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Mesa Boogie Walkabout Mega-thread Part 10

#721
BiG-ULi said:
Awesome cool. Gonna pull the trigger on one. I definitely need that extra headroom.
Click to expand...

I think you'll be happy. A lot of guys here say they don't get enough headroom out of their WAs, but I've been fine with mine. I think it depends on the style of music you're playing, what kind of tone you're going for, etc. Definitely make sure you go with an 8 ohm extension cab, though—you DO NOT want to run two 4 ohm cabs with it!
 
#722
Aladinsane1969 said:
I think you'll be happy. A lot of guys here say they don't get enough headroom out of their WAs, but I've been fine with mine. I think it depends on the style of music you're playing, what kind of tone you're going for, etc. Definitely make sure you go with an 8 ohm extension cab, though—you DO NOT want to run two 4 ohm cabs with it!
Click to expand...


Oh shoot glad you said that. I was about to get the matching 4 ohm cabinet

Btw does the 12 inch scout actually handle all 300 watts of the walkabout or does adding the extra cabinet open it up?

Thank you
 
#726
From the Walkabout manual: "Minimum load rating is 2 Ohms and while the
WalkAbout will handle this lower load condition - and in fact produce more than its rated power, it is not recommended. Prolonged
use of a 2 Ohm load will cause the power mosfets to run hot causing the protection circuit to trigger and mute the output signal until
such time as the mosfets can return to a safe operating temperature. Avoid using 2 Ohm loads whenever possible."

Do guys do it? Yep. Is it more dangerous than running a 2.67 Ohm load? Yep. Is the benefit that much greater than running a 2.67 Ohm load to warrant the risk? Nope.

IMHO, YMMV, etc. and so on.
 
#728
Aladinsane1969 said:
From the Walkabout manual: "Minimum load rating is 2 Ohms and while the
WalkAbout will handle this lower load condition - and in fact produce more than its rated power, it is not recommended. Prolonged
use of a 2 Ohm load will cause the power mosfets to run hot causing the protection circuit to trigger and mute the output signal until
such time as the mosfets can return to a safe operating temperature. Avoid using 2 Ohm loads whenever possible."

Do guys do it? Yep. Is it more dangerous than running a 2.67 Ohm load? Yep. Is the benefit that much greater than running a 2.67 Ohm load to warrant the risk? Nope.

IMHO, YMMV, etc. and so on.
Click to expand...

There's not much difference in a 2.67 ohm vs a 2 ohm load - we recommend a 4 ohm minimum load for most reliable operation. Suggesting that a 2.67 ohm load is safer is not totally accurate - Both 2.67 and 2 ohm loads can trigger the protection circuit due to the mosfets heating up. Which is why we suggest the RECOMMENDED 4 ohm minimum load. Thanks!
 
#729
MesaBoogie said:
There's not much difference in a 2.67 ohm vs a 2 ohm load - we recommend a 4 ohm minimum load for most reliable operation. Suggesting that a 2.67 ohm load is safer is not totally accurate - Both 2.67 and 2 ohm loads can trigger the protection circuit due to the mosfets heating up. Which is why we suggest the RECOMMENDED 4 ohm minimum load. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Understood. Thanks!
 
#730
I run mine at 2 ohms on many a gig with no problems. The only time I hit the thermal trip was when I hooked up two large 4 ohm cabs that could really take all the power the WA put out (not the case with my 12 Scout and Radiator 12 extension) and I had replaced the fan with a lower CFM quieter one. With the stock fan, I could never get it to hit the thermal trip.
 
#732
It's been great with a couple of overdrive/distortion pedals and an old Boss multi-effects board I've used. I use a T-Rex Bass Juice frequently with it because I find the overdrive more touch sensitive and easier to control than overdriving the preamp tube in the WA.
 
#733
Livewire said:
anyone here think the walkabout doesn't pair well with effect pedals?
Click to expand...

Nope.

20140310_210939.jpg
 
#734
BiG-ULi said:
Oh shoot glad you said that. I was about to get the matching 4 ohm cabinet

Btw does the 12 inch scout actually handle all 300 watts of the walkabout or does adding the extra cabinet open it up?

Thank you
Click to expand...
No, the single 12" Scout cab does not handle all 300 watts of the amp. I've made my cab fart out with it with the bass EQ set at moderate or even low levels.
 
#735
MesaBoogie said:
There's not much difference in a 2.67 ohm vs a 2 ohm load - we recommend a 4 ohm minimum load for most reliable operation. Suggesting that a 2.67 ohm load is safer is not totally accurate - Both 2.67 and 2 ohm loads can trigger the protection circuit due to the mosfets heating up. Which is why we suggest the RECOMMENDED 4 ohm minimum load. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Could this heating up issue be mitigated by a fan with a higher CFM rating, or are there other issues like vent size that might negate increased airflow?
 
#736
I used mine Wednesday night for a blues gig with a band I had never met. The guitar player looks at my Scout and starts bitching about how he likes a lot of bass and how he's not gonna feel it tonight. I told him he'd be fine but he wasn't buying it. Long story shirt, they were all blown away. I got a lot of "what the hell is that little thing".
Good times
 
#738
Aladinsane1969 said:
You'll get the full 300 watts at 4 ohms, and even more at 2.67 ohms, which is the combined impedance of a 4 ohm cabinet and an 8 ohm cabinet.
Click to expand...

No regular 12" bass cab can truly swallow and transduce 300 watts. Pretty much all 12" drivers reach their excursion limits around 100 watts and just compress after that, rather than get louder. The notable exception is the Eminence 3012LF, which has a longer excursion (xmax) and handles more power. That driver is the basis for many of the boutique super cabs (fEarful, Audiokinesis, etc). IF you want to "use" all 300 watts you'll need more cone area. The marketing dribble about "getting all the watts" by having a 4 Ohm driver is misleading. The "power handling" figures posted by almost all manufacturers are virtually always the thermal limits, in other words, the amount of power the speaker handles before the voice coil sustains irrepairable damage. They stop getting louder waaaaaay before that.
 
#740
So I was just playing at moderate levels through my dads Walkabout Scout 15 combo and I hit a low D and there was a lead slap sound followed by some distorted buzzing. I immediately lowered the gain and it sounds normal-ish. He's kinda freaked out a bit. I'll have to wait a few days to test and see if the speaker is blown. But it sounded ok at the lower volume. The combo is new to us so it still has the 5 year warranty, just was hoping not to have to use it because of me...

Sounded great at the high volume too until the slap and buzz. Just wondering if this has happened to anybody else? I had it loud enough to compete with an average drummer and a guitarist with a 2x12, but playing solo.
 

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