I got another Road King...

[Matt Crooks]

Just thought I'd share... I got a second Road King. This one is covered in the Hazelnut Lizard embossed leather with a gold grill. It looks cool as hell. I'm gonna fire it up tonight and see how it sounds.

...and is my tradition, I will not be posting any pictures, since I have such a large back log of gear pictures to post. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Twisteramps]

Re: I got another Road King...

Originally posted by Matt Crooks:
Just thought I'd share... I got a second Road King. This one is covered in the Hazelnut Lizard embossed leather with a gold grill. It looks cool as hell. I'm gonna fire it up tonight and see how it sounds.

...and is my tradition, I will not be posting any pictures, since I have such a large back log of gear pictures to post. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Dang Matt, I want to be you when I grow up. : )

Pete

[Matt Crooks]

Re: I got another Road King...

Originally posted by Twisteramps:
Dang Matt, I want to be you when I grow up. : )

Pete

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Growing up would defeat your goal! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

BTW, I actually read the RK manual this time... I can completely bypass the preamp section and use just the power section from the RK with any preamp I want. I may have to track down some good preamps now, so that I can run them through the 2 6L6 and 2 EL34 power section.

[jgcable]

Re: I got another Road King...

Matt, I have a question... Are these Road Kings your gigging amps or are you just into collecting super high end Mesa amps? If they are your gigging amps and you need 2 of them you have to let me know the next time you are playing a 50,000 seat arena!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]
The Road King you describe sounds awesome.

[eaeolian]

Re: I got another Road King...

Yeah, he's getting a little carried away, isn't he...

Actually, the rationale is that one is living in his studio, and the other is his live amp. Personally, I would have picked a LIGHTER live amp, but that's just me.

Of course, I have his black one at my house right now. Hmm...

Mike

[jgcable]

Re: I got another Road King...

I suppose he also must use 2 full stacks for practice and another 2 full stacks for gigging.

[Matt Crooks]

Re: I got another Road King...

Nah... just a 4x12, the amp is heavy enough, I don't need to drag around 4 cabs. In the studio, I often use my 2x12 cab, since I think it controls the bottom end a little better, and pushes some more mid range.

Like Mike said one amp lives in the recording studio. It was getting to be a problem recording with the same amp I use live, since clients would come in and set their sound for a project, and then I'd have to take the amp out of the studio and reset everything for my live settings. Then when the amp came back to the studio, we'd be unable to punch in guitar parts because the settings would never quite be the same.

I do use all four channels live, we have songs that call for four different tonal settings. It may sound like overkill, but at the club we played two weeks ago, I had the RK running almost at full master volume, and it was barely loud enough (using just the EL34s - 50w) for the stage we were playing.

As for rehearsing - I use a POD, it's quiet, flexible and sounds pretty darn good.


... and the 50,000 seater was last summer, but it was an outdoor show, so it's hard to call them "seats". At that one I used a dual recto through two 4x12 cabs. On the opposite side of the stage there was zero amp sound - everything was out of the wedges. I could easily see how a couple of full stack on each side of the stage would be necessary if you wanted to hear your sound from the amp and not from the monitors.

[tonemonster]

Re: I got another Road King...

Matt, congrats! [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]
I am a Roadking owner too. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] I love mine. I often wondered how many other Roadking owners there were on the board here. Mine is a Combo 2x12 finished in Quilted Maple with Transparent Red stain. Is a beauty! I couple it with a 2x12 Recto cabinet too, works real nice. Good full spectrum sound with both types of speaker and closed/open cabs. I also have a F30 combo for practices/rehearsals because its more portable and sounds great for its size/price. and I have a Mesa RecPre recording preamp which is part of my rack setup. I really like the mesa products. I have been considereing a Rectoverb combo in snakeskin for my next purchase... we will see. I have considered a Mark IV also, but I dont think they will sound "heavy" enough for me, I love the crunch! and the rectos deliver heavy crunch.

SO who else here has a Roadking? I am curious how many JCFers have them. Lets do a show of hands [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img] Rock on Roadking owners!!! [img]graemlins/band.gif[/img]

[jgcable]

Re: I got another Road King...

Originally posted by Matt Crooks:
Nah... just a 4x12, the amp is heavy enough, I don't need to drag around 4 cabs. In the studio, I often use my 2x12 cab, since I think it controls the bottom end a little better, and pushes some more mid range.

Like Mike said one amp lives in the recording studio. It was getting to be a problem recording with the same amp I use live, since clients would come in and set their sound for a project, and then I'd have to take the amp out of the studio and reset everything for my live settings. Then when the amp came back to the studio, we'd be unable to punch in guitar parts because the settings would never quite be the same.

I do use all four channels live, we have songs that call for four different tonal settings. It may sound like overkill, but at the club we played two weeks ago, I had the RK running almost at full master volume, and it was barely loud enough (using just the EL34s - 50w) for the stage we were playing.

As for rehearsing - I use a POD, it's quiet, flexible and sounds pretty darn good.


... and the 50,000 seater was last summer, but it was an outdoor show, so it's hard to call them "seats". At that one I used a dual recto through two 4x12 cabs. On the opposite side of the stage there was zero amp sound - everything was out of the wedges. I could easily see how a couple of full stack on each side of the stage would be necessary if you wanted to hear your sound from the amp and not from the monitors.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">That must have been killer loud maxing out a Road King. The loudest I ever had a stage amp was opening for Zebra at an outdoor event at Pelham Bay Park for 5000 people. I had a 100 watt Hiwatt head and a full stack of red Marshall cabinets. The Hiwatt was dimed out. It was a single channel amp and I used 2 pedals for distortion and effects. An MXR Distortion + and an MXR Phase 90. It was so loud that I could feel the air pumping from the speakers from 4' away! A Road King would have suited me just fine. I heard one live a few months ago and it was friggin killer. The ultimate Mesa Boogie for sure. Congratz.. bro.

[eaeolian]

Re: I got another Road King...

Now here's the funny thing...

My TripleRec, on the other side of the stage, was only at about 10:00.

We were damn loud, though. The amps sounded SOOO good that way...

Mike

[Tetsuo]

Re: I got another Road King...

Man I played two roadkings and both had problems... Go Figure the thing that has scared me more than anything is the thought of retubing that thing yikes!!

[Matt Crooks]

Re: I got another Road King...

The RK is about 15 lbs heavier than a Triple Recto.

[tonemonster]

Re: I got another Road King...

Matt,
running your channel masters lower like that certainly keeps your overall volume in check. I run my channel masters at: ch 1 5:00 ch2 5:00 Ch 3 12:00 Ch 4 11 to 12:00 and I regulate the overall volume with the "output" volume which I run at 10:00 to 12:00 depending on what type of gig it is. I am usually mic'd up thru the board as well. But sometimes not. It really is capable of blowing the doors off lots of venues, but I see where the outdoor gigs require lots of gusto. I use all 4 channels live too. I LOVE to use that solo feature, especially when I am in a gig where I am not mic'd up. Nice little tool, Cus "most blokes play at 10, your on ten on your guitar, where can you go from there? Eleven, exactly! One louder. When need that extra push over the cliff" Or something like that form Nigel Tufnel of course. [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

FYI my combo weighs 106 lbs.
Retubing is gonna cost a bit, but hey its the price of all the flexibility the Road king offers, you know "you get what you pay for" its worth it IMO. I would recommend the Roadking to anyone who wants lots of tonal options. It delivers that and more. [img]graemlins/band.gif[/img]

I am anxious for a gig where I can really crank mine up and ROCK! [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]

[Matt Crooks]

Re: I got another Road King...

JGC - Well the when I had the RK almost all the way up, I was only (hehe only) running the EL34s, so it was essentially a 50w head through a single 4x12. I have never (and don't plan on) maxing it out with all six tubes, it would be uncontrollable. I also think that the way I run my channel masters low (so as to not clip my fx) that I may not be putting full volume into the power section?


When I played the outdoor festival with the dual, it was like you said - you could feel it from four feet away. Very cool! :rock:


Tone - that sounds killer. I would have loved a stained hardwood cab for the head, but I wasn't going to pony up the cash.


Tetsuo - I can imagine that if you tried one out at Guitar Center or something, that they were messed up. There's something about the amps that sit out on the floor, they get abused or something. However, I've owned a bunch of Mesa products and they've done very well by me. The 2:90 flaked once, but it was fixed and back in my hands in under a week. The first run of three channel duals had a problem with the pots dying, but again that was fixed in under a week.

Retubing it won't be as bad as the Triple Recto I used to have - it's got one less tube! And it's a lot less tubes than my TriAx/2:90 rig that had eight 6l6s and seven 12AX7s.


Cheers all!

[Tetsuo]

Re: I got another Road King...

Matt yeah I agree they have problems on the floor oddly enough though I had a lot of trouble with a Tremoverb I had and a ton of problems with one (I owned three)Mark IV I had otherwise the boogies I have had have been really solid overall. Is it lighter than your triple rec. I honestly didn't realize it has one less tube than the triple. Crazy