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Mesa Boogie Walkabout Part 5!!!
- Thread starter Chef
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Congrats! It's a solid li'l fecker ain't it? Punches above it's weight
Shall I say it again???
Sorry double post.....
Shall I say it again???
Sorry double post.....
Walkabout Scout played within its limits is simply exceptional. But once you reach the limits of power, headroom and volume, it runs out of gas real fast. The answer for me in the past has been using an extension cab, or using the Walkabout head with a large 4x10 cab.
I did a gig with drummer, electric guitar and vocalist last weekend in a reasonably small coffee house. So I took the Walkabout 1x12 Scout. It was borderline for my needs. I needed the extension cab. But once I start schlepping that. I may as well just use a lightweight 4x10 or 2x12 Neo or something. Hmmm
I'm gonna retube my WA this week and see if that gives me any better performance. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the tone and there are places and venues where the WA Scout 1x12 is awesome. But when you run out of headroom, it happens real fast and it leaves me wanting. Big time.
I did a gig with drummer, electric guitar and vocalist last weekend in a reasonably small coffee house. So I took the Walkabout 1x12 Scout. It was borderline for my needs. I needed the extension cab. But once I start schlepping that. I may as well just use a lightweight 4x10 or 2x12 Neo or something. Hmmm
I'm gonna retube my WA this week and see if that gives me any better performance. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the tone and there are places and venues where the WA Scout 1x12 is awesome. But when you run out of headroom, it happens real fast and it leaves me wanting. Big time.
I've found the WA to not only sound great, but also has plenty of headroom for my needs when run into a decent amount of speakers @ 4 or 2 ohms.
YMMV of course.
YMMV of course.
Clearly, different people have different needs.
410's etc are fine enough, but "to maximize" that Walkabout tone, I recommend adding a Scout extension cab. I ran 2 12's this way for a while, then swapped the bottom 12 for a Diesel 115.
410's etc are fine enough, but "to maximize" that Walkabout tone, I recommend adding a Scout extension cab. I ran 2 12's this way for a while, then swapped the bottom 12 for a Diesel 115.
father of fires
Commercial User
Howdy,
I may get blasted for asking this question because it may have been answered in the last 5000 posts.
I love the sound of every Walkabout I've demoed but I have always been afraid to pull the trigger because I fear it won't be loud enough. I've looked at the other M-Pulse amps and I have always wondered if the M-Pulse 600 would cop the same tone.
Also, does anyone use the Walkabout for loud metal? I have tried to use lower watt heads in the past believing that 300 watts is enough and that my guitarists need to turn down but it rarely works and it's silly for me to limit myself when watts are so cheap nowadays.
Peace!
I may get blasted for asking this question because it may have been answered in the last 5000 posts.
I love the sound of every Walkabout I've demoed but I have always been afraid to pull the trigger because I fear it won't be loud enough. I've looked at the other M-Pulse amps and I have always wondered if the M-Pulse 600 would cop the same tone.
Also, does anyone use the Walkabout for loud metal? I have tried to use lower watt heads in the past believing that 300 watts is enough and that my guitarists need to turn down but it rarely works and it's silly for me to limit myself when watts are so cheap nowadays.
Peace!
father of fires
Commercial User
Power-wise no. Tone-wise yes!!!
I guess something like the Streamliner heads are in the same vein?
father of fires
Commercial User
father of fires said:
The Streamliner is round, warm and "tubey" in a similar way, and the 900 packs a lethal punch. However, the upper mid and treble EQ voicing is very different.. The Mesa is brighter, and has more air up top, to my ears.
It the WA is your tone, why not slave one to a power amp for big gigs? Some of the latest Crowns and Peaveys are so light and compact, they're barely even there...
1) the MPulse 600 is *not* a bigger Walkabout. Not the same mid-richness, not the same vintage feel.
2) Walkabout+Poweramp: again, not the same thing. You miss the tube driver pushing the power section.
The best way to get a bigger Walkabout-really the only way, IMO-is by adding more drivers, and most specifically via a Scout 112 or Scout 115. Thos radiator cabs are their own thing.
Otherwise, a Great Big Vintage cab is next best, like an NV610.
2) Walkabout+Poweramp: again, not the same thing. You miss the tube driver pushing the power section.
The best way to get a bigger Walkabout-really the only way, IMO-is by adding more drivers, and most specifically via a Scout 112 or Scout 115. Thos radiator cabs are their own thing.
Otherwise, a Great Big Vintage cab is next best, like an NV610.
father of fires
Commercial User
Thanks. I may have to get one eventually for at home practice and recording. I was about ready to go looking for an M-Pulse 600 but I wasn't sure.
Thanks for the help!
I have other more powerful amps (SVT, GB) with larger cabs when I need them, but for me I bought the Scout specifically for small gigs and rehearsals, convenience but still with great tone. If the gig requires more just use another amp.
+1 on that. I use the walkabout with one or 2 Aguilar GS112's for most small to medium requirements. The DI is great too. Anything bigger I have my old SVT with an Aguilar DB410. I don't think that there is a one size fits all approach
As Chef said, a bigger cab is the best way to get the most volume out of the Walkabout without losing the whole tone. I pair mine with an NV610 just as he suggested, and it can get pretty darn loud. I also generally play in pretty loud groups and have yet to be drowned out with this combo, but have needed to push it near its volume limits at times to get there. If you hope to have a totally clean tone at those high volumes, it probably will not be enough for you- fortunately I actually like the tone of the Walkabout quite a bit when pushed. You also shouldn't expect an extremely bottom-heavy tone at high volumes- that's the major sacrifice of a lower powered amp. When it is pushed hard it tends to compress/overdrive and shift alot more energy into the lower midrange, much like a tube amp.
I have experimented with plugging my Walkabouts preamp out into the power amp inputs of my other amps and it just isn't the same. The Walkabout preamp does sound crazy good pushing the power amp of an all-tube amp like a Mesa D-180 or 400+ and is loud as heck, but that will give you a 5 rack, 100 pound "solution"
As one of those who have bought a Streamliner hoping to be able to cop a louder Walkabout-esque tone, they are not at all alike in my opinion- the Walkabout is all about midrange: sweet to grindy, while the Streamliner is comparitively very scooped in the mids and much deeper sounding. I actually like both amps for different reasons, but the Walkabout is definitely my go-to tone!
Agree. Right now the only way to get more power than a Walkabout will deliver and still have that sound is to get a 2nd Walkabout and run 'em together
Help! What's the best way to get into the Scout cab?
I can hear a screw or something rattling around in there & thought I'd ask the wiki-walkabout!
I can hear a screw or something rattling around in there & thought I'd ask the wiki-walkabout!
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