Epic Fight: Mesa vs Bergantino!

[Taustin Powers]

So these two brands seem to have huge followings on TalkBass. Both their amps and cabs seem to be outstanding engineering masterpieces. I was wondering which combination of amps and cabs of those two brands most of you would view as the ultimate best bass rig.

I am sure there is no wrong choice in this poll!

 

[rodl2005]

Recipe:- Any combination of gear listed, go with YOUR taste. It's all quality

 

[howardf]

I've been struggling with these two brands, plus Darkglass, for my next amp purchase. I can make a two hour trek to Sweetwater and try Mesa and Darkglass head to head, but no Bergantino anywhere near here.

 

[Taustin Powers]

Interesting. Looks like Mesa is winning in amps, and Berg is winning in cabs right now. Only 9 votes in though.

I have a Mesa D-800 and love it. Never played any Berg stuff though, and never played either companies speaker cabs.

 

[msb]

I picked up a couple of Bergie cabs last year . And I became a believer .

 

[Killing Floor]

No wrong choice there. I think I could be a member of both of these cults.

 

[mobeme23]

yeah, no wrong choices here, and i think any combo will give excellent results.
For me, the tone shaping of Mesa gear is exactly what i am after, and i really love my Berg cab.
i wish i had enough money to try out all of the combination in your poll, so i can't speak to all the options listed.

 

[Taustin Powers]

I wish I could test drive the...

...Mesa WD-800
...Bergantino Forte HP
...Mesa Subway 212 cab
...Bergantino NXT212 cab

As it is here in Berlin, I would have to mail order everything to try it out. I have the D-800, so my next step will probably be to pair it with a Berg NXT212.

 

[shoot-r]

My old Berg NV610 has NEVER sounded better till I started using my brand new Mesa D-800+.

Wow! Great combination.

 

[mmbongo]

It depends what cabs, but I'll say this...the Mesa Subway 115 is a marvel of engineering.

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

Berg is best.... period.
And this is the reason why.

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

Berg is best.... period.
And this is the reason why.

It's all about my great grandma's chicken cacciatore. It's all about the love and the heart. Jim knows that.

 

[Al Kraft]

Both brands are top of the line in every regard and that starts with exceptional engineers at the heart of the design process and carries right through manufacturing to outstanding customer suppport IME. This choice is purely a matter of personal preference based on style, feature set, and voicing/tone preference. Everthing else about the products IMO is the best the industry has to offer and in most cases represents industry benchmarks.

On any given night I could easily be playing any combination in the poll and wanting for nothing.

 

[Taustin Powers]

So I finally gave in and bought the NXT212. Wow, what a beast! It sounds massive with the Mesa D-800 driving it.

At some point, I will try and compare the D-800 with a Berg amp, either B-Amp or Forte HP.

 

[Bassndrums73]

Love my WD-800 but have no experience with either manufacturer's cabs. That being said I tend to like matching my heads and cabs from the same manufacturer and one day would like to own either a Mesa Subway 215 or a pair of Subway 115's. Right now I am using the WD-800 with a pair of Ampeg PF-115LF cabs and it sounds great. That and money are the only reasons I haven't bought Mesa Subway cabs yet.

 

[beans-on-toast]

Support is a very important consideration. When a product is retired, the company should maintain a good stock of replacement OEM speakers for those that need them down the road. When they do run out of parts, is there a suitable off the self speaker available that they recommend. It's common for people to be asking what speaker they can use in a cabinet when original parts are no longer available.

In general, a cab and cab that are designed to work well together is desirable. You can't go wrong with an amp and cabinet from the same manufacturer.

 

[Bassdirty]

I think that we'll find that there are more mesa owners, than Berg owners, therefore there will be more votes for straight up mesa.

I wonder how it would look (if there was a way- and there is not) if the poll was: "Out of people who have played all of the following combinations, which would you choose..etc.."


My guess is that at least half of the Mesa voters, never played a Berg., however, Id wager that Most (if not all) of the Berg voters, have played a Mesa.

But this is the internet.

T$

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

I think that we'll find that there are more mesa owners, than Berg owners, therefore there will be more votes for straight up mesa.

I wonder how it would look (if there was a way- and there is not) if the poll was: "Out of people who have played all of the following combinations, which would you choose..etc.."


My guess is that at least half of the Mesa voters, never played a Berg., however, Id wager that Most (if not all) of the Berg voters, have played a Mesa.

But this is the internet.

T$

I agree with your wager. These days Mesa is a very common amp and widely available. Bergs are a rarer bird. But seems almost every year Bergs at NAMM get some pretty wide ranging praise, and a few times get mentioned as the Best Of NAMM. Just saying.

 

[msb]

Mesa is much larger , Bergantino is just a little boutique shop by comparison . And both make stellar product . But , far more people are familiar with Mesa although it's amazing to see how many have tried , and love Bergantino .

 

[jeff7bass]

I tend to go with boutique cab builders for cabs and old, strong amp builders for heads. Amps are more complex so companies like Mesa and GK have an advantage IMO. So Berg cab with Mesa head for me.