Road King Manual - Mesa Boogie

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REAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURES (Continued)SPEAKER OUTPUTS: (Continued) NOTE: Do not use the SPKR A + B selection when two 8 Ohm cabinets are each connected tothe two 4 Ohm OUTPUTS of each Speaker Output Bank. A 2 Ohm load puts an excessive strain on the power tubes causing them towear unusually fast.REVERB:These 4 rotary controls determine the dry/wet mix ratio for the rich analog REVERB and are wired to the Reverb return circuit. Eachof the 4 Channels have a dedicated control so that a different Reverb mix can be attained for each individual sound. The controlssweep from a subtle background effect at their low range to a drenched, swimming effect at the top ofCH 1NORMAL10% 90%LOOP 2MIXONOFFLOOP 1ONOFFLOOP 2MESA BOOGIECH 3 CH 1REVERBCH 4CH 28 OHMCOMBOCAUTIONthe control. Several factors affect the REVERB tone and drive including the different Modes’ gainstructures, preamp gain settings and CHANNEL MASTER and OUTPUT control settings. Generallyspeaking, lower gain settings will produce cleaner, purer Reverb effects, while higher gain settingswill produce more smeared, washy Reverb sounds. This difference can be useful, desirable and is anormal characteristic of Reverb circuits of this type.The REVERB may be switched in and out of the circuit via the REVERB button on the Footcontroller.NOTE: It is normal to experience approximately 1-2 seconds of delay before the REVERB is mixed with the dry signal after switchingthe REVERB or Channels. This intentional built-in delay prevents both switching noise from the hard bypass relays used to isolate thepure dry signal from the effected REVERB signal, and the prior Channels sound coming through the REVERB in the current Channelwhen switching. At first this may seem strange, but after a couple minutes in real world situations you will see that it is preferable to theembarrassing alternative of a loud overdriven crunch chord drowning out your beautiful clean passage in the middle of a breakdown.CHANNEL STRIPS:These 4 clusters of switches and controls house the specific features that can be pre-assigned per individual channel. Once you havedeciphered one, you have learned the Kings’ secret and are ready to rule, for they are simply repeated for the 4 channels.2xEL342x6L6PROGRESSIVELINKAGEDIODE2x6L62xEL34 4x6L62xEL+4x6L6ACH 4A +BNORMAL10% 90%LOOP 2MIXONONThis section is where you choose the status of LOOP 1 & 2, your choice of Speaker enclosure(s),what type of Rectifier you wish to use and most importantly the power section you wish to combinewith your preamp choice with the PROGRESSIVE LINKAGE rotary control. Let’s go over thecontrols one at a time, beginning with this most important choice.TUBE-TRACKINGRECTOBSPKROFFLOOP 1OFFLOOP 2PROGRESSIVE LINKAGE:This 5 position rotary control contains the most powerful feature ever found on a self contained amplifier, the ability to assign yourchoice of 5 different power amplifiers to one of the 4 preamps and footswitch to it. Although this is not our first amplifier to showcase2xEL342x6L62x6L62xEL34 4x6L62xEL+4x6L6PROGRESSIVELINKAGEthis patented feature – the single channel BLUE ANGEL first introduced it – the power of PROGRES-SIVE LINKAGE reaches maturity here in a multi-channel format that should make all serious guitaristsreconsider the very nature of channel switching amplifiers from here forward. By exploring the possibilitiesof this awesome feature and understanding how to combine the front end preamp choices with a powersection that enhances that sound, you will be able to use the Road King to its full potential. The choicesPAGE 14
A +BREAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURES (Continued)PROGRESSIVE LINKAGE: (Continued) are laid out in a logical left to right array with the lowest wattage settings to the left and themost powerful RMS ratings to the right. On the Front Panel you will find the valuable PROGRESSIVE LINKAGE LED status indicators,which keep you informed of your current power status at all times…even from across the stage. Here is a one-dimensionaldescription of the choices and their individual characters.SELECTING POWER TUBES:2x6L6 produces roughly 50 watts of bubbly resilient magic and is one of our favorite setups in the entire amplifier. It is wonderful forboth low and high gain styles and has probably the best balance frequency-wise for both types of sounds. The low end is bouncy andrich, while the top end smiles with sweetness and seems to exorcise all the harsh frequencies and showcase the pleasing ones. Theinherently vintage voice of this power duo lends itself to blackface era clean sounds especially well and some of the best clean soundsin the entire amp can be found here.Be sure to experiment with the TWEED mode of CHANNEL 1 in combination with the 2 x 6L6 for there are hours of good clean funawaiting you here. Another attribute of this setting is the way it responds to both RAW and VINTAGE in CHANNEL 3. Because of itsbalance and harmonically friendly nature, the gain sounds seem to turn into the creamiest tone soup we’ve ever experienced. Theoverall character is elastic, making the strings feel easier to play and more expressive and yet they respond to every nuance of yourplaying style.POWER FUSE120 V~60 Hz4 AFUSE4 ASLOBLOCHANNELFOOTCONTROLLERCH4 CH3 EXT.SWITCH CH2CH1SOLO REVERB LOOP 1 LOOP 2BYPASSLOOPS, SOLO& MASTERCONTROLSRETURN 1COMBO VERSION 2 x 6L6(partial rear chassis view)10% 90%SEND LEVEL FTSW MIXSEND 2RETURN 2 EXT. TRIGGERSSTR 430ING CH 4DIODE A ONPAU +LSEBTUBE-TRACKING BRECTO SPKROFFLOOP 1ONOFFLOOP 2STR 430DIODEATUBE-TRACKING BRECTO SPKRCH 3A +BONOFFLOOP 1ONOFFLOOP 2DIODEATUBE-TRACKING BRECTO SPKRSTR 430A +B2xEL342x6L62x6L62xEL34 4x6L62xEL+4x6L6PROGRESSIVELINKAGECH 1STR 430NORMAL10% 90%LOOP 2MIXREVERBCH 4 CH 2CH 4 CH 2ABCAUTION: USE SHORTING PLUG IF NO SPKRS IN BLEVELSLAVEOUTEL 34 EL 34 6L6 GC6L6 GC6L6 GC6L6 GCEL 34 EL 34 6L6 GC6L6 GC6L6 GC6L6 GCHEAD VERSION 2 x 6L6(partial rear chassis view)STR 430STR 430STR 430STR 430LEVELSLAVECAUTION: USE SHORTING PLUG IF NO SPKR IN BAMESA BOOGIECH 1CH 2REVERBOFF OFFLOOP 2 LOOP 1ADIODEOFF OFFLOOP 2 LOOP 1A +BDIODEON ON BCH 2NORMAL 2x6L62x 2xEL34 4xEL34 6L6ARECTOTUBE-TRACKINGOFF OFFLOOP 2 LOOP 1A +BDIODEON ON BCH 3NORMAL 2x6L62x 2xEL34 4xEL34 6L6ARECTOTUBE-TRACKINGOFF OFFLOOP 2 LOOP 1A +BON ON BCH 4NORMAL 2x6L62x 2xEL34 4xEL34 6L6ADIODERECTOTUBE-TRACKINGPULSELATCHEXT TRIGGERSRETURN 2NORMALSEND 2NORMALRETURN1BYPASSLOOPS, SOLO& MASTERCONTROLSLOOP 2 LOOP 1CH1 CH2EXTSWITCHREV ERBCH3 CH4SOLOFOOTCONTROLLERFUSEPOWER FUSE120 V~ 4 AONONNORMAL10% 90%LOOP 2MIXCH 12xEL342x6L6RECTOTUBE-TRACKING2x6L62xEL34 4x6L62xEL+4x6L6PROGRESSIVELINKAGEPAGE 15
Page 1 and 2: MESABOOGIEOwner's Manual
Page 3 and 4: Table of ContentsPrecautions 0Overv
Page 5 and 6: Operating InstructionsOVERVIEW:Cong
Page 7 and 8: Getting Started:2.) Install the 5U4
Page 9 and 10: CHANNEL MODES:CHANNELS 1 & 2: CLEAN
Page 11 and 12: CHANNEL MODES: (Continued)CHANNEL 3
Page 13 and 14: CONTROLS: (Continued)MID: (Continue
Page 15 and 16: CONTROLS: (Continued)OUPUT CONTROL:
Page 17: REAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURESREAR
Page 21 and 22: A +BREAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURES
Page 27 and 28: LOOP 2 MIX:This rotary control dete
Page 29 and 30: REAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURES (Con
Page 31 and 32: REAR PANEL CONTROLS & FEATURES (Con
Page 33 and 34: CHANNEL 2 SETTING #1 Skinny SkankFA
Page 35 and 36: CHANNEL 4 SETTING #1 Atlantic Blues
Page 37 and 38: DIAGNOSING PREAMP TUBE PROBLEMS:Bec
Page 39 and 40: BIAS ADJUSTMENT: (Continued) grids.
Page 41 and 42: SPEAKER IMPEDANCE MATCHING & HOOK-U
Page 43 and 44: 1 WIRING SCHEMES...Amplifier to Spe
Page 45 and 46: WIRING SCHEMES...Amplifier to Speak
Page 47 and 48: ON TRIODES, PENTODES & IRISHMEN:Wit
Page 49 and 50: PENTODES: (Continued) stopping them
Page 51 and 52: MESA BOOGIEThe Spirit of Art in Tec

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