Mesa Boogie
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Mesa/Boogie (also known as Mesa Engineering) is a company in Petaluma, California that makes amplifiers for guitars and basses.
Mesa was started by Randall Smith as a small repair shop which modified Fender combos to give them more gain. Soon the word spread, and with users like Carlos Santana, Boogie became one of the big names in the industry. Other notable Boogie users include Allan Holdsworth, John Petrucci from Dream Theater, Buckethead, Metallica, Prince, Jerry Cantrell, Frank Zappa, Andy Timmons, Cannibal Corpse, Rammstein, Helmet and Tool.
History
The history of MESA/Boogie begins in the back room meat locker of an old Chinese grocery store.
Randall Smith, a local electronic repairman to the SF Bay area set up a music shop - Prune Music - in an ex-Chinese grocery store in San Francisco with his friend Dave Kessner. The plan was for Kessner to run the front of the shop to let Smith repair amplifiers and electronics in the back room. They gained a good reputation very quickly, with clients such as Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, Santana, Big Brother and more.
Around 1969 Randy, in his own words, "wanted to play a prank on" Barry Melton of Country Joe and the Fish. When his Fender Princeton came into the shop, Smith set to work on performing some choice modifications. He removed the standard 10 inch speaker and cut up the chassis to fit larger transformers that were needed by the 4-10 tweed Bassman circuit that he had rebuilt the tiny 12 watt Princeton with. He finally cut out the speaker board and just managed to squeeze in a 12 inch JBL D-120 (the "hot speaker back then").
After all the work was done, Randy needed someone to test the new amplifier out, and by coincidence Carlos Santana was hanging out in the front of the shop. Carlos plugged in and "wailed through that little amp until people were blocking the sidewalk". When he had finished he turned to Smith and said "Shit, man. That little thing really Boogies!" and the name was born.
The MESA name came about through Smith's other job, rebuilding Mercedes engines and repairing houses. He needed an 'official' sounding name through which to buy Mercedes parts and building supplies, and apparently came up with MESA on the spot. It was originally capitalised, but has been written as Mesa in recent years.
Smith built many more 'Princeton-Boogie' amplifiers and they were popular around the Bay area. However, he had in his head a new sound, with sustain like a saxophone to bring the guitar to the lead of a band.
In 1971 Randall constructed the Mesa 450 - his first bass amplifier and the first 'official' Mesa/Boogie product.
The real breakthrough came when Smith began his project of building a preamp for Lee Michaels to drive his new Crown DC-300 power amplifiers. Not knowing what signal was required to drive the power amps, Smith added an extra tube gain stage to the preamp to cover his bases, with 3 variable gain controls at different points in the circuit.
When Smith took the construction to Michaels and plugged it in, they were both disappointed, as they could only hear a very faint sound coming out of the speakers. They soon realised that the speakers had been plugged directly into the preamp, and rectified the situation by plugging them in correctly to the poweramp. After plugging everything together correctly, Michaels hit a power chord to test the new setup which "practically blew both of our [Michaels and Smith] bodies through the back wall".
Smith had discovered High Gain, purely by chance. He set about designing a Mesa/Boogie amplifier around the new principal, and in 1972 the Mark I Boogie was released.
He proceded to evolve the Mark series, with the Mark II released in 1980. The 1980s saw Mesa instigating and leading in the 'Rack Revolution', with popular power amplifiers such as the M180/190 and Strategy series, as well as preamps such as the Quad and Studio.
Arguably the most desirable Boogie ever built was designed in 1983, the Mark II-C (and later the II-C+). The Mark series culminated in 1989 with the Mark IV, still one of the most advanced amplifiers in the world.
The '90s saw Mesa further capitalise on their successes in the '80s, with the launch of the smaller Dual Caliber series, and perhaps the most important amplifier of the '90s, the Rectifier series
The new millennium has not seen Mesa slow down, with new models like the 4-channel Road King and perhaps their best clean channel yet, the Lone Star and Lone Star Special.
Current Guitar Amplifiers
Rectifier Series
The Rectifier series, commonly called "Recto" by modelling amplifiers, was instrumental to the success of de-tuned, 7-string nu- and heavy-metal in the 90's.
There are 3 variants: Single, Dual and Triple Rectifier.
The Single Rectifier amplifiers are rated at 50 watts and utilize a silicon diode rectifier, as opposed to tube rectification. Currently in production are the Single Rectifier Solo Head 50, the Rect-o-Verb 50 head, and the Rect-o-Verb 50 combo, which is fitted with a single 12" Celestion Black Shadow speaker. The Rect-o-Verb line features the same circuitry as the Single Rectifier Solo Head 50, but incorporates reverb. All Single Rectifier amplifiers feature a pair of 6L6 power tubes as well as five 12AX7 pre-amp tubes. A bias select switch, which allows the user to swap out the stock 6L6s for EL34s, was added in the "Series 2" versions of all amplifiers in the lineup. Also, the Reverb control knob was moved from the back to the front on the Rect-o-Verb models. The Single Rectifer amplifiers feature two fully independent channels.
The Dual Rectifier Solo Head is the most popular model of the Rectifier series. The name comes from its dual 5U4 rectifier tubes. Equipped with a quartet of 6L6 power tubes, the Dual Rectifier produces 100 watts. For a tighter sound, Dual Rectifier amplifiers allow users to utilize silicone diode rectification rather than tube rectification at the flip of a switch. Like in the Single Rectifier series, a bias select switch is standard. The Dual and Triple Rectifier amplifiers, which also feature 5 12AX7 pre-amp tubes, were originally designed with 2 channels, but recently were redesigned to incorporate a third channel. However, many people consider the older 2 channel models to have a superior sound.
Other than the Dual Rectifier Solo Head, there is the flagship Boogie model (replacing the Mark IV as the company's most advanced amplifier), the Dual Rectifier Road King. The Road King is well known for its vast number of options. It has an unprecedented 4 channels, each with the option of two different speaker outputs, two effects loops and Progressive Linkage, which allows five different power tube configurations (2x6L6, 2xEL34, 2x6L6+2xEL34, 4x6L6, 4x6L6+2xEL34). The amp also features Recto-Tracking, which automatically selects the appropriate rectification (single or dual 5U4s or silicon diode) depending on the power tube configuration.
While these myriad options provide ample tweaking opportunity and ultimate customization of tone, they are also the one drawback of the Road King - it's just too complex for some. In response, Mesa announced the release of the Dual Rectifier Roadster, a scaled down version of the Road King with less options for the power amp and speakers, but retaining 4 independent channels.
The Triple Rectifier utilizes 6 6L6 power tubes for 150 watts output power, with 3 5U4 Rectifier tubes. It was designed with the tag line "When excess is barely enough", and used by bands such as Cradle of Filth, Metallica, Limp Bizkit and Korn.
Lone Star Designs
The Lone Star amplifier was released in 2004 with the tag "Tone as big as Texas", and now comes in two variants, Classic and Special.
Mesa/Boogie's description of the Classic is riddled with connotations to the sound of Texas blues, a style exemplified by Stevie Ray Vaughan, and this is the sound that the amplifier was designed to recreate. However, while its blues tones are widely reported as some of the best around, the success of the Lone Star has been its clean channel, widely regarded as one of, if not the best clean sound Boogie have ever produced. A measure of the quality of the sound is reflected in Carlos Santana's current amplifier rig - 3 70's Mark series Boogies, 2 Dumble Overdrive Special amplifiers and a 2004 Lone Star classic. The Lonestar features two channels, both capable of switching between 50 watt (tube or solidstate) and 100 watt (solidstate).
The Lone Star Special was released at a later date, having been previewed first at a NAMM show. The differences are mainly in the power amp section, primarily the use of EL84 tubes rather than 6L6. It also comes with 3 different wattage settings - 30, 15, and 5 watts.
Stiletto Designs
The Stiletto "Stage I" was released in 2004, and is designed as a British-flavored variant of the Rectifier series. Two models were released; the Deuce, and the Trident. Both come as standard with EL34 tubes and the option of tube or silicone diode rectification.
The Deuce is a 100w dual-5U4-rectified quad EL34 powered head, and is logically partnered with the popular Dual Rectifier.
The Trident is the highest output wattage of the Stiletto line. It features six EL34 power tubes and three 5U4 rectifiers, and is logically partnered with the Triple Rectifier.
As of 2006, there are three variants, each having a Rectifier series counterpart; the Ace, Deuce, and Trident. Also the "Stage I" models have been replaced by the new "Stage II".
The Ace is a new model for 2006. It is a 50-watt amp that is available in the following formats; stand-alone head, 1x12 Closed Back Combo with one V30 Speaker and casters, 2x12 Closed Back Combo with two V30 Speakers and casters. They each have a single 5U4 rectifier tube, and are housed in a Lone Star-style cabinet. Its logical partner is the Single Rectifier Solo 50 and the Rect-O-Verb combo.
The new Ace model and the other "Stage II" models offer the following improvements as compared to the "Stage I" Stiletto amplifiers;
- 5 Out of 6 Modes Re-voiced and Improved!
- FAT and TITE Clean Modes Feature Enhanced Top End Sparkle and Transparency
- Channel 1 & 2 CRUNCH Now Even Tighter and More Aggressive
- All New FLUID-DRIVE Mode Features Even More Tightly Focused Gain
- All New Lightening Fast Power Supply Tightens Low-End and Increases Mid Punch
Mark IV models and Mark I re-issue
In the 17 years between 1972 and 1989, there were 7 different Mark series designs, culminating in the Mark IV in 1989. In the 17 years between 1989 and 2006 there have been no new models, and it is widely considered that the Mark series came to its conclusion with the Mark IV.
The Mark IV is one of the most advanced amplifiers in the world. It features 3 almost fully independent channels, a graphic equalizer, master volume and many pre- and power-amp options.
The 3 channels are labeled Rhythm 1, Rhythm 2 and Lead. Rhythm 1 and 2 include shared bass and middle controls, but other than this the channels are fully independent, with volume, gain and presence controls for each. The graphic EQ is footswitchable. The Mark IV was used by both James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett of Metallica on the 'Black' as well as many subsequent albums. It was they who popularized the V-shaped graphic equalizer with a 'scooped' midrange.
It has the ability to footswitch between Simul-class and Class-A. It should be noted that the two outside power tubes can be substituted for EL34 valves, and all 4 tubes can be substituted for 6V6 valves.
The Mark I re-issue amplifier is a reproduction of the most popular Hun/Ree (100w with reverb) format of Mark I amplifier. It features a Celestion C90 speaker in its combo format, but is also available as a head.
F-Series
The F-Series debuted in 2002 as the spiritual successors to the early '90s Dual Caliber series. There are 3 sizes, 30w F30, 50w F50 and 100w F100.
The F50 has been the most critically acclaimed model, featuring a duet of 6L6 tubes in the power amp and features solid state rectification, as a 1x12 combo or head. The F100 is a similar setup, but with a quartet of 6L6s for 100w output, as a 2x12 or head.
The smallest amplifier in the series is the F30. Rather than 6L6 tubes, it features a duet of EL84s. It comes as a head or 1x12 combo.
Bass Amps
Mesa also makes Bass amps, although they are less popular than their guitar amps. Still, Mesa's bass amps are used by numerous big names, such as Sir Paul McCartney and Ben Kenney of Incubus. The current lineup of Bass Amps includes the simul-state Big Block series, M-Pulse, and Walkabout. Mesa's only tube bass amp, the Bass 400+, pushes 500 watts at peak through 12 6L6 tubes and his father Bass 400 that has 6 6L6.
Discontinued Products
Nomads
Mesa's Nomad series was produced until the early 2000's, and were considered a successor to the Caliber series of the 1990's. They boasted three channels with the option of a graphic equalizer on some models. It was sold in 45, 55, and 100 watt variations, and was phased out with the introduction of the F-series
Maverick
The Maverick was a Class-A, channel switching amp available in a 4x10 or 2x12 combo format, as well as a 35-watt head. The amp was aimed towards country and classic rock players, and was replaced by the Lone Star.
External links
- [Mesa Boogie Homepage]
- [The Mesa Boogie Mark Series Registry]
- [The Boogie Files - History of the Home of Tone]
- [] at Harmony Central
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