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Mesa 750 Big Block Bass Head

#2
I haven't used this amp myself, but I've used the WalkAbout.

The general concensus on this guy seems to be that it's more along the classic Mesa sound --- warm grindy tube tone. Out of Mesa's hybrid line-up, in order of dirty to clean, it'd probably go Big Block, WalkAbout, M-Pulse, Carbine.

Beware though that the 750W is rated at 2 ohms, and it's actually around 550W at 4 ohms. Great amp if you want tube grit without the weight. It's been said that if you like the dirtier sounds of a WalkAbout, you'd like it. Dedicated distortion channel is another plus, I think it's based on the design of one of their pedals.
 
#5
There is lots to read on this forum regarding the Big Block. I owned one until recently and only sold it because I also own a Walkabout and a Carbine. The Big Block was fat and grindy tonewise and very loud. Don't worry about power ratings as this amp has a ton of power at 4 ohms and does not need a 2 ohm load to be a monster. Many who prefer a tight, focused and fast tone (read Solid State) will not like this amp as its tone is very colored and warm. I tend to think of the tone of this amp as plush. Its fat and warm but not overly punchy or tight sounding.

I prefer the Carbine as its so clear and lightning fast. I also prefer the Walkabout to the Big Block because it seems to be much more responsive to the input gain and has the sweetest tube breakup of any bass amp I have ever heard. The Big Block just didn't sound as good when pushing the input gain but would stay quite clean at settings of noon or lower. The overdrive channel of the Big Block is really amazing and is footswitchable but for me, I really don't use overdriven bass tones very much.

I would have been quite happy with the Big Block if I didn[t have two other Mesa amps that I preferred. All Mesa gear is top notch and basically different flavors of victory! :)
 
#6
Crabby said:
There is lots to read on this forum regarding the Big Block. I owned one until recently and only sold it because I also own a Walkabout and a Carbine. The Big Block was fat and grindy tonewise and very loud. Don't worry about power ratings as this amp has a ton of power at 4 ohms and does not need a 2 ohm load to be a monster. Many who prefer a tight, focused and fast tone (read Solid State) will not like this amp as its tone is very colored and warm. I tend to think of the tone of this amp as plush. Its fat and warm but not overly punchy or tight sounding.

I prefer the Carbine as its so clear and lightning fast. I also prefer the Walkabout to the Big Block because it seems to be much more responsive to the input gain and has the sweetest tube breakup of any bass amp I have ever heard. The Big Block just didn't sound as good when pushing the input gain but would stay quite clean at settings of noon or lower. The overdrive channel of the Big Block is really amazing and is footswitchable but for me, I really don't use overdriven bass tones very much.

I would have been quite happy with the Big Block if I didn[t have two other Mesa amps that I preferred. All Mesa gear is top notch and basically different flavors of victory! :)
Click to expand...

VERY accurately put Crabby! I couldn't gree more with the above post! I've had a BB750 for four years and a Walkabout and Mpulse 600 for about two. All I'll echo is that the BB750 is incredibly loud at 4 ohms and insainely loud at two ohms, also just as Crabby said it is very fat and warm and has a lot of tube coloration while not bing nearly as punchy or compressed as the mpulse (I can't compare it to the carbines). The active mid boost is very powerfull and can really get aggressive quickly depending on how the frequency is set.
 
#10
You can hear my Lalkand Duck Dun with flats through my BB750 (for sale) in all of the Mumu Tutu recordings in my sig. All taken using post EQ DI on the BB750. Great amp, and has a bitchin' headcase available as an option. Love the Mesa tone, just upgraded to a Titan.
 
#12
ZLANTBASS said:
Hi, so in a perfect world regarding overall punch & volume.
1st: Carbine
2nd: Mpulse 600
3rd: Big Block
?
Click to expand...

Overall volume... by far the Carbine (6 or 9)... massively loud, very wide, clean, solid state sounding, very bright up top... very different from the rest of the Mesa Line.

The MPulse600 is voiced with a very deep low end, and while it can grind a bit, that's not its thing. It's kind of more of an R&B head... fat, bloomy, big low end and warm but clean tubey mids, polite top end... the least 'punchy' of the three

BB750, +1 to all the above comments... tight low end, grindy, over the top mids.... meant to grunt and snarl and punch and rock VERY punchy at the expense of a big low end and smooth, clean, mids. I always kind of considered the BB750 Mesa's answer to the big Ampeg hybrids.... rock snarl and grind.
 
#13
KJung said:
Overall volume... by far the Carbine (6 or 9)... massively loud, very wide, clean, solid state sounding, very bright up top... very different from the rest of the Mesa Line.

The MPulse600 is voiced with a very deep low end, and while it can grind a bit, that's not its thing. It's kind of more of an R&B head... fat, bloomy, big low end and warm but clean tubey mids, polite top end... the least 'punchy' of the three

BB750, +1 to all the above comments... tight low end, grindy, over the top mids.... meant to grunt and snarl and punch and rock VERY punchy at the expense of a big low end and smooth, clean, mids. I always kind of considered the BB750 Mesa's answer to the big Ampeg hybrids.... rock snarl and grind.
Click to expand...

Wow Ken, I couldn't disagree more. I wouldn't say the Mpulse600 has a very deep low end or that it's bloomy at all, and it can grind pretty well with the gain around 3 o'clock. It is certianly much more punchy and tighter sounding than he BB750 as well.

You say that the BB750 has a tight low end, and then go on to say it it's very punchy at the expense of a big low end, not sure what that means.

The only amps I've owned and used for the last few years are the Mpulse 600 and BB750 so I can't help but restate my opinion, hey it's talkbass right?

To the OP, go out and play them and form you own opinion. Ok I'm off my soapbox now.
 
#14
CliffD said:
Wow Ken, I couldn't disagree more. I wouldn't say the Mpulse600 has a very deep low end or that it's bloomy at all, and it can grind pretty well with the gain around 3 o'clock. It is certianly much more punchy and tighter sounding than he BB750 as well.

You say that the BB750 has a tight low end, and then go on to say it it's very punchy at the expense of a big low end, not sure what that means.

The only amps I've owned and used for the last few years are the Mpulse 600 and BB750 so I can't help but restate my opinion, hey it's talkbass right?

To the OP, go out and play them and form you own opinion. Ok I'm off my soapbox now.
Click to expand...

FYI, 'tight low end' is a necessary condition for being punchy IMO and IME. When most say 'a tight low end', that means a lot of upper bass, and not much low end 40hz (or even 50hz) fundamental in the voicing.

When I owned both of these at the same time (dug the big, huge, fat low end of the MPulse600 for what it was, hated that mid grind of the BB750... PURE personal tone goals there), the differences where amazing. The 600 extended probably 50hz lower than the BB750 to my ear, and there was a baked in bump in the 300-600hz region on the BB750 that I coiuldn't really dial out, even with the two mid controls.

Putting on my 'unbiased review hat' (i.e., taking my personal preferences out of the equation... I ended up not really digging either of these), the BB750 does a wonderful job of the 'Ampeg hybrid' thing... complex mids... tight low end... meaning lots of hi bass, low mid punch, and an overdrive tone that was natural and musical... everything I hate:p

The 600, while yes, you could crank the input gain and get it to 'distort', was not pleasant to my ear when run that way, and IMO is not what the amp designer had in mind. That unit is big, and fat, and has a ton of 'bloom and give' to the low end (in a good way). Very 'warm but clean' unless you crank the input gain, and a BIG, non tight low end....
GREAT sounding heads for what they are.

IMO and..... IMO!
 
#18
Question for y'all...
When did the BB750 get an active/passive pad switch? The last times I tried them out was early on and they didn't have the pad switch. I just noticed the two currently in the classifieds have them, which is a big requirement for me.
I was settled on the M6 (pad switch, and 2ohm), but now this opens up the options since I always liked the drive of the 750.
 
#20
With earlier models you just have to adjust gain knob to the level of the input.

I was planning to buy a BB750. I made a little play test with BB750, Tech21 BDDI, Tech21 RBI and a poweramp. The best sound was when I played BDDI to BB750, but BDDI through poweramp sounded better to me than BB750 solo. Since BB750 is 4 times the weight and cost of my pwoeramp I did not buy it. If I had the free cash and would not mind to carry heavy gear around, I would have bought it.


The integrated drive on the BB750 is not good, especially considering it shares the same EQ with clean channel so you really cannot tweak. If you had a Titan with two separate channels, it could work though.
 

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