New mesa subway amps and cabs!

[detracti]

So, my WD-800 arrived today. And daaaaamn. This is my BB750 in a smaller lighter package and with a bunch more knobs to twiddle.

As much as I have enjoyed the D-800+, I think I'll be listing it soon.

 

[redstrand]

I think the best thing about the EQ is getting to know your basses better. I'm happy that the EQ isn't all or nothing. It's gradual and somewhat organic. Take a second a rotate them to the left and start adding one by one, yes I know noon is flat, but wow did I start understanding a couple of my basses better by deep diving with the parametric EQ. Took about 30-45 minutes, but now I REALLY love the WD-800. My old T-40 was finicky with amps, something tells me I should have kept it to play on this amp.
For example, T-bird pickups love my Quilter, but didn't have the oomph with things set at noon. Three tweaks later and they roar. P basses love just about any setting. My Jazz is what benefited the most, it REALLY responds well and it responds to the input well....super well.

 

[Leo was right]

So, my WD-800 arrived today. And daaaaamn. This is my BB750 in a smaller lighter package and with a bunch more knobs to twiddle.

As much as I have enjoyed the D-800+, I think I'll be listing it soon.

Oh! You are my friend! Everytimes I went to Long & McQuade recentely I was unlucked and can't try it, I am in love with my BB750 and my MP600, so any reviews or comments about the WD800 vs 750 or 600 is welcome, I believe it is amazing and can buy it with eyes close but your impression about it, is always interesting. How it behave with a Pbass or Jbass? The Pbass need a lot of warmness in the mid to sound at my taste, the Jbass is little more forgiving. But anyway tell us your experience.

Have a nice one.

 

[oldrocker]

I think the best thing about the EQ is getting to know your basses better. I'm happy that the EQ isn't all or nothing. It's gradual and somewhat organic. Take a second a rotate them to the left and start adding one by one, yes I know noon is flat, but wow did I start understanding a couple of my basses better by deep diving with the parametric EQ. Took about 30-45 minutes, but now I REALLY love the WD-800. My old T-40 was finicky with amps, something tells me I should have kept it to play on this amp.
For example, T-bird pickups love my Quilter, but didn't have the oomph with things set at noon. Three tweaks later and they roar. P basses love just about any setting. My Jazz is what benefited the most, it REALLY responds well and it responds to the input well....super well.

Nice, how do you set up the WD-800 for your Jazz bass?

 

[detracti]

Oh! You are my friend! Everytimes I went to Long & McQuade recentely I was unlucked and can't try it, I am in love with my BB750 and my MP600, so any reviews or comments about the WD800 vs 750 or 600 is welcome, I believe it is amazing and can buy it with eyes close but your impression about it, is always interesting. How it behave with a Pbass or Jbass? The Pbass need a lot of warmness in the mid to sound at my taste, the Jbass is little more forgiving. But anyway tell us your experience.

Have a nice one.

The back of the owner's manual has recommended settings for "tube grind" (something like that - can't remember the exact wording). But the settings have the input slammed (all the way up), and everything else mostly flat, except a big scoop out of the mid-mids ...and then setting the damping to low.

So I tried that in hopes that it would do that wooly "everything-rattling" thing that my BB750 does (and with the back set to 2-ohms into a 4-ohm cab to get the earlier power amp clipping).

...and there it was!!! Pretty much identical.

I played with the damping & think the mid setting is closer. Also tried backing off the input a bit to dial back the fuzz a little. Oh and that preset has the HPF turned up a bit - played with that too.

I had it stacked on top of my BB750, and a/b'd them into the Subway 2x15 - and with those settings was damn-near indistinguishable. And that's the "Mesa thing" that made me fall in love with the BB750 originally.

Went back to the D-800+, and it just doesn't do that. The great thing about the D-800+ is that it is lighter and sleeker, and has a nice smooth round tone. But it doesn't have that same BB750 drool-inducing aggressiveness.

 

[redstrand]

Nice, how do you set up the WD-800 for your Jazz bass?

I'll take a pic tonight

 

[redstrand]

I did have a pic, this is pretty close. I think I turned the last eq up from -12 a little bit more and when frisky I pop the input up more, this is 4ohms to the 2x12 ampeg...Mesa loves them some 12's

 

[Leo was right]

The back of the owner's manual has recommended settings for "tube grind" (something like that - can't remember the exact wording). But the settings have the input slammed (all the way up), and everything else mostly flat, except a big scoop out of the mid-mids ...and then setting the damping to low.

So I tried that in hopes that it would do that wooly "everything-rattling" thing that my BB750 does (and with the back set to 2-ohms into a 4-ohm cab to get the earlier power amp clipping).

...and there it was!!! Pretty much identical.

I played with the damping & think the mid setting is closer. Also tried backing off the input a bit to dial back the fuzz a little. Oh and that preset has the HPF turned up a bit - played with that too.

I had it stacked on top of my BB750, and a/b'd them into the Subway 2x15 - and with those settings was damn-near indistinguishable. And that's the "Mesa thing" that made me fall in love with the BB750 originally.

Went back to the D-800+, and it just doesn't do that. The great thing about the D-800+ is that it is lighter and sleeker, and has a nice smooth round tone. But it doesn't have that same BB750 drool-inducing aggressiveness.

Thanks Man! This is exactly what I want to read about.

In conclusion, if my back can't carry anymore the BB750, I'll be fine with the WD.

 

[detracti]

Thanks Man! This is exactly what I want to read about.

In conclusion, if my back can't carry anymore the BB750, I'll be fine with the WD.

Hells yeah!! ...the BB750 still looks cooler, imo - with those chrome knobs 'n'all . Maybe I'll try running my Marshall Guv'nor into it to see if I can get close to the BB750 distortion ...this weekend.

 

[ezstep]

I took my D800+ this afternoon, and I took my old Shuttle 6.0, again, as my backup. On a whim, I went to the Shuttle, ran a jack in/out a few times of the loop in back, plugged her in.

If you wonder how a Subway 2x12 sound with a Shuttle head - it sounds awesome. The pianist, his wife (in audience), violinist, her husband (in audience), all agreed that the bass sounded great.

Thanks, old man. Errr... aged one.

 

[OldFunBass]

I think the best thing about the EQ is getting to know your basses better. I'm happy that the EQ isn't all or nothing. It's gradual and somewhat organic. Take a second a rotate them to the left and start adding one by one, yes I know noon is flat, but wow did I start understanding a couple of my basses better by deep diving with the parametric EQ. Took about 30-45 minutes, but now I REALLY love the WD-800. My old T-40 was finicky with amps, something tells me I should have kept it to play on this amp.
For example, T-bird pickups love my Quilter, but didn't have the oomph with things set at noon. Three tweaks later and they roar. P basses love just about any setting. My Jazz is what benefited the most, it REALLY responds well and it responds to the input well....super well.

I received my WD-800 and Subway 2x15 cab about 2 months ago, and have been wanting to post about how great I think it is. But there is just so much to say, I am not even sure where to start. But this post by @redstrand really brings up one of the things I have noticed. This amp/speaker really brings out how the actual bass sounds. There is not a universal setting for all basses. But, it allows you to dial in each bass's individual sound. If you have a bass you love, this amp will let you show it at it's full potential. On the other hand, if you have a bass that has been a problem as far as finding a tone you like, this might allow you to find a tone that will make it shine. I have 8 basses that are all different style and electronics, and I am able to make each one the best it can be with the WD-800. I know this sounds weird, which is why I have not posted anything until now. But seeing this post assured me that I am not the only one to notice this.
Bottom line, the WD-800 combined with the 2x15 cab is amazing in many different ways. Oh, and it is also quite loud .

 

[agedhorse]

I took my D800+ this afternoon, and I took my old Shuttle 6.0, again, as my backup. On a whim, I went to the Shuttle, ran a jack in/out a few times of the loop in back, plugged her in.

If you wonder how a Subway 2x12 sound with a Shuttle head - it sounds awesome. The pianist, his wife (in audience), violinist, her husband (in audience), all agreed that the bass sounded great.

Thanks, old man. Errr... aged one.

The Shuttle 6/9 was one of the benchmark amps I used when designing the Subway cabs.

 

[_Some Dude]

I received my WD-800 and Subway 2x15 cab about 2 months ago, and have been wanting to post about how great I think it is. But there is just so much to say, I am not even sure where to start. But this post by @redstrand really brings up one of the things I have noticed. This amp/speaker really brings out how the actual bass sounds. There is not a universal setting for all basses. But, it allows you to dial in each bass's individual sound. If you have a bass you love, this amp will let you show it at it's full potential. On the other hand, if you have a bass that has been a problem as far as finding a tone you like, this might allow you to find a tone that will make it shine. I have 8 basses that are all different style and electronics, and I am able to make each one the best it can be with the WD-800. I know this sounds weird, which is why I have not posted anything until now. But seeing this post assured me that I am not the only one to notice this.
Bottom line, the WD-800 combined with the 2x15 cab is amazing in many different ways. Oh, and it is also quite loud .

I’ve been playing through an SVT for the last little while. I pulled out my WD800 and 115 for an audition/jam session this weekend.

What really struck me and I’d forgotten about is Mesa’s articulation, clarity and detail. It’s more than just making different basses sound different, it’s that moving your finger and inch up or down the string produces a subtle shift in tone. I can hear the sound of my skin dragging across the strings in HiFi. Changing the angle of my pick is more noticeable. There’s a texture to the midrange that brings this stuff out without smothering it in indistinctness. It enables me to impart more nuance into my playing, and it does it in a way where it’s not getting buried by the guitars.

IMO/YMMV

 

[agedhorse]

The WD-800 into an SVT cabinet brings some of the SVT voicing to the overall tone too, try it.

 

[David Jayne]

Anybody using the 215 cab? That's the one I'm interested in. Looking for a punchy, portable cab. I'm a low-mids guy. Not looking for super deep low end.

 

[TrentB]

Anybody using the 215 cab? That's the one I'm interested in. Looking for a punchy, portable cab. I'm a low-mids guy. Not looking for super deep low end.

Yup, I’ve got one. It excels in the low mids. Never boomy. My Hathor 212 sounds deeper than the Mesa.

 

[And I]

I ran the D800 at rehearsal tonight. The cab at the jam space is an Epifani T-212 with a blown tweeter so it's usually pretty thuddy and indistinct. I did happen to have newish GHS balanced nickels which have more top end than my usual broken-in sunbeams... it did seem more articulate and intelligible but there are a lot of factors in play there... It was weird bringing the master volume to 11:30 for a rehearsal, but I know the knobs are designed to be effective through 100% of their range unlike most amps, so I wasn't worried that it was out of juice.

I do wish the high mids were voiced at least 2x as high. But I have an 800hz knob on one bass and 1k on the other, so I can use the on -board pre for a mid bump when I need it.

I'm really looking forward to next Friday when I take the whole rig including fEARful 12/6s out for a gig where I'm providing backline... always love getting to hear my gear from in front of the stage!

 

[agedhorse]

Don't judge the amp when playing through a cabinet with a known problem. That's like judging BBQ when the meat is spoiled.

Yes, the controls operate over the entire range of the rotation.

 

[JOE EDO]

WD800 into a Bergantino NV610 is something to behold as well...

The WD-800 into an SVT cabinet brings some of the SVT voicing to the overall tone too, try it.

 

[IvanBassist]

New cab day