Mesa EXPRESS 5:25

Double

Double

New member
Does anybody out there have one of these? I am looking to buy one and was wondering what you thought of them. I mostly have owned Fender amps and play blues, roots rock and a little country. If you have an other suggestion I would like to hear it.
 
I love mine, but since you are getting a newer model than mine you should make sure you get the 1x12, NOT the 1x10 version. Everything about this amp is perfect (for the price) except that Mesa made a rare mistake when they put a 10 inch speaker in it the first time around.

Now they are available in 1x12, and that's what it shoulda been in the first place.

Takes pedals well, but the tone controls may be different than what you are used to. If you have a good compressor, a nice OD, and a quiet EQ pedal, then you will love this amp. Oddly, I have found a Line 6 Dr. Distorto pedal works really well with this amp! :D Throw in a noise gate pedal and you will be smokin!
 
Hey SC thanks for the reply I will be looking for a single 12.
Just a couple questions
How do you compare it to the Yorkville amp you had and what do you think you should pay for one?
 
I own one, and have a hard time getting a sound I really like out of it. SC is right.... don't buy this amp unless you have the $$ to get at the very least a decent compressor to use with it. You can get some good Brad Paisley like tones out of it if you are very careful. I paid $1149 for my 1x10.
For much less than that, I suggest this amp http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/...212-33W-2x12-Tube-Guitar-Combo-Amp?sku=487056
I own two of these, and much prefer them over my Mesa 5:25. You can hear my Crate here: http://www.lightningmp3.com/live/file.php?id=14973

Peace!

~Shawn
 
Well, I've tried to post to this twice (long descriptive posts) but it keeps telling me that I'm not logged in when I hit the submit button. :) If this doesn't work, I'm done.

If it does, I'll just say I've had mine for about a year and it's a very nice little amp. Played with a friend and his Crate V18 a few days ago and the Crate just sounded like a noisy toy in comparison.
I suspect it'd be the same with any of the cheapo tube amps that are in abundance on the market now. Sure beats the heck out of my Epi Valve Special. Now that's a toy.

The Mesa could be used in professional studio work. Nice, deep, clean, multi-dimensional sound. Beautiful fendery cleans. Good tight distortion. No pedals needed. With external cabs, it opens up and becomes a little Beast.
 
It took me quite a while to figure out how the gain works on the Mesa. Not like any other amp I've fooled with. The eq section is very sensitive and powerful. Small tweaks make large changes in the sound. You can't just start cranking knobs. If you don't do it right, you get HISSSSSS. Bugged the heck outa me at first. That's one of the main complaints you hear about the amp. Too much hiss. But once you learn the gain structure, you can keep it pretty quiet. It's also quieter when you get the headroom of external cabs.
 
Mine had two holes in the stock Black Shadow speaker when I got it. Replaced it with a Weber ceramic Blue Pup. Also had a bad power tube right off the bat. Put some GT's in and no problems since. That Blue Pup is a raucous, snarling little speaker, will tear your face off if you're right in front. I got a 1x12 cab too and put in a Weber alnico Blue Dog. Totally different sound. And the two together are awesome. I also had an old 8x10 Yamaha cab that sounds great with the 1x12. Huge thick sound, plenty of bottom end but not boomy. If you like to use different cabs, you can get many, many different sounds with different combinations of speakers. I've even used the internal 10" 8 ohm with a 4 ohm 4x10 and got a great overdriven sound on the Clean channel.
 
The 5:25 isn't for the MetalHead. Nor is any small combo amp, especially with one 10" speaker. I suspect that many who don't like the amp, are wanting the Mesa recto dirty sound and just can't seem to get it. But it's perfect for somebody like me, bedroom picking, practice, taking to a friends house to pick, occasional outdoor party, recording on PC..... all at reasonable listening levels. ie not ear-splitting. Country, classic rock, some metal, it'll do it and well. If you're going to do big gigs, want the grinding dirty distortion at brain-destroying levels, get a 100 watt recto or something. The Mesa will leave you wanting a little more roar and power for that kinda stuff. But I don't want it.
 
Double said:
Hey SC thanks for the reply I will be looking for a single 12.
Just a couple questions
How do you compare it to the Yorkville amp you had and what do you think you should pay for one?
Click to expand...

I still regret selling that YCV20WR, but......it aint no Mesa. That Yorkie did one thing (maybe two) really well, and that was all, and it was really fun and good for that one thing. But the Mesa is far more versatile, specially with a few pedals on the side. I think I paid $1099 for mine? Floor model, but no issues at all.

I've also noticed that, as with most amps, the speaker + cab combination has a huge affect on the sound. I was running thru a 2x12 closed back ported with alnico Tone Tubbys, and I thought that was the absolute bomb for tone! Loved it! Still love it.....but....

I did an experiment and I bought a used Yamaha SV15 cab, gutted it, and put a Weber 15 inch alnico Blue Dog in it. It stomps the crap outa that Tone Tubby cab. WOW! I love the many different ways I can "chase sound" with this amp. Players who want to just hit the power button and play and never do any knob twisting and tone questing may not enjoy the Mesa very much. I like it a lot better the more I understand how to tweak it and blend it with the pedals. I would suppose it might be enough for small gigs if you ran a second speaker with it. That 15 incher is really loud! The versatility makes it better suited for the home studio, me thinks. IF I were rich and going to gig often, I'd get a Roadking or a Rivera Venus 6 for starters.
 
The Laney Lionheart thing looks pretty good. I'd love to hear the 20 watt head and cab. Might want to check that one out too.

Vox AC30....can't go wrong there.

Peavey Classic 30.....not bad little amps.....needs speaker upgrade to get you there though.

Mesa Lonestar Special or Classic....... sweet.

Fender Deluxe Reverb reissue with a good OD pedal.

Check out the Gibson GA40RVT. 30 watt class A point-to-point wired with 6L6's. Haven't heard one but I love the way it looks and it's a great concept at least for only 850 bucks. If I were buying now, I'd go look at one.

Just some things I've thought about. Good luck with your amp shopping. Great fun.
 
Almost stayed out of this one, but...


The Express series are my least favorite Mesas I've ever played, especially compared to the (excellent) F-series they replace. That said, your description above is about the one playing situation I'd recommend them for.

I'd still see if you couldn't find a used F-30, as honestly that's one of the nicer cleans I've ever heard. Likewise, if you're going to drop the cash for a Mesa and you're into blues/rock, you owe it to yourself to check out the Lone Star series. The Lone Stars are some of the creamiest, smoothest, spongiest sounding amps I've ever played, and I suspect would be positively orgasmic with a tele. The Express, meanwhile, are a bit grungier, darker, and crunchier. I could see them handling singlecoils well, and if you're looking for a raw, grungy, grindy sort of blues-blues/rock sound they could qork quite well.

So, give it a shot, there's a 50-50 chance it might work out well for you. But also be sure to A/B it with a Lone Star Special, given your wants.
 
DrewPeterson7 said:
Almost stayed out of this one, but...


The Express series are my least favorite Mesas I've ever played, especially compared to the (excellent) F-series they replace. That said, your description above is about the one playing situation I'd recommend them for.

I'd still see if you couldn't find a used F-30, as honestly that's one of the nicer cleans I've ever heard. Likewise, if you're going to drop the cash for a Mesa and you're into blues/rock, you owe it to yourself to check out the Lone Star series. The Lone Stars are some of the creamiest, smoothest, spongiest sounding amps I've ever played, and I suspect would be positively orgasmic with a tele. The Express, meanwhile, are a bit grungier, darker, and crunchier. I could see them handling singlecoils well, and if you're looking for a raw, grungy, grindy sort of blues-blues/rock sound they could qork quite well.

So, give it a shot, there's a 50-50 chance it might work out well for you. But also be sure to A/B it with a Lone Star Special, given your wants.
Click to expand...

Many Thanks! I will check those out.
 
I think I have an idea what you mean aboutthe F-Series amps. They are really sweet.

I had an original Subway Rocket, and if it had not had repair issues I would have kept it...... in which case I never would have taken any interest in the Express. I actually bought the Express because of my very pleasant experience with the Subway, and because the Express was brand new and I was getting really pissed off about having to repair the Subway every other week.

I bought the Subway used, and it was fine until I changed tubes. Then I found one of the tube sockets had a hole that was broken, and it was down hill from there.... but when it worked correctly, WOW! Awesome sound! It had a much nicer sounding Contour circuit than the Express.

Before I bought the Express, I narrowly missed winning a mint F-30 on ebay, missed the winning bid by about $50 bucks with 15 seconds left. But the local guy had a new Express on the floor ready to go...... so here I am! :)
 
For what it's worth, here's a clip of my 5:25. http://www.lightningmp3.com/live/file.php?id=15082

I'm wondering of there isn't something wrong with mine.... when I have it in 25 watt mode, it's as if it has extreme "sag." Like, I hit a percussive note, and the output loudness goes down for a second, like it has a nasty compressor adjusted poorly attached. I dunno.....
My Crate amps certainly are no toys by the way. Just like any product, if it's being put to use in a poor way, it will sound poor.... maybe a guys guitar is junk.... any amp will sound like crap with a crap guitar or with an inexperienced player.

Peace!

~Shawn
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top