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Mesa vs. Aguilar 1x12 review

#43
pickles said:
Gig report: they sound killer!

I used these at a medium size club last night. For the load in I tried the one cab in each hand approach, which I'll never do again with these cabs. They're just too heavy for that. Loading out one at a time was a breeze though, and WAY easier than the typical 1x15 + 2x10 rig.

This room was really bassy (though not overly "boomy"), and had a hollow stage riser, so I put the cabs on top of a road case, and they still sounded really big even without floor coupling. Full, thick, with nice growl and just enough cutting upper mids. I let the other band's bassist use the rig and he dialed the bass way up and the mids and highs way down ... if you like rumble this setup will sure do it! Not my bag but he seemed happy with it :D

Only thing that went wrong is that the soundman used the DI on the head, so when the stage lights started causing buzzing that wasn't there at soundcheck, the ground lift was on the back panel and I didn't have time to get back there and flick it. NEVER NEVER use the DI on a head, no matter how high quality it is!!! I'm going to buy a countryman or radial so I can intervene next time that happens.
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I guess it takes the twice as heavey, much higher cost amp to get the DI and it's controls on the front face for easy reachin'! :hiding:
 
#44
coyoteboy said:
I guess it takes the twice as heavey, much higher cost amp to get the DI and it's controls on the front face for easy reachin'! :hiding:
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Thats a fact. The 750 is superior in that regard. I still prefer a separate DI in every way, but if an amp is going to bother with a DI it should be on the front panel. The 750 is the only amp I can think of that is like that!
 
#50
Just to chime in "Mesa Rocks"

I was once the owner of those two rockin' Mesa cabs and that's what they did. I did one gig in a small club with both of them and after that I only took one. They really do fill a room and cut through on stage. I'm in a cover band, an original rock band and an old school funk jazz band those cabs fit anywhere I used them. As for the weight, I have two dolly's (sp?) so I never had to carry them. That would be the only down fall but they're built like tanks.

I owned the Aggies and used two of them exclusively for two years when they first came out but I sold them when I heard the Mesa cabs the first time. I've since gone to a single light weight cab and Little Mark rig so I was hoping someone else could get use out of those little guys. BTW, great review...

hugo
 
#51
CDT said:
like what? I use (2) head Di's live. but granted they have switches on the front...

thanks..
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rockstarbassist said:
I've yet to have an issue w/ the DI on my Mesa. I always use it. YMMV, course! ;)
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It has nothing to do with quality ... I've recorded with the mesa DI and it sounds amazing ... but live:

* If the amp dies, so does your FOH and monitor sound

* controls are on the back where you can't get to them

* if you need to change your power routing to fix a ground loop without lifting and causing buzz, you might have to move your entire amp

* you can't power down your amp without sending bad bad sounds to the FOH

* if you use Post-EQ you can't adjust your stage sound without wrecking the FOH mix

But enough derailing this 1x12 thread.
 
#52
pickles said:
It has nothing to do with quality ... I've recorded with the mesa DI and it sounds amazing ... but live:

* If the amp dies, so does your FOH and monitor sound

* controls are on the back where you can't get to them

* if you need to change your power routing to fix a ground loop without lifting and causing buzz, you might have to move your entire amp

* you can't power down your amp without sending bad bad sounds to the FOH

* if you use Post-EQ you can't adjust your stage sound without wrecking the FOH mix

But enough derailing this 1x12 thread.
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In my new setup, we have a FOH soundguy who knows his stuff, and I always go post from my amp, and hardly any EQ on the board.

I do need to buy a DI JIC tho...
 
#54
KJung said:
The differences you describe between the Mesa cabs and the GS's mirrors what I hear between the GS's and the new DB's, with the DB's being warmer, louder, punchier and smoother than the wider GS's. Just FYI, in case you want to stay in the Aguilar family!

That being said, the Mesa cabs are beautiful!
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Really? You hear more low end and less middle mids in the DB112's, relative to the GS112's? The impression I got from the DB112's during the brief time that I heard them at NAMM was that they had a bit less low end bloom, and more midrange presence, relative to the GS112.

Tom.
 
#55
Stride000 said:
I'm so looking forward to this test but i'm not certain the db 750 with the mesa cab will be a good pairing, unless the first experience i had, had a flaw in it.

I once went to a store nearby with my db 750 and hooked it up to a powerhouse 2x12 at 8ohm. Now I haven't messed with the tweeter or the 3-way switch but the sound i got was like playing a swr rig. Cold, sterile, no bottom, only mids.

Could've been that the cab had a problem - by the way i noticed there were some kind of small round velcro looking patches on each drivers - i don't know if it's normal and why those were there.

Could've been because of the settings of the switch and tweeter.

But it sure didn't sound anything like a complete mesa rig i had once heard and nothing like my Aguilar rig.
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Any updates on this? I'd like to hear a comparison on the 600 into the Powerhouse 212 vs Aggy 212. :)
 

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