Mesa Boogie Walkabout Mega-thread Part 10

[morebass!]

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[EdwardofHuncote]

...does anyone have any helpful hints with EQ or settings that they like?

To start, leave your parametric flat. (all at 12 o'clock, no frequency boost or cut)

Set the Bass at about 9 o'clock
Set the Mid at about 3 o'clock (trust me)
Set the Treb at about 10 o'clock

Adjust from there. I use the parametric equalizer more for "take-away" eq-ing than anything. It's very helpful for trimming fluffy sub-60 hz lows, but it can also be useful for boosting low mids that cut. It takes some getting used to if you've never used a parametric, but they are a great tool.

You can download the manual from Mesa here- MESA/Boogie® and it has blank pages of eq settings you can make notes on. (search for Out Of Production Manuals, it's there) Have fun with it.

 

[pfschim]

So i was giving mine a run through at practice last night but does anyone have any helpful hints with EQ or settings that they like? my guitar is a Hallmark with a big neck humbucker so i know its different then your everyday p bass. Gonna mess with it some more and then do some recording. Just from the little i played with it it sounds HUGE and great with mostly everything flat.
Play in a surf band so going for some old schoolish tone but with a little bite.

Thanks!

the WA is an awesome tone machine. Bass and Treble controls are nicely positioned as far as EQ curves, but IMO/IME the real magic is in the Mid control. Depending on what you seek, the Gain control is also very important. It's pretty much clean (as clean as the WA gets that is) through about 11:00, then there is another magic space between about 11:00 and 1:00 where you get compression at first, then sweet breakup that fills out the tone. The Semi-Para EQ is a place to fine tune once you have set the Gain and B T M controls to your liking.

Another very handy tool to use with the WA to get the most out of its available power is an HPF (take your pick ... I use an fdeck v3). Again, depending on what your tone needs/goals are, set it to drop off somewhere below 60-70hz and your WA will focus its power on the frequencies you really want and not on mud/sludge.

enjoy!

 

[J_WELF]

To start, leave your parametric flat. (all at 12 o'clock, no frequency boost or cut)

Set the Bass at about 9 o'clock
Set the Mid at about 3 o'clock (trust me)
Set the Treb at about 10 o'clock

Adjust from there. I use the parametric equalizer more for "take-away" eq-ing than anything. It's very helpful for trimming fluffy sub-60 hz lows, but it can also be useful for boosting low mids that cut. It takes some getting used to if you've never used a parametric, but they are a great tool.

You can download the manual from Mesa here- MESA/Boogie® and it has blank pages of eq settings you can make notes on. (search for Out Of Production Manuals, it's there) Have fun with it.

Thanks will try this!

 

[J_WELF]

the WA is an awesome tone machine. Bass and Treble controls are nicely positioned as far as EQ curves, but IMO/IME the real magic is in the Mid control. Depending on what you seek, the Gain control is also very important. It's pretty much clean (as clean as the WA gets that is) through about 11:00, then there is another magic space between about 11:00 and 1:00 where you get compression at first, then sweet breakup that fills out the tone. The Semi-Para EQ is a place to fine tune once you have set the Gain and B T M controls to your liking.

Another very handy tool to use with the WA to get the most out of its available power is an HPF (take your pick ... I use an fdeck v3). Again, depending on what your tone needs/goals are, set it to drop off somewhere below 60-70hz and your WA will focus its power on the frequencies you really want and not on mud/sludge.

enjoy!

Thanks for the heads up

 

[Leo was right]

Yes, it has an effect.

Is a scout radiator Walkabout with his normal rubber feet could be considered unblocked whatever on what it been placed on, a floor or another cab? Due to the space the feet create.

 

[agedhorse]

It needs the clearance of the feet for acoustic loading.

 

[J_WELF]

Ok. This walkabout is awesome and I’m pumped that I got one. It’s an old silver face with red and it has not undergone any of the mods I have read about in other threads - the active/passive switch etc. is it worth the hassle to see if Mesa would do this or if it this is a ain’t broke don’t break it type situation.
Thing sounds so good. Very impressed and will be my new rig moving forward. Contemplating an extension cab but I’ve seen somethings across the threads saying that by adding an extension cab it doesn’t mean that it gets louder which doesn’t make sense to me. Mine is a 4ohm and I understand while there seem to be nO real issues running at 2 or 2.67 Mesa doesn’t recommend it. So how would having 2 speakers not be louder than 1. Maybe I’m just misunderstanding. I’m also somewhat an idiot when it comes to ohms and the physics of this.

Thanks for any help

 

[Coolhandjjl]

Typical situation is a SS head with one 8 ohm cab. When you add a second 8 ohm cab that is the same as the first cab, there is a theoretical gain of 5~6dB in SPL. That’s quite a bit louder, very noticeable. 2~3dB for the increased output wattage due to the drop in the amps output impedance from 8 to 4, and another 3dB for the doubling of speaker cone area.

But you are correct, Mesa does not recommend running the Walkabout head at less than 4 ohms.

 

[agedhorse]

Correct, the Walkabout is most reliable at 4 ohms and above.

The factory update information can be received by calling customer service.

 

[sunbeast]

Ok. This walkabout is awesome and I’m pumped that I got one. It’s an old silver face with red and it has not undergone any of the mods I have read about in other threads - the active/passive switch etc. is it worth the hassle to see if Mesa would do this or if it this is a ain’t broke don’t break it type situation.
Thing sounds so good. Very impressed and will be my new rig moving forward. Contemplating an extension cab but I’ve seen somethings across the threads saying that by adding an extension cab it doesn’t mean that it gets louder which doesn’t make sense to me. Mine is a 4ohm and I understand while there seem to be nO real issues running at 2 or 2.67 Mesa doesn’t recommend it. So how would having 2 speakers not be louder than 1. Maybe I’m just misunderstanding. I’m also somewhat an idiot when it comes to ohms and the physics of this.

Thanks for any help

Not sure where you read that about the extension cabs, but in my experience more speaker(s) is absolutely the way to get more headroom from the Walkabout. I’ve run mine lower than 4 ohms, but never in a situation where I had to push it super hard. The ideal is to use a larger 4ohm cab (I have a 6x10 that makes the 300 watts from the Walkabout VERY loud) or multiple 8 ohm cabs. My Scout combo is a 4 ohm 15” cab that I either use on its own (gets loud enough for stage volume or to carry a small room in a moderate volume band) or pull the amp out and use it with the 6x10 for louder shows

 

[two fingers]

Ok. This walkabout is awesome and I’m pumped that I got one. It’s an old silver face with red and it has not undergone any of the mods I have read about in other threads - the active/passive switch etc. is it worth the hassle to see if Mesa would do this or if it this is a ain’t broke don’t break it type situation.
Thing sounds so good. Very impressed and will be my new rig moving forward. Contemplating an extension cab but I’ve seen somethings across the threads saying that by adding an extension cab it doesn’t mean that it gets louder which doesn’t make sense to me. Mine is a 4ohm and I understand while there seem to be nO real issues running at 2 or 2.67 Mesa doesn’t recommend it. So how would having 2 speakers not be louder than 1. Maybe I’m just misunderstanding. I’m also somewhat an idiot when it comes to ohms and the physics of this.

Thanks for any help

I sent mine to Mesa a couple of years ago. Money well spent. Their customer service was great. I got a clear breakdown of charges and work to be done BEFORE they did it. Turnaround was fast. Price was reasonable.

And I have the piece of mind knowing that the factory went through it.

Highly recommended. Send it to Mesa for a good going over.

 

[J_WELF]

That’s great to hear. May do it for peace of mind since it’s a new to me rig. At least they can give it the once over!

 

[J_WELF]

ok - but for mismatched ohms 4 and 8 let’s say so that’s a 2.67 impedance. I understand that the 8ohm extension will get less power but volume wise, to me
This seems like it would carry a mid size club no problem all things equal (not Keith moon on drums and like Hendrix blasting on guitar)

Typical situation is a SS head with one 8 ohm cab. When you add a second 8 ohm cab that is the same as the first cab, there is a theoretical gain of 5~6dB in SPL. That’s quite a bit louder, very noticeable. 2~3dB for the increased output wattage due to the drop in the amps output impedance from 8 to 4, and another 3dB for the doubling of speaker cone area.

But you are correct, Mesa does not recommend running the Walkabout head at less than 4 ohms.

 

[J_WELF]

Got it. I have a 6x10 too but for this band it’s too much. I’m kind of stuck in middle. Most gigs will
Be at bars with FOH support but not all and there will be some outside gigs with just vocal PA.
thanks for the help

Not sure where you read that about the extension cabs, but in my experience more speaker(s) is absolutely the way to get more headroom from the Walkabout. I’ve run mine lower than 4 ohms, but never in a situation where I had to push it super hard. The ideal is to use a larger 4ohm cab (I have a 6x10 that makes the 300 watts from the Walkabout VERY loud) or multiple 8 ohm cabs. My Scout combo is a 4 ohm 15” cab that I either use on its own (gets loud enough for stage volume or to carry a small room in a moderate volume band) or pull the amp out and use it with the 6x10 for louder shows

 

[J_WELF]

It doesn’t seem to make sense to switch out 4ohm to 8ohm speaker does it to just match up for extension cab that will only be used somewhat sparingly? Seems like, again from what I understand, switching to an 8ohm from a 4ohm would be limiting the cab when used by itself.
When I got into music I had no idea math and electronic expertise would be a requirement! I just wanted to jam and get chicks! Lol

Correct, the Walkabout is most reliable at 4 ohms and above.

The factory update information can be received by calling customer service.

 

[Coolhandjjl]

The same ss head will be louder if you run 2- 8 ohm drivers rather than 1- 4 ohm driver, IF the drivers are similar sensitivity. Funny thing about most 4 ohm woofers, they are usually less sensitive than their 8 ohm counterparts.

 

[rodl2005]

TBH, what I'd do, if I had the money, would be to order an 8 ohm driver for the combo, and find an 8 ohm Walkabout ext cab.
I used to use my 8 ohm Scout combo with a Bergantino AE112 and it got plenty loud.
I'd imagine 2 Walkabout 12s would be lovely

 

[agedhorse]

We stopped making the 4 ohm version because there was no net increase in max SPL due to the lower sensitivity of the 4 ohm driver near rated power.

 

[jazzyvee]

the WA is an awesome tone machine. Bass and Treble controls are nicely positioned as far as EQ curves, but IMO/IME the real magic is in the Mid control. Depending on what you seek, the Gain control is also very important. It's pretty much clean (as clean as the WA gets that is) through about 11:00, then there is another magic space between about 11:00 and 1:00 where you get compression at first, then sweet breakup that fills out the tone. The Semi-Para EQ is a place to fine tune once you have set the Gain and B T M controls to your liking.

Another very handy tool to use with the WA to get the most out of its available power is an HPF (take your pick ... I use an fdeck v3). Again, depending on what your tone needs/goals are, set it to drop off somewhere below 60-70hz and your WA will focus its power on the frequencies you really want and not on mud/sludge.

enjoy!

Do you recommend the HPF in the send/return loop or before the input jack?