Lonestar Special or what?

[mommysboy]

I'm getting close to purchasing a Lonestar Special. I've played through the Special many times and like it a lot. Ton of head room and breaks up real nice. Great clean tones, great dirty, 2 channels, watt switching, solo boost, output volume control.

The Classic is just too heavy for a gigging amp.

Are there any other comparable amps out there? Just want to make sure I've tried everything close to the Special before making the leap.

Something with all the features I mention above? Dr. Z doesn't seem as versatile and only sound great when cranked way up. Looked at the Hot Rod Deluxe, but I've heard the Special is a much better amp. Not crazy about the AC30.

My main gtr is a classic strat, but I also play an ES-335 occasionally.

Any other pointers would be great!

mommysboy

[Kawriver]

Give Budda a try. Not being religious...the amp company. I have the Superdrive 18 and love it. Increadibly responsive. No reverb though, but I've got a 63' Fender Reverb tank so it's all good. Not the cleanest clean. There is almost always a little breakup but it is very controllable with dynamics. Also give a Fender Vibroverb a shot...cool as cool can be.

[mdme_sadie]

Don't forget the Fender amps, the Twin or Tweed might be options there, or even from Mesa themselves the Express 5:50 (similar cleans to the Lonestar in a slightly smaller package).

[FFTT]

At that price point, I'd go for either the Gries 35 or the VVT Amps Fralin.

Also right in there with more of a British JTM45/Hiwatt sound, the
Reeves Custom 30.

On it's own the LSS sounds pretty good, but several people have said it
doesn't cut through very well in a band mix.

Also check out the amps from Reinhardt and Blankenship, Allesandro, Category 5,
Suhr, Fargen, Swart, Pure 64, Clark, Tone King, 65 amps, divided By 13 and Bad Cat.

I think you can do much better for your money over the LSS.

[Jonboy79]

Originally Posted by FFTT

On it's own the LSS sounds pretty good, but several people have said it doesn't cut through very well in a band mix.

I couldn't disagree more, it's cut through just fine in every situation I've used it. I think it's a fantastic amp.

[FFTT]

The first time I played a Lonestar Special, I thought it was pretty cool too.

However, after a major PC Board failure in another amp, I have completely steered
away from amps using PCB construction.

While there are some very well built amps using PCB construction, Bogner, VHT, Tone King, If there is a minor component failure on the board, some techs can handle it, but
if it's anything major, the cost and down time to replace a proprietary board can exceed the value of the amp.

In most cases, a purchase like this is hard money, so I recommend taking the time
to do the research and try as many amps as you can get your hands on.
Also keep saving, because a few hundred dollars more or catching a good deal
on a clean used amp can greatly improve your choices.

Some of the amps I've mentioned above are direct buy only, so your only point of reference may be sound clips and recommendation from other owners.

It may help to narrow down a few choices if we know more about what kind of sound
the original poster is going for, style of music, max budget, etc.

[Wes Kuhnley]

I love reading your posts dude, it's like reading a list of who's making booteek amps. Believe it or not, there are amps that cost less that $1000, are built on PCBs, and do sound good.

Originally Posted by FFTT

At that price point, I'd go for either the Gries 35 or the VVT Amps Fralin.

Also right in there with more of a British JTM45/Hiwatt sound, the
Reeves Custom 30.

On it's own the LSS sounds pretty good, but several people have said it
doesn't cut through very well in a band mix.

Also check out the amps from Reinhardt and Blankenship, Allesandro, Category 5,
Suhr, Fargen, Swart, Pure 64, Clark, Tone King, 65 amps, divided By 13 and Bad Cat.

I think you can do much better for your money over the LSS.

[FFTT]

My 90's Fender Blues Deluxe USA was PCB and it held up for 13 years, so I'll grant you they can be reliable, but.........

If you have a major board failure like I did, the cost for a replacement board and the labor to connect it all back together exceeded the value of the amp.
You also have to order the proprietary parts, so that can be a problem too.

At least with a hand wired amp I'm pretty sure someone can still find individual components and fix it long after I'm taking that eternal dirt nap.

I want to support small USA builders who still personally check each amp they
designed and built before they deliver it.
I also like the option of custom voicing, custom cabs and speakers.

I think the term boutique gets thrown around too easily.

Most of these amps are simply well made by local craftsman with
better components and attention to detail.

[Wes Kuhnley]

Understood, I am one of those builders. I pay so much attention to my amps, they never get finished...

The thing to keep in mind is budget. MOST people (if you're not one of 'em, more power to you) arn't able to fork out $2500+ for a handwired, custom-voiced tweed bassman ripoff. Sure, replacing the PCB after a major issue costs as much as the amp does, but if you can get another, and it lasts another 13 years, you just got 26 years of great sounding amp for less than half of what you'd spend on one of the big-boys.

This in NO WAY a argument against spendy, handwired amps. Like I said, I'm one of those builders. This is simply a reminder that not everyone can, or wants to pay for a high-dollar amp, and in 100% of cases, a inexpensive amp with do just fine. Tone is in the fingers, not the gear. (I know, I know, it's GEARslutz...)

Originally Posted by FFTT

My 90's Fender Blues Deluxe USA was PCB and it held up for 13 years, so I'll grant you they can be reliable, but.........

If you have a major board failure like I did, the cost for a replacement board and the labor to connect it all back together exceeded the value of the amp.
You also have to order the proprietary parts, so that can be a problem too.

At least with a hand wired amp I'm pretty sure someone can still find individual components and fix it long after I'm taking that eternal dirt nap.

I want to support small USA builders who still personally check each amp they
designed and built before they deliver it.
I also like the option of custom voicing, custom cabs and speakers.

I think the term boutique gets thrown around too easily.

Most of these amps are simply well made by local craftsman with
better components and attention to detail.

[FFTT]

The original Tweed Blues Deluxe for $399.00 got a lot of use and I've purchased a latter limited USA replacement, Still hard to beat for $500.00 but the stock speaker has to go.

I looked at a LSS as a replacement, but just didn't love it.

Then.....I bought the Bad Cat Hot Cat 100R used on a great deal
and I've since totally gone for the 4 EL34 guitar tones and the head is powerful
enough to use for a low volume bass recording amp as well.

For the price of the LSS, I'd look at Reeves, Reinhardt, Gries and VVT.

[la grange]

check DrZ, Obviously matchless and badccat, VHT, bedrock if you can find one ( they sound better with webber rather the original eminence).
you obviously like class A type. One worth trying is the small traynor, YCV20. incredible machine . and finally the orange range, the rockverbs are so cool.
my favourite giging amp? Victoria.

Oli

[the_Chris]

After playing and owning a wide variety of amplifiers, both budget and boutique, I've come to a few conclusions.

Are you ready for this?

Play what sounds good to you.


Yes, that's it. I'm not saying it to be a jerk or anything, but the only way to ever be content with your setup is to not listen to other people and just listen for yourself. I stumbled upon some great gear just by listening. I purchased a Crate V32 Palomino when they had just come out and even though Crate's past stuff didn't blow me away, I figured I'd try it out and I could tell it was a good sounding amp (especially for the price). It took a while for other people to accept it was a good amp because it's a Crate, PCB construction and so on and so forth.

For years, I've gone through researching gear after gear and there's always people that will love a certain piece and people that will hate it. I say if the cleans and overdrive inspire you on the Lonestar Special... go for it! Some people like the Mesa voicing, some don't. Don't pass up on it for some amplifier that's voiced accordingly to somebody else's idea of perfection. I could tell you "yeah, the Mesa LSS sucks, buy the Stiletto Ace... that amp destroys the LSS", but it wouldn't really help you unless you knew where I was coming from tonally and very often the advice you get is from people who don't disclose their music styles or the context in which the gear was tried.

I once skipped out on a Bogner Shiva because I had read the Bad Cat Hot Cat was better. Well, ironically enough, I ended up selling the Hot Cat after about 6 months of tweaking and after trying a Shiva in a boutique store, I was sold (and I knew it was the amp for me after playing one chord). I have now stopped searching for guitar gear, the Shiva is the tone I've been looking for all along and I found it by not listening to other people (and I'm going on 3 years with that amp without a single complaint).

Mesas are no joke. There was a time when Mesa was considered boutique, in fact, they were one of the original boutique companies. They make reliable products and they wouldn't have the fanbase they have now if they couldn't hold up to gigging. The LSS may have PCB construction, but that doesn't mean its an inferior design and it doesn't mean that it's going to fail.

[Hazer]

Look up a Traynor YCV15Blue. Absolutely sublime tone, not the greatest clean headroom, but you can get away with a little grit, even for chords. They're a discontinued limited run, so your best bet would be used. If you can make it up to Canada, a few Long and McQuades have them still.

[eweise]

I have a lonestar special and although I really like the amp and prefer pcb construction over hand wired, there is an issue with one of the tubes failing. Its the 5y? something tube and its failed twice on me. Other users report the same thing. You can do more research at the boogie board site.

[tommy_asakawa]

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Stilleto Ace is working well for me. Was using VHT class A prior, which is very nice, too.

[hippdog]

I've used a Mesa Lonestar Special as my gigging amp for 3 years. It is simply the sweetest, cleanest amp I've ever played or owned, and I've thrown a lot of competition at it and sold them all. Make sure to do the "Reeder Mod" so that the second channel mirrors the first channel. It makes a difference. This is not a heavy rock amp, but for country, blues and most classic rock it works amazingly well. Add a pedal and you can do anything. I do NOT recommend the combo. It is heavy and difficult to change speakers. As most of us know, the speakers we use make huge differences in performance. My favorite combination is an Avatar Contemporary open back 1x12 with a Hellatone 60. Pure Bliss. Everyone once in a while I use a 4x10 filled with vox bulldogs, and that's a really crisp clean combination. I love the Mesa Lonestar Special and after 3 years of trying to replace it (I love to try new gear), it is still my pro rig. I can't give it higher praise. Plus you can find the LSS head in great condition used on evil bay for around $1200. You will not be disappointed.

[McDingus]

Originally Posted by Wes Kuhnley

Tone is in the fingers, not the gear.

This is such a BS comment...

Play a line 6 spider and tell me tone is in the fingers.

Skill is in the fingers, tone is in the AMP, PICKUPS and GUITAR...



On 3 year later topic- I played a Lonestar a few times- it wasn't bad- but I would buy one either.

[nedorama]

Mesa Lonestar is a great amp.


Fenders - I'd avoid the Twin and the HR Deluxe - one's great but too heavy, the other needs a lot of work to be considered OK. Better to buy something new that sounds great and is reliable. A Deluxe Reverb is a great platform for pedals, but doesnt' seem like it fits in with the Lonestar selection.

Dr. Z - depends on which amp you're looking at as some sound great dimed, but the MAZ Sr. and MAZ Jr. don't need to be wide open to sound great. some also have the Brake Lite speaker attenuator installed already.

If you live near a Dr. Z dealer, worth trying out all the different models. I love the combined sound of my Mini Z through the 1x12 with the Bandmaster - tone nirvana.

[The Mink]

Wow, I'm surprised there aren't more responses just gushing over this amp. It's a modern classic and has converted a lot of people who thought they didn't like Mesas.

I got one in 2006 and have used it on every gig, session and rehearsal since. I don't have enough coffee in me right now to run down everything I love about it, but... basically it ended the quest for me.