Members Tommi Inkila Posted January 14, 2008 Members Share Posted January 14, 2008 Originally Posted by whathappened ok guys, here's the deal... Hi Simon! It sounds like the symptoms of dying power tubes. I personally like buy new ones for important recording sessions. You can change the power tubes if your new power tubes are matched for Mesa's bias range and generally you have change 6L6 to 6L6 amp. Any professional tube seller should be able to do this for you. I order mine from www.tubeampdoctor.com ... I recommend their ecc83-cz for a bit warmer and darker tone, it's most likely a tested JJ. It's hard to say which power tubes are warmer unless you mean earlier distortion with warm. Changing the 12ax7 to something like 12ay7 or 12at7 will mostly affect the amount of gain and then the rest of the effects are pretty hard to guess. Only experimenting will give you answers. The noise comes lower with quality tubes but there will be always some hiss. If that bothers too much maybe somekind of Noise Gate is in order. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Lt_Core Posted January 14, 2008 Members Share Posted January 14, 2008 I've been using a Morley Little Alligator pedal in the loop for the past month during gigs to tame my F-50 and it's been working great except for some clean channel issues here and there. Just for fun, I did not attenuate any volume this past Saturday and had the Channel 2 master around 8 o'clock....still pretty darn loud. With the volume pedal I would crank the Channel 2 master to 10 o'clock or so. I noticed the bottom end wasn't as tight sounded/focused, if that makes sense. I like the clean channel without attenuation as that suffers the most when pulling back the volume. Just my 2 cents since I haven't posted here in awhile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Zachallard Posted January 14, 2008 Members Share Posted January 14, 2008 Originally Posted by Tommi Inkila Hi Simon! Changing the 12ax7 to something like 12ay7 or 12at7 will mostly affect the amount of gain and then the rest of the effects are pretty hard to guess. Only experimenting will give you answers. The noise comes lower with quality tubes but there will be always some hiss. If that bothers too much maybe somekind of Noise Gate is in order. I was wondering what are some gain mods for an f50 that dont require any real tooling around in the guts of my beloved f50. I would not be comfortable altering anything, but could anyone give me a quick run through of what types of tubes would deliver what? I mean that a little more speciffically like, are there different types of 6L6? or preamp tubes? Thanks alot Zach Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members eddie.perez Posted January 15, 2008 Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 Originally Posted by whathappened ok guys, here's the deal... at the moment i'm recording with my band and it seems like my one and a half year old f50 leaves me alone in the wrong situation. yesterday during recording the amp suddenly died. we checked that it was a blown fuse. ok, it's not a big thing to change the fuse, but: what if it will happen again? we just started recording gain sounds with the f50... i was wondering if there could be a problem with the power tubes? another sign for that: one week ago, not during a recording situation, the amp suddenly started to make some uncontrolled loud noise for a few seconds... this didn't happen again! is it possible to change the power tubes by myself? since i really don't want mesa tubes this time (i'm looking for something warmer sounding...) do i have to change the bias? i'm not really familiar with things like that i think. by the way, do you have some advice for getting a warmer sound with tube changing? do i need to change a 6l6 with 6l6? i'm wondering too, if i'll buy a 12ay7 (or another tube??) instead of 12ax7 to reduce the all in all volume of the amp, because i think the amp is a bit too overpowered... beside that my f50 is quite noisy (not only when it's loud). i really don't like the hiss! ok, i think this was a lot... have a good time!! simon Hey man what's up, I recommend taht you get your self a power conditioner. I recommend the Monster 2500 Power Center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Will Cyrier Posted January 15, 2008 Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 Originally Posted by whathappened ok guys, here's the deal... at the moment i'm recording with my band and it seems like my one and a half year old f50 leaves me alone in the wrong situation. yesterday during recording the amp suddenly died. we checked that it was a blown fuse. ok, it's not a big thing to change the fuse, but: what if it will happen again? we just started recording gain sounds with the f50... i was wondering if there could be a problem with the power tubes? another sign for that: one week ago, not during a recording situation, the amp suddenly started to make some uncontrolled loud noise for a few seconds... this didn't happen again! is it possible to change the power tubes by myself? since i really don't want mesa tubes this time (i'm looking for something warmer sounding...) do i have to change the bias? i'm not really familiar with things like that i think. by the way, do you have some advice for getting a warmer sound with tube changing? do i need to change a 6l6 with 6l6? i'm wondering too, if i'll buy a 12ay7 (or another tube??) instead of 12ax7 to reduce the all in all volume of the amp, because i think the amp is a bit too overpowered... beside that my f50 is quite noisy (not only when it's loud). i really don't like the hiss! ok, i think this was a lot... have a good time!! simon Just a note, non-Mesa tubes void the warranty if it's still applicable. Also, I don't know how much hiss you're experiencing, but that could be caused by the cascading pre-amp tubes. How is the hiss in your clean channel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dann'sTheMan Posted January 15, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 Originally Posted by Will Cyrier Just a note, non-Mesa tubes void the warranty if it's still applicable. Just a comment on this, as this is often floated around the web. My reading of Mesa's wording on this is that if a non-Mesa tube causes a failure, and damages the amp, then the damage is not covered by Mesa's warranty. This is of course very different to a blanket ban on other manufacturer's tubes. If you use decent tubes (i.e. purchased from a reputable source), then they are no more likely to damage your amp than Mesa's own tubes. If you use dodgy tubes, and your amp get's damaged as a result, then Mesa quite fairly imho are saying that you're on your own. Mesa actually seem to encourage tube experimentation - just make sure you can trust the tubes that you are using. Big smiles, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members whathappened Posted January 15, 2008 Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 thank you alot for the quick and informative answers!@eddie.perez: is the idea of the power conditioner to safe my amp against a bad outlet?@tommy: thank you for the link! is there a rule like "the 12at7 produces 2/3 of the 12ax7's gain"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pretend For Now Posted January 15, 2008 Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 Hey guys, I'm new here and have been reading a lot of this thread and it's a great resource for F-Series users. Thanks for the wealth of information! I bought a F-100 2X12 Combo last April for $600 and it has been amazing. I'll be sure to stop here if I have any questions or if I can contribute in any way to the thread. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Will Cyrier Posted January 15, 2008 Members Share Posted January 15, 2008 Originally Posted by Dann'sTheMan Just a comment on this, as this is often floated around the web. My reading of Mesa's wording on this is that if a non-Mesa tube causes a failure, and damages the amp, then the damage is not covered by Mesa's warranty. This is of course very different to a blanket ban on other manufacturer's tubes. If you use decent tubes (i.e. purchased from a reputable source), then they are no more likely to damage your amp than Mesa's own tubes. If you use dodgy tubes, and your amp get's damaged as a result, then Mesa quite fairly imho are saying that you're on your own. Mesa actually seem to encourage tube experimentation - just make sure you can trust the tubes that you are using. Big smiles, Andy. Thanks Andy. I might have an old notice, but it's from 01/01/2002 and says, "Damage to the amplifier caused by out-of-warranty tubes, while rare, may not be covered under this Warranty. This Warranty becomes void if any tubes other than genuine Mesa tubes are used. Abuse, misuse or failure to properly maintain your Mesa product may, at Mesa's sole discretion, invalidate this Warranty." I agree with experimentation for the best tone and using quality products. I guess it might come down to the individual case and, like you said, if a dodgy tube causes failure, then Mesa can choose to fix the improper maintenance of your amp. I've heard good things about their customer service, but haven't experienced it firsthand, yet... I may call them after I get my diagnosis from the amp repair tech I took it to last week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Zachallard Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Would anyone know right off the top of their heads if the front panel of an f50 head (not combo) is easily removable and/or replaceable? Is there anything special about it? From what I could gather, it serves no use other than protecting the insides of the amp and providing a nice clean look! I would potentially get my friend who is big into wood working to make a sweet richly stained rosewood front panel. Is this achievable just by removing the 4 front screws? Anyways, if anyone could give me a quick heads up that would be super! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrelusive Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 has anyone put kt66s or kt88s in an f-series head before? would they fit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sixtonoize Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 They will fit, because they use the same bases as most power tubes. However, the screen, grid, and bias voltages will all be out-of-whack, so you'll have to replace the resistors in the amp with the correct value for the tubes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dann'sTheMan Posted January 16, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Will Cyrier Thanks Andy. I might have an old notice, but it's from 01/01/2002 and says, "Damage to the amplifier caused by out-of-warranty tubes, while rare, may not be covered under this Warranty. This Warranty becomes void if any tubes other than genuine Mesa tubes are used. Abuse, misuse or failure to properly maintain your Mesa product may, at Mesa's sole discretion, invalidate this Warranty." I agree with experimentation for the best tone and using quality products. I guess it might come down to the individual case and, like you said, if a dodgy tube causes failure, then Mesa can choose to fix the improper maintenance of your amp. I've heard good things about their customer service, but haven't experienced it firsthand, yet... I may call them after I get my diagnosis from the amp repair tech I took it to last week. Hi Will, I stand corrected. I can't remember where I got the wording I referred to from. Maybe the European warranty wording is different (currently in Japan so I can't check). Nevertheless, it seems as if Mesa-Boogie are quite severe in their home market at least. Big smiles, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Will Cyrier Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Dann'sTheMan Hi Will, I stand corrected. I can't remember where I got the wording I referred to from. Maybe the European warranty wording is different (currently in Japan so I can't check). Nevertheless, it seems as if Mesa-Boogie are quite severe in their home market at least. Big smiles, Andy. You know, you may be right because I see in a later paragraph this statement, "This Limited Warranty applies only to Mesa Products sold by Authorized Mesa/Boogie Pro Center dealers in the US and Canada, and is..." I think it's pretty bogus. Most of us who use these tone-machines either know something about tubes, or know where to find the info needed about tubes. I didn't know about this clause until I had ordered and installed a full JJ re-tube kit from Eurotubes. Unfortunately, that didn't solve the issue I was having, so I wasted $50 and voided my warranty (I shouldn't say I completely wasted my $). And since I'm a honest fellow, I can't muster the ________ to tell Mesa, "No, I've used genuine Mesa tubes all along." Anyway, how's Japan? You eyein' any sweet guitar related paraphernalia? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dann'sTheMan Posted January 16, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Will Cyrier You know, you may be right because I see in a later paragraph this statement, "This Limited Warranty applies only to Mesa Products sold by Authorized Mesa/Boogie Pro Center dealers in the US and Canada, and is..." I think it's pretty bogus. Most of us who use these tone-machines either know something about tubes, or know where to find the info needed about tubes. I didn't know about this clause until I had ordered and installed a full JJ re-tube kit from Eurotubes. Unfortunately, that didn't solve the issue I was having, so I wasted $50 and voided my warranty (I shouldn't say I completely wasted my $). And since I'm a honest fellow, I can't muster the ________ to tell Mesa, "No, I've used genuine Mesa tubes all along." Anyway, how's Japan? You eyein' any sweet guitar related paraphernalia? Hi Will, Yeah, I agree that's pretty harsh. I think it would be great if Mesa relaxed their policy along the lines of what I was describing. However if there were any ambiguity, Mesa would probably get sued silly. Regarding your Eurotubes adventure, I'd suggest being honest with Mesa and say that you tried a set of JJ's hoping that it would solve your problem, it didn't, and when you realised about the warranty clause, you switched back. They would probably be within their "rights" to turn you away, but I would hope, and maybe even expect, that they would do the decent thing. Gotta be worth a try? Japan has been intense, and hard work. However, I've got a little guitar-related memento to sweeten the memories. Check out post #5596, Big smiles, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Joeytpg Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Hey andy, what do you do for a living? if you don't mind me asking I also have Japanese family, my uncle has married two Japanese women, and two half Japanese half Dominican kids with one of them. So two Jap. cuz for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grinder72 Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by markmann Swifty, Congrat's on the new amp... enjoy. In answer to your questions I think that all distortion pedal are inherantly noisy to some degree, at least the ones that I've had and I've owned all the popular ones at some point. The more distortion you crank in the more noise is introduced. I can't say that any one was more noisy than another but maybe someone else has more experience. At the moment I think that the F-50 produces better OD than any of the pedals I've used lately so I use the red channel for my main OD. For a more outragious high gain dist tone I use an old Arion pedal I've had since the mid 80's. I've never heard any other pedal do what this one can I just bought a THD Hotplate off flea-Bay but I haven't had a chance to test it yet so I'll let you know how that goes. I've read a few reviews and many posts about attenuators and it seems that the hotplate is most recommended... we'll see if it lives up to the hype. Hello all, long time no see. I'm looking for a power soak for my F-50 and did a quick search on the thread and came up with the quoted post. I'm going to get the hot plate, but my question is: which one is suitable for the F-50? Excuse my technical ignorance. Regards, Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dann'sTheMan Posted January 16, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Joeytpg Hey andy, what do you do for a living? if you don't mind me asking I also have Japanese family, my uncle has married two Japanese women, and two half Japanese half Dominican kids with one of them. So two Jap. cuz for me PM'd. Big smiles, Andy. P.S. With both our family connections - maybe we're related: my brother from another mother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dann'sTheMan Posted January 16, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Grinder72 Hello all, long time no see. I'm looking for a power soak for my F-50 and did a quick search on the thread and came up with the quoted post. I'm going to get the hot plate, but my question is: which one is suitable for the F-50? Excuse my technical ignorance. Regards, Steve. Hi Steve, You'll need an 8 Ohm Hotplate - the purple one iirc. Big smiles, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grinder72 Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Dann'sTheMan Hi Steve, You'll need an 8 Ohm Hotplate - the purple one iirc. Big smiles, Andy. Cheers, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Butts Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Hi. I just picked up a Mesa Subway Blues for my office at work. Will this work with th' Blues? I need cranked amp tone at work! Best regards, Brian F-series Miscellaneous Tips Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RonniePentatonic Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Yo homies! Ive been neglecting the F-30 for a bit in favor of the Rivera half stack but spent some time with it last night and realized why its one of the most under rated amps ever.Heres a couple of quick, raw, un"produced" clips. Singing lead over backing:http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25599Amp by itself, high gain contour on, metal to blues with volume knob:http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25598I'll try to pop in here more often for some tricks, great thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrelusive Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by RonniePentatonic Yo homies! Ive been neglecting the F-30 for a bit in favor of the Rivera half stack but spent some time with it last night and realized why its one of the most under rated amps ever. Heres a couple of quick, raw, un"produced" clips. Singing lead over backing: http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25599 Amp by itself, high gain contour on, metal to blues with volume knob: http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25598 I'll try to pop in here more often for some tricks, great thread. listen to this man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Will Cyrier Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by RonniePentatonic Yo homies! Ive been neglecting the F-30 for a bit in favor of the Rivera half stack but spent some time with it last night and realized why its one of the most under rated amps ever. Heres a couple of quick, raw, un"produced" clips. Singing lead over backing: http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25599 Amp by itself, high gain contour on, metal to blues with volume knob: http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=25598 I'll try to pop in here more often for some tricks, great thread. How do you feel about posting your settings? They sound pretty sweet. What type of axe and pickups are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Will Cyrier Posted January 16, 2008 Members Share Posted January 16, 2008 Originally Posted by Butts Hi. I just picked up a Mesa Subway Blues for my office at work. Will this work with th' Blues? I need cranked amp tone at work! Best regards, Brian F-series Miscellaneous Tips Does th' Blues have a serial or parallel FX loop? This 'mod' is for the F's parallel loop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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