Mesa/Boogie F-100 212 Combo

everything you need in an easy basic setup
gain, bass, treble, mid, reverb and master,
there is a bright pull switch on the clean channel that adds more high mids and treble this is my favourite switch !
you can change it from 100 watts to 60 watts at the flick of a switch.
there are 2 channels clean and dirty aswell as a contour channel which scoops the mids , i personally didn't like the distortion channel but the contour channel was awesome ! no need for any other amp this is the holy grail of metal tone !!!

the sound quality is out of this world, cleans are a cross between a fender twin and a marshall plexi, but with more bottom end.
distortion is amazing on the contour channel, blues on the distortion are smooth yet grunty !! cool!!
not noisey at all,
a really excellent amp to have behind you.
i think this is the loudest amp i've ever owned ! and i've owned quite a few amps

spot on ! not a problem other than replacing valves which is a given , and that tone has to come from somewhere!!
built like a tank and weighs a ton !
very well put together !

cool helpful guys on the phone, email is slow and if you get a reply you'll be lucky

couldn't ask for a better amp really, loud enough to kill, versatile enough to not need anything else ever and built like a tank so that it ain't gonna break anytime soon.

Amp was built in 01'. I play metal and 80's rock so I switch from clean to high gain constantly and this combo does both very well.This is a two chan. amp.I like my amps simple,this amp is dead on in that respect.I use this amp in the studio and for gigs.

I've owned MarkIII's before and this combo is almost a clone of the markIII except it's easier to dial in.It is noisy up around halfway on the vol. but up that far and you've hit metal paydirt on the dirty chan. with contour.It is a bit dry though.I use a digitech 2101 artist for my band and plug straight in when we do 80's cover.You'd be hard pressed to find a more versatile and aggressive combo for the money.

Over a year and nothing but a tube change,you have to watch this baby,it seems very power hungry and will act up a little if it's sharing too much power at the same time on the same strip.I use it with no backup.

Mesa=Excellent help!

I would never hesitate to buy this amp again,I was very uneducated about this amp at first,I'm glad I listened to my gut.As far as metal goes,I'd put it up against just about any amp out there,and the cleans can rival fender.I wish it had dual front inputs and thats about it.

This amp is what you make it,it's a straight tone monster with very simple user friendly controls and features.2 chan. With all the power and the glory you'll need for small to big venues.Nuff' said!

Let me first start out with this statement "if you give this bad boy a bad review, then you bought it for the wrong reason"! I play metal and a little classic and 80's hair,and this amp is my grail.The clean is great if you use the right pickups,the clean channel,and the right axe,see how easy that is?The distortion is bar none here,I've owned rectifiers,markIII's,and JCM's and this baby shuts them out.

I've never had a problem with it,ever!

Mesa support is ranked with the best,I've dealt with them many times and have always been treated with respect.

Been playing close to 5 years,I don't even like to think of what I'd do if this thing came up missing.I love the simplicity and downright raw and aggressive stance this amp shows me,I've played all the big brands,most seem to have gimmicks and add ons to achieve different sounds,not with this one!It stands alone and gives exactly what it gets.Wouldn't change it for the world!

I bought this unit used, manufactured in August of 2003. 2 channels plus contour, a clean (you can get a good Fenderish shimmer if you take some time to find it) and a loud California crunch distortion channel with contour a scooped lead boost is added. 3 button foot control(chanel, contour, reverb)parallel effects loop, and a recording output. An awsome looking grey leather suede covering instead of the usual black tolex, heavy duty casters, and a cover included with the amp.
Not a complicated amp to operate. Plug and play, it may take some playing time to dial in the sound to your liking, but when you find the sweeeeet spot, you'll love it.
This amp has plenty of power (100 w)for the amature musician like me or a pro playing plenty of medium sized rooms. You can also cut it down to 60 watts for smaller venues. This allows for more tube saturation and the distortion channel gets a bit muddy at this setting, but turning down the bass control a bit corrects this issue.
The f-100 is a 100 watt tube drive amp using 4 x 6L6 power tubes and 4 x 12AX7 preamp tubes.
I use this amp in various bar/club settings on average between 100 and 1600 in capacity. Plenty of power to cover small to medium size gigs, mabey even larger gigs, although I have never played at larger sized venues.

Fenderish cleans (you have to spend some time to find this sound)to the dirtiest crunch distortion, using a '98 deluxe strat with lace sensors, and a '91 strat plus. The amp gets a bit noisy on the crunch/distortion channel when you crank up past 7is, but still sounds good. This amp will rock out the 70's - current rock with ease and do some metal as well.

I've had this for about a year, and no problems what so ever. I gig with it about every 3 weeks or so, trying to keep the leather suede in good shape (I am kinda picky about the coverings on my amps). I only bring extra tubes to my gigs just in case of a tube failure, no need to bring an extra amp. This amp has never let me down, not even having a tube issue. Just have it regularly maintained(check up)and you'll be using this for as long a you can play.

I emailed Mesa/Boogie about obtaining information on my specific amp, they replied with a sh*t load of info in less than 1 day! Amazing response.
Never needed any repairs, 5 year warrenty, can't complain. I bought it used, and Mesa factory says they will still cover anything for my amp for up to another year!!How awsome is this!!

I've been playing in cover bands for about 15 years (this is just a hobby for me)through various amp heads, cabs and combos. I mainly play the classic rock and '80s hair band stuff. Currently set up using '98 fender strat deluxe, '91 strat plus, line 6 pod xt live, mesa boogie bottle rocket tube distortion, mesa f-100 combo. I did not compare it to anything else, I've been there done that with many amps and set ups, I'll keep this for a while and pass it on to someone else, just like my other amps of the past.
The only other features I wish this amp had is the adjustable bias switch like the recto's have so you can choose to run the 6L6's or El34's, and a master volume over both of the channels.

I,m a plug it in and play it guy, I hate dragging along pedals and effects, so the simplicity of this amp is great. There's alot of reviews on this amp, so read alot. Can you believe I owned this amp for over two weeks before I relized the clean channel has a push pull gain knob!?? ( what an freakin Idiot!!) I jumped through the ceiling to go see if that made it the greatest amp ever But.........
anyway there aint much to fiddle with here

If you like a fender brightness and twang and reverb, then go get a fender! When I first got this amp the clean channel sounded bland Kinda dryish not much feeling, seemed pretty useless, doesn't get much bite, turn the master up and the gain down and its real clean so so reverb not bad though! Turn the gain up and master down and its real clean too, maybe a ever so slight crunch (when loud) acually sounds really cool..... But.....
The pull knob does give this amp a better trebley tone but its not to drastic ,,I just leave it out! like I said I don't use effects so maybe the clean channel is where effects sound best???
OK the gain channel is where it's at for me! With the gain all the way down the amp is clean. a way better sounding clean than the clean channel. Has balls, and warm fuzzy ones at that. No mater wich way all the knobs face I just cant find a bad tone ..(well I guess it can get to heavy)., So, with the gain and master knobs alone this thing is everything it is. And It's all good ...very good They should have had the clean channel have the Contour foot controll!!! it only works on the gain side. If they did that they could say it has 4 channels!!!WHOOOAA

Haven't had it long enough to really say!

?Huh? don't know

Me play long time!.. This is just a shut up and play amp! no bells and whistles doohikey or doodads and It will clear the house if ya crank it. The clean side is not me, maybe acustics? Or Jazz I dont own a hollowbody maybe that could be it! The gain side has about everything you need. clean to..... yep you know it! and it's so easy to find it.
I own, or owned fenders guitars amps vintage marshalls, les paul, sgjr, Vox and more...ALL GUITARS will sound good!,. If I had to wish for something this amp had, I guess I'd say, more brightness. It's ballsy. The best sounding amp I've owned It just doesn't have a bad tone in it, wish I had it 20 years ago

I've owned this beast for about 1 year, and I find it to be quite versatile. I play all sorts of stuff from Hard Rock to Country to Jaz and it covers the spectrum flawlessly. The 60/100 watt switch is ideal for various venu size. Although I choose to keep it on 100 watts for more "warmth", the 60 watt also sounds pretty good. The removable casters are also a great feature! This no frills design is perfect the way it is and I would change a thing about it.

Great sounding Clean and Dirt. The Lead is quite violent and allows on to shred like it's 1985. I feel like the Effects loop could be a little noisy but the problem is easily fixed with a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2. (No noise or Hum) I have to main axes; a '97 Standard US Strat and a '71 Les Paul Deluxe. The Paul sounds like a raving animal through it with the lead on but doesn't show my more versitility. However, the Strat is my plug of choice with the F-100. For some reason, it sounds fat, angry, sensitive, and punchy as hell. In fact, the amp makes the strat sound better than it has ever sounded due to its sonic sensitivity. The main thing about this amp is that it will probably turn you into a "feel player" rather than a constant shredder. It hides no mistakes! I have a 69 Twin Reverb amp that with a Marshall Shred pedal (without contour and 70% gain) sounds deadly and allows mistakes to be washed out. The F-100 is a reality check for those who do not wish to "play" every note. It takes you back to basics and encourages finess rather than flash!

Two words; Sherman Tank!

I had a concern about my effects loop wich I later found was my problem. I called the company, it rang twice, I got hold of someone who directed my call and was immediately answered by the tech who walked me through the troubleshooting. The Leather handle on the amp was coming apart at the stitching. I called, same routine, and I recieved a new handle that same week, without question or scepticism. I have never in my life dealt with a company with such an outstanding reputation.

I tip my hatt to Mesa/Boogie and the F-100. I was looking for an amp with a great clean and it was between this one and a Rivera. Both were outstanding but the company's reputation is what ultimately influenced my purchase. Bottom, I am now a Bona Fide Boogieman untuil death do us part. Cheers and enjoy!

basic run-down:

100 Watts, Class A/B Power / 4x 6L6, 4x 12AX7
Fixed Bias for Consistent, Maintenance Free Performance
Half Power Switch (100/60 Watt Power Switch)
2 Fully Independent Channels, 3 Footswitchable Sounds (Channel 1, 2 & 2 w/Contour)
Independent Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, Reverb & Master Controls per Channel
Pull Bright (Channel 1)
Contour Switch (Channel 2)
Long Tank Spring Reverb
Parallel FX Loop w/Mix Control
Record / Headphone Output
Silent Record Mute Switch
3 Button Footswitch (Channel 1/2, Reverb & Contour)
Slip Cover



This amp has very simple features. I think mesa is trying to maintain a certain level of sound purity with this design. The EQ's are really cool. When you adjust one tone knob (the bass for instance) the others (mid and treble) adjust to compliment it. The reverb has a nice beefy classic sound on the clean side; it is a little limited on the dirty channel, I'm guessing to reduce feedback.
I use the headphone at home and it's OK. You don't get the true sound through the headphones (no emulation); I think the 6L6 tubes and V30 speakers add alot to the sound, especially when playing dirty.
The effects loop is adjustable and works great. The effects get put in after the pre-amp section and then gets mixed back in. Very nice.

The only thing missing is a button for the effects loop on the footswitch. I guess you can use the footswitches on the effect pedals themselves, depending on home much stuff you're trying to hook in. The footswitch is pretty good otherwise, it has channel 1/2, contour (channel 2 only), and reverb; there's no pauses, clicks, or pops when you switch. If it had an effects loop button and a little more reverb on channel 2, I'd give it a 10 on features.

Let me start by saying this amp has a unique sound. It is very robust and rich. You can defininetly here the tube harmonics and they sound beautiful. The dirty channel is great - very gritty and alive sounding, the word powerfull comes to mind but falls short of describing the way it can cut through anything. It's a very full, live sound and fills the room without creating much (if any) deadspots.

One guitarist (Dave) tried my rig and took issue with some things (of course this guy criticizes everything). I think the problem he had was just the brutal honesty of the F-100. He likes to shred and apparently he likes a setup with more compression (cheater!). If you don't nail every note on this rig it shows. If someone did have a problem with this, a compression/sustain pedal would fix it easily. Also, if you want a really crunchy, modern, saturated distortion, a good pedal will work nicely with this amp.

My rhythm guitarist (Garland) is a Marshall man. He's got a DSL JCM2000 100W half stack. Its distorted channel sounds a little creamier, smoother and more compressed than mine. It may be better for some things, but i'm sorry, it just can't do what the Mesa does. Mine's got alot more BALLS!!!

My Les Paul has stock 498r/500t pickups. They seem to compliment the amp quite well. It's great for jazz, blues, classic rock, and metal. But like I said, if you like to shred while barely hitting some of the notes, you might want to add a compressor and/or a distortion box (so what, big deal!).

I've only had this for 3 months and so far so good. It's been on one long road trip, several local gigs and back and forth from practice many times. I try to be careful with it (tubes are fragile). I did notice that something came loose in one of the 6L6 tubes. It's a little donut shaped thingy on a stem. I asked an electrical engineer what it was and he said it's a noise filter that catches stray electromagnetic interference. It's not critical as far as function goes and I haven't noticed any extra noise so I'm not going to mess with it. If a tube does have any problems I won't hold it against the amp, tubes do go out from time to time.

I haven't used much customer support. I didn't get my warranty documents with the amp and contacted customer support about it. They sent me my warranty forms right away. I couldn't get through on the phone but they answered my E-mail pretty quick (I didn't leave a message on there answering machine because I was at work when I called so I don't know how they are about phone messages). I think E-mail is the way to go when dealing with Mesa service. You can find the address on their website.

I've been playing for 23 years (since I was 9) and gone through alot of equipment, mostly cheap junk. I finally found my dream guitar rig. I'm playing a Gibson Les Paul Classic through this F-100 and it's a match made in heaven. I think this Amp is worth every penny. One of the bands I'm in plays 60's punk rock (psychedelic garage). I let my lead singer/guitarist use it at a show. He plays a Fender Jaguar and was using a Behringer distortion pedal through the clean side of the Mesa. His leads sounded unbelievable - with the sweetest overtones and harmonics that seemed to stretch out to infinity. It was spine tingling.
The other band I'm in does hard rock 70's - 90's. We practice at DLP rehearsals in Dallas and visitors stop in the jam room pretty frequently. Everyone is totally impressed with my rig (except for that Dave guy, who was only partly impressed).

Before I start I need give you all a disclaimer. I'm not one of these guys who sits around in my basement analyzing every type of bolt and screw this thing is made of. So if I don't seem anal-retentivly technicaly exact and I make a few mistake, you can Bite Me. This is just my observation and OPINION of this product.

I bought this amp combo in late 2004. The features are pretty much the same as the previous submitted reviews. This was the first mesa amp I had ever purchased.
Features I wish it had was a third channel, and an effects on and off switch.
It was loud enough for me for the type of music I like to play, which is blues, hard rock, and heavy metal.

Soung quality at first was great.
The clean channel or green channel or first channel or any other ways some people want to put it, sounded crisp and warm depending on how I wanted to EQ it.
I liked the low end distortion this thing put out on the 2nd channel or red channel or the distorted channel, however you want to put it. Once again depending on how you EQ it, you could either get a warm or crisp type of distorion.
However as I played it more, I starting noticing a popping noise when I would switch between the two channels. It wasn't a problem at first until the popping sound started to increase in volume, even with the master volumes turned all the way down. After more playing I noticed a humming noise that wasn't there before. I thought maybe it was my pickups, my guitar cable, my wall outlet or the tubes non of these were the case. Not only did I notice the hum, but my guitar teacher, and two reputable repair technicians in the Seattle area noticed it too.
Now this is were the Sounds and Reliability review areas blend together.
After a year of playing through this amp at the recomended factory settings a horrible crackling sound could be heard on either channels. The more I played the louder it got. I had to keep turning down the volume and the gain to alleviate the problem. Eventually the sound was turned all the way down.

The first F100 I purchased was the floor display model and lasted less than 30 days. It was the horrible crackling sound. So I returned it to Guitar Center and they replaced it with a brand new F100 right out of the box. The 2nd F100 lasted just barely a year before it gave me the problems as I observed in the Sounds section.

When my wife ordered a beenie from these guys she said they were extremely kind and helpful. She was right. When I called I left a message and the rep called me back in about 24 hrs. He told me to take into an authorized repair shop. Unfortunatley it stayed in the repair shop for 4 months before it was sent to Mesa for additional repair. A month later it was back at the repair shop ready for me to take it home. I tested it out at the repair shop. The crackling noise was gone, but now the hum was louder. Also there was pinging sound when I would switch channels. As I continued to play the loud popping noise was back.

I don't recommend this amp. I highly recommend other Mesa products not only for their tone but also for their customer support. I will always be fan of Mesa just not this amp.
Again I just want to say that I'm not a numbers spects kind of person. This was my personal experience with this specific amp. So if I left out a specific name, title or definition, I don't care I have better things to do than count how many threads are on a screw.

the one i have is a 2005 model. two channels plus the contour on the lead channel. it is SUPER clean. the only bad thing i can think of about it is that the BRIGHT function isn't footswitchable.

i don't know why this amp is getting the bad reviews it has been getting. all you have to do is read the manual to understand how the EQ works, because it really isn't the same as other amps. this beast was designed for tone, and it definitely sounds best at louder volumes. i actually tested this amp twice before i bought it; once before i read the manual and once after. it made all the difference in the world.

the half power switch is pretty handy too. you can push channel two a little harder at 60 watts and get a nice, fat overdriven sound without people hearing you down the block (although neighbors still may complain).

i have a greg bennett avion with duncan designed pickups and an esp MH 1000 with an emg 81 in the bridge and an 85 in the neck. on the esp, if i wish to use the neck pickup, i have to roll back on the bass just a hair. this thing will do blues all the way up to metal, regardless of what ANYONE will tell you. the clean channel rivals the jazz chorus 120 in my opinion, especially on the bright setting. the only thing i'm going to do to improve the tone and take it over the top is buy a BBE sonic stomp. greg bennett himself taught me that little trick at a clinic we held. thanks, greg!

i haven't had any problems. boogie makes some good stuff, so i'm not worried. if you're chewing through tubes, you are doing something wrong. i really stress that it is important to read the prodcut manual before you operate this amplifier. while i awaited mine, i took time to download one and read it cover to cover several times.

like i said, they make good stuff. they'll take care of me if i need it. ESPECIALLY since i work for a boogie dealer, which never hurts anything ;-)

after nine years of playing, i've finally found 'the one.' i've owned five other amps, and while all good in their own way, this one is going to hang out for a long time. i'd replace it as soon as i could put up the dough if i had to. expensive but worth it. the only reason i give it a 9 is because of the forementioned footswitching desire i have. with the cocoa bronco finish and tan grille, this thing really stands out. do yourself a favor and save a little cash to get something from boogie. they have something for everyone; i tried mavericks (right as they discontinued them), recto-verbs, dual and triple recs, nomads, marks, and every f series amp and head. from jazz to metal, boogie can cover you.

I have a late 2003 model. I play mostly rock, I like emo and punk when Im at home but my live stuff is mostly rock. The F-100 has been able to adapt to all of these styles with ease. The amp has two channels but the lead channel has a contour switch that scoops the mids and gives a more compressed sound. I like all of the features, this is my first tube amp so I wanted something simple and that is exactly why the F-100 was designed. The only thing I would have liked to have seen on this amp would be a bias selector that allowed for the use of EL34's as well as the standard 6L6's, I also would like to have seen the powere amp section be assignable to the differnet channels(I like to run the clean at full power and the lead at 1/2 power) however too many extra features would have changed the nature of this amp. The 1/2 power switch is excellent and although it really doesn't majorly affect tht output levels it does great things for the headroom. My rating of 8 is only because the amp has fewer features than most Mesas but then again that was the idea behind it in the first place.

I love the clean. Most people prefer Mesas because of their lead sound but in my opinion the clean tone of this amp is its strength. I use a big apple strat with two humbuckers and the clean sounds are exactly what I ahve wanted for some time. The lead channel however sound great but I would have preferred a more compressed sound it sound gravelly and throaty - dont get me worng it is a unique sound and definitely all "mesa" but dont get this amp confused with the dual rectifier which has a much tighter sound. This amp is capable of many sounds and would work well for a cover band - I think the contour switch is great for switching between a more modern sound and a more loose vintage sound. I however was looking for a signature sound; in a way I got it with its clean channel but I still just cant quite find what I want from the lead. That is not to say the lead is bad, on the contrary, it is unique and bold and will cut through the mix like a knife, I just wanted something slightly different with my lead and I dont think there is a single amp that can meet both my clean tone needs and lead needs in one package - my solution will be to run two amps as A/B the F-100 for lead and either a Framus Cobra or the trusty Dual Rectifier for my lead.

This thing is a tank. Mesas never break down. I have replaced tubes and fuses but that is to be expected. However, just like any boutique tube amp it should be taken care of and not just tossed around bya n idiot roady - although I bet it would hold up if it was.

Never needed them.

I have been playing for 10 years. I have used many amps (line6, peavy, crate, marshall) they are all trash compared to Mesas. I would be sad if it were stolen but it is insured and I would go out and buy a new one that very same day. I love this amp because of the clean, I remind you that this is my opinion, but I had a sound in my head that I never found until I heard the clean on this amp because I play clean about half of the time this piece of gear is indespensable to me. I will continue my search for the holy grail of lead sounds and I know mesa is a great place to look for it.

Mine is a Mesa F100 2003 model. This amp is so versatile and suits my different syles. From Blues > Rock > Classic rock > Heavy metal. It has 2 chanels, Clean and Dity. It also has a contour channel which contours on how you attack the strings. This amp is pure POWER. From 60W to 100W, you can select whether what power you would like to unleash.

You guys know the other features, go to the Mesa website.

I mainly use a Gibson Les Paul with 490R/498T pickups. I was blown away by the clean channel of this amp. It really holds its own. Also, you have the "bright switch" for that fender cleans.

Man, the distortion channel of this amp is awesome. It is wicked! Sometimes i don't even have to use my effets pedal to get the evil distortion that it has. Must be the 2 V30 Black shadows.

It is really not noisy at all.

BREWTALITY!!!!!

This amp is a tank!!! if the marines go to war using an amp...this would be their arsenal for annihilation.

Maybe this will take forever to break down. Have it for a few years now and no problem at all. Nada!

You can't break this thing. It will break you first before it does.

If there's anything that can beat Mesa Boogie's customer service, then i will start going to church.

5 year transferable warranty...can't get any better than that.

I've been playing with this monster for over a year now and this thing is wicked!! One of the best combo amps that Mesa made. I really don't know why some people who gave review ahead of me (never even owned) gave disappointing reviews.

You just can't go to GC or your local music store, try it out and give your judgement. You have to own it and use it a lot to be able to critique this amp.

Also, you must learn how to dial in different tones that would suit you best. If you don't have the patience to do this, then just get a solid state amp which is Plug and Play.

Warning: this amp is not good for novice musicians. But great for well seasoned ones.

This amp rules!!!

This was a 2002 model with V30's 2 channels with seperate reverb on each channel(very nice) bright switch on channel 1 I really liked the simplicity and layout the 60/100 switch was handy too

I played mostly guitars with humbuckers les paul with burstbuckers, les paul with rio grandes, les paul deluxe, prs custom 22 with 3way toggle and coil tap, and a strat. my effects consist of a mt2, keeley DS-1 ultra, sparkle drive, Keeley BD-2 phat mod, boss dd3, guitar exciter. The clean sound this amp delivers is very good not like a super reverb or twin reverb but just as good in a diffrent way. the clean is really warm it can be jazzy to nashville twang. Channel one is where it stayed most of the time. I play constantly 3 times a week or more every week and this setup lets me play whatever the situation calls for. country to jazz, classic rock to new metal. The amp has tons of sustain. I was not impressed with the distortion it seemed weak to me even with diffrent tubes

This is were I have my issues with this amp. I gigged at least 3 times a week sometimes more for the first 4 months no problem. then i had gig just after sound check a fuse blew i put in another and bareley got through the night before it blew another. I had to have a set of tubes imediatly and all i could get was groove tubes i hate groove tubes. I put them in and it ate them too it started getting microphonic sounding i changed preamp tubes still squealing. i took it to get it repaired in nashville i got it back with the same problem but they did fix a noisy pot for $85. I put another set of tubes in new mesa 12ax7's and sovtek 6l6's and still had the squeal I called mesa they said it must be the preamp tubes and sent me another set that didnt fix it the squeal it was only on channel 2 so I bought the keeley bd2 and ds1 and let it be. I had to use it i was consantly playing, then it got worse and one day had no sound then the sound just came back the reverb would get really dirty sounding if i turned it on i called mesa again the said it had to be preamp tubes they sent me 3 preamp tubes i put them in it still was broke i called and i sent it back. mesa called 2 weeks later and said one of the reverb cables had a short in it and everything was just fine they sent it back to me guess what it still squealed. I called back again they said it sounded like a preamp tube i told them i have 20 preamp tubes lying around and they all do it but the sent me special preamp tubes that didnt fix it either so i had to sell it. it did make it through hundreds of gigs and reherseals and never left me stranded at a gig i did have to work on it at few shows and did have to play an outdoor gig in 60 watt mode because it ate another power tube

The best part of the amp was customer support Tim Mckee is a super guy and did his best to help me. he did not charge me for the tubes that i got from the company even though they werent in warranty and i wasnt charged to ship the amp to mesa he had ups pick it up. This is the guy all other customer support people should be judged by. Thank you very much Tim

This is a great amp I believe i just got a lemmon an amp like this should last a lifetime. I had a lot of problems but i belive overall it is a quality amp. I used this thing alot.

I gave the earlier review about my amp blowing a tube the first day and said I would give another review once I got it working so here goes...I like the simplicity of this amp since I use a lot of high-end effect pedals I appreciate the straight forward clean/distortion channel.

I was using a les paul custom with classic 57 pickups. I'm now running an american strat with stock pickups (i took out the texas specials I had put in, they sounded bad) The amp does not have as much hum as any of my marshalls so it seems to work out better in studios and live venues with nice pa systems. The amp has a pretty big range of distortions once you get to tweaking with them...the recommended settings are pretty dead on. The clean is very warm although I'm used to Fender reverb so it seems a little dry. Sounds good at a higher volume like most amps. This isn't a "metal" amp so if that is your forte' skip this one. Shredding just doesn't sound good through it.

Like I said it blew a tube the first time I turned it on and I had to wait a week to get it going but have had no problems since and I have been across a good part of the country with it stuck in a bouncy u-haul. My rating is without regard to the initial problem which I am hoping was just a fluke.

Again, I wish they were open at least five days a week. They were quick to send me replacement tubes but offered no apology for my hassles which would have been nice, but hey, they are Mesa Boogie.

I have been touring for about eight years and own a number of amps because I worked for Musicians friend for a few years. I still choose to play my Fender Deville when I am alone but the F100 works better in a band/live setting. My other guitarist plays through a Marshall TSL with 4 12's and it can get every bit as loud. I would probably not buy it again if it were lost but I do like the amp a lot. People complain about the weight which is what I love about this amp..it is very solid and has insane castors so you can load things on top and roll it into the club with ease. Nothing I really hate about it, I feel it was money well-spent. I wish the footswitch connected on the right side instead of the left because the cable runs across you if you use a pedalboard and the power chord is a little on the short side.

This amp has very basic features. Clean, overdrive and a contour to add that extra crunch. This 100 watt 2x12 combo has a switch to go back and forth from 60 watts to 100 watts...very handy. Control knobs are simple and tidy, however there is no separate channel or tone knobs for the contour disortion. Which means you can't really go from metal disortion to bluesy distortion or classic rock distortion without adjusting distortion on the amp.

I play all kinds of styles of music, with all kinds of guitars. Mainly a washburn limited edition (HH) and a standard american strat. Both guitars sound quite well although with the fender plugged in there is something lacking... This amp is meant for rocking out!!! It can pull off blues and classic rock and does have a suprisingly nice clean tone, but for all intensive purposes this is by far a hardrock/metal amp. This amp has great distortion...among the best I've ever played. However this amp was a huge pain in the ass for noise problems. Rattling, buzzing, hissing....you name it. I was told by mesa repair guy that this was due to the high power and high gain properties of the unit. I thought that was crap, it made way too much noise...so much noise infact that I had to return it. The music store first offered me a brand new one but I played it in the sound room for like and hour and it made huge amounts of noise aswell so my problem was not an isolated one ...too much noise for my liking. So if you are looking for a versatile amp with great disortion and arent planning on spending the dough on the f-100's bigger brothers and can get by the noise this amp would be great for you. However if you dont like noise and are looking for a amp with an awesome clean channel...STAY AWAY from the f-100

I owned this amp 7 months before I returned it. I took it back to the dealer 3 times for repairs because they couldnt get rid of the noise. I didn't have to spend any money but they did have to replace a preamp tube. This amp always worked for me but made lots of noise.

Mesa repair guy was excellent. He explained alot of stuff to me and did warranty repairs no problem. I never had to deal with the company themselves, just the local mesa repair guy. If you buy this amp from a liscensed dealer you should have no problems getting repairs done quickling, properly and often for FREE!!

I owned this amp for 7 months and played it at a few gigs and several rehearsals. Although this amp has great distortion and a surprisingly warm clean tone (way better than marshall clean) I had to return it because it made way to much damn noise! I personally would not buy this amp again. I originally chose this amp because it was very versatile and was very loud..great for gigs! I do wish this amp had a second distortion channel so I could have two totally different distortion sounds ready to go, but the contour feature is quite cool!

The layout is very simple, but it has everything it needs; I like having an amp I can simply plug into and sound amazing on. The only thing i would have liked to see on this amp that isnt there is a solo boost, like what is on the rectifiers. Other than that, this amp has everything else it needs. Lots of volume, good for any style, and i like the 100w/60w switch. reverb is nice, very clean and natural sounding.

im using a modded music man with a Dimarzio Fred in the bridge and a PAF in the neck, both are tappable. i mostly play rock and metal, but i am also in a band playing everything from Horace Silver to Ronnie Earl to The Allmans to The Counting Crows to the Dixie Chicks, this amp can do it all, and amazingly well. The only thing i dont particularly like is at really low volumes, low notes are very muddy and almost broken up. im not taking off any points for this though because the volume needs to be really low, so low that it is pointless to have it so low.

have you ever heard of someone having a problem with a Boogie?
Me neither.

Havent had to deal with them. i know there is a warranty, but i dont even know how long it is or what exactly it covers. im not too worried though.

Ive been playing about 7 years now, and i think this is the most perfect amp i could have gotten. It has that amazing Mesa/Boogie tone all over it, for about half the price of most of thier other products. when i was shopping for an amp, i was pretty much dead set on getting a dual rec head and 4x12 cab, but after hearing the F-100, i had to have it. i did a side by side, and in my opinion it blew the rectifier out of the water; just as loud and ballsy as the 4x12(as far as i was concerned, but those of you who can notice a difference, it is very easy to get a 2x12 extention cab),smoother lead, reverb, it cleans up much nicer at lower volumes and gain settings, and it was a lot easier to dial in a good sound than any other boogie ive ever tried. the only thing i miss is the solo output, but i will just run a volume pedal thru the fx loop to take care of that. anyway, this is an amazing amp which i would reccomend to anyone in the market for a high end amp, it is just as good if not better than almost anything out there, i love it.

I think everyone else has covered the features. I like the features of the amp. It has everything needed in an amp. Stomp boxes can always be used for variety. It has more than enough power. I leave mine on 60 most of the time. 100 watts is too much for most places.

I use an 86 G&L Skyhawk as my main guitar and a 92 LP with a flamed maple top as a backup. I am getting an American Strat soon though. The amp was rather harsh when I first bought it. I've had it for about a year now, and it's broken in some. I leave a compressor on all the time to smooth out the tone. The clean is decent, but it has alot of lows. The OD channel is also decent. The gain goes from nothing to alot, so you have to play with it some. I leave it low and use a stomp box to fill in the rest. The OD channel has alot of mids. Overall, you have to play with the EQ's and gains on both channels to find a good setting. I never use the contour switch on the OD. It makes it too harsh. I leave my gain on about 3 and use the neck PU for a good blues sound. A good stomp box will give a good drive for Rock. The low end isn't tight on this amp. It sounds muddy on low-note solos. It just doesn't have very much bite down there.

I use this amp without a backup. It had a bad hum in it for a while, but I think most of it was humidity. It eventually went away. I've only changed one pair of tubes in it in a year, but I don't run the volumes very high due to smaller venues.

I have a 3 year warranty and I think 90 days or so on the tubes. I've never had to deal with customer support, but I think it would be hard to mess with. The company is in California, and I live in Georgia. a certified service center has to do the repair if needed.

I've been playing for about 5 years now. I play different styles, but mostly praise and worship with blues and rock style. I use the visual sounds stomp boxes and like them. I might be putting this amp on the back burner before too long. I'd rather have a Fender. I've played them and like them better. probably a Concert Reverb because I want the tight tone of the 4-10's. This is a decent amp, but I don't think it's worth the price. It takes time to break it in and dial in the right settings. I do like the features though.

Like all good amps there are very few knobs so you don't have to worry about coming across some hideous 80's metal guitar sounds

I was using a les paul custom shop with classic 57's and I played on it for about an hour in the store. I was bored with the clean as I'm coming from playing a Fender Deville that has a really warm clean sound. I like the distortion quite a bit because of the sustain and the cool feedback sounds you can get.

Well I liked it enough to buy it, however the f-ing thing is now sitting in my living room for the third straight day...a tube blew the second I turned it on for the first time so I've never heard it in my house.

I give them a seven because they are only open 4 days out of the week...kind of lame...I bought the amp on Friday...it never worked...have to wait until Monday to even find out what they will do...It's my understanding they will send me new tubes because of the six month warranty...nonetheless I will have my amp for at least a week or two before it even works after dropping nearly $1,500 on the thing

we shall see if I ever get it working

The other reviewers pretty much have the specs covered. i think the features are great, the price is good too. could have more options, none more needed though.

I went to the local guitar shop to give this amp a serious test. that meant over an hour in the ioslation room with my custom tele, playing everything from jazz, to classic rock, to metal, country, etc. I've searching for a loud, professional, versitle amp. i play jazz, both solo with an archtop, and in trios and quartets. clean sound is very important.
the clean sound on this amp was decent, however, there was some strange buzz. my tele has kinman humbuckers, copper shielding EVERYWHERE, shielded wire, and shielding paint. the room had no computers or neon lights. the noise wasn't very loud, but annoying.
The clean sound rates a 6 for sounding fairly bland, and having the noise issue.
Hving read the reviews here, i thought the overdrive/distortion channel would be perfect for me. i'm a very technical player,lot's of cluster chords, harmonics, and fast runs. i need good definition in an overdrive channel. the music i play isn't metal, and i rarely use much gain, (my previous set up was a 60's bandmaster with a eq peal for overdrive.)
the sounds of this channel were highly disapointing. they were grainy, undefined, mid-heavy, and one dimensional. i'm a professional guitarist, and have spent a lot of time in studios, so i know how to eq amps. i spent an hour running through settings, even the ones suggested in the manual. i tried out the amp with ales paul custom, to just see if regular humbuckers would help. they did not. there was plenty of distortion availble, lot's of sustain, but i couldn't bring myself to like the amp. i was very let down.
the distortion rating-4

don't own it, wouldn't own it, but i've had plenty of boogie in the past, it's very well made stuff.

mesa is a great company to deal with.

This amp promises a lot, and fails to deliver. It's 100 watt setting my have something to do with that. the f-50 was incomparably better. however, the amp i fell in love with was the rectover head. far better tones all around, better looks, higher stand of construction.
i never thought i would like the rectifier sound, thought it was for young rich kids who covered sloppy playing with sloppy distortion. but the sparkling cleans, girty overdrive, harmonically rich crunch and violin sustain were all there... so much for presuppositions.
BTW, i tested TWO f-100's to make certain it wasn't a bad tube, or floor model. they sounded identical-identically disappointing.

2002 mesa boogie f-100 series 2x12 combo. simple arrangement, clean and dist. channels with enhancements on the gain. all tube, 4x6L6 configuration with 12ax7s in the preamp. switchable 60 and 100 watt features make it scalable for practice or big gigs. also comes with reverb.

guitars played are humbucker based. this is a solid hard rock amp, literally, 95 lb. construction...almost a metal amp, not really. the clean is left to be desired, similar to marshall.....the reverb is not as exceptional as marshall. this thing is super loud on either wattage and has punch, the dist. is high-gain, more of a vintage type sound than a marshall scoop deal. records well but drowns out everyone and deafens the drummer. pedals clean up the dist., but boss metal zone is the best one i used with it.

construction seems flawless. always carry spare tubes and fuses tho.

n/a

honestly i ran a taste test with this amp and for the money it is worthless. buy a dual recto head...........against an ampeg reverbrocket combo and ashdown peacemaker combo this thing failed. the ampeg was the best deal at half the price. better clean tone in the 6L6s LIKE YOU WOULD EXPECT. the mesa doesn't cut it. ashdown is like a marshall EL34 tube amp (full stack) in a box. do yourself a favor and check your options before you buy this overpriced/overrated tone machine.

this amp is hands down a hard rock amp. more than rock, not quite metal. 2-channel, clean and distorted, with a contour option to boost the overdrive, plus reverb. switchable 60-100 watts make it ideal for practice or gigging. all tube, 4x6L6 power and 4x12ax7 in the preamp. 2x12 celestion vintage 30's sounds awesome. distortion channel is powerful but overrated, the clean is better like a marshall but not as thin. all around useful amp.

i use humbuckers on guitars built for sustain...SGs, teles, les pauls. i play punk, hard rock, metal, a little blues. i found the trick is buy an amp for good clean and let your foot pedals shape the tone. stock distortion always sucks in my view. this thing will rip your head off if you play it too close, feedback galore, but that can be cool if it is your thing. tonal controls have a wide range. unlike most amps you can hit the sweet spot with the treble/mid/bass near noon, your pickup plays a big part, and the gain can really thicken the sound. for overdrive i used a boss metal zone and this amp can sound as heavy as two full stacks. literally, the drummer could barely hear himself. killer!

mesa are the most hardcore amps ever built, tanklike construction from here in the US. their reputation precedes them and so does the price. you get what you pay for. smart guys always carry extra tubes and fuses. don't be stupid, i've seen guys spill beer in their amps live and short 'em out. smarter guys keep a solid state combo in the trunk.

don't expect i'll have to deal with mesa but i heard they're generous people.

been playing awhile, i'm something akin to a gear mad scientist. always tweaking, getting bored, selling on ebay. revolving the debt to the next amp it seems. stupid of me, i just wanted something solid that has tone. this is one of the better 6L6 amps i've seen, they have good dynamics. EL34s are your standard rock tone and EL84s boutique. i would recommend ampeg reverbrocket or orange if you want good comparison. or a hand wired vox if you can find/afford it. do yourself a favor and get a good distortion/eq pedal to boost the clean, you will like the tone and it will slice heads off. straight 8's on this review.

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.