Are these amps hard to mod? For example adding more high end or taking out the low end a bit ? I played one that sounded fairly thinner than a other and it was much more expressive while the other was bogged down by thick lows and not enough top end harmonics and distortion. Iv also wondered if one could add a big transformer and make the amp sound bigger. I like the sound overall but I feel the fillmores still sound small in comparison to other amps that I have and Iv always heard the bigger transformers add more lows and highs . Since it’s two of the same circuit I wonder if it’s able to be taken apart and use one circuit and combine it with a new transformer or not? I’m not a tech so I dream big lol
I don't really know, since I normally don't work on this type of equipment. I only worked on the Reverb Box because my son knew that I was an Aircraft Electronics equipment technician. With that said I'm sure it could be modified to meet your requirements by an Amplifier Technician. However custom work can be expensive. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
I've been thrown into the home-depot planned obsolescence throw-away-don't-repair generation. Despite such potential quality issues, the Fimore 50 may be the best vintage sounding amp ever. To compensate for the potential non-repairable issues, I wonder if I would have to buy 5 (at the total cost of an ultimate completely hand-wired Boutique amp) Filmore 50s to have the quality level assurance I want.
Vintage amps also have quality issues, but they are usually repairable given time and money -- so you still need backups. And with each overhaul you do loose some sound character.
It seems way easier to dial in and tweak great vintage amp tones out of a Filmore 50 than from an actual vintage blackface because Mesa Boogie took into account not just the best vintage blackfaces, but also fantastic recording studio and sound engineer quality tweaking of yesteryear greats.
My son has played on stage for over 12 years and says the Mesa Boogie Fillmore, for a new amp, has one of the best in classic sound he's come across at a somewhat reasonable price range. As far as sound goes, if there is a problem it would be in the filtering and choice of tubes in the design. If the filtering is done right, Tubes offer a flatter drop off across the harmonic range. The problem with all tube amps is you don't know when each tube is going to go bad so you have to have a supply off all the tubes in the amp on hand and be able to troubleshoot as to which tube is bad. Also when replacing tubes, they don't all the have the same harmonic range and conduction rate, even if it's the same part number. You have to re-tune and readjust your knobs every time you change one. Solid state Amps typically don't have that problem and are more reliable in that respect. If you have a Tube output on an electronic amp you have the same problem, but at least you know which tubes are bad then. Regarding the Fillmore, so far after fixing the Reverb Box, NOT built by Mesa, the Fillmore has worked flawlessly for over a year except for changing the tubes because he wore them out playing, LOL. He practices daily and plays on stage twice a week for hours. So I guess you cold say it's reliable. Great comment though. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
Looks like the problem was a non-original replacement tank. Presumably something happened to the original, but it’s pretty cheap to replace with the proper part. Boutique amps all use the same cheap reverb tanks btw. You can consider them consumable parts and buy a spare ahead of time if it’s a concern.
Oh Sorry the reply is late. The amp belongs to my son. He plays it on stage at least twice a week since he purchased it. He mic's the output for a better sound. He's had several amps and says he really loves this on for it's sound and options. He has no complaints about the build quality, except the Reverb Box. Since I've modified the Reverb Box it's worked flawlessly. As far as the amp goes it plays great and has a lot of options for making custom sounds. So if music is your thing, my son says you can't go wrong with the amp, other than the reverb, you might have to mod it or replace it eventually. If you pick on up get a new one or one that has a warranty just in case it has a problem. Hope this points you in the right direction. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
This just confirms the notion that printed circuit boards even hand assembled have multiple weakest links in the chain. So, Mesa Boogie is not likely the future of amp technology. However, this is no longer Mesa' call since Gibson is now the owner. And Gibson is known for hand made in America.
I've worked in electronics for over 42 years, both low frequencies (LF) and Super High Frequencies (SHF) and realistically printed circuit boards aren't the problem. Personally I think the problem is in using Lead Free Solder because it's prone to cracking and separation after several temperature changes. The other problem is in the materials they use on the circuit board, cheap and low weight (thin) printed runs or using pressed circuits instead of soldered circuits. Those two problems can be overcome by using Lead Solder when making repairs. I think Gibson could do a good job if the Demoncrats, when in office, would leave them alone because. Gibson donates a lot of money to the Republicans. So Demoncrat run Law Enforcement Agencies, just some how, tend to like to raid their wood whorehouses and practically put them out of business for a month or two every time they do that. Anyways that's a separate subject, LOL Thanks for the comment. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
Merry Christmas Mr. Shiney. In all fairness Mesa didn't produce the Reverb Box, but yeah if you're going to pay that much for an amp, you think they could have found a more reliable Reverb Box supplier. At least you know what to look for and how to fix it if you have that problem. Thanks for the comment and I hope yall have a great Christmas. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
I was seriously contemplating one of these...for what like 1400? Drove 40 miles to the nearest guitar/amp shop near me that had one. I couldn't believe how small and chintzy this thing looked in person. $1400!!! $1400!!!! LOL. The thing looked like a crappy toy.
Yeah they look really cheaply built but in all honesty it's not the outside that counts it's the way it sounds when you play it. I do electronic repairs for a living and frankly I've looked inside high dollar guitar control knobs and even inside these control knobs. Almost all manufactures use the cheapest parts they can put in them, and build the boards the cheapest way possible. I'm surprised at how well the equipment holds up. So as the saying goes "You can't judge a book by it's cover", does hold true in sound quality and options available on how it looks on the outside. They're not worth $1,400.00 on looks, they're worth $1,400.00 on how they sound with the options provided. Most of the time the electronics hold up, with a few exception, the Reverb Box being one of them. But now that you know how to fix it, or even prevent it from breaking by doing the mod, you can make a better comparison based on quality of sound rather than how it looks. Thanks for the comment, I agree with most of what you said for sure. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
Are these amps hard to mod? For example adding more high end or taking out the low end a bit ? I played one that sounded fairly thinner than a other and it was much more expressive while the other was bogged down by thick lows and not enough top end harmonics and distortion.
Iv also wondered if one could add a big transformer and make the amp sound bigger. I like the sound overall but I feel the fillmores still sound small in comparison to other amps that I have and Iv always heard the bigger transformers add more lows and highs . Since it’s two of the same circuit I wonder if it’s able to be taken apart and use one circuit and combine it with a new transformer or not? I’m not a tech so I dream big lol
I don't really know, since I normally don't work on this type of equipment. I only worked on the Reverb Box because my son knew that I was an Aircraft Electronics equipment technician. With that said I'm sure it could be modified to meet your requirements by an Amplifier Technician. However custom work can be expensive. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
Very Good!!!
Thanks Carl I hope it helped save you some money. Thanks for watching. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
I've been thrown into the home-depot planned obsolescence throw-away-don't-repair generation. Despite such potential quality issues, the Fimore 50 may be the best vintage sounding amp ever. To compensate for the potential non-repairable issues, I wonder if I would have to buy 5 (at the total cost of an ultimate completely hand-wired Boutique amp) Filmore 50s to have the quality level assurance I want.
Vintage amps also have quality issues, but they are usually repairable given time and money -- so you still need backups. And with each overhaul you do loose some sound character.
And buying vintage amps is always a game of chance as well as expense.
It seems way easier to dial in and tweak great vintage amp tones out of a Filmore 50 than from an actual vintage blackface because Mesa Boogie took into account not just the best vintage blackfaces, but also fantastic recording studio and sound engineer quality tweaking of yesteryear greats.
My son has played on stage for over 12 years and says the Mesa Boogie Fillmore, for a new amp, has one of the best in classic sound he's come across at a somewhat reasonable price range. As far as sound goes, if there is a problem it would be in the filtering and choice of tubes in the design. If the filtering is done right, Tubes offer a flatter drop off across the harmonic range. The problem with all tube amps is you don't know when each tube is going to go bad so you have to have a supply off all the tubes in the amp on hand and be able to troubleshoot as to which tube is bad. Also when replacing tubes, they don't all the have the same harmonic range and conduction rate, even if it's the same part number. You have to re-tune and readjust your knobs every time you change one. Solid state Amps typically don't have that problem and are more reliable in that respect. If you have a Tube output on an electronic amp you have the same problem, but at least you know which tubes are bad then. Regarding the Fillmore, so far after fixing the Reverb Box, NOT built by Mesa, the Fillmore has worked flawlessly for over a year except for changing the tubes because he wore them out playing, LOL. He practices daily and plays on stage twice a week for hours. So I guess you cold say it's reliable. Great comment though. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
Looks like the problem was a non-original replacement tank. Presumably something happened to the original, but it’s pretty cheap to replace with the proper part. Boutique amps all use the same cheap reverb tanks btw. You can consider them consumable parts and buy a spare ahead of time if it’s a concern.
Whats your impression on build quality?
Oh Sorry the reply is late. The amp belongs to my son. He plays it on stage at least twice a week since he purchased it. He mic's the output for a better sound. He's had several amps and says he really loves this on for it's sound and options. He has no complaints about the build quality, except the Reverb Box. Since I've modified the Reverb Box it's worked flawlessly. As far as the amp goes it plays great and has a lot of options for making custom sounds. So if music is your thing, my son says you can't go wrong with the amp, other than the reverb, you might have to mod it or replace it eventually. If you pick on up get a new one or one that has a warranty just in case it has a problem. Hope this points you in the right direction. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
@@keithnoneya thanks!
This just confirms the notion that printed circuit boards even hand assembled have multiple weakest links in the chain. So, Mesa Boogie is not likely the future of amp technology. However, this is no longer Mesa' call since Gibson is now the owner. And Gibson is known for hand made in America.
I've worked in electronics for over 42 years, both low frequencies (LF) and Super High Frequencies (SHF) and realistically printed circuit boards aren't the problem. Personally I think the problem is in using Lead Free Solder because it's prone to cracking and separation after several temperature changes. The other problem is in the materials they use on the circuit board, cheap and low weight (thin) printed runs or using pressed circuits instead of soldered circuits. Those two problems can be overcome by using Lead Solder when making repairs. I think Gibson could do a good job if the Demoncrats, when in office, would leave them alone because. Gibson donates a lot of money to the Republicans. So Demoncrat run Law Enforcement Agencies, just some how, tend to like to raid their wood whorehouses and practically put them out of business for a month or two every time they do that. Anyways that's a separate subject, LOL Thanks for the comment. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
As a Mesa fan it is sad to see that they have fallen to such a low QC of their product
Merry Christmas Mr. Shiney. In all fairness Mesa didn't produce the Reverb Box, but yeah if you're going to pay that much for an amp, you think they could have found a more reliable Reverb Box supplier. At least you know what to look for and how to fix it if you have that problem. Thanks for the comment and I hope yall have a great Christmas. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
LOL Not their fault
Looks like the original reverb was replaced with an incorrect part by the store when it was a demo unit.
I was seriously contemplating one of these...for what like 1400?
Drove 40 miles to the nearest guitar/amp shop near me that had one.
I couldn't believe how small and chintzy this thing looked in person. $1400!!!
$1400!!!! LOL. The thing looked like a crappy toy.
Yeah they look really cheaply built but in all honesty it's not the outside that counts it's the way it sounds when you play it. I do electronic repairs for a living and frankly I've looked inside high dollar guitar control knobs and even inside these control knobs. Almost all manufactures use the cheapest parts they can put in them, and build the boards the cheapest way possible. I'm surprised at how well the equipment holds up. So as the saying goes "You can't judge a book by it's cover", does hold true in sound quality and options available on how it looks on the outside. They're not worth $1,400.00 on looks, they're worth $1,400.00 on how they sound with the options provided. Most of the time the electronics hold up, with a few exception, the Reverb Box being one of them. But now that you know how to fix it, or even prevent it from breaking by doing the mod, you can make a better comparison based on quality of sound rather than how it looks. Thanks for the comment, I agree with most of what you said for sure. Best Wishes & Blessings. Keith Noneya
@@keithnoneya Same to you. Best wishes and Blessings.