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Mesa Boogie M9 Megathread: Pt II

#381
The more higher end bases I hear through my M9, the more I realize how good this amp really is. It may have its own character or voice but it really allows the personality of the individual instrument come through.

Recently had a little bass shootout. My buddy played his Dingwall After Burner, Super P, Pedulla Buzz, and Mike Lull jazz, along with my Stingrays, Bongo, Warwick $$ and USA Deluxe Jazz and we both agreed, the M9 is just so well voiced. There is nothing lacking in this amp!
 
#382
fwiw:
I usually have the comp/threshold set at 9 oclock each
I always have the lowest two bands of GEQ substantively trimmed, and the two highest bands mildly trimmed...

I usually use Voice 3 (flat)
with bass and treble boosted a hair, mids trimmed a bit and the GEQ trimmed a little at 500/900

or

Voice 2 (mild scoop, seems to do that via bass and treble boost, not mid cut)
with bass and treble trimmed a bit, mids boosted a bit and GEQ boosted a bit at 500/900

You'd think those two would end up more or less the same, and I guess they kinda do.
But yet, not.
 
#383
swspiers said:
And with that, I'm now a Mesa M9 owner. I've had 1500 watt rigs that didn't pack this much punch.

This is replacing a Genz Benz Shuttlemax 12, which in itself is a hard act to follow, but is a very yin/yang comparison. So far it proves that intelligent engineering can lead to two completely different paths. First impression is the SM 12 is the ultimate in neutral transparency, the M9 may be the ultimate in strategic voicing.
Click to expand...

After years of being a single amp guy with a "grass is greener" complex and a nagging fear of equipment failure, I finally splurged (and was extremely fortunate to be able to do so) by adding a second to the stable. Guess which two amps I chose.
 
#384
Hello everyone!
I thinking of purchasing a M9. Tried it our on a gig awhile ago and it sounded FANTASTIC!!!:D

One concern is the DI and Master. Is there a way to mod the M9 some the Master knob won't effect the DI output???
Since the master knob is sooo sensitive and if I need to adjust the stage volume mid set, it just screw up the FOH...

I have searched the Forum with no results. Hard to search for "DI":) Please post a link if there has been talked about before. Thanks!
 
#387
Jim Carr said:
The DI is not affected by the Master knob on my M9. There is a pre/post switch and a DI level, but AFAIK, the Master has no effect on the DI output level.
As always, I could be wrong...can't double check tonight, perhaps tomorrow...
Click to expand...
IIRC, that's only in PRE mode. In POST, the master does affect the DI output, but I would also have to verify that.
 
#388
Hi everyone! I just became the very proud owner of an M9 and this thing is WAY more amp than I thought it was going to be. I can definitely confirm that the Master volume affects the DI level in POST mode.

I remember that there was a Factory Authorized Mod for the Walkabout to bypass it, you could even set it up with a switch. Does anyone know if there is a similar MOD for the Carbine series?

As much as I love this amp, this could be a real drag for my currect live situation. I understand how this would be useful with their Simulstate series of amps as to capture the Tube Driven Power sound, but really unnecessary in a Solid State PowerAMP.
Vic said:
IIRC, that's only in PRE mode. In POST, the master does affect the DI output, but I would also have to verify that.
Click to expand...
 
#389
blueacid4l said:
Hi everyone! I just became the very proud owner of an M9 and this thing is WAY more amp than I thought it was going to be. I can definitely confirm that the Master volume affects the DI level in POST mode.

I remember that there was a Factory Authorized Mod for the Walkabout to bypass it, you could even set it up with a switch. Does anyone know if there is a similar MOD for the Carbine series?

As much as I love this amp, this could be a real drag for my currect live situation. I understand how this would be useful with their Simulstate series of amps as to capture the Tube Driven Power sound, but really unnecessary in a Solid State PowerAMP.
Click to expand...

+1
This is the real deal breaker for me, why I haven't bought one yet...
Please, enlighten us:)
 
#391
Chef said:
It's never bothered me
Click to expand...
+1

IMHO, the only time you want the DI in POST mode anyway is if, for some reason I can't even imagine, the production people can't EQ your sound without using your EQ, which I would think/hope is rare.

IMHO, you shouldn't be feeding the board your EQ. The sound person needs to EQ for the room, you need to EQ for the stage. The two are rarely the same, IME.

Go PRE and all your problems (and likely any EQ "fighting" the sound person may be suffering) will be solved.
 
#392
Yeah, I see where you are coming from, but I don't really eq heavily. In fact, one of the great features of the amp is versatility. I play in a variety band where the situation might change from gig to gig, sometimes stage volume changes mid set. We don't always have the luxury of having everyone available for soundcheck in the mornings.

I usually like slightly scooping out my high mids for passages or songs where I slap to remove unpleasant frequencies or maybe adding a slight mid bump to adjust to changing differently voiced instruments. I'm not really going to have the onstage sound man doing all that adjusting for me when he's worrying about 3 singers, 2 horns, and sequence levels.

If I'm the only one hearing it and the sound coming out to the array is something unpleasant and sonically unleveled, it's pointless. I use these features as tools, not just to enjoy what I'm hearing more. Again, not a deal breaker, just works better for my situation a little better.

Vic said:
+1

IMHO, the only time you want the DI in POST mode anyway is if, for some reason I can't even imagine, the production people can't EQ your sound without using your EQ, which I would think/hope is rare.

IMHO, you shouldn't be feeding the board your EQ. The sound person needs to EQ for the room, you need to EQ for the stage. The two are rarely the same, IME.

Go PRE and all your problems (and likely any EQ "fighting" the sound person may be suffering) will be solved.
Click to expand...
 
#394
Crap!
Mine is starting to cut out.
Last week it was just if I left my boost pedal on for more than a couple minutes. It would cut out for a second or three.
Today at practice, even after purchasing a small fan to place by the back vent, it cut out twice a song with no pedalboard at all.
Because it already has the extra fan & venting, I was really hoping this to avoid this.
I guess I'll be giving Mesa a call come Monday.
 
#395
elamenopee said:
Crap!
Mine is starting to cut out.
Last week it was just if I left my boost pedal on for more than a couple minutes. It would cut out for a second or three.
Today at practice, even after purchasing a small fan to place by the back vent, it cut out twice a song with no pedalboard at all.
Because it already has the extra fan & venting, I was really hoping this to avoid this.
I guess I'll be giving Mesa a call come Monday.
Click to expand...

I used an M9 backline amp and it cut out on me too. I plugged straight in with a 51-P RI with a Basslines Quarter Pound single coil and the amp quit on me in the first song. Would cut out for a second or three and cut back in for about 20 seconds. I engaged the pad and it got better for half a song and started cutting out again. Nothing to do. In between songs I changed guitar cables but it didn't help. The amp cut out intermittently for the rest of the gig.
 
#397
I think it's 4/8 and 2....

I also think it probably doesn't matter in terms of the amp failing.
IIRC, the ohm selector is really a "power limiter" in 2 ohm mode; holding power and heat down. I don't think leaving it there when running 4/8 ohms is problematic, other than you're in a "power limited" mode.

I could be wrong.
 
#398
Chef said:
I think it's 4/8 and 2....

I also think it probably doesn't matter in terms of the amp failing.
IIRC, the ohm selector is really a "power limiter" in 2 ohm mode; holding power and heat down. I don't think leaving it there when running 4/8 ohms is problematic, other than you're in a "power limited" mode...
Click to expand...

+1

Yes, though I was using the / as the exclusive OR, and the - as an AND. No doubt you are right about all this, it's just that I recently stopped thermal shutdowns by a Yamaha PA head by raising a 2 ohm load on one side to 4 ohms. :cool:
 
#400
What do the M9 owners here (and previous 400+ owners) think of the soon to be released Prodigy, obviously your response would be based on the released specs, unless of course one of you have been on the beta list.

The reason I ask is that I used to own a 400+ and for over a decade enjoyed the massive sweet sound that amp produced. I eventually moved it along when I stopped gigging so much and now am gearing up again. I tried one of the GK MB Fusion micro amps for a while, which has 3 AX7's in the preamp stage, and as much as I wanted it to work, it wasn't for me so I sold it. I'm now thinking of either (a) buying an M9 or (b) waiting for the Prodigy.

What I like about the M9 is that it has a built-in compressor and EQ section, along with the switchable voices. I also like the weight of the M9. What I like about the Prodigy is that it's all tube and should sound nice and warm.

I don't need earth shaking power these days - just want that lovely Mesa tone - I'm really more concerned with great tone (hopefully great tube tone) at lower volume levels than anything else.

Thoughts?

Thanks!
 

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