Mesa F-30 vs. Mesa F-50 vs. Mesa Nomad 55 combo

[xPrestigeRGAx]

hi guys. What will be the most versatil..est lol amp for me? F 30 F50 or Nomad 55 combo or mesa DC-3? I play modern rock like Saosin and Metal like Killswitch Engage. I play thru an Ibanez Prestige RGA 121 WNF. What will be the best amp for me?? thnx

[Drew]

Tough question. The F-30 or F-50 are probably the heaviest/gainiest, and have phenominal clean channels. However, their gain sound is pretty much the same whatever you do to the EQ. The "Contour" switch does a lot (basically, the Mark-IV V-shape mid scoop), but everything else is subtle and doesn't fundamentally change the "sound" of the distortion. Good news is, it's a great sounding distortion to begin with.

The Nomad meanwhile, is easily the most versatile of this group, with three distinct channels with three distinct-sounding "modes" per channel. The cleans are nice if not on par with the F's, the second channel will take you from heavy Marshall/Mark style crunch to thick smooth Mark-I like leads, and the third channel will do either a searing Mark-IV like lead or a heavy crunch vaguely reminiscent of the Rectifiers - the same sort of low end clarity, but with more midrange and less rip-your-face-off presence. It's one of the more versatile Mesas I've ever played.

Never played a DC series myself, but a lot of people like them, I hear - can anyone chime in?

[screamndemon69]

I'd say F-50.

[xPrestigeRGAx]

How bout the F 100 combo? is the F 50 or F 100 better? Whats the difference between the two besides that the F 100 has 212's and the F 50 has 112?

[Drew]

Wattage - the F-50 is 50 watts, the F-100 is 100.

Really, you gotta try to get some play time on them. Both the F-series and the Nomads are criminally underrated in my mind - the Nomads are the most versatile Mesas I've ever played (which makes them arguably the most versatile non-modelling amps I've ever played), whereas the F-series only does two or three things, but does them exceptionally well.

[Ki swordsman]

i'd say whatever you do, DON'T get an F30 combo without trying it first, it's fairly vintage voiced, great clean but opinionated distortion channel, with a distinctive somewhat middy eq sound.. if you want it for (especially)metal it may not suit you so my advice on the f30 is try first or don't buy..

i bought one untried once and it wasn't for me, i've since bought an Engl screamer i'm much happier with..

[xPrestigeRGAx]

ENGL's make me drool. Thanks for the advice Guys. I really appreciate it.