Mesa Subway D-350!

[marchone]

Um.... shoot over to about 5:25 in the video. That lady is getting a great "old-school" tone. Warm and fat, yet clarity for days (which is the signature of both their heads AND cabs to me).

I’ll check it out later on a good sound system when I’m not on my phone.

An old advertising standard is you have 7 seconds to grab the attention of your audience. 5 1/2 minuetes in is asking a lot.

 

[agedhorse]

Does yours have a hiss/steaming water sound when not playing and the gain is maxed? Mine does when the gain is high up. Lowering down the treble removes it.

With the gain maxed, this is to be expected with all amps. The D-350 is no exception.

 

[agedhorse]

Thanks for that, Andy, but it's not "every player’s style and preference". "old school clean and full/fat voicing" isn't a fringe request.

Honestly, I hear two tonal schools in my head when I see a new amp. Modern, or old school. Modern may cover a lot of grind and ground, but every player knows "old school" tube emulation.

Understood, it’s not my go-to tone either. I do accept that rack demographic and genre has their own tastes, regardless of my own personal tastes. It’s part of designing products for multiple genres.

 

[Anachronism]

Looks like a great little amp, but $649 is too pricey for a 350 when something like a Quilter 800 is within range.

I thought that $600 was the max price for this--over two years ago, before COVID lockdowns, the supply-chain crunch and spiking inflation. With prices up for everything, including the rest of the Subway line, I think $650 is reasonable.
I'm happy with my TT right now (and the tube monster that is the Mesa Buster, though that lives in the basement these days) but this would be a great backup if I needed one.

 

[agedhorse]

Looks like a great little amp, but $649 is too pricey for a 350 when something like a Quilter 800 is within range.

The Bb-800 is $699 and the BB-802 is $749. The feature sets are very different, presumably appealing to different players preferences.

 

[chris_b]

This amp sounds very good.

The only tiny issue I have. . . when showing the amp in the video, I would prefer to see the controls as they are being used at the time and not all pointing north.

 

[SJan3]

Looks like a great little amp, but $649 is too pricey for a 350 when something like a Quilter 800 is within range.

I think we sometimes make the mistake of using power output as the only measuring stick when considering the price of an amp.
Other factors such as reputation for quality of build and materials, place of manufacture, warranty and service availability, product focus and ultimate performance should carry equal weight.
Many have said and I agree that 800 watts feels like overkill for many applications and 350 watts with enough speaker goes a long way. So, for those who want a quality amp that is simple yet versatile and don't feel the need to spend D-800 money, this should be your baby. A better comparison would be the Genzler Magellan 350 which is a bit less money, likely due to overseas mfg. although build quality has not suffered.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I've been playing the head for about a year, and Alan (Chef) and I helped Andy with the manual back in 2020. While I respect the excellent musicianship in the video I will admit that's not my usual playing style or tone goal. However, the feature set is well described and I suspect that more than a few people will be impressed with the level of player finesse/articulation and tonal versatility this head can accurately deliver.

I have used the D-350 with my Berg CN212 and SW 112/115 cabs on country and rock roadhouse/VFW/American Legion kind of gigs (60-100 people). I've also used it in small to medium venues with the SW 112 or SW 115 and a couple times even with an Eden EX110 for more acoustic/folks/bluegrass kind of things. It does the full low end, smooth, clean thing really well...and that's more my style.

During my initial playing I was reminded of a Bass Gear Magazine review Alan did years ago when the Carbine M3 was introduced (after he had already played the M6). I don't recall his exact words, but it was something to the effect that he thought the M3 was more like an M5 as it just didn't seem that less powerful than the M6. The D-350 struck me much the same way in comparison to my D-800 (which I admittedly never use to its full potential). Despite its size, the D-350 can get some serious volume especially when running at 4 Ohms with dual driver and/or dual cabs. IME on lengthy rock and roll sets it never even got warm to the touch.

I recall discussions with Andy and Alan during Andy's concept development and design work. First, this is a professional quality amp with features and capabilities that many Mesa customers had been asking for - including smaller size and passive (i.e. silent) thermal management with a very low noise floor (think studio work). It may come as a huge surprise to many of us, but not everyone feels they need a million Watts at 2 Ohms along with more EQ and signal routing features than a state of the art recording studio. This head was specifically designed to fill a space in the SW line that was not fully addressed by the D-800 for those customers.

The only real trade-offs you have in this head IMO are lower power output (which has yet to surface as a problem in the gigs I've played) and no 2 Ohm operation or deep switch for some obvious reasons. To get the small size, silent running (no cooling fan), and preserve headroom the amp is restricted to 4 Ohm and above loads...once again, not a problem for how most people who would buy this head will use it.

The bright switch (which Andy rightfully credits Alan with convincing him to include) is excellent. I hate bright switches in general, but this one is musical/seamless and just opens up the top end in a way that allows nice articulation without hiss or other annoying artifacts. If Reggae and Dub at volumes where you set off car alarms are your thing, this probably isn't your best choice in the SW line. That said it is not bass shy and while naturally warm feels a little less dark in its inherent voicing than the D-800. The bright switch subtly brings out the upper register and can get you a touch of sparkle in your tone with added treble.

Between the price point, quality (it's a Mesa profesional head with a 5 year warranty), and set of features many players have been asking for, I think this head will be very appealing to many folks who found the current SW heads to be more than they needed or not quite what they wanted. I'm always good with smaller and simpler if it can do the job, and the D-350 is more capable than its size and power rating might suggest. Even if it's not right for you, I think you'll come away impressed with the design and have a fun time trying it out.

To add to all of that, I would have been happy with something like this done in conjunction Gibson and produced off shore but it was done here and kept at the professional grade we all expecte from Mesa.

 

[villegastx]

 

[DJ Bebop]

Understood, it’s not my go-to tone either. I do accept that rack demographic and genre has their own tastes, regardless of my own personal tastes. It’s part of designing products for multiple genres.

And multiple generations actually, because most of the genres are generationally induced.

 

[villegastx]

I would like to see a size comparizon with other mesa amps. I have a wd800 and Im wondering how smaller this is.
Im planing to remodel my 115 mesa cab to add my wd800 in the back, just like a walkabout, but a d350 might be lighter and easier.

 

[agedhorse]

To add to all of that, I would have been happy with something like this done in conjunction Gibson and produced off shore but it was done here and kept at the professional grade we all expecte from Mesa.

It has been emphasized here by many vocal members that built here in the US was VERY important. We addressed this by doing exactly this, but it does cost a little bit more.

 

[Michael Vee]

I like this head, a lot. I wish it'd been around last year, as I've picked up both the TT-800 and WD-800. The Mesa D-350 is quite a bit like the Genzler Magellan 350. I'm not going to get either of these 350s.

At some point, it may be that Gibson buys out Jeff Genzler but brings him into the Mesa fold, like Mesa did with Andy. Things with Andy and Jeff are becoming more and more aligned. I'm just idly speculating.

I don't know that I'll sell those wonderful 800 heads to get the Mesa D-350. It's beginning to feel a lot like that late phase of Genz-Benz where they kept bringing out wonderful new designs and everyone kept jumping on them and selling the older ones.. I played along with that for several years- mercy. Many of you did as well and you still are also.

All those heads were terrific, and all the current Genzler and Mesa heads are, so it's a bifurcated version of the Genz-Benz days. Excellent engineering and design work, as well as marketing. Ha! More gear churn is in the making here. I'll be interested to hear what everyone has to say about this.

 

[chupacerveza]

Wow Andy! I’m getting in line over at Sweetwater!

 

[Barticus]

The Bb-800 is $699 and the BB-802 is $749. The feature sets are very different, presumably appealing to different players preferences.

Yeah I guess after looking at others in this space that does appear to have some nicer features with the connections on the back. I have to keep reminding myself that everything is more expensive now, in just 2yrs

Nice features on this little one for sure, well done.

 

[DJ Bebop]

It has been emphasized here by many vocal members that built here in the US was VERY important. We addressed this by doing exactly this, but it does cost a little bit more.

And that's fine!
My thing was Gibson doing this with something you developed, only building it off shore under the Gibson brand but, we didn't have to go there.

 

[Barticus]

It has been emphasized here by many vocal members that built here in the US was VERY important. We addressed this by doing exactly this, but it does cost a little bit more.

That’s impressive, well done.

I don’t yet have a Mesa Bass amp, only 2 Mark V guitar amps so this might end up being my first.

 

[SubSonicAK]

I've been looking for a replacement for my PF350 and this comes at a perfect time. I don't need more power since I just play at home, but the four band EQ and other tonal options sound great, on top of all the modern features I'd expect these days like headphones/aux/usb. It still bugs me some modern SS heads like the TH500 don't have a headphone jack.

I'm assuming this would pair just fine with my PF210HE? I've liked all the heads I've played through it to date, but they've all been Ampegs and Traynors. Never used a Mesa bass head.

 

[agedhorse]

I'm assuming this would pair just fine with my PF210HE? I've liked all the heads I've played through it to date, but they've all been Ampegs and Traynors. Never used a Mesa bass head.

I would expect so.

I like this head, a lot. I wish it'd been around last year, as I've picked up both the TT-800 and WD-800. The Mesa D-350 is quite a bit like the Genzler Magellan 350. I'm not going to get either of these 350s.

At some point, it may be that Gibson buys out Jeff Genzler but brings him into the Mesa fold, like Mesa did with Andy. Things with Andy and Jeff are becoming more and more aligned. I'm just idly speculating.

I don't know that I'll sell those wonderful 800 heads to get the Mesa D-350. It's beginning to feel a lot like that late phase of Genz-Benz where they kept bringing out wonderful new designs and everyone kept jumping on them and selling the older ones.. I played along with that for several years- mercy. Many of you did as well and you still are also.

All those heads were terrific, and all the current Genzler and Mesa heads are, so it's a bifurcated version of the Genz-Benz days. Excellent engineering and design work, as well as marketing. Ha! More gear churn is in the making here. I'll be interested to hear what everyone has to say about this.

It's not a replacement to the WD, TT or D-800's, it's very similar to the D-800 but with less power, smaller and no cooling fan.

 

[PeaveyPlayer]

I think I want to bring one to Canada
350 and push into a crown poweramp