Mesa Stiletto Ace and Rivera Venus 6 - thoughts?

[Dreamland_Rebel]

had a Mesa Stiletto Duece... loved it... traded it for a real Marshall... even happier.

[khabibissell]

I have an Ace head. I use the amp through various V30 loaded Mesa cabinets. I think the amp sounds great (and more importantly) feels great to play. It is very Marshallesque, and can be kinda thin sounding if you're used to more modern amps like a Recto for instance. The amp is not muddy at all and there are great crunch tones in it. There is more than enough gain available to pull of the widdly diddly stuff. If you plan on doing rock or early metal tones with it, you really can't go wrong.

The amp is not without its problems IMO... It is VERY bright on the gain channel (I use the "tite" gain mode). I usually run the presence and treble off. It is a good sound with lots of harmonics, but bright... Some people may like this. Personally, I wish it was a bit darker. Also, the clean channel lacks volume compared to the distortion channel. You have to run the clean channel volume way up to get a good match. If you are going for a "clean" clean, you'd be hard pressed to do so because the power amp starts to break up pretty quickly. At bedroom volumes however, you'll be fine.

[kennslp]

I own a Stage I Duece. And yes, it is very much a beefed up Marshall... but better . I did have the "brightness" issues that others have noted, but I have found that at volume it's less of an issue for me. Since I've started playing it outside of the apartment (ie: I can get the volume past 2 now.. lol)) regularly, I've found my tone settings have changed dramatically. I no longer need to drop the presence and treble so much, and I think may tone is great, especially in the tite gain mode. Of course, I haven't played a stage II, but from what I understand, many folks are digging the changes. Good luck whatever you decide.

-Kenn

[Grandturk]

Does the Ace combo still sound bright with a drummer or do the cymbals swallow up that frequency?

[khabibissell]

I own a Stage I Duece. And yes, it is very much a beefed up Marshall... but better . I did have the "brightness" issues that others have noted, but I have found that at volume it's less of an issue for me. Since I've started playing it outside of the apartment (ie: I can get the volume past 2 now.. lol)) regularly, I've found my tone settings have changed dramatically. I no longer need to drop the presence and treble so much, and I think may tone is great, especially in the tite gain mode. Of course, I haven't played a stage II, but from what I understand, many folks are digging the changes. Good luck whatever you decide.

-Kenn

Hmmm... I regularly play mine with the master volume on 4 (11 o'clock) with the channel volumes up high (say 11 o'clock). We practice pretty loud... haven't gigged that particular head yet, but I will

I've never heard a tube amp that got darker as you turned it up. The frequencies may even out a bit, but it is definitely not in a "darker" kinda way. I have a Roadster, Soldano Avenger, and the Stilleto at the moment and all of them get a pushed pretty hard on a regular basis. All three amps get brighter as the volume increases.

[khabibissell]

Does the Ace combo still sound bright with a drummer or do the cymbals swallow up that frequency?

I would say that any amp sounds better with a full band if you are playing loud. Tones that seem "bright" or kinda harsh when the amp is played loud by itself are the ones that seem to cut the best.

As for the Stiletto it cuts and sits in a mix very well. The Stiletto just has alot of treble on tap in my experience and personally, I just wish it was a bit darker. Regardless, it is a very nice amp and can do the rock/early metal thing very well. Also, it is a Boogie... it is built like a tank.

Go here: http://www.grailtone.com and click on the Boogie Board. There are alot of guys there that own Stilettos. Great place to do some research on Mesa products.

[akoch]

what's with the "if you like this then you will hate that" thing in every thread?

It's actually quite simple - you can not please everyone. Some like it hot, some like it cold. Providing lukewarm is likely to please the third sort of crowd, leaving the other two disinterested.

[kennslp]

Hmmm... I regularly play mine with the master volume on 4 (11 o'clock) with the channel volumes up high (say 11 o'clock). We practice pretty loud... haven't gigged that particular head yet, but I will

I've never heard a tube amp that got darker as you turned it up. The frequencies may even out a bit, but it is definitely not in a "darker" kinda way. I have a Roadster, Soldano Avenger, and the Stilleto at the moment and all of them get a pushed pretty hard on a regular basis. All three amps get brighter as the volume increases.

Interesting... Well, I can only speak from my experiences. Once I started jammin regularly with some friends and had the chance to get the amp up to volume, it just seemed to smooth out a bit. Trust me, I spent hours tweaking the amp trying to dial out the harsh high end. It just seems that once I started moving some air, the tone of the amp really came together. Of course, by then I had spent some time with the amp and got better at tweaking her, but my treble settings on both channels are right around 11 o'clock. Master Vol @ 11'oclock (though it varies), CH I master @ noon, and CH II master @ 1 o'clock. maybe all the cables & boss effects in my pedalboard are sucking the highs right out of the signal?? Don't know.. but it works...

-Kenn

[khabibissell]

Interesting... Well, I can only speak from my experiences. Once I started jammin regularly with some friends and had the chance to get the amp up to volume, it just seemed to smooth out a bit. Trust me, I spent hours tweaking the amp trying to dial out the harsh high end. It just seems that once I started moving some air, the tone of the amp really came together. Of course, by then I had spent some time with the amp and got better at tweaking her, but my treble settings on both channels are right around 11 o'clock. Master Vol @ 11'oclock (though it varies), CH I master @ noon, and CH II master @ 1 o'clock. maybe all the cables & boss effects in my pedalboard are sucking the highs right out of the signal?? Don't know.. but it works...

-Kenn

In my case, it may be the speakers. I have V30's (that is all you get in cabinets these days it seems) in all my cabs and I really don't like them very much. They are pretty harsh sounding speakers. I've been wanting to try something else... maybe a CL80, Mesa C90, or Emi Private Jack might work better.

What kind of speakers are you running?

[kennslp]

In my case, it may be the speakers. I have V30's (that is all you get in cabinets these days it seems) in all my cabs and I really don't like them very much. They are pretty harsh sounding speakers. I've been wanting to try something else... maybe a CL80, Mesa C90, or Emi Private Jack might work better.

What kind of speakers are you running?

You may have hit on something here. I am playing through a VHT fat bottom 2x12 with P50E speakers (which I believe are Eminence). I had orginally puchased the cab when I had a Soldano sp-77 & mesa 20/20 rig that was lacking in low end, and I kept it for use with the Stiletto. It's definitely got a nice low mid kick to it. Very different from my other cab that has V30's (Laney AOR 1/2 stack). Figure that must be a factor...

Here's a pic of the rig...



-Kenn

[sl2lover]

The Venus rips for rock type applications...wouldn 't use it for metal though! I have K tre' for that. And like all Riveras..it is fucking loud!

[themisfit138]

the praise i heard for the ace was from a mark iic/mark iv owner (recto hater)

Well as a Mark IIc+ and Mark IV owner. I can tell you that I really enjoyed the tone of the Ace, but I liked the Duece a little better. And I have owned a few Rectos and hated every one.