Quad preamp manuals power amp recommendation

[Vectorfire]

Any thoughts on this note from the quad manual? Was the 2:90 not out yet, or do we only want big steel as tersely recommend?

NOTE: THE QUAD PRE-AMP WAS DESIGNED FOR USE WITH THE SIMUL CLASS 295 OR STRATEGY 400 STEREO POWER AMPS. THESE ARE ALL TUBE POWER AMPS AND ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE MESA RACK SYSTEM FOR GUITAR. USE OF THE QUAD PRE-AMP WITH ALTERNATIVE POWER AMPS IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

 

[tommyhawk13]

The 2:90 was not out yet, it replaced the 295. I have heard that the older 295 sounds better with the Quad, but I have no personal experience.
I have heard a Quad through a 400, pure heaven.
The older 50/50 wasn't out when this was printed, but it works great with the Quad.
The 2 Fifty replaced the 50/50 for more modern preamps.

 

[Vectorfire]

I've never bought a preamp before that came with a qualifying statement like this.
Use 'our', very specific power amp, and we also must recommend you use absolutely nothing else. Good day!

Bold marketing.

 

[Theresa]

No mention of a 395 ....

 

[Vectorfire]

Seems the 395 didn't hit till February of 92.

The 295 was the only amp from that big steel/big block transformer boogie era that blends both 6L6 and El34's.
This is something I definitely wanted to explore and a big selling point when I made my purchase.

https://mesaboogie.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/218914817-When-was-my-amp-made-

 

[tommyhawk13]

No mention of a 395 ....

Or the Strategy 500!
Your 2:90 is probably good enough. I remember plugging my .50 Caliber into a Peavey Mace as a power amp. It sounded surprisingly good.

 

[Littleb]

The power amps in this catalog showed what the Quad was paired up with for quite a few years.My salesman back in the day talked me out of the 400 and I bought the 295 for my quad.As nice as it was I wish I would've went with my instincts

and bought the 400.

 

[Vectorfire]

As someone who lives within the city limits, I don't have a method of attenuating 200w x2. At least with the 295, I can slap a pair of Suhr Attenuators on the beast and go right into an analog mixer.
What specifically makes you regret not gong with the 400?

 

[Littleb]

I'm sure if you're in an apartment or condo or close housing development,unless u have a dedicated sound proofed studio place it might be hard to turn up an amp.
Fortunately, I live in the country,and thankfully the bands I play in and the gigs I get ,I never hardly rarely ever have a problem of turning up.I like my boogies up to where theyre moving some air from the cabs.
Having said all that ties in why I preferred the 400 over the 295.The 400 has bigger iron, very close to what my iic+ and coli's have.The touch sensitivity, note articulation,and authority that the 400 has is imo, is only matched by the mighty vht 2150 and 2100.
Now,back in the day( when I bought this stuff ala late 80s) it wasn't a worn out discussion as it is today,which is that I knew after demoing both the 295 and 400 with the Quad at the store,I liked how the 400 delivered better. Just as simply as that .Back to late 80s':
So up comes the now worn out discussion of today from the then salesman. " save yourself some money,and weight ,plus nobodys gonna hear the difference between these two beasts.You dnt need that 400,why in the world would you want that? "
I was only a young 20s yr old then but I swore I could hear the difference let alone really " feel" the difference too.I distinctively remember looking at him and saying " Sir,it aint about the vol,its about the feel" later in years when I was rubbing shoulders with some major touring acts using the 400,the artists confirmed what I knew back then.....thats why I used the term regret...the 295 is no slouch,I used one for years,but what I wanted was the 400.

 

[Vectorfire]

Looking at pictures of the internals of the 295 and 400 and they 'appear' to have the same sized transformers.

Id be curious to see a comparison.