UPDATE : spoke with Mesa and they advised I send it in. The rep sounded like they are confident they can fix/restore the amp, it’s going to take a few months bit jazzed they were so positive. Btw, the rep noted that many of their guitar amps are more complicated than their Tigris stereo amp. He also advised new coupling caps and electrolytic as needed… I’m here for it… amp weighs 50+ pounds so USPS OR UPS I guess… thanks all..
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Good news. Glad you found a solution to your amp problem!
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Fellow at Mesa said they made a couple hundred of these… gotta keep it going. Thanks.
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Have a look at Orchard audio amps. Class D, very powerful, well within your budget, very efficient and using the latest GaN transistors which make class D almost better than class AB.
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If you love the sound of that "Mesa", you will be sorry if you do not have them fix and also go through it as advised!
(Speaking from exp. over here)...
And I am STILL sorry I sold that set of (50 Cal.) amplifiers from Mesa way back in 1989!
Great gear! Good Luck!
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Thanks.. Hope to have it back in a few months.. I’m borrowing a small Parasound Zamp and gotta say it’s pretty dull sounding compared to the Mesa. Nothing sounds real. Not much of an audiophile since really only listened through the Mesa for twenty years, but it’s easy to hear the loss of clarity and drive..
also thinking about a used or new Croft integrated for my office. Supposedly has a tube like presentation..
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@wb27 so when the wife/spouse says why are u spending big dollars on an amplifier u have a much better excuse than most of us. I tell my wife, I just wanted another amp. At least u can say that your amp died on you!
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@wb27
Watching this thread with interest.
If I were you, I would do further research on who to use, for shipping: USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, etc.
Good Luck on your Mesa repair.
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op
the small totems are pretty revealing, so you shouldn’t cheap out on the amp - you have a good list
i would add, potentially, a lower model hegel or the sony ta1-1es... lovely sound, modest price at the $1300-1700 price level
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Thanks, your right about the Mites, though I’m starting to think they are meant for closer listening. I think they sound much better when you get closer than usual. Now that it’s my only stereo - playing around with it and getting the speakers on proper stands and getting closer helped a lot. Office/bedroom in flux lol
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I highly recommend the LSA Voyager 350 GaN amp (it will make you forget about tubes). It plays all kinds of music wonderfully MSRP $3000 or the LSA 150 $1200
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The B&K EX-442 Sonata is a stud of an amp. Extremely tube like. Had one years ago, sold it & then immediately plugged in a pair of Paoli M70 (heavily moded Dyna MkIII’s) expecting to hear a big difference, and couldn’t tell the amps apart.
BYW, I always leave my gear running 24/7 and have never had a problem.
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Update: I’m in deep wait mode for the Mesa, down to just the bedroom stereo which was never great so the upgrade bug is buzzing. Always used cheap WiFi or Bluetooth devices (Audioengine bifi, b1 andIFi Zen blue) to stream from my phone.
The new Exposure amp arrived and things had to change. Added an old Electrocampaniet ECD1 DAC ($700) and I’m using the audioengine’s WiFi streaming via optical connection. Huge, lovely musical improvement. With my subwoofer removed, plenty of bass. Clearly, in my system, none of the low cost devices produced the midrange and bass of the ECD1… now I don’t leave the bedroom. This isn’t healthy lol.
last: when streaming via Bluetooth (using Zen Blue or b1) it sounded a bit like pushing the loudness button on an old stereo. Sound wasn’t nearly as pure or sweet sounding (I actually like a DAC !) as when it was streamed via WiFi…
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Update here as well. Finally decided to purchase some very nice Belles MB200 monos to replace the old 400A.
I guess life could be worse 😁
Now the B&K 3030 will be a back-up, or find a way into my bedroom system eventually.
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Unico Primo integrated for $2500. Has a 12ax7 in the preamp stage. Luscious sounding amp with great tonality. A Schiit Freya and a pair of Aegir amps is hard to beat in that price range. $2550 plus a cable. I use an Audience Ohno cable. and one Aegir in stereo in my system. I have both amps and setups love both of them.
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@bekeske Beautiful stuff ! Got back into reviews and such while needing an amp for a bedroom system ( and waiting for main amp to return from service). Never heard of Belles. Those amps look great, but I’m looking to downsize the big system and the Belles Aria definitely an option to have if I don’t want to run the serviced Mesa all day when it returns. Not nearly as cool looking as those 400As though..
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