The End Of Mesa Boogie? Or Do Gibson Have a Plan...

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00:00 Gibson strikes again
2:39 what Mesa Boogie meant to me
3:11 the biggest casualty of amp modeling?
3:53 reliability issues?
4:40 why we don't need to worry for Mesa Boogie
5:13 the difference between Dumble and Mesa
6:27 if Mesa stopped making amps altogether?
6:55 has innovation slowed down?
8:47 the two Mesa products I still have
9:30 when the Mesa era was over for me...

only if you wanted, you could buy me a coffee!

only if you wanted, you could buy me a coffee!

[jnh]

As with so many other industries, digital/software is coming to eat the world. Randy's 78 years old as of August 2024 and has been at it since 1969, and likely saw software/digital creeping in, ready to mutate his beloved tube amp designs, or even replace them with captures and profiles. He had a 55 year run - that's incredible. Godspeed my man, you changed the amp game forever.

[cliverkay]

The Lonestar was the best one they made . Then stopped making it !!

[kosmicwizard]

I've owned several Mesa's over the years. From a BASS 400 (non - +) running on a sextet of KT88s. To a Walkabout 300 head. To a Dual Rec multiwatt reborn. A Thiele 1x12 w/ EVM12L. Oversized 4x12 loaded w/ V30s. But I traded the 4x12 for an Orange PPC212. The Dual Rec for an Orange Rocker 30. And all I currently have by them is a V-Twin Preamp, which absolutely stomps in front of the R30 combo! I never had any troubles with my Mesa gear, but I've heard that switching relays often go out after the 10 year mark and for anyone outside of the US it costs a fortune to ship it to California and back for repairs. Cheers.

[robertbossart]

Mark III SimulClass, hardwood, EQ and EV speaker – hated it for a long time, but learned to love it (if I haven't to carry it around … ;-)

[BillAltman]

Mesa are the humbucking pickups of amps, the original high gain unit

[Bret_Sanor]

Never underestimate Gibson to ruin something good. They have a track record of it. I foresee them taking production to foreign soil, possibly China.

With the rise of quality digital platforms and the struggle to find good techs who are still willing and capable of properly working on Mesa's, it makes it difficult to want to purchase them especially at the high cost.

It's a really a strange time to be a guitarist where amps are not welcomed on stages anymore and yet the direct in options are still a bit lacking in a live setting. I found most of the one's demanding silent stages are the one's incompetent to give proper monitoring for the musicians. Strange times...

[noctilux]

Had two MKIII, and Quad Preamp back in the days. Never had problems with them, workhorses.

[japhygoldman]

The Triple Crown 50 is pretty hard to beat for a do-everything amp. Jazz, blues, metal, classic rock, funk, whatever, it seems to be able to make a very good run at it.

[donmorton]

I 've owned a Mesa Studio Preamp since the mid-1990's. I'm the second owner; a good friend (who is now deceased) sold it to me. I use it w/ Thiele cabs (EVM- 12L speakers). A full range of great Clean AND OD/Distortion sounds. A great product. I always hoped Mesa/Boogie would do a reissue version. Now w/ the acquisition by Gibson, I believe THAT idea is even less likely.

[LukeGeis-wwru]

Mesa amps are rather reliable, and it is a big one, when they do fail, it is an absolute terror to fix them. Coupled with the fact they are generally more expensive than other common brands, makes it a hard pill to swallow that your broken, expensive amp, is also really expensive to fix due to its complicated production.

[SundaySolos]

I've been playing a Mark IV for more than 20 years. Other Amps and modellers have come and gone, but I always turn to the Boogie.

[JasonT-xpkh]

Gibson has such a great track record of fostering their acquisitions. Get ready for cheap chinese junk in a mesa cabinet for $3000.
Once they've run the brand into the ground, they'll just shelve it.

[josephpickard]

I have a Maverick 2x12 and I've never heard an amp so versatile yet so loud when needed. Mesa crushed it in the 90s. Never heard a profile sound as good as the real deal.

[jazzyonno]

Bought my Lonestar Special 2x12 for €1200 (2nd hand) several years ago which I still think is a fanttastic price and I really love it. I used it as my main amp for a couple of years until my Two Rock Traditional Clean 1x12 became my main. Still have the LSS as a back up. I am lucky enough to turn these amps up loud enough so they colour my pedal sounds with a bit of soul. I love their organic responisveness. The Mesa doesn't live up to the Two Rock's clean, but it is pretty admirable nonetheless, I would say 8.5/10. Both these amps are inspirational if you use the amp as a pedal platform or play without pedals most of the time. Reliability has been fine from my experience. If you run into an LSS on the secondhand market, and would dig a great pedal platform amp, I would recommend them. It's a bit like a Fender DRR with more headroom, switchable power, and switchable channels.

[janfelixbergmann]

The Mesa Boogie Lonestar was the best amp I ever played. I was seventeen and had tried out the Fenders and Marshalls before, but man that thing was a beauty

[sassafras]

Randall Smith is a legend. Early on he used to check and sign every chassis they made, including my Caliber 50+. Smith changed the guitar amp world more than once but I can’t think of a single amp innovation by Gibson.

[chrisgmurray]

I've had a Mess Boogie Studio Tube Preamp since the early 90's. I bought it second hand, and the reverb was the only thing that didn't work. A tech-savy pal took a look inside, resoldered a loose wire on the tiny spring section and it has worked ever since. I still use it, and it just sounds brilliant, once you dial it in, and has a loop with stereo return, and every kind of switching you'd ever need.

[Tsak]

I believe a statement came out yesterday where his contract had run up and at 78 years old he had not indented to continue once it ran out. Its very akin to Leo Fender being a consultant with Fender for 3 years after the CBS buy out...

[cwyld]

The thing with mesa's, or at least what a lot of amptechs have told me, is they’re pretty much rock solid but when they go it's really hard to fix them. I've been giging a lonestar special for the last few years for gb, weekenders, and tours and it's never given me any issue. I snagged a fillmore 25 about a year ago to try and save my back, and a month of gigs in and the second channel was busted. The guy I took it to managed to fix it but he sent me a photo of the board and it's incredibly small and hard to work on.

[thebunn]

Ever since the Helix came out, I stopped caring about tube amps... I'm not saying modeling is "better" or that tube amps "suck", or anything like that.. The Helix and the Helix ecosystem just works so well, in every situation. Valve amps have become a major hassle in so many aspects.