The Mesa Boogie Lonestar review

A few days ago one of the small guitar shops near me put a couple of pics up on Facebook of some new stuff they had acquired. One of these items was a Mesa Boogie Lonestar Classic Combo. I've been curious about these but never ran across one. I've talked about how much I love Andy Timmons tone and style of playing. And I've owned one of the Mesa Boogie Stiletto's that he uses but I've always wanted to try out a Lonestar so I jumped at the chance to go down and check it out. I grabbed my current favorite guitar and headed to the shop in the middle of the afternoon and spent some time checking it out.

The Mesa Lonestar is similar to the Stiletto in many ways. They are both two channel amps with a dedicated set of knobs for each channel, a master volume and a boost volume. They both have switches on both channels to choose between 100 watts and 50 watts (the newer lonestar's also have a 10 watt setting). You can also choose between a tube rectifier or solid state rectifiers, and there is a variac switch on both amps to help knock the power down and give it a spongier feel. They also are both very demanding amps in that they don't let you hide, every mistake you make is amplified and put in your face and you hear a huge difference depending on which guitar your using. And that is where the similarities end.

In contrast to the Stiletto the Lonestar has an active EQ and sounds great at lower volume.  It was much easier for me to find usable sounds. Channel 1 reminds me of a Blackface Twin while Channel 2 reminded me, surprisingly of a JTM45 type sound. Fender cleans and vintage Marshall in the same amp? yep. The Variac switch makes more of a difference on the Lonestar than the Stiletto. On the Stiletto there was a softening of attack and a slightly looser feel but on the Lonestar the gain gets into tweed type of sponginess. The lead sound was thick and solid. It has a ton of loose low end that can be to much and can get farty sounding if your not careful but pull the bass down (or use a TS type pedal) and you get a thick lower mids that sounds awesome. The gain switch and two gain knobs on the 2nd channel take you from Tweed to MK 1 type gains.

Andy Timmons Lonestar's and Stiletto's

Using the Variac on channel two with the three way switch set to thick and a decent amount of gain rolled in I was able to quickly dial in a sound that covered everything from gorgeous cleans to early Van Halen just by switching pickups and changing from using my fingers lightly to nailing the strings with my pick. This amp is a dynamics players dream. In the Thicker setting it sounds like an early MK 1 which quickly inspired some Santana type runs.

As versatile and easy to use as this amp is it isn't for everyone. I'd really like to try it on a small 4x12 cabinet and see if it tightens up the bottom end and gives it a little more focused sound. It's very low mids heavy and while it certainly has a lot of gain on tap I would never call this a high gain amp in line with a Dual Rectifier. If you want modern metal or even 80's shred keep looking this isn't for you. But if your longing for a variety of vintage voiced amps the Lonestar is certainly worth a listen.

This review is completely unsolicited and any opinion is my own.

Mesa Boogie Stiletto Deuce Review

Around 2005 I bought a Mesa Boogie Stiletto Deuce. While I had owned a couple of different tube amps in the past this amp was different. It was loaded with features I had never used before, built better than anything I'd ever owned. Also it didn't immediately sound like I thought it would. Had I made a mistake? Were those videos of Andy Timmons sounding so amazing a lie? Sure there were mixed reviews on the internet but Mesa builds fantastic stuff... right? The truth was I had no idea what I was getting into.

The Mesa Boogie Stiletto is a two channel amp based around the EL34 platform. Each channel features three voice settings, and independent 100w/50w swiches. You can choose between tube rectified, for a spongier more dynamic feel or solid state rectified for tighter tracking. On the back there is a built in variac switch that knocks about 20 percent off the power. There is also master volume and boost switch for solos. Like all Mesa Boogie gear it was built like a tank, and almost as heavy. 

A lot of people thought that the Stiletto was an EL34 based Dual Rectifier. It's not. There are a lot of reviews on the internet that state that it is bright and fizzy, and admittedly it can be. You can spend an hours with this amp and never find a good sound out of this amp. The knobs don't change the sound as much as changing guitars. It's bright in your face sound can sound thin and if you rely on the preamp gain for your distortion it can sound fizzy. But I called up an older friend of mine who had been in the game a long time, and was a huge Mesa Boogie fan. He laughed and told me Mesa's are hard to dial in sometimes because they are so versatile and to bring it by his place. 

When I got there he set it on top of his 4x12 cab and played a few licks, then he handed me the guitar told me to play some chords. He cranked the amp up and it immediately it opened up and sounded full. Then he spent a few minutes fiddling with the knobs. After about five minutes he told me to play some leads, there was no fizzy sounds as most of the distrtion was coming from the EL34's and then we added a little with the preamp gain. While it didn't have the roar of a Dual Rectifier or JCM800 it sounded great. One of the things I learned very quickly is that it responded to my playing more than any other amp I'd ever owned. If I used a different guitar pick it sounded like I was using a different guitar. If I used a different guitar it almost sounded like a different amp. I also learned I was sloppy! I'd never noticed that before but it quickly forced me to clean up my playing because it had amplified my mistakes like no other amp.

A close up of Andy Timmons settings

Next I added it to band practice, no more getting lost on stage the amp cut through the mix. Everyone had to adjust, but everyone liked it. It reminded me of an old plexi I had once played and, as I found out, with good reason. Channel 1 is a clone of Andy Timmons 68 superlead! Channel 2 is one of Mr. Timmons early 70 JMP amps! Then the guys at Mesa Boogie added the extra switches and options to tweak the sound. These switches don't do much until you crank the amp up even then they can be subtle. But in a band setting or in a recording studio this amp excels. At loud volumes it opens up and sounds full and with the rest of the band it just seems to find a nice home. 

But this is not an amp to play at home, you have to crank it up. Even on the 50w settings and with the variac on and running though a 2x12 this amp is insanely loud, and if you turn it down... it starts sounding thin. But it takes pedals extremely well for such an in your face sound and so at home I would often use a marshally sounding pedal for practice. 

Andy's Stiletto's and Lonestars in the studio

So who is this amp for and who shouldn't use it. If your looking for lush fendery clean tones this isn't it, it's bright and takes pedals well but more like a Hiwatt. If your looking to primarily play at home this isn't it, there are a lot of great amps out there that can sound good at lower volumes, a lot of the new lunchbox amps like the Egnator Tweaker and also gig ready amps like the new EVH 5150 III sound just fine at low volumes. There is a difference between preamp gain and power amp gain. It's hard to describe, but the preamp gain on this amp is fine for adding a little extra gain but not great at being the main distortion sound, the power amp gain however is fantastic. In a band mix this amp excels at 70's and early 80's Marshall type tones for obvious reasons and recording with this amp is amazing. If you want to play better and use your guitars volume and tone knobs to find different sounds this is an excellent amp. To learn more about Andy Timmons Gear check out the Andy Timmons Gear Guide.

When my kids were born I stopped playing in bands for now and this amp found itself not being used. I started playing at home regularly and with friends on occasion, so I sold it to fund other gear. Sometimes I miss it, even though it's not practical for me at the moment. In the Mesa line it has been replaced by the Royal Atlantic which I have yet to try. The Stiletto is probably the most misunderstood amp that Mesa has ever put out, but if your considering finding a used one it really is fantastic at what it is.

This review was completely unsolicited and any opinion is my own.