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Mesa Boogie Walkabout Mega-thread Part 10

I was thinking about the ampeg svt cabs myself...their specs seem to be optimal to match the WA...I'm considering the 112 and the 210...

IME/IMHO, two SVT-210AV's pair up very nicely with the WalkAbout. Definitely gig-worthy, based on my experiences. YMMV, though.
 
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IME/IMHO, two SVT-210AV's pair up very nicely with the WalkAbout. Definitely gig-worthy, based on my experiences. YMMV, though.
Mention of the 210 AV made me think of this thread I came across yesterday. Ampeg 210s and some DIY involved, but a different (and larger) animal: Half an Ampeg SVT 810e

Don't know how the sensitivity would compare with the AV cabs.
 
Are most guys not fans of the WA 112's? I've played with some seriously loud rock bands over the years. Many times with a PAIR of svt's on stage! It took a lot to to get me away from my svt's. I mean, with those there was never a lack of headroom or bottom, but after 30 years of lugging them around I was def looking for a lighter solution. I did use a Hartke head for a lot of years which helped (about 35lbs instead of 80), and I had the leverage thing down to load the 8/10 cabs. But the walkabout 112 has sooo much low bottom! And that's what I missed in other rigs I tried. So I gigged the 112 for a bit and realized I needed another cabinet, and at this point I have a WA 112 ext and a combo 15 cab.
When the WA head is working right, I have all the headroom I could ever need to get over a 100w marshall and now a very loud Twin Reverb. Rich, low, truly fundamental bottom to just die for!
I have had a problem with the WA head dropping to about 75% volume and when it does that my bottom goes away and I get distortion like clipping at higher demands. So I bought a TC-RH450 and chained it off the WA head, so it's two 112 rigs. Worked fantastic until a few weeks back the WA dropped out again during a gig. No mistaking what the prob was, the very low bottom dropped out of both cabs. I can play it like that if we play with less volume, but when the WA head comes back (in the middle of a song) it's a profound difference in low rich bass and I'm reaching for the vol on my bass!

So long story short, I bought another RH450 head today. The WA cabs sound great with them and the second RH head will be dependable, but I love the fat, solid bottom of these cabs so much I don't know why more people aren't using them with other amps. The WA15 sounds even better with the RH head ...a little more headroom I think.
So, I do feel like I have a lightweight replacement for my svt's now (all three are in the closet now), and I can carry a cab in each hand (neo drivers) and not even get winded. I can't imagine another 112 or 212 cab having any better low fundamental bottom, but I'm open minded.
 
Yes, a couple times. Also sent it to Mesa repair for a few weeks. They did the updates and whatever tweeking, but I doubt they were able to reproduce the problem I'm having. It's hard to fix a problem that won't present itself on the workbench. That doesn't mean it couldn't still be a preamp tube either! I may try swapping again. Sounds logical though since I'm pretty sure the other amp lost volume also, and it's running off the WA head.
 
Yes, a couple times. Also sent it to Mesa repair for a few weeks. They did the updates and whatever tweeking, but I doubt they were able to reproduce the problem I'm having. It's hard to fix a problem that won't present itself on the workbench. That doesn't mean it couldn't still be a preamp tube either! I may try swapping again. Sounds logical though since I'm pretty sure the other amp lost volume also, and it's running off the WA head.
If Mesa tech didn't catch it, I don't know that I can help, but on the low-tech side you might try making sure that all the jacks and pots are clean and functioning properly and making sure that the tube sockets are clean and gripping the pins of the tubes well.

Is it possible that you've got a cracked solder joint somewhere? That's something that could present/not present with movement (vibration atop a cab) and/or temperature change.
 
Is it possible that you've got a cracked solder joint somewhere? That's something that could present/not present with movement (vibration atop a cab) and/or temperature change.

That's what I always felt it was, or some other intermittent connection in the preamp path. Doesn't seem related to volume or load, it'll happen with one cab or two plugged in, loud or quiet playing. Not very often either, and more noticeable when it comes back on strong.
 
IME/IMHO, two SVT-210AV's pair up very nicely with the WalkAbout. Definitely gig-worthy, based on my experiences. YMMV, though.

My buddy gigs weekly with his Walkabout and 1 or 2 Ampeg 112's. Great sound.
 
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hey guys/girls......I have a WAS 112 combo I'm using for the house, don't plan on gigging with it. Might use it for a small type rehearsal or coffee house gig should that ever come up. But in the meantime, I'm finding for home use, the fan noise is a bit too loud for my liking. I know there are some mods y'all are doing to either replace the fan with a more quiet model. Can you point me in the right direction of what I should I looking for. I love the combo, but really dont want to sell it cause the fan is too loud. Thx!
 
I replaced the stock Sunon fan with a Noctua NF 8...the pro is the massively reduced noise, now the amp can sit on my desk for recording purposes. It's louder than other amps, but very tolerable now.
The cons are the dimished airflow, because there is no escape, despite the technological advance with improved blades etc etc, the silent fans WILL be less efficient.
The amp is built to work with a 4 ohms load, but it's well known that it can work even down to 2 ohms. The dimished airflow could impair this capability, and I have to test it with 4 ohms, but it should be fine. In a combo? I have some serious doubts...thermal shutdown is likely to happen if the amp is pushed with a high load in hot environment...
 
I replaced the stock Sunon fan with a Noctua NF 8...the pro is the massively reduced noise, now the amp can sit on my desk for recording purposes. It's louder than other amps, but very tolerable now.
The cons are the dimished airflow, because there is no escape, despite the technological advance with improved blades etc etc, the silent fans WILL be less efficient.
The amp is built to work with a 4 ohms load, but it's well known that it can work even down to 2 ohms. The dimished airflow could impair this capability, and I have to test it with 4 ohms, but it should be fine. In a combo? I have some serious doubts...thermal shutdown is likely to happen if the amp is pushed with a high load in hot environment...
Most likely the reduced airflow WILL impair performance, and it should also be noted that it will void the warranty if the amp is still (otherwise) covered.
 
I bought a Walkabout off of Craigslist a couple of weeks ago. Blackface model and the hand written date on back dates back to Oct. 2010. When I got it home I discovered it had a bad JJ tube in V1. I replaced it with a spare Tung-Sol I had here and now it preforms wonderfully, love this amp!

When I had the lid off to replace the V1 tube, I noticed someone had done the fan mod. They replace the stock fan with the Silenx EFX-08-15, which seems to be one of the common replacement fans for quieter operation. The label of the fan can be clearly seen through the vent holes in the back of the amp. When the amp is on, the fan is pulling air from inside the unit and blowing it out.

@agedhorse My question is, which way is the air flow supposed to go? Is it supposed to pull hot air out of the amp or blow cool air into the amp?
 
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The airflow is in through the back, out from the vents in the front panel. If I'm interpreting your description correctly, it sounds like your fan may be reversed.

The airflow is very gentle on my amp and it's tricky to tell which way it's actually moving (probably even more so on the amps with the vented main cover.) To be certain, you could try dangling a piece of thread in front of the front vents to check which way it moves...

If the air is flowing in the wrong direction, you might have enough slack in the leads to flip the fan around, so it should be an easy fix.

Congrats on the new amp!
 
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