Mesa Boogie Walkabout Mega-thread Part 10

[agedhorse]

So my WA serial number is 000011 does that mean the 11 th one made??

Maybe, but you can always check with customer service.

I don't know how the serial numbers might relate to series and rev. level, that's above my pay grade.

 

[SJLee]

Still using my WAS. Flipped my extension cab 90 degrees for my drummer.

 

[Chef]

They pay you?!!!!???!!?????
Sweet gig.
;—)

Maybe, but you can always check with customer service.

I don't know how the serial numbers might relate to series and rev. level, that's above my pay grade.

 

[Wild Rice Chris]

Got my pre-order in and paid.

Second amp I've ever pre-ordered. First was the Mesa Rosette Two:Eight. Thanks @agedhorse ! I'm really looking forward to this.

I only played an original Walkabout once, and it waswas a less than ideal situation. I did not like it. At all. Playing double bass through someone else's amp without being able to change settings beyond volume when you're used to being mic'd is not a good way to experience something like that.

 

[SJLee]

They pay you?!!!!???!!?????
Sweet gig.
;—)

Absolutely! It was a private Christmas party, catered with adult beverages if desired.

 

[Wicked G]

Hey Andy, @agedhorse, I have a question that I don't anyone has asked yet. If I'm not mistaken, I believe the original designer for the Walkabout still works there at Mesa? If so, what does he think of the new WD800? I'm curious.

 

[agedhorse]

Hey Andy, @agedhorse, I have a question that I don't anyone has asked yet. If I'm not mistaken, I believe the original designer for the Walkabout still works there at Mesa? If so, what does he think of the new WD800? I'm curious.

He does, he's on the guitar side and also designed the Triaxis preamp, a very clever and complex product that was ahead of its time. Kind of a landmark product. It's also one of Mesa's longest running products.

He's envious of what this technology can do these days and what it brings to the table. There's quite a bit of his evolutionary DNA that's been included in the WD-800.

 

[maisbass]

He does, he's on the guitar side and also designed the Triaxis preamp, a very clever and complex product that was ahead of its time. Kind of a landmark product. It's also one of Mesa's longest running products.

He's envious of what this technology can do these days and what it brings to the table. There's quite a bit of his evolutionary DNA that's been included in the WD-800.

Yes, Dan is a true genius! I remember working with Dan at the factory back in I believe January of 1994 modding the Triaxis for Bass. I was an East Coast Artist rep for Mesa for a short time. We got John Myung from Dream Theatre to use one for a while, as well as a few other bass players. We also had a Triaxis modded for Jerry Goodman, the violin player for the Dregs. He wanted to add some distortion for his sound but also wanted the Dynamic Voice to boost mids when increased instead of scooping.

I remember working the Mesa booth at Namm with my friend Mark Snyder (he ran the east coast artist rep shop) and Dan telling us his theory on Space travel and bending space to do it. He lost me six words in LOL. He is a brilliant man.

Ah the good ole days. Some of my best memories were back then. What a talented group of people there. Jim, Mike B, Dan, Doug, and of course Randy. Mike B gave us a lesson on how to do some minor repairs on Mesa amps (changing tube socket, pots, etc). And of course showed us his hammer test LOL! I remember seeing open boxes of tubes stacked in the corner. I asked Mike B what they were for and he said they are all the tubes that didn't pass the Mesa test. They were still good tubes to use but not up to Mesa's high quality standards.... Which would be sold to another company which I will not mention the name of.

@agedhorse does Sean Beresford still work in Artist relations? He used to be Vernon Reid's guitar tech before taking a job at Mesa back in the 90's.

Here is my back breaking rig from back in the day. Oh but it sounded so killer. I'm so sorry that I parted with the gear. And yes that was a bass triaxis.

 

[agedhorse]

Yes, Sean is still involved with specific projects (such as model capture for speaker cabinets).

It's an interesting and fascinating group of folks with very little turnover. I just hung out with Mike B. last time I was there (I work out of a satellite R&D lab apart from the factory), he and I share pro audio brotherhood as we both grew up working with many of the same acts. Very nice and sincere guy. Jim, Doug, Dan and Randy are all still very much involved too.

Actually, it reminds me very much of the old days at Genz Benz, similar vibe and similar dedication to the cause.

 

[maisbass]

Yes, Dan is a true genius! I remember working with Dan at the factory back in I believe January of 1994 modding the Triaxis for Bass. I was an East Coast Artist rep for Mesa for a short time. We got John Myung from Dream Theatre to use one for a while, as well as a few other bass players. We also had a Triaxis modded for Jerry Goodman, the violin player for the Dregs. He wanted to add some distortion for his sound but also wanted the Dynamic Voice to boost mids when increased instead of scooping.

I remember working the Mesa booth at Namm with my friend Mark Snyder (he ran the east coast artist rep shop) and Dan telling us his theory on Space travel and bending space to do it. He lost me six words in LOL. He is a brilliant man.

Ah the good ole days. Some of my best memories were back then. What a talented group of people there. Jim, Mike B, Dan, Doug, and of course Randy. Mike B gave us a lesson on how to do some minor repairs on Mesa amps (changing tube socket, pots, etc). And of course showed us his hammer test LOL! I remember seeing open boxes of tubes stacked in the corner. I asked Mike B what they were for and he said they are all the tubes that didn't pass the Mesa test. They were still good tubes to use but not up to Mesa's high quality standards.... Which would be sold to another company which I will not mention the name of.

@agedhorse does Sean Beresford still work in Artist relations? He used to be Vernon Reid's guitar tech before taking a job at Mesa back in the 90's.

Here is my back breaking rig from back in the day. Oh but it sounded so killer. I'm so sorry that I parted with the gear. And yes that was a bass triaxis.

View attachment 3236536

Btw the rack mounted guitar stand was awesome. We were working with the Dregs and I saw that Dave Larue had it. The guy that designed it was a friend of T Lavitz. T Lavitz was nice enough to hook me up with the guy's number and I was able to get one. I don't know if it ever caught on? Such a cool design. I don't see any around today.

 

[maisbass]

Yes, Sean is still involved with specific projects (such as model capture for speaker cabinets).

It's an interesting and fascinating group of folks with very little turnover. I just hung out with Mike B. last time I was there (I work out of a satellite R&D lab apart from the factory), he and I share pro audio brotherhood as we both grew up working with many of the same acts. Very nice and sincere guy. Jim, Doug, Dan and Randy are all still very much involved too.

Actually, it reminds me very much of the old days at Genz Benz, similar vibe and similar dedication to the cause.

That is so great to hear! I have to reach out to Sean. It's been way too long. He used to build the slickest multipin setups for guitar rigs. I actually learned from him and wound up doing a few for myself back in the day. My buddy Mark learned from him and went on to design so many rigs for so many guitarists. From Petrucci to Frampton.

I remember Mike B dragging Mark and I to a concert of some country / folk / blues band when we were there. Mike was a huge fan of the band and couldn't stop talking about them. I don't remember the name of the band but I do remember it was a blast!

 

[agedhorse]

I remember Mike B dragging Mark and I to a concert of some country / folk / blues band when we were there. Mike was a huge fan of the band and couldn't stop talking about them. I don't remember the name of the band but I do remember it was a blast!

That's the style of music that I gravitated to as well.

Talking about a small world, When I first met Mike at Mesa, was talking about his awesome gig mixing one of the stages at the Kate Wolf Music Festival ( Invalid Link Removed ) and how wonderful her music was, then mentioned that I probably wasn't familiar with her work. We both had a good laugh when I said that I not only knew her work, but I was her sound guy from the early 80's until she passed in '86!

Her bass player (Ford James) was one of the best, bass players I had ever met. Everything he played was appropriate, well phrased, with excellent technique, control of dynamics and just the right amount of "tasty". It's one of the reasons why I appreciate a multi-faceted approach to fitting within a mix and not getting in the way.

 

[Luke the Fluke]

Yes, Sean is still involved with specific projects (such as model capture for speaker cabinets).

It's an interesting and fascinating group of folks with very little turnover. I just hung out with Mike B. last time I was there (I work out of a satellite R&D lab apart from the factory), he and I share pro audio brotherhood as we both grew up working with many of the same acts. Very nice and sincere guy. Jim, Doug, Dan and Randy are all still very much involved too.

Actually, it reminds me very much of the old days at Genz Benz, similar vibe and similar dedication to the cause.

I was wondering what doing what you do at a place like Mesa would be like - in my mind you either were quite distant and remote tech gurus or you were more collegiate and team doing things together.
I’m glad it’s the latter.

Oooh I’ve a more general question but I’ll ask that in a different post as it’s not directed to you @agedhorse !

 

[Al Kraft]

I was playing folk and bluegrass quite a bit in mid to later 80's and always enjoyed Kate Wolf's music. She seemed like a very genuine person and I think a lot of that came through in her music.

 

[Luke the Fluke]

I’m a P bass player, they just sound right to me. Stingrays and Warwick’s also work

Every 5 years for me I go on a “i must have a jazz bass” phase , and got to own some lovely instruments that I’ve ended up selling down the years...

This time I traded a lovely but unloved Thumb bass for a Sadowsky Will Lee 4 - and it’s awesome!

So while it’s a keeper I think, it sits in the mix slightly differently ...
Any Walkabout Eq advice for me for different classic jazz tones? (Currently all knobs flat with the mid control turned up)

 

[two fingers]

I’m a P bass player, they just sound right to me. Stingrays and Warwick’s also work

Every 5 years for me I go on a “i must have a jazz bass” phase , and got to own some lovely instruments that I’ve ended up selling down the years...

This time I traded a lovely but unloved Thumb bass for a Sadowsky Will Lee 4 - and it’s awesome!

So while it’s a keeper I think, it sits in the mix slightly differently ...
Any Walkabout Eq advice for me for different classic jazz tones? (Currently all knobs flat with the mid control turned up)

Tough call....perception being what it is.

My go-to sound is the Walkabout's version of "flat" to start. Then a slight mid bump. Then about 10 o'clock on the low-mid frequency knob and 2 o'clock on that same frequency's level knob. In other words, a slight low-mid boost.

That being said, I always tweak to the room/band/bass/project. And I always consult the sound guy.

 

[SJLee]

Tough call....perception being what it is.

My go-to sound is the Walkabout's version of "flat" to start. Then a slight mid bump. Then about 10 o'clock on the low-mid frequency knob and 2 o'clock on that same frequency's level knob. In other words, a slight low-mid boost.

That being said, I always tweak to the room/band/bass/project. And I always consult the sound guy.

I’m a fan of the low mid. That’s my sound.

 

[agedhorse]

Something else that should be noted... on the WD-800 the parametric the mid band gain controls are on the lower row and the frequency sweep controls are on the top row. This was in response to player comments asking that all eq gain controls (including bass, treble & passive mid) be consistently located.

 

[Luke the Fluke]

Something else that should be noted... on the WD-800 the parametric the mid band gain controls are on the lower row and the frequency sweep controls are on the top row. This was in response to player comments asking that all eq gain controls (including bass, treble & passive mid) be consistently located.

a comment on the black coloured walkabout as much as your new amp... what was good about the silver faced amps is that it clearly separated the 3xsemi parametric eqs - it showed that they were almost a different part of the amp (tonally) which I think really aided learning and understanding the amp. On a more conventional amp it doesn’t matter as the eq points are often all similar in the way they work.

But anyway - ild be excited about the Wd800 if I wasn’t utterly happy with my walkabout...

 

[Al Kraft]

Something else that should be noted... on the WD-800 the parametric the mid band gain controls are on the lower row and the frequency sweep controls are on the top row. This was in response to player comments asking that all eq gain controls (including bass, treble & passive mid) be consistently located.

Something that is really nice on a gig when you need to turn around and make a quick change. I like simple heads that are gig friendly, but when I do have a head with lots of controls I prefer having things set up in an intuitive/consistent way.

With semi-parametric mids I usually dial in a frequency that helps me add or subtract what I need for a room during sound checks. After that I may do a little fine tuning with the gain/level, but rarely change the key/offending frequencies I worked so hard to find. Having all necessary gig adjustment controls along the bottom is a nice feature.