mesa stiletto duece ver 1

[Dreamland_Rebel]

only tested ch 2 so i can't say anything about the clean yet.
but ch 2 KICKS ASS [img]/images/graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]

it kicks ass as a head and as a power amp.
my favorite settings (everything full, treb & pres off) on ch 2 in fuid drive, FX loop off, silicon rectified, bold... was everything i hoped it would be! the other 2 modes sounded great and seemed very useful for many many applications. but i only need dist and clean. (and usually only dist)

sambencuba you would love this setting, (and you might even smoke jgcable's soldano rig with it. [img]/images/graemlins/poke.gif[/img] ) then check out what happens if you turn up the treb (the wet blanket knob) but the presence is nice on this baby. it is by far the most usable presence knob i have ever come across on an amp. F-ing SMOKES! [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]


as a striaght up power amp it sounds AWESOME! i did have a little noise but i think replacing V4 and V5 will take care of that. - it was a floor model so i'm sure it will sound even better once i replace ALL the tubes.

Mesa's pretty much covered every other style amp so i'm thrilled that they finally made a british style head!

bottom line... so worth picking one up at that price. if its not for you - you can easily get your money back or make a bone or 2.
[img]/images/graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

I told you that one was a good one.

[jgcable]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

I heard Sambencuda's twice. Once at rehearsal and once at a gig. I thought the same thing then as I do now. It sounded fantastic. IMHO.. its one of the best amps to come out of Mesa since the Rectifier. It reminds me alot of the Mesa Mark 3 and Mark IV. I want one but I have to continue my quest for the SLO.

[sambencuda]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

That fluid drive setting is incredible especially for a lead tone! I love my Stiletto. I'm still in search of the perfect cab for it though. I think a Marshall with 75's is the way to go. I still need to try it with the two Genz Benz Gflex cabs I have on loan from Wayne.

[Rupe]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

[ QUOTE ]
everything full, treb & pres off

[/ QUOTE ]

You are really limiting yourself with those settings. The tone controls on this amp are ery interactive, especially the treble. The treble control not only controls the high end but also the amount of signal effected by the mid and bass controls...you can actually pump the mids more by increasing treble. I believe it talks about this in the manual (who reads those, right?). Play around with it for a while.
That said, if you like what you are hearing and don't think it can get better, stick with what you're doing.
John, I can't see any similarities between Jim's Stiletto and any Mark series amp that I've ever used...what in particular lead you to that assessment? The coloration and dynamics added by the power tubes of that amp is unlike any Mesa product that I've ever played...and I've played almost all of them.

[Endrik]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

If I get a Recto, some Mark series amp and a Stiletto, so I basically cover all the grounds right? I wouldn't need anything else?

[Rupe]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

True to a point. The only thing missing from that equation is a glassy, shimmering Fender type clean tone...but the Stiletto and some of the Mark series amps get some pretty righteous clean tones of their own.
Ultimately, I think that would be a great combination of amps to own.

[jgcable]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
everything full, treb & pres off

[/ QUOTE ]

You are really limiting yourself with those settings. The tone controls on this amp are ery interactive, especially the treble. The treble control not only controls the high end but also the amount of signal effected by the mid and bass controls...you can actually pump the mids more by increasing treble. I believe it talks about this in the manual (who reads those, right?). Play around with it for a while.
That said, if you like what you are hearing and don't think it can get better, stick with what you're doing.
John, I can't see any similarities between Jim's Stiletto and any Mark series amp that I've ever used...what in particular lead you to that assessment? The coloration and dynamics added by the power tubes of that amp is unlike any Mesa product that I've ever played...and I've played almost all of them.

[/ QUOTE ]

I had a Mark III and to my ears, the Stiletto sounded like it. The Stiletto certainly sounds much closer to the Mark series than the Rectifier series. It reminded me of a Marshall JCM800 2203 but with more bottom end which is exactly what I thought my Mark III sounded like. The Stiletto has more gain than the Mark III though. Alot more.
Many claim it doesn't have enough gain. I didn't find that true at all. It also cut through the mix way better than a Rectifier which means it also has alot of midrange which again is a trait shared by the Mark III that I had.

[roodyrocker]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

A friend of mine just picked up a Stilleto Trident amp from GC through the big blow out sale. The Stilleto is definetly a lot of amp for the money and sounds awesome! If I didn't already own a Dual Recto I would have bought one myself at that price!

Rudy

[Endrik]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

maybe John's Mark III sounded similar to Stiletto because he used 2 EL34 in it

[Endrik]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

Rupe, what can you say about the Lone Star? I've heard it's more of a clean and blues amp. Would the other Boogies cover same tones as the Lone Star?

[Dreamland_Rebel]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

Rupe. i fully understand the active eq controls of mesa amps. i've read just about all of their manuels (even on amps i don't have or have never had).

i know what's up. and what's beyond. and whats beyond is an even better tone when you turn the mid all the way up and the treble off.

the mid knob has tons of usable treble in it. when its on full and you bring up the treb knob, on many many amps, all the good usable highs of the mid knob are cancelled out by the treble knob creating what i like to call the "wet blanket" effect. you can hear it instantly when you try my settings and then start to turn up the treble knob. it goes from sounding perfect to the sound of someone turning up a filter that takes away all the cut and clarity and good sounding highs and ads this thin washy sounding high end and a washed out mid section of cancelling frequencies.

with the treble off you get the dream tone!
granted this only works with the mid knob all the way up. and usually the bass and gain too.

~John E.

[jgcable]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

[ QUOTE ]
maybe John's Mark III sounded similar to Stiletto because he used 2 EL34 in it

[/ QUOTE ]

It was running in Simulclass and yes.. I had E34L's in it.
It was also a purple stripe which is considered the most Marshall sounding Mark III out of all of the versions.

[Rupe]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

The EL34's definitely tell the story. I have never done that to any of my Mesa's although I was told that it was a cool "trick". Thanks for clarifying John...and I agree that the Stiletto has more than enough gain. Any more and you would risk washing out in the mix.
Endrik, the Lonestar has a great clean tone for a Mesa...probably the closest you will get to the Fender standard with one their products...I can't believe I didn't mention it in my previous post. It is definitely a great amp for blues and rock, but it can get nasty as well. I think it has enough gain on tap for most 80's style hard rock/pop metal. A combination of the Lonestar and Stiletto would cover most bases except the rectifier "wall of mud" tones. I'm not a big fan of the rectifiers but I have dialed in some decent tones with them and I have heard others do that as well. I have just heard far more people dial in this horrible, bottom heavy, sucked mid mess of a tone that gets completely lost in a live mix. It blows my mind how so many players don't understand that more gain does not necessarily equate to a heavier tone.

[jgcable]

Re: mesa stiletto duece ver 1

Another Boogie series with an outstanding clean channel is the Nomad. Its a great amp for clean/blues/classic and hard rock. Its a little on the dark side but that darkness gives it character. It is a very warm sounding full bodied sound and it has GREAT reverb.