" (On a Brand new amp that was only announced a MONTH ago?) and told me to just spray contact cleaner on a cable and insert it into the loop in and out with a twisting motion and it should clear up. For the most part it did clear up, but every once in a while it would cut out of nowhere. Keeping a patch cable in the loop when not in use is an easy fix, though it's not very encouraging.

Boogie has ALWAYS been top notch service. It doesn't get much better.

I took this amp back and got an F-50. It was just better suited to me. The fact the local store also got a MINT 1 year old used one in for $800 made it a NO BRAINER!

I feel this amp mushed out under high gain (Even with the bass rolled way down), and was kinda flubby. The Mid and Bass controls seemed voiced awfully close together. The mode differences to me where pretty subtle and nothing that couldn't be accomplished with a couple well chosen pedals. The 5W mode while cool, I think will only be useful for recording. The reverb IS an improvement and IS SWEET! I'll miss it, but it wasn't enough to keep the amp. I REALLY wanted to love this amp but just couldn't.

Like I said I think this would be a great choice for a Strat player that loves the Lonestar classic, but wants something that can go a little heavier and is portable. However if you loved the F-50 and it's rectoish gain channel and want to chug, this is NOT an upgrade.