Mesa Boogie MK I Clones

[Captain Zero]

Any smaller company make a mk I clone, or something really close?

[big mike]

Those, the reissues and the SOB's are around enough, no need for a clone IMO.
Find a reissue, stick some Sylvania 6l6's in it, and whipass!

[BCJek]

The old Acoustic Model 164/5 could be considered a Boogie clone. Cheap, but not so plentiful.

[Aaron Smith]

You can usually find the real thing for under $1k if you keep your eyes open.

[big mike]

Exactly. They're around on craig's list out here near frisco all the time.

[gillman royce]

German made PCL Vintage 1956. All quality parts & build, heads & combos and are easily under $1k.

[kludge]

I paid far less for my 1977 Mark I than you'd pay for any clone, even considering that I took it in for maintenance as soon as I got it. And it's not hard to find either Mark I reissues or SOBs which are basically the same.

You're on a great path. The Mark I is my lifetime amp, I think.

[Bobby D]

the SOB's are great amps, total sleepers.....usually affordable.

so are the studio 22 models......

mark 1 reissues are usually around $800-$1000

all good amps....

[kludge]

Keep in mind that the Mark I and Studio .22 don't sound much alike (I own both).

The Mark I sounds huge and effortless at any gain and volume. The Studio .22 sounds like it's giving you 110% at any gain or volume. The Mark I weighs twice as much as the Studio .22. The Studio .22 is very easy to dial in and sounds great no matter what you do with the knobs. The Mark I is very finicky and has to be dialed in carefully, or it can sound bloated and slow. The Studio .22 is noisy, the Mark I is so silent I have to be careful to remember it's on.

Either one is a completely fantastic amp. Just fantastic for different reasons.

[Trebor Renkluaf]

Originally Posted by Aaron Smith

You can usually find the real thing for under $1k if you keep your eyes open.

Bingo. The Super Sixties (Mark Is) are available and cheap by vintage amp standards. Why bother with a clone or an RI.

[Captain Zero]

Originally Posted by big mike

Those, the reissues and the SOB's are around enough, no need for a clone IMO.
Find a reissue, stick some Sylvania 6l6's in it, and whipass!

Cool, thanks for the info. I thought the mk I was kind of rare-ish/extremely expensive. That is why I asked about a clone. I know zero about Mesa Boogie.

I'm going for '77 El Mocambo sound. I am correct in assuming that Keith used a mk I, for this show?

[sfarnell]

The problem is that the original Mesa Boogies were inconsistent. Some of the amps were world class while others not so much. So, the trick is to find a good one to clone because the Reissues are not clones of the original and are inferior IMHO.

[robertkoa]

Originally Posted by kludge

Keep in mind that the Mark I and Studio .22 don't sound much alike (I own both).

The Mark I sounds huge and effortless at any gain and volume. The Studio .22 sounds like it's giving you 110% at any gain or volume. The Mark I weighs twice as much as the Studio .22. The Studio .22 is very easy to dial in and sounds great no matter what you do with the knobs. The Mark I is very finicky and has to be dialed in carefully, or it can sound bloated and slow. The Studio .22 is noisy, the Mark I is so silent I have to be careful to remember it's on.

Either one is a completely fantastic amp. Just fantastic for different reasons.

I heard a video of a Studio 22 and was surprised at how thick and clear the Overdrive is- VERY intersting that there is a Boogie that sounds great on nearly all settings ( ! ) . Rare for a Boogie right ?

Question- are there 6V6s in the output section, and can the Express series hang with the Studio for Fatness etc ?

I like what you say about the Studio sounding like it's working hard at any volume.......

I also wonder if a good Tech could noise mod the Studio for a hundred or 2 to get it dead quiet ?

[kludge]

Originally Posted by robertkoa

I heard a video of a Studio 22 and was surprised at how thick and clear the Overdrive is- VERY intersting that there is a Boogie that sounds great on nearly all settings ( ! ) . Rare for a Boogie right ?

Question- are there 6V6s in the output section, and can the Express series hang with the Studio for Fatness etc ?

I like what you say about the Studio sounding like it's working hard at any volume.......

I also wonder if a good Tech could noise mod the Studio for a hundred or 2 to get it dead quiet ?

The Studio .22 has an EL84 output section. I don't know how it compares to an Express, never played one. I wouldn't say it sounds good at "all" settings either - just a lot more than a Mark-series amp. Mark-series Boogies are notoriously hard to dial in (and the Mark I is worst of all). Then again, once you've played one for a while, you get used to it. I had to turn my Mark I down at a gig last night, and I just instinctively touched up all three volumes rather than just dropping the master like you'd do with a modern amp. The Studio .22 doesn't have that problem - the master volume is actually a master volume. With the Mark I, you wind up reworking the entire gain structure to hang onto a basic tone while adjusting volume, and a lot of colors are available only at certain volumes.

And no, a tech can't just mod a Studio .22 to reduce the noise. The design of the input circuit is particularly noise-prone, and Mesa already put a great deal of effort into quieting it down. It's the price you pay for that fire-breathing clean-to-dirty sound! To make it quieter would require redesigning the circuit and killing the things that make that amp so special.

[Baxtercat]

I couldn't get a good enough clean from a 22. Shortly after that I got lucky & scored a giveaway-cheap 50 or 60 watt SOB with an EV that came in a terrible black spray-on finish. It was the SOB w/ two Sylvania 6L6s...I think there were ones w/ 4 EL-84s too, which were supposed to give up the rock sound a little better.

I had to find and reflow a few crackly sounding solder joints [took a while as usual] Then I glued on some new ivory tolex. It's a lot like a Mk I, and they made a bunch. Good luck w/ your search.