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Mesa Boogie M9 Megathread: Pt II

#601
....aaaand here it is, my beautiful baby. All I can say is..."Wow". Also: "Oh my God". I was able to play it for 10 minutes only but I think I've had multiple eargasms.
IMG_20190309_193837.jpg
That "voice" control is pure awesomeness. @agedhorse tell your pals I love 'em!
 
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#602
Just out of curiosity. Today I plugged one cab to one of the M9 speakon output, and I tethered the second one to the parallel output of the first cab. Both cabs are 8 ohm, so 4 ohm total impedance.
Does it make any difference plugging both cabs to the M9 speakon outputs? I mean, it will always result being a 4 ohm impedance, just wondering whether using the parallel out on one cab instead of plugging both cabs to the amp's outputs is just as safe.
 
#603
Kijuer said:
Just out of curiosity. Today I plugged one cab to one of the M9 speakon output, and I tethered the second one to the parallel output of the first cab. Both cabs are 8 ohm, so 4 ohm total impedance.
Does it make any difference plugging both cabs to the M9 speakon outputs? I mean, it will always result being a 4 ohm impedance, just wondering whether using the parallel out on one cab instead of plugging both cabs to the amp's outputs is just as safe.
Click to expand...
No difference
 
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#604
I live in Sweden. I have a Mesa Carbine M9 which I really Love. One month ago it went silent during rehearsal and smoke came out. Since then I have been trying to get it fixed. The amp is built in 2012 and the ser no is 1038. I sent an email to Mesa in USA and then got a message from the European agent located in Finland. He simply says there is no warranty and that I should contact the only European Mesa Boogie authorized technician which is located in Italy. (About 2200 km from where I live) When I contact the Italian company they have never made any mod to a M9 Carbine. He says it is better if I ask a repair technician close to me in Sweden. After the technician did locate the fault he has been trying to get information about the needed parts from Mesa in USA through the European agent. It's been 4 weeks since then and I still don't know if it can be fixed and what it will cost.

The amp is 7 years old. That is not very old. It must be possible to fix the amp, even if I don't live in the USA. What bothers me is that there is hard to get in contact with Mesa USA and that the European agent is not very helpful.

I had a gig this weekend and fortunately I could borrow an EBS amp from a friend. Do I have to switch to the Swedish brand EBS to get good customer support? I Love my Mesa M9 Carbine but it has to work.
 
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#605
Due to the laws of each different regions, an authorized distributor/service agent for the EU is who you will need to deal with. I believe Westside in the UK is also equipped to handle your repair, as is Musikinstrumente GmbH & Co. KG. in Germany.

Here is a link to the global distributor and service network: Support | MESA/Boogie®
 
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#606
Hey there M9 owners, I need some advice.
Yesterday I played hooky from work and popped into the Hollywood GC for giggles. Lo and behold they had a used M9 for $800. I had received some suggestions to look into one since I am in the market for a bright amp that won't break the bank or my back.
I saw this as serendipity and threw it on the credit card. I was up front with the sales guy and told him I needed to hear it in the mix with my band, and find out about the potential "fixes" it might need.
It is SN 941 and Mesa has no record of it being worked on by them directly. They said the "updates " could cost $450-$550 plus shipping.
I could only spend an hour messing with it last night, playing through my Barefaced Super Twin and a little recording. The thing is stupid loud and when set flat has a noticeably more powerful voice than my D800, which for the most part I have been happy with. It has a grip of options/ features; I'm not afraid of knobs. I will really get to kick the tires tomorrow at practice.
My dilemma is that if I keep it, I am rolling the dice on a piece of gear that could have a known issue. I play medium sized venues every month or so, have never played outside, and would very rarely, if ever, run it at 2 ohms. How seriously should I take this potential need for "updates " that could cause a "catastrophic failure"? It has been around for 8 years or so without dying, so that should be ok, right? I mean $800 is cheap enough that if it smokes it isn't the end of the world, but if this is a big gamble, I could just return it and move on to something else.
Thoughts?
 
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#607
Congrats on the M9. There's no other amp like it. I gig an un-updated M9. I bring a class D backup just in case. So far so good. Just be sensible. Keep it ventilated and out of direct sunlight while gigging? However, I think you'll like the amp so much that if it does go down it will feel like the end of the world imo.
 
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#608
socialleper said:
Hey there M9 owners, I need some advice.
Click to expand...

There's no guarantee that it working properly thus far means it will always work properly.

That said, the M9 (as you're experiencing) is a monster amp, and (imo) worth the risk. It balances paint peeling output with a bearable weight and a killer preamp like no other amp. The only similar amp I've found to be louder and thump harder is the Aguilar DB750/751, but it's about 15lbs heavier and an extra rack space. Mesa managed to cram a lot into two rack spaces with the M9 and still keep it in the 30-ish pound range.

Please let us know how you find it performs in the band mix.
 
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#609
andrew said:
There's no guarantee that it working properly thus far means it will always work properly.

That said, the M9 (as you're experiencing) is a monster amp, and (imo) worth the risk. It balances paint peeling output with a bearable weight and a killer preamp like no other amp. The only similar amp I've found to be louder and thump harder is the Aguilar DB750/751, but it's about 15lbs heavier and an extra rack space. Mesa managed to cram a lot into two rack spaces with the M9 and still keep it in the 30-ish pound range.

Please let us know how you find it performs in the band mix.
Click to expand...
If I do decide to hold on to it, do you think it's worth the extra $500+ for the fixes? At $800 it is a steal. At $1400 after shipping it is less so.
 
#611
andrew said:
There's no guarantee that it working properly thus far means it will always work properly.

That said, the M9 (as you're experiencing) is a monster amp, and (imo) worth the risk. It balances paint peeling output with a bearable weight and a killer preamp like no other amp. The only similar amp I've found to be louder and thump harder is the Aguilar DB750/751, but it's about 15lbs heavier and an extra rack space. Mesa managed to cram a lot into two rack spaces with the M9 and still keep it in the 30-ish pound range.

Please let us know how you find it performs in the band mix.
Click to expand...
I did a side by side test last night with the M9, a DB751, and my Subway D800. All three are definitely different amps. It has been a while since I have used a "big" amp like a class A\B or Mosfet. They are much louder, especially in the lows, with everything set to noon than my D800.
The comprehensive EQ of the M9 let me get a signal dialed in more quickly than with the DB751. The M9 has a lot of subby lows, so I backed the 30hz slider off. It also has a lot of highs naturally. Finding the sweet spot for the mids will take some time.
I had the gain around noon, and the volume only around 9 o'clock. It didn't give me any trouble as far as heat. It had little bit of a smell, but that is probably from a lack of use and dust collecting inside.
The band seemed to prefer the M9 because of the presence it has. I always have trouble hearing things because our practice space is small, and the cab is right behind me, pointed at my thighs. Once I get my ear plugs in, it is hard to gauge what I am hearing.
 
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#613
socialleper said:
If I do decide to hold on to it, do you think it's worth the extra $500+ for the fixes? At $800 it is a steal. At $1400 after shipping it is less so.
Click to expand...

I don't know what they sell for new in the USA so I can't gauge where the cost of a used one starts and stops being a bargain. If I were in your position I would go for the M9 and cross my fingers that it remains trouble free. But I find the M9 especially well suited to a couple projects I do, so that influences me on this amp. Did you find the M9's sound to be especially right for the music you play? If you feel like the M9 is good but doesn't do the job better than another amp of similar cost then maybe I wouldn't risk the possible need for repair down the road.

I own 3 M9's. My first one did die and require the return to Mesa for the power section swap, my second I got to use while #1 was getting fixed and is now a back up (and came stock with the power section already changed). And #3 I bought already broken (but cosmetically immaculate) from someone here for parts. Though I keep looking at it and thinking to send it in to get fixed because it's too nice to be doomed to a parts supply. :D
I'm probably not the best person to ask whether you should buy an M9, I'm pretty biased.
 
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#614
donahue said:
M9 cuts through like no other. I've never tried a 751 but if there was a face-off I'd put my money on the M9 vs anything.
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For me it comes down to style of music. For funk, pop, jazz, classic rock I'd choose the DB751. It has a beautiful clean tone and sounds massive. But for metal, aggressive rock, punk, noise rock, etc. I'd go with the M9. It's my fave class a/b amp for aggressive music. It has great bite, gobs of volume, can be set with perfect mids for being present in a heavy mix, takes pedals especially well and is still a comfortable weight to move yourself.
 
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#616
andrew said:
But for metal, aggressive rock, punk, noise rock, etc. I'd go with the M9. It's my fave class a/b amp for aggressive music. It has great bite, gobs of volume, can be set with perfect mids for being present in a heavy mix, takes pedals especially well and is still a comfortable weight to move yourself.
Click to expand...
Yeah that head sounds massive both clean and with dirt pedals.. Although I know the risk I'm still tempted to buy it. :atoz: I doubt I will ever find anything I like THAT much
 
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