Mesa/Boogie F-100 212 Combo

Considering it is supposed to be a stripped down amp, it functions well. The half-power switch is great for small practices and late-night playing at home.

Sorry! I read a lot of great reviews and really wanted to like this amp. I tried two different F-100's and one F-50 and they both sounded really bad to me - like a real sturdy, loud amp with cheap-sounding distortion. I tried playing leads on the lower strings and heard nothing but a mud-fest. Clean, a little dirty, and high-gain with differnt EQ's - nothing sounded good. The clean is actually very good, and I liked it a lot. The overdrive is a very broken-up tone that sounds very bad to me. Makes chords sound terrible, forget about playing and lower string leads or lines. I downloaded and read the entire manual from Mesa's site before I played on one and used their recommended settings, as well as experimented. I used a few different strats, a PRS and a Paul. I agree that most of the tone comes from your hands and I have a very articulate, clean style and sound great on about every amp I've played on - except this one. I had the intention of buying it, but was turned off after trying to get a good tone out of it for about an hour. The salesman said a lot of people come in wanting to buy a 100-watt 212 Boogie for that price, but few buy them because of the sound. I don't mean to rip onn Boogie - I love their stuff, and I'm glad a lot of the reviewers are happy with theirs. I just have no use for such am unusable, unplayably harsh sound. If it was more articulate and could distinguish bass notes, maybe.

I played on a Rect-O-Verb and found what I was looking for - and not just for the high-gain (although that IS very cool). I want to be able to get a good clean tone, a great semi-direty tone and a good high-gain tone. The Rect-O-Verb is the one. Only 50 watts and one 12 inchers, but it blows my buddy's Marshall VS102R (100 watt 212) out of the water - both in tone and usable volume. Same price as well, that is the one I'll be getting. Do yourself a favor and try a Rect-O-Verb even without the high-gain, it has a great sound that you can just FEEL in the strings and makes you want to play it all day.

Mesa's stuff is rock-solid, so this amp will make you sound bad through thick and thin - come hell or high water. Even your grand-kids will be sounding bad with this amp! Seriously though, it is a sold amp. If you can find a tone for you, I'm sure you'll be happy with the amp. Very good amp from a great company.

I called twice with some questions and they called back within a few hours. Very helpful and friendly. I don't foresee any problems with this part.

Why so high a rating? Because it's a great quality-amp from a great company. I personally did NOT like the overdrive at all, but obviously a lot of people do (as shown below). Just be sure to play YOUR guitar on it and play some chords and lower strings leads. If you can find a tone you like, buy it!. I'm sure it will give you a lot of good service. I switched to a Rect-O-Verb (same price) which seems to be my Holy Grail so far.

I have a nomad 100 and found the simpler layout to be refreshing. No need to go into details--two channel yahdee-yahdee-yahdee. This amp is for live perfomance. At 60 watts it shakes small animals from the trees. I use a Les Paul Deluxe and 61 SG through a BOSS GT-5. With the mesas, I am using the pedal less and less. In fact I now use via send and return rather than in front so i don't lose any of that great mesa tone.

Having abandoned a twin reverb for a nomad 100, I though I had found the holy grail. I actually bought the F100 for my 15 year old son. On day one he ran some jimmy paige licks through it on his SG and I was sold. Wow, It really sings and can get own right ballsy! Far more than the nomad. In a phone conversation with Mesa, they described the nomad as being 'smoother' than the F100. I like the not so smooth guts of the F100. One can easily go from clean to bluesy to screaming. As mentioned, no need for an OD pedal with this baby. And no need to fiddle with alot of knobs and switches.

The amp arrived with a crack on the top from being dropped by the shipper. Amp still checked out perfectly. Shipper is paying for a new shell.

I had a tube blow on my nomad that i had just bought from Mesa, I called them and without question or even asking me to return it, they shipped out a duplicate of my order--4 tubes (2 6L6's and 2 12AX7's when only one blew (6L6).

We chatted, I asked questions and ordered some overs and other stuff. Great people!

I am selling my nomad and getting me a F-100 or maybe an F-50 to set on 2 1/12 3/4 backs (the best cab).

This is a 2002 model that was traded at a local music store.A 2x12 Combo w/switchable 100/50 watt power,just like all other F-100 Combos. Has every feature it was intended to have.No extras needed. Plain Jane in appearance,more than adequate in substance.

I play a ES-135 and a LP Classic thru this one.With the two different type PU's,and 3 channel switching, the gammit of sounds is unbelievable. Use mostly Med gain,( which's like tring to bridle a Rhino)and it kicks. More power than I'll ever need.It doesn't "sound" like a Marshall,'cuz it aint supposed to. I plug straight,no pedals, so I cant say how they would work.However,the clean side is crystal to my ears,so there you go.

I only play for Church worship, so my Boss is expecting results.This equipment is well built,VERY heavy, and should uphold it's already good name.

Haven't had to use 'em.

My Boss arranged for me to purchase a $1300/less than yr old Amp for less than 1/2. How can I say ANYTHING bad about this amp. It still has all the tags on it! And it Rocks....WOW. My only concern is that quality amps are getting out of financial reach to vast majority of guitar players. It shouldn't cost $2-3,000 to get quality rigs.

2003 F-100 2x12 combo. I play from the classics to hard rock. I am writing this review after the first time I played out on it. It is taking the the place of my JCM 800 2x12 lead series combo. This Mesa has 3 channels. Clean, crunch, and a boosted crunch (contour). Very easy to figure out your sound. Seperate channels for EQ, reverb and volume, something my Marshall did not have. I wish there was a volume level for the contour channel. You get what it gives you. There are LED indicators on the footswicth for channels and contour, but no indicator for the reverb. I would like to know when the reverb is on. As far as power this amp does have it. I had no problem playing at band level. I like the removable wheels, a very nice feature. The amp also has a 100/60 watt toggle. I played the first gig at 100 watts(brighter sound). Overall, the features are simple. Find your sound and play.

I played my Les Paul and PRS through it. On the clean channel it was very bassy. Again, this was my first date with it. I recommend to turn the bass down 9-10 o'clock, gain 1 o'clock, treble 1 o'clock, mid 12 'clock, reverb 9 o'clock. When i kicked in the distorted channel it sounded nice. You will have no problem getting enough gain. No need for distortion pedals. I liked the setting of gain 1-2 o'clock, treble 1 o'clock, mid 1-2 o'clock, bass 9-10 o'clock, hardly any reverb. When the amp was on this channel it was much more quieter than my Marshall. You have alot of headroom on the gain. You can get a great clean and go into a over-bearing crunch.

Too early to tell. I have not sold my 1984 Marshall combo yet. I will keep both amps just in case.

I have worked with Marshall service centers and they have been great. I am hoping Mesa will blow them away because of the money i spent on this amp. In fact, my Mesa service center is where i get my Marshall serviced.

I have been playing for 25 years and have played through a Fender Reverb, Peavey 5150, and Marshall JCM 800 combos. The Mesa is my first amp i bought brand new. I glad I went to a Mesa. I love the sound and look of the amp. If something happened to it, i would go to a Mesa. Maybe, the 1x12 F-50. The F-100 is very heavy and i am not getting younger. Overall, this will probably be the last amp i buy. This would make my wife happy. I have a small fortune in band equipment.

2002 F 100. Channel switching, effects loop, separate tone controls. All tube 100 watts switchable to 60.

Played a Strat through it at the music store. Basically all I can say is this amp is a major disappointment. I'm a pro musician looking to upgrade my gear (I have a Fender Super Reverb reissue) and was interested in the F 100 for its power, features, and simplicity of circuit. The clean channel sounded decent but nothing to write home about, the high gain channel simply sucks. I don't know how to describe it except to say it sounds "gassy", like flubby with no presence. Lots of sustain but no tone there. Played through it for like an hour but couldn't get a good sound out of it. I thought it was my lack of Mesa experience and wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt, asked the sales clerk for a manual. Still no go. the distortion is "brutal" enough but that's basically what this amp sounds like- brutal. not in a good way. I then plugged into a used Mark II and there it was, the sound I was looking for.

Been playing for 16 years. Play for a living, own a Super Reverb reissue, Blues Deluxe 1x12, Parker Fly, Gibson SG Special. Compared this to a Mark 2, there was no comparison. This amp bites. Have played through Nomads, they sound good but I don't need all those features, basically what I want is a footswitchable clean/dirty amp that sounds great with enough power to get me through any gig. The F100 has plenty of power, I like the option to switch down to 60 watts, it sounded a little better when I did so. All in all, the Mesa Boogie name should not be printed on this amp.

This amp is one I bought to gig with. I have other amps that are much more expensive with NOS tubes hand built PTP wired etc... As a working musician playing blues i often have to play places that i just will not take my good gear to. So if this gets broken it is: a) not very expensive in comparison to my other gear. b) it is easily fixed or replaced. For me this amp does exactly what i need it to do. It has a half power switch but I think it really sounds better at full power. If you want a full list of features check out the boogie website. For me this amp is not a 10 in that it covers all the bases but it is a 10 for what i need it to do. I would not use this a jazz amp or any place that i need pristine clean. I overdrive the clean channel slightly for comping and run lead channel around 12.

I play strats and pauls. the way i use this amp it works well with both. i do find the amp to be kind of noisy at gigging volumes with singles but that is to be expected. I guess that one could get scooped metal out of this amp but i really couldn't tell you. This amp has old boogie tone reminiscent of .50 caliber+. In spite of having 2 vintage 30's, I do not find this amp to be overly bright in the upper mid range. But on the whole, it is a bright amp. The 100-watt power section is very dynamic and gives a lot of punch on both channels. This is a really stripped down amp for Mesa Boogie and doesn't have most of the useless and annoying "features" that most Boogies have (i.e. the solo switch, and all the class A/class AB crap. The two channels are pretty well matched and there is some common ground between them. In other words, the lead channel doesn't start at mega saturation. It has a real wide range. At gigging volumes with a Les Paul, I can coax some Robben Ford-ish kind of sounds. It also does that boogie thing, ala Santana "Smooth" breaking into harmonics. Great feedback, too!

There are really 2 stages of Mesa Boogie. The old amps up through the Class 3 were bullet-proof. There are some great stories out there about people dropping them off the back of trucks at 60 mph and they still turn on and function. The newer amps, however, are a different story. I have talked with professional repairmen as part of my research and they all have horror stories of Boogie's having really weird funky problems; some of which never really truly get fixed. I don't expect reliability issues with this amp because it is really simple. A lot of the aforementioned problems are due to very complicated circuitry used to facilitate all of their "features". I am not giving a rating at this time, as this amp is fairly new. But I will say that I have a very, very good repairman. So I am prepared.

Despite the hype, dealing with Mesa Boogie can be quite difficult. They have some very strange and unusual customer service policies, that I am not really at liberty to delve into as I am privy to some of this information through a friend who has some behind the scenes insight. All problems I have ever had with Mesa Boogie I have had resolved to my satisfaction but sometimes it has taken a lot longer than I wished. I give them a low rating not to take away from this amp, but I do not want to be misleading either.

BRAVO BRAVO MESA BOOGIE!
Mesa has been on a hard downslide for quite some time, in my opinion. At one point, these were boutique amps. But now, despite the hype, they are mass-produced and they have all of the problems associated with mass-produced amps. However, this amp is kind of a throw-back to the Caliber series. While I don't think it is really as good as an old 50 Cal or even some of the dual calibers, it is good and it is a great value for the money. As I mentioned before, the rest of my amps are boutique, literally hand-made/hand-built. Also, as I mentioned earlier, I bought this amp to have a "cheap" amp to take into the dives where I just will not take my other gear. I am pleasantly surprised just how good this amp really is.

Mine was built at the end of 2001. It is a 100 watt combo version of the new Mesa/Boogie F-series amps. 4 6L6 power tubes and 4 12ax7a preamp tubes. 2 channels and 3 modes (rhythm, lead, contour). Reverb, "pull bright" switch, effects loop. Twin 12" Celestion Vintage 30 speakers. Line out/phones jack. 100/60 watt power reduction switch. 3 button foot switch (channel, contour and reverb). External speaker jacks. Simple, basic package delivering the trademark Mesa/Boogie hi-gain sound and a very decent clean sound. Wish the FX loop was foot switchable and also that the foot switch had an LED to indicate if the reverb was on or off.

I use a Gibson ES-335 and a Rickenbacker 330/6 playing rhythm in a classic pop/rock band. To say the least, this amp delivers plenty of volume with 100 watts. The clean (rhythm) channel has an incredible amount of headroom, considering the distortion available in the overdrive (lead) channel. Lots of body to the clean tone. With the "pull bright" switch activated and the EQ set appropriately, can produce some startling Fender-ish clean tone - maybe not quite Fender clean, but very good nonetheless. In the overdrive (lead) channel, the amount of gain and sustain is amazing. Plenty of depth and character, without getting muddy. When in contour mode, the tone takes on the modern mid-cut tone with yet even more gain. Being a 100 watt amp, the distortion at high volumes - however musical - can make your ears bleed. I use the channels and modes the following way and it works very well for my application: channel 1 - clean rhythm and lead (with a volume pedal) - it can get a little crunchy with the gain dialed up or with the volume pushed. channel 2 (lead mode) - crunch rhythm and channel 2 (contour) - lead with creamy, violin like sustain and distortion. This amp is super quiet with no signal and the stock tubes were A-OK: no microphonics or pops.

No breakdowns in three months of weekly gigs. I always bring spare tubes and fuses, but haven't needed them yet. Don't need a spare amp. I used to have a reissue Vox AC-30 that would fail about once every other gig - this is bullet proof by comparison.

Mesa/Boogie is well known for their outstanding customer service and their reputation is legit. Phone calls are returned promptly and their people on the phones are very knowledgeable and friendly. No need for service or repairs yet, so can't comment on that. 1 yr warranty and 6 month warranty on tb

I have been playing guitar since 1985, mainly as a rhythm guitarist in classic rock and oldies bands. If it was stolen, I'd get a new one because it kicks ass. I compared it against the new Fender Pro Tube Twin Reverb (100w 2x12) which has a great clean channel, but a pretty flat overdrive channel. I also compared it against the Marshall TSL602 (great distortion, but flat clean channel). I checked out the TSL122, but did not want to spend $1600. The only real negative about this amp is that it is one heavy bitch (weighs 75+ pounds), but thankfully is equipped with removable casters.