Mesa/Boogie Rect-O-Verb 50 Series 2 112 Combo

This amp was made in 2002? I have owned it since new I bought it with the matching 1x12 3/4 back cabinet. I play mainly metal/hard rock. This amp is perfect for that style (didn't try to get other sounds out of it, I wouldn't use them) Features are pretty good for a straight forward tube amp - its not a line6 - dial in your dirty channel, dial in your clean, and set your reverb - play guitar! (as a bonus you can set your solo volume, too) I played in a band with another guitar player - the solo button was the reason I looked at this amp. In a Metal band you definitly need volume - this amp can keep up - but don't expect it to have much more head room left when trying to keep up with an ampeg/8x10 bass rig. One problem I have with this amplifier is the dirty/clean switch. When you switch from your dirty channel to clean there is a slight delay. It is minor but, in the middle of a song if you are playing a clean mellow part and you switch dirty to explode into ultra heavy distortion there is a slight delay in the dirty channel "engaging" There is no remedy to this issue and it may not bother everyone. It bothered me to the point that I got a Line6 POD XT live and use it as my preamp through the effects loop - I now use a Diezel model as dirty and Fender twin reverb as clean. I also use a BBE Sonic Stomp (get one! The best $90 upgrade to your rig ever) This has been the best set up I have ever had period - probably the best I have ever heard for the money (I love the diezel VH4 but I cannot afford it)! I realize I am no longer using the preamp section of the boogie, but the amp is amazing - I have tried the line6 on other amps, P.A.'s - the Boogie blows them all away!

The sound quality is amazing. I cannot stop using this amp - I have another rig - Line6 HD147 going through a Marshall 2X12. The line6 is nice but it is no match for the Boogie. The Rect o verb is a very quiet amp, band members frequently comment on how quiet it is. I did notice when I was using the clean channel (without the podxt) there was some undesireable distortion/ break up when trying to keep up with a metal band. Maybe no big deal for someone who isn't trying to keep up loud bass and drum volumes. The dirty channel is awesome! It is 100% Recto high gain heaven.

The only time the amp ever disappointed me is after rehearsing with it a minimum twice a week for 5 years it started to loose some of its sound quality (I forgot I was playing a tube amp for a moment). I replaced the tubes and POW! Game on! So keep in mind and extra set of tubes is a handy thing to have.

Mesa Boogie is a top notch company - they take care of their customers!

This is a great amp if I could afford two of them I would use my Line6 POD to run them in stereo (I get wood just thinking about it) I have been playing guitar for 22 years I have owned and played lots of gear, I currently have a LP standard, LP studio, SG Gothic, PRS Tremonti SE (modified with the expensive version's pickups and pots) a Charvel Model 4 (bought new in 1987) and a MIM Players Deluxe Stratocaster (Doesn't everyone have to have a strat?) I mostly play my Standard and my PRS. THis is not the best amp money can buy but it is a great amp!

I'm not sure about the review prior to this one, while I agree Bogner and Fender make great amps I have found the Series 2 Rect-O-Verb to be reliable and excellent sounding (with a few tweaks).
My amp is a 2005 (I believe). The clean is warm like a fender and I can get just about any amount of gain I want. Two independent channels and the overall EQ make this amp able to get just about any tone. Each channel has a switch (1)Clean, RAW, or 2)Vintage, Modern, High Gain) to further tweak the tone. I found this amp sounds better with either a Celestion G75-12T or a Jensen C12N which warms it up a little more. I also prefer the Ruby Select 12AX7's in preamp section of this amp to the Mesa stock 12ax7, I find the gain is more dynamic and rounded.
50 Watts of Mesa power is more than enough to cover even an outdoor concert (mic'ed optional).
The Solo button is a really nice feature to give you that extra db boost when you want to come out front for a lead part.
The Reverb has a funny decay, but it doesn't really affect the overall sound.

I use several different guitars, Teles, Strats, PRS, Gibsons, Heritage, Gretsch, several Warmoth custom builts.
I play everything from Classic Rock, Blues, Jazz, Metal, this amp covers it just fine.
This is a VERY quiet amp and as excellent switch buffering to keep it quiet.
I can get clean, southern crunch, smooth Santana-ish gain to heavy metal gain. I don't know what more you could want from one amp.

Mesa's are built like tanks and easy to work on. No biasing necessary. Easy to repair if ever needed. Great design, bullet proof.
Just don't put in tubes that are at the real top or bottom end of the 6L6 Spectrum and you'll be fine. Power tubes and preamp tubes DO make a difference. You need to find what works for you. This is true in most amps! Don't spend good money for an amp and cheap out on tubes (low grade tubes can ruin your amp and your sound). Find what works for you! Mesa Power tubes are just fine. I also like Ruby's and TAD's.
Mesa internal parts are high quality and the engineers took the time to match things up correctly. So, there really isn't a need to modify things unless you're really picky. OK, the LDR's on some other models were problem prone, but they have since fixed that with mechanical relays.
My experience has taught me MOST (not all) tube amps can be dialed in with the right tubes, speaker(s) and sometimes resistor change(s) and/or capacitor change(s). I would NOT recommend this work to anyone inexperienced (a high voltage shocks could be deadly!!), a qualified technician can help get the most out of your amp.
If you have the right amp, a good technician can easily help you get the tone(s) you're looking for. Of course modifications would void the Warranty!!

These guys are tops, I've called for suggestions on fine tuning the amp, A longer footswitch cable etc. Never a problem, always helpful and knowledgeable. Expect a call back as opposed to an immediate answer. Clearly state your need(s) and don't waste their time with information already covered in the manuals. In other words get to the point, ask an intelligent question and they will call you back as soon as they can and will show you what good service is all about.

I have really grown to appreciate my Rect-O-verb.
I also had a Mark IV, great amp, hard to fine tune in a live setting though. I also have a Nomad 100, Fender Twin (pro-tube series), Marshall 4210 JCM800 and roughly 10 guitars. I've been playing for 35 years. This is really my number one amp for gigs. If it were lost or stolen I'd buy it again.
The only thing I hate about it is the weight, but I have it in a 5/8" ply road case with 4" urethane locking casters on it.

2003? Not versatile...decent clean.

before I start, i want to say i have been playing for 17 years and own 3 mesa boogies and 2 marshalls and a hugheskettner

Raw sounds like a boss ds-1 with dying power
vintage sounds like a line 6 with more ****
modern is the worst distortion ever. take a line 6 and add a fuzz pedal, then crank the treble. this amp has no solo voicing.

features suck. and it doesnt even have a rectifier tube its a solidstate rectify design. call mesa.

i have a les paul a strat a g&l a peavey and a musicman petrucci.

i play lead guitar and heavy rhythm guitar.
not suitable for any leads, duh.
rhythm sucks, metal tones suck, get a marshall or bogner or anything else but thios. clean sucks after half volume. cheesy and thin distortion, this amp is embarrasing.

i had to replace my first one a week after i bought it. since then its been ok.

good

playng 15 years and own about 7 high end guitars, none under 2000 dollars. i have a mesa dual rectifier (awesome) a mark IV (best lead tone a fender deluxe a vetta 2 and a bogner metrolpolis.
this is by far the worst amp of them all. i actually had to pull out my spider amp to practice last night because this thing is ****! i even had it checked at mesa boogie to make sure it was working right and they said this amp is built to have high treble and massive gain and its not about the tone.

i think everyone else has this category pretty much covered. this amp can cover a lot of different sounds, but does take a little time to get to know it intimately.which is why i've given it a couple months of hardcore use before posting a review.but i will say that it would be better if they would sort out the fx loop issues.another thing i don't understand,is in the manual, in the gain control segment,it says not to turn it up past 2.30.
so why bother having 5.00. on the dial? pretty minor really,but these are pricey amplifiers.BTW, if you're a 90lb wimp,you better get something else.these amps are constructed like tanks and weigh a wee bit.but thats how i like them.at least you know they're gonna last.

i've been playing guitar off and on for 20+ years. i've had a lot of different amplifiers, amongst which were quite a few marshalls.
my current main guitar is an epiphone les paul copy constructed of mahogany body, flamed maple top,mahogany neck, and rosewood fretboard.
i've had a set of kerry king emg pup's installed that have a 20decibel booster switch, and with this amp, i'm in distortion heaven.
i like playing heavy distorted genres mostly,and with this set up i've never been so satisfied. even without any pedals,just the guitar and amp.when you want cleaner sounds,it's all there if you take a little time to tweak a bit.
but if you're after specific sound,know what you're getting before you buy. ie:if you want a fender sound,get a freekin fender,and stop blaming these amps for your ignorance.there's no one product that does eveything perfectly.so look (and listen) before you leap.

I got this Combo second hand (two years old) at a price i could have brought some other brands new. a local tech checked it out for me and said it's sweet as.i'm the third owner,so i'll give it a ten because i know it's been round the clock a couple of times and it's still running sweetly

haven't used any.

the only reason i gave this amp a 9 is because of the fx loop issues mentioned in prior reviews. but over all i love this amp to death.i'll never own another marshall again cause this thing beats the poop out of them. would i buy another? you better believe it!!! if someone stole it, i would crawl across broken glass to get it back,then beat him repeatedly over the head with it's hefty weight.all the time knowing no damage will be done to the amp cause it's built like a tank.

The amp is a 2006 series 2 rectoverb combo. Has 2 channels, channel one has clean and pushed. Channel 2 has raw,vintage and modern. It comes with a footswitch for channel selection, reverb and solo. It has a parrallel effect loop. The amp also has the capability to switch between 6l6 power tube or el34 power tube,,,no biasing necessary.Sweet.

The ROV can go from super clean to all out brutal distortion to everything in between. It took me a week or two to find the best settings for me.
The amps full of great tones. Plenty of power for me at 50 watts.
One reason I bought the amp is because it sounds great at low volumes also. The amp is large enough for 2x12 speakers but comes with only one,,,dont let that fool you. It sounds great. Believe it or not for a high gain amp I find the amp very quiet. I have added a few pedals to my rig including some overdrive pedals I use on top of my amps gain and I still have no need for a noise suppressor. I play a custom les paul and a telecaster with stacked buckers and both sound awsome. The amp suits me well for the music I play,,thats anything from the blues through rock to metal but never mess with the 7 string dark death metal stuff although the amp could certainly handle it. Theres a lot of gain on tap here and have found since I bought the amp that my needs for gain has fallen a bit. Seldom do I ever go over the half mark in any channel/mode.Hell its a boogie rectifier,,,what did I expect?
I also eventually bought a 2x12 recto cab to lay my combo on and using the 3 speakers I have now,,,WOW,,,unbelievable,,that deep chugga,chugga is great,,so much fuller sounding. But you dont need the ext. cab to make it sound good. I like the fullness of more than one speaker.
Almost forgot,,the one thing I wish the amp had better is the reverb. I just wish the verb was more lush and in your face if you want it like that. Its not horrible but its not fendery either. I would give the verb 6 or 7 of 10.

I think I could easily depend on the amp for a gig although I dont gig ever. Its usually stationary in a corner of my basement and once in a while sees the back seat of my car to visit a friends place.
Ive never had any problems with the amp. SOLID.

There has been a few times since I bought this amp including a previous boogie f50 that I spoke with mesa because the tubes that came with it rattled. The filaments in the tubes rattled and I could only hear the rattling while playing quietly in the basement but it bugged the hell out of me. I spoke with mesa and both times I had new tubes at my door in about 10 days. NICE. Both times the new tubes took care of the problem. I bought both amps at guitar center and I believe they get abused a bit by those teens you see all over the place. Anyways I have full trust in mesa and im very glad I went with one of their amps. They come with a 5 year warranty.I cannot forsee any problems with this amp in the future.Well Made

If it was stolen I would probably buy it again. I have a hard time deciding on amps and bought and returned no less than 7 amps before finally settling on this one...Before I settled on this amp I purchased and returned a peavey classic 50,marshall solid state 2x12?
peavey valveking 2x12,fender frontman 2x12,boogie f-50, B52 AT100 2x12,marshall tsl-602. I liked this the best because, of the other amps, none could give me the distortion the ROV could without a pedal except the b52 maybe. I dont always play with massive gain and the ROV out did all the other amps in all departments besides maybe the classic 50 in the blues department,,also a nice amp. The ROV was the most expensive of the lot other than the marshall tsl-602 and it wouldnt take long to see why. Again I thought the classic 50 came in second at craftsmanship.. Now that I think of it I believe the boogies and the classic 50 were the only ones made in the U.S.A.

I think HERMAN was made in 2006. HERMAN is very versitile. He rips out everything i can think of. I play everything from sweet little pretties to melt your face off molten metal. So there. He has two channels with different voicings per channel.(I mean how many sounds do you need, man?) He's pretty. He has a footswitch with channel select, reverb, and the best button ever, SOLO!!!!! That is sooo rad. A solo button. What more could you ask for?!! He has 50 watts of tear your face off power!!! Plenty loud enough for the auditoriums i'm playing.

I already told you, rip your face off man!!! His clean is pristine. His dirt is golden brown. And his solo mode is rocks. I dont play my clean very loud so no problems there, but i have never heard him fart. SUPERBRUTALDISTORTION! My guitar, GG, has a chrometop tone zone in the bridge position, and a chrometop norton in the neck. So, anybody that knows anything about tone knows where i'm coming from.
Everything suits me fine. Herman knows how to please me.

Herman has never let me down,
END OF STORY!

never dealt much with, but i've always heard good things.

i've been playing for 10 years straight, 20 off and on. i've come to the conclusion that in HERMAN'S world, i'm his rip god. if He were stolen id report it and prosecute the theif. He will never be lost because he stays with me at all times while on trips. i love time with HERMAN and i hate time away from HERMAN. compared to all the other amps, HERMAN is the best fit for me. if there were anything else i wish it had, it would be more time with me.
in conclusion i would like to add that HERMAN, a Mesa/Boogie Rectoverb, was an excellent buy for me. I give it an overall rating of 9 because, as much as i love HERMAN, nothing is perfect.

Please see review 07/01/06

Please see review 07/01/06

Had to give some continuation to my earlier review. The amp was returned with a friendly email telling me everything was all okay and that the amp sounded fantastic. Opened the box up plugged it in and the damn thing is still bust, not working in any way, shape or form, oh apart from the fact that the power light comes on. Mmmmm, ?1500 for a nicely glowing red light, money well spent. Anyhow, really did think I might get some positive action this time, nope, just someone telling me everyone was on holiday and I'd have to send it back again for them to look at. Please oh please if anyone from Mesa is reading this, help me out, this is surely not good customer service.

It's only just better than the reliability.

2005 Mesa/Boogie Rectoverb Combo Series II. 1x12 50 Watt combo. This is an amazingly versatile amp. I've had it for about a year. It's 2 channel (clean & distorion) with 5 settings, class A/B all-tube amp with 2 6L6's & 5 12AX7 preamp tubes. Each channel has gain, treble, midrange, bass, reverb, presence, master volume & standby. Clean has: Clean & Pushed & Distortion has: Raw, Vintage & Modern. Has a Celestion "Black Shadow" speaker & a footswitch which switches channels, reverb and also a solo booster. A switch on the back that allows you to change from 6L6's to EL34's. Footswitch has channel switch, reverb and also a solo booster. Has a slave out & a parallel effects loop.

There are some incredible tones to be found in this Rectoverb combo. It can go from really sizzling metal (It's a Rectifier!) to fantastic cleans. I play a lot of 80's metal & hard rock/blues as well as super clean blues. As of today, I am using a PRS, an Gibson ES335, & a Tele with a variety of pickups. I find the Raw & Vintage works best for me for distortion, although I do use the Modern channel as well. The Pushed clean channel allows a warm, smooth tube breakup. The regular clean setting is very, very sweet. Just take some time with it and you will find great tones. I'm still finding new sounds a year after I bought it. This amp has tremendous headroom, due in part to the oversized cab & 3/4 enclosed back. One thing I think is important, if you are seriously looking at a Rectoverb combo, make sure it's the Series II, because it has the "Raw" setting, the older Rectoverbs don't have it & you will probably want that channel. As mentioned in some of the other reviews, this amp is quite loud, rated at 50 watts but it easily handles medium sized venues without working too hard. I use it at home as well, which works fine at lower levels, however the volume is very touch sensitive.

I'ts been through a year of playing live and recording. The Rectoverb hasn't let me down at all. I don't bring a backup amp. I bring tubes. Power tubes & preamp tubes, fuses & small set of common sense equipment for shows.

Not too much contact really, called them a couple times over the years & when I was looking at the Rectoverb combo, they have been very helpful. Other than that it has a 5 year warranty.

I've been playing for 20 plus years now. I am familiar with many amps. Some of the other amps I looked at were other Mesa's, Fenders, Vox, Carr, Marshall, Bogner etc. Anyway, I am familiar with Mesa's stuff from the 80's & 90's & have for the most part, liked thier amps. I am a working musician who is constantly looking for great tone, and this Rectoverb combo really delivers. It took me a good six months of playing every amp I could, trying to find one that would do what I wanted. It wasn't cheap, but to me it's been worth every penny. One thing that should have been addressed, is that it's a pretty heavy amp & has no casters, not sure why they didn't include them. This can be a pain. Either buying a set of castors or an Amp case will solve this problem. If it was lost, damaged or stolen, I'd definately replace it with another Rectoverb.

Loads of features and settings and all give a great variation on sounds. I can get most of what I want out of this amp although I still haven't got that elusive perfect sound, but it's got enough features to suit most styles.

I play mostly classic rock style with the occasional blues edge and it can give me what i want, from clean fender to marshall rock. I mainly play three guitars through the amp; a Gibson Les Paul Custom, Gibson SG standard and a Paul Reed Smith McCarty and it copes nicely with all of them, although the custom and McCarty can be a little muffled, so I think it is probably better suited to the more metal or thrash players.

Bought one brand new and it broke after less than 3 months of mainly bedroom use. Had it repaired by Westside (the UK distributors and it broke again within 3 weeks. They gave me a brand new one (supposedly) and it to broke after about 3 months. So 2 brand new Rectoverbs both knackered within 3 months and not even 10 gigs between them. I'm not talking faulty valves but major faults. I would never play this amp without a backup and I would never willingly buy one again. Mesa Boogie, one of the most expensive range of amps on the market and they can't even last a few months. I've had a Marshall stack that is now over 30 years old and the only thing that has ever been remotely faulty is the guitar lead input socket and that took about 25 years to go and a few minutes, pence or cents to put right.

The shop where I bought it were okay but had no Mesa experts so had to sent it awy to the distributor for repair, but only after taking 3 weeks to send me new valves to try out (which never cured the fault) the distributors were very helpful and stayed in touch and at first replaced the amp with a new one (so they said). The 2nd one that broke I thought would prompt a little more urgency, ie "would you like a refund" or some such offer, but no they just asked for it back to have a look at, so I guess if and when they repair it I'll be stuck with an obscenely overpriced amp that is liable to break at any time. I have to add that all the US Mesa customer service would do or say is to contact the UK ditributors and gave me the impression that hey they've made the sale so lets not give a stuff about the customer so for the reasons I've just given I would give Westside Distribution an 8 and Mesa Boogie USA 1. So if you ever read this Westside the scre is for the head office in the USA and not you.

Been playing many a good year, had some dodgy guitars, usually cheap and some rubbish amps, but nothing compares to the unreliability of this mega expensive so called boutique piece of rubbish amp called Mesa Boogie Rectoverb series 2. Alsmost bought a Marshall Mode 4 for #600 less and by god I wish I had. I tried Engl, Peavey,Marshall, Vox, Laney, Fender, Orange and quite a few others, and this really did sound the best although it also cost the most, but do you know what I bet your average $99 crate would last longer and be more reliable.....So overall it gets a 3.

I got this Rectoverb Combo new almost a year ago, so I'm over the "I'ts brand new WOW" factor. However, the quality of tones still amaze me. It is a professional grade Class A/B All-Tube amp, 1x12 50 watt, with a Celestion C90 Black Shadow speaker. 2 channel amp with Clean: "Clean & Pushed" & Distortion: "Raw, Vintage & Modern". Also includes Gain, Treble, Midrange, Bass, Reverb, Presence, & Master volume & Standby. It also has the capability to switch from 6L6's to EL34's with a switch on the back of the amp. Literally tons of headroom in this amp as well. The footswitch is very useful, has channel switching, reverb & a solo boost. If you've ever played any Rectifier you know a little bit of what to expect on the distortion end - but what sets the Rectoverb apart is it adds some unbelievable vintage tones & cleans as well.

I currently play a PRS McCarty, a '71 Tele & a Gibson Standard w/57 Classic pups, also have used a Gibson Les Paul Standard & American Strat w/Texas Specials. The Rectoverb has handled all of them quite nicely. It is amazing to me that you can go from vicious Metal to Eagles type stuff, toss in a bit of Jazz/Fusion & come back with a Clapton or SRV blues number without flinching. I haven't seen many amps that can do that well, but the Rectoverb does an excellent job. The distortion channel settings work perfectly from a serious Metal crunch to Clasic rock & Soulful blues. It does require some fiddling around until you find the "Sweet spots". The clean channel will produce a Fender/Vox sparkling type of clean. I have to admit I was shocked at the sweet clean tones, I had heard & read a bit about it, but honestly didn't expect it to be as good as it is. I mostly play the 6L6's, but often switch over to the EL34's, which drastically changes the tones. Very much like having two different amps. Also of note is that Celestion C90 Black Shadow, which is really a fantastic speaker.

So far, I haven't had any troubles with the Rectoverb at all. Just typical maintenance, changing tubes when needed, keeping the amp clean etc. I have depended on it for about a year, and it hasn't let me down. I always carry a set of extra set of tubes just in case, along with fuses & preamp tubes.

I called Mesa Customer Support & got my questions answered pretty quickly. Other than that, I haven't dealt with them.

I've played for 22 years, and have played & owned a ton of different amps, a Marshall JCM800, Bogner, a Dr.Z, numerous old & new Fenders etc. Some have been very good amps like the Marshall for instance, some were one trick ponies, others have been dogs that required constant attention. This is my first Mesa Boogie, although I had played different recifiers before, this one really seemed to stick out. My feeling about the Mesa Rectoverb Combo is that it is a great amp for a working musician. It's not a boutique type amp, although Mesa does offer lots of fancy stuff, colors & grills etc. I went with the black. It's simply a great amp that is fun to work with. If it was lost or stolen, I would definately replace ASAP. I hope this is not coming off as giving the Rectoverb too much praise, but when you find a piece of equipment that is really doing the job what's the point in bashing it for no reason?