Mesa Boogie Walkabout Mega-thread Part 10

[agedhorse]

@agedhorse My WA, the final revision I believe, shut down last night mid song after a bit over an hour and half of playing. Made low pitched almost preamp tube noises, no real volume coming through. Does that sound like the thermal protection kicking in? Less than an hour later I tried it at home and everything was back to working normally. I believe the fan sounded full bore than like it was waining. I know you can't diagnose it via TB, but does it seem like I have the right idea? Thanks in advance!

I don't know, were you running at 2 ohms by chance?

There is also the possibility that low voltage tripped the protection circuit.

 

[dponbass]

I don't know, were you running at 2 ohms by chance?

There is also the possibility that low voltage tripped the protection circuit.

4ohm, 2 Bergs HT112 and EX112 each 8 ohm. I did notice afterward the electrical outlet it was plugged into was a bit loose. I'll keep my fingers crossed it can make it Saturday, keep an extra fan on it, bring an extra DI and try to find a backup in case. I'd love to hold onto it, but maybe its time for a WD800. I do love it, hope it was a blimp.

 

[Overdrive777]

Hi all Walkabout friends!!
I’ve been using my Walkabout head (with a PH610 or a Ph410) the last couple of years and been really satisfied with it. I’ve been using it just without any case or rack right on top of my cab.
Last week I bought a Walkabout combo (without the amp) to use with own amp. I noticed the back plate of the combo is solid with no ventilation holes covering some of the holes on the amp. Seems like the last version have holes in the back. Do I need to worry about ventilation and have anyone made new holes on the old solid back plate?

 

[MuthaFunk]

This is relevant to your question...

So you wanna run your Mesa Walkabout Scout at 2, 2.6 Ohms?

Not long after that thread was started Mesa started cutting holes in the back plate to match the venting.

 

[pfschim]

OTOH, I have used my ver 2 Walkabout (without any ventilation in the back) for years without any overheating issues. These days my WA lives in a Mesa headcase so its been a while since I ran the WA in its original combo cab.

 

[sunbeast]

Hi all Walkabout friends!!
I’ve been using my Walkabout head (with a PH610 or a Ph410) the last couple of years and been really satisfied with it. I’ve been using it just without any case or rack right on top of my cab.
Last week I bought a Walkabout combo (without the amp) to use with own amp. I noticed the back plate of the combo is solid with no ventilation holes covering some of the holes on the amp. Seems like the last version have holes in the back. Do I need to worry about ventilation and have anyone made new holes on the old solid back plate?

The old Walkabouts that most of us use(d) didn’t have any ventilation on the top amp panel at all and I don’t recall hearing of any overheating issues when just using the combo by itself. That said, I remember a post at some point of a TB’er with the last version of the head (with the added ventilation) who just took the back cover off the combo and screwed in a couple (aluminum?) cross bars that he cut instead so that most of the back was still exposed while keeping the amp secure in the combo. At least to me it looked like an easier and more elegant way to add more ventilation than drilling into the old back cover.

 

[pfschim]

The old Walkabouts that most of us use(d) didn’t have any ventilation on the top amp panel at all and I don’t recall hearing of any overheating issues when just using the combo by itself. That said, I remember a post at some point of a TB’er with the last version of the head (with the added ventilation) who just took the back cover off the combo and screwed in a couple (aluminum?) cross bars that he cut instead so that most of the back was still exposed while keeping the amp secure in the combo. At least to me it looked like an easier and more elegant way to add more ventilation than drilling into the old back cover.

wasn't that the guy who parked his WD800 in the WA combo cab and secured it with the 2 metal bars ?

 

[sunbeast]

wasn't that the guy who parked his WD800 in the WA combo cab and secured it with the 2 metal bars ?

I’m fairly certain the post I’m remembering was years before the WD came about, when the Walkabout was still in production. I remember it because it was the first I had heard about the newer Walkabouts having ventilation holes on the top panel.

 

[pfschim]

you may be right, I may be crazy .... (with apologies to Billy Joel)

 

[pfschim]

in fact, this is an ongoing discussion in the Next Gen Walkabout thread ....

Mesa Next-Gen Walkabout Scout

and there's the Canadian TBer (Muthafunk) who used two pieces of aluminum U stock to secure his Walkabout (or is it his WD800 ???)

 

[sunbeast]

in fact, this is an ongoing discussion in the Next Gen Walkabout thread ....

Mesa Next-Gen Walkabout Scout

and there's the Canadian TBer (Muthafunk) who used two pieces of aluminum U stock to secure his Walkabout (or is it his WD800 ???)

Ah I had to look it up- it was @MuthaFunk above who did this mod with his last gen Walkabout in 2011 and revealed it in that thread that he just linked us to a couple of posts up haha! It appears he now has a WD800 mounted in there.

 

[MuthaFunk]

Yeah, the WD800 and the scout cab is working out really well for me!! Lightens the Scout combo up, added gig features like the HPF, pre/post DI, USB port...

The WD800 is a fine piece of engineering and a real winner.

Ive been elated with the WD-800 Scout combo. Great sound, transportable one hand carry, and more power than I’ll ever need on tap.

It takes some experience to use it within its capabilities as the WD800 could easily overwhelm the scout cab.

I’ve gigged the Walkabout with the Scout for a decade now and never had volume issues. I almost always have PA support. I set the WD800 to the same approx volume I always have and the Scout handles it perfectly.

 

[pfschim]

I'm never giving up my Walkabout. I have said many times here that it's my go-to amp as long as its clean volume limits fit the gig. If not, it's the WD800 all the way.
I will also add that the amp in my home studio space is my Walkabout driving the exceptional Berg NV212t (sealed 212 cab) with a little help from the fDeck HPF ... just an outstanding tone machine that never fails to make me smile.

 

[Al Kraft]

I'm never giving up my Walkabout. I have said many times here that it's my go-to amp as long as its clean volume limits fit the gig. If not, it's the WD800 all the way.
I will also add that the amp in my home studio space is my Walkabout driving the exceptional Berg NV212t (sealed 212 cab) with a little help from the fDeck HPF ... just an outstanding tone machine that never fails to make me smile.

The fdeck HPF-Pre Series 3 and CN212 are the best combination I've found with my WA, but I'd bet that NV212t is killer as well. Th CN cabs tend to be a tad less focused on deep lows than many ported designs and in some ways mimic the type of low end roll-off/low mid punch you often get with sealed cab.

 

[Rob Martini]

The fdeck HPF-Pre Series 3 and CN212 are the best combination I've found with my WA, but I'd bet that NV212t is killer as well. Th CN cabs tend to be a tad less focused on deep lows than many ported designs and in some ways mimic the type of low end roll-off/low mid punch you often get with sealed cab.

Al, have you tried the WA with any of the Subway cabs? Thoughts? Comparisons to the Bergs?

 

[Overdrive777]

Thank you everyone for your replies!
And thank you for the link. Seems like I don’t really have to worry about the vents. Maybe if Mesa has a spare back plate from the newest version, I’ll change, but it seems ok anyway. Thank you

 

[gillento]

The fdeck HPF-Pre Series 3 and CN212 are the best combination I've found with my WA, but I'd bet that NV212t is killer as well. Th CN cabs tend to be a tad less focused on deep lows than many ported designs and in some ways mimic the type of low end roll-off/low mid punch you often get with sealed cab.

In my case it is the WA with a couple of Aguilar db112 or a db410 (if provided )

 

[Al Kraft]

Al, have you tried the WA with any of the Subway cabs? Thoughts? Comparisons to the Bergs?

I have, but honestly the CN212 (which is a 4 Ohm cab) is hard to beat for me. The reason I like it so much is that the CN series cabs tend to inherently tame that overly wide, blooming low end the WA can develop at times.

The SW115 has a lot of deep extension and the 115/112 combo does as well, however, with the WA they will fill a room. The SW 112 feels like a better fit, but then I'm running the WA at 8 Ohms with a single 12 and find I like it best with 4 Ohm loads and more speaker area. Typically when I use my SW cabs (112 and 115) together it's with a SW head (D-800, WD or TT). To my ear the WD just works so well with those cabs I sort of forget about the WA.

 

[Rob Martini]

I have, but honestly the CN212 (which is a 4 Ohm cab) is hard to beat for me. The reason I like it so much is that the CN series cabs tend to inherently tame that overly wide, blooming low end the WA can develop at times.

The SW115 has a lot of deep extension and the 115/112 combo does as well, however, with the WA they will fill a room. The SW 112 feels like a better fit, but then I'm running the WA at 8 Ohms with a single 12 and find I like it best with 4 Ohm loads and more speaker area. Typically when I use my SW cabs (112 and 115) together it's with a SW head (D-800, WD or TT). To my ear the WD just works so well with those cabs I sort of forget about the WA.

Interesting. Thank you!

I have been pairing my WA with the SW 212 at rehearsals the last few months. I really like it but to your point, I see very little point in pairing it with my SW 115 as a stand-alone when I have a WD 800.

Same observation as you regarding running it at an 8 ohm load. Good but not AS good!

 

[Al Kraft]

Interesting. Thank you!

I have been pairing my WA with the SW 212 at rehearsals the last few months. I really like it but to your point, I see very little point in pairing it with my SW 115 as a stand-alone when I have a WD 800.

Same observation as you regarding running it at an 8 ohm load. Good but not AS good!

I think the SW212 would be in the same tonal ballpark as the Berg CN212. IME over the years (and I started my WA journey with a 112 WA Scout combo so I'm a little biased) I've found the WA to typically be a best match with mainly the 12" loaded cabs. Before I get lectured that speaker diameter predicts nothing, let me just say that the 12" loaded cabs I've used/own tend to be voiced in a balanced way and/or with a less exaggerated emphasis on deep lows.

The WA without a HPF in the signal chain and especially when pushed volume-wise produces an abundance of lows that can quickly become unruly for me when using cabs that tend to emphasize deep lows. For whatever reason, I find 410 cabs voiced in a way that usually has some serious low end emphasis and many 15" loaded cabs do as well...although the GK Neo 115 was always a notable exception in that regard. It just seems like most cab builders seem to go for a more balanced sound/voicing in their 12" loaded cabs with some (e.g., Duke's AK Hathor and Changeling lines) even focusing the low end response more around the first harmonic and not the lower bass note fundamental frequencies (i.e., the 31-40 Hz range).

Given my experience with the SW112 I would say it can give you some deep lows if you dial that in, but it tends to be more inherently on the balanced/upper low to mid low focused side. For me this kind of cab or two of them (or a SW212) would offer a full low end with a good punch when used with the WA. Adding a HPF to that mix makes it even more capable IME.