Members Jkater Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 I'm eager to push that "shopping cart" button but I'm hesitating between the II and III. The deciding point is simple: I need the amp to sound good at very low volume while I wouldn't mind the 100W of the Mustang III for some venue (and the fact that it's a nicer amp and has a few more stuff) but if the III sounds weak at very low volume because maybe the speaker isn't driven properly or whatever, then it's a no-go. Experienced mustang users, what do you think? Thank you for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cbh5150 Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 III. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dr. Scottie C Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 I have the 3, the 3 sounds good even at bedroom volumes.... the "does it sound like horse{censored} at low volumes" rule really only applies to tube amps. Not all watts are created equal..... a "100 watt" Solid State Mustang 3 has approx the same power as a 15 watt "tube" Fender Blues Junior. The Mustang II at 40 Solid State watts doesn't have even 1/3rd the headroom of a 15 watt Blues Junior An interesting side note: Leo Fender started as a radio repair shop. When he designed all the Fender tweed amps, the power supplies were too small, so they had a weird distortion when pushed hard because they Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 I haven't A/B'd them in the flesh, but my understanding is that the III also has a noticeably better sounding speaker. I'd probably get the III. I have the Mustang I which met my expectations, but I actually wish I'd gone higher up the ladder. I bought it because I wanted a 100% solid state amp for pickin and surfin (i.e. mulit-taskin between playing and this type of time warping) and I don't want to have to worry about tubes burning away while I ADD off into cyber-world. But the MI starts to fall apart sound-wise if I get it too loud, so I would like to have at least gotten the II for more solid headroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ArmyGuitar Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 III hands down, it sounds good on 1 or dimed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 III much better speakerss at low and stage volume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlackPatch Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 I have the II, but after just three weeks I already think Fuse is a pain. I need to plug the amp into my laptop every time to just add some Fuzz or something. It's just not worth it. Go with the III, definitely. I wish I had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tweak'd Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Get the III. It's become the only amp I turn on since I got it. I have the software installed and looked at it a couple of times, but anything I want to do can be done right on the amp. And it sounds great at any volume I've run it at. Fantastic $300 SS amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 I have the II, but after just three weeks I already think Fuse is a pain. I need to plug the amp into my laptop every time to just add some Fuzz or something. It's just not worth it.Go with the III, definitely. I wish I had. ?????????????????????????????????????????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted October 16, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Thanks guys. I order the MIII tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members riffy Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Jman,I have had both the II and the III. I now only have the III after returning the II for it.The III sounds better to me all the way around. Better speaker, open back, etc. Anotherplus is that you can get into the deep editing from the amp itself without having toresort to Fender Fuse. That makes it so much easier to gig with. You gig, so you will know that there are always changes to be made from home presetsto gig presets and from gig venue to gig venue for that matter. I dig the III and havebeen gigging with it over my tube amps for the last month. The guy that answered the question saying the III is roughly the same volume as a 15 watt Fender tube amp is totally crazy. I absolutely buried a Peavy Classic 30 lastweek at practice. You couldn't hear it over the MustangIII at the volumes we were playing at. Everyone had to turn down for him, including the drummer! Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted October 16, 2011 Members Share Posted October 16, 2011 Cool. I started w/a I, traded that and some other stuff for a II. The II sounds great, I've used it at a rehearsal... but if I was starting over, I'd probably just get a III. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Crisco Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 M III is an incredible amp for its price and the Celestion G12-100 is a very good speaker.Breakup on settings like 'Bassman' are good at any volumeit really does a good job at the full, throaty tone.The only thing I've found tricky is the settings and, in 99 choices...I can get lost real quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 The guy that answered the question saying the III is roughly the same volume as a 15 watt Fender tube amp is totally crazy. I absolutely buried a Peavy Classic 30 lastweek at practice. You couldn't hear it over the MustangIII at the volumes we were playing at. Everyone had to turn down for him, including the drummer!Gary Must have been something wrong with the C30 if you couldn't even hear it over a 100SS amp, and he was being drowned by the drummer. An 18 watt clone through a G12H will sit quite happily (if dirtily) alongside all but the loudest drummers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted October 17, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 I got this email today: "Wir freuen uns nun, Ihnen mitteilen zu d Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 Rough translation: You're gettting your amp tomorrow! Cool man! Looking forward to some clips! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mistersully Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 I got this email today: "Wir freuen uns nun, Ihnen mitteilen zu d Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members billybilly Posted October 17, 2011 Members Share Posted October 17, 2011 Great, after reading this I will probably buy the III as well. (like I need it) lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dr. Scottie C Posted October 18, 2011 Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 The guy that answered the question saying the III is roughly the same volume as a 15 watt Fender tube amp is totally crazy. I absolutely buried a Peavy Classic 30 lastweek at practice. You couldn't hear it over the MustangIII at the volumes we were playing at. Everyone had to turn down for him, including the drummer!Gary Gary, then that Peavey Classic 30 had issues..... I stand by the fact that a 100 watt Solid State (any make/any model) has roughly the same head space/ total decibel capacity as a 15 to 20 watt tube amp. I also stand by the opinion that no 100 watt Solid State (any make/any model) can match the output of a properly functioning, 30 watt tube amp that is dimed out. Having said that..... I do not wish to get into a "my dad can beat your dad's ass" match about which amp is louder.... LOUDER VERY RARELY equals better. I have the Mustang III- and I love it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted October 18, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 you sure they're not sending you a hat? Gee! (run for the German/English dictionnary). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted October 18, 2011 Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 Aren't watts watts no matter what type of equipment produces it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jkater Posted October 18, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 Aren't watts watts no matter what type of equipment produces it? It seems not, in some ways. I have heard in so many places that tube amps are louder for the same "watts" than SS, that there must be truth in it. What's debatable until the cows come home is by how much. But it's moot. Gary, who knows his stuff, has experienced this differently than others who also know their stuff (who knows how much a particular room brings something to the equation?). Dr.Scottie's excellent post says it best for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted October 18, 2011 Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 Gary, then that Peavey Classic 30 had issues..... I stand by the fact that a 100 watt Solid State (any make/any model) has roughly the same head space/ total decibel capacity as a 15 to 20 watt tube amp. Having built some tube amps, and worked on a bunch... I agree. Sadly, I don't know WHY, but I will say that a properly maintained 30-40w tube is as loud or louder then any 100w SS amp I've ever played. The other thing I've noticed about SS amps, and admittedly the only one I actually tried this with was a Line 6, is they don't seem cut through in a live band situation with a couple of guitars/bass and drums. They get loud, you can feel them, but they just sort of sit in the mix as volume and not as an individual instrument. Hard to explain, but that's what I heard. The one time I used my MII at a practice though, it did NOT have this problem. So I don't know if that's something that was specific to the Line 6 I used (a spider 6), or the room, or we rehearsed at a reasonable volume, or . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BoneNut Posted October 18, 2011 Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 It seems not, in some ways. I have heard in so many places that tube amps are louder for the same "watts" than SS, that there must be truth in it. What's debatable until the cows come home is by how much. But it's moot. Gary, who knows his stuff, has experienced this differently than others who also know their stuff (who knows how much a particular room brings something to the equation?). Dr.Scottie's excellent post says it best for me. Thanks buddy. I had thought watts were some kind of standard measurement for power output but there must be a reason why tube amps get so dang loud, so I best leave it to the experts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nuke_diver Posted October 18, 2011 Members Share Posted October 18, 2011 Looking forward to the clips Richard I read an article once that talked about why there is a volume difference when the power appears to be similar but I can't find it right now. I did have a AD30 (30watt) which could barely keep up with a drummer and Mesa 15 watt that had no trouble. Some of that is due to speaker and speaker efficiency (10 vs 12") but not all. I believe my TA15 on the 5 watt setting is nearly as loud (maybe louder in certain configurations) than the AD30 was Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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