DC3

after reluctantly having to sell my DC 5 due to not being able to carry it up the stairs anymore I scored on on a dc3, unmolested and in a1 condition, I am looking for guidance on possible speaker change , the current is a mesa vintage, tube choice and possible mods
Best regards Gaz

I have a DC2, which is the same less 2 EL84's, and I changed out the stock Black Shadow to a WGS ET-65, and it smoothed everything out considerably. For tubes, I'm using an NOS RCA 12AX7A in V1, and an NOC RCA 5751 in V2, which also tamed down the gain on the lead channel, giving me more control. Rest of the tubes are MESA branded.

Al

My DC3 eats anything other than Sovtek EL84M (Military version) or JJs rated 20-21. Everything else red-plates in a matter of minutes. I prefer the JJs as they are much smoother and fuller sounding. The Sovteks are edgy and kind of harsh sounding. Stock Mesa EL84s are standard Sovtek's.

Tung-Sol 12AX7 in V1 always. Then I mix up Mullard Re-issues 12AX7s in V2-3. V4 is a JJ 12AT7 to give more headroom on the clean channel. JJ 12AT7 in V5 reverb for more headroom before it starts to get fuzzy. JJ 12AX7 in V6 Phase inverter as they are solid stable tubes.

I always stuck with the stock V30 as I prefer their tone. Currently I use a Recto 2x12 with V30s.

Is the Mesa Vintage speaker the same as a V30 or just similar, tubes are going to be great fun getting as we don't have many decent dealers in the UK that you can trust lol, anyone got a link to some of the more common mods on these, ie series effects etc

http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=58252

Go with TubeDepot or EuroTubes. Google will point you in the right direction.

jestaudio said:

Is the Mesa Vintage speaker the same as a V30 or just similar, tubes are going to be great fun getting as we don't have many decent dealers in the UK that you can trust lol, anyone got a link to some of the more common mods on these, ie series effects etc

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If your speaker says Black Shadow VS-12 it's an Eminence, not Celestion.

Al

amrose57 said:

jestaudio said:

Is the Mesa Vintage speaker the same as a V30 or just similar, tubes are going to be great fun getting as we don't have many decent dealers in the UK that you can trust lol, anyone got a link to some of the more common mods on these, ie series effects etc

Click to expand...

If your speaker says Black Shadow VS-12 it's an Eminence, not Celestion.

Al

Click to expand...

Good call, its a emi, doesn't sound to bad but I might try a celestion for kicks

jestaudio said:

amrose57 said:

jestaudio said:

Is the Mesa Vintage speaker the same as a V30 or just similar, tubes are going to be great fun getting as we don't have many decent dealers in the UK that you can trust lol, anyone got a link to some of the more common mods on these, ie series effects etc

Click to expand...

If your speaker says Black Shadow VS-12 it's an Eminence, not Celestion.

Al

Click to expand...

Good call, its a emi, doesn't sound to bad but I might try a celestion for kicks

Click to expand...

I personally didn't like a V30 in the DC2, but the ET-65 just sings.

Al

I used to always use a Celestion Heritage 30 (older, British made, not the new re-issue) or Mojotone BV-30H speaker.
I recently put a Mesa/Celestion MC-90 Black Shadow in mine and it really came to life!
My DC-3 is nowhere near stock though, it has a full set of Mercury Magnetics transformers and a choke, plus a plethora of mods......


For tubes, I am currently using the Doug's Tubes cocktail. Tung-Sol, Penta, JJ mixture. With an NOS US made 12AX7 in V4 (really makes the clean channel shine!), and JJ EL84 power tubes.
I recently got a set of power tubes from Tube Depot and forgot to order them within Mesa spec. They say "24" on them. When I popped them in and measured the bias, it was at about 92ma per tube!!!!!! I immediately had to adjust the bias or bury the amp under hundreds of feet of concrete to prevent a major catastrophe. :shock:

Got a pair of 1997 Celestion Heritage and just plain don't care for them, I usually keep them for trying out whatever amp build I,m working on at the time on the premise if it sounds good through them it will sound good through anything, cheers for the email with the mods Monsta, much appreciated,

Monsta-Tone said:

I recently got a set of power tubes from Tube Depot and forgot to order them within Mesa spec. They say "24" on them. When I popped them in and measured the bias, it was at about 92ma per tube!!!!!! I immediately had to adjust the bias or bury the amp under hundreds of feet of concrete to prevent a major catastrophe. :shock:

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:lol: :lol:

I love my DC3, perhaps the greatest "sleeper" amp Mesa Boogie has ever made. I believe mine has a Celestion V30. I'd swap out the speaker for a G12-65, but I'm getting a Two Notes Torpedo, which makes speakers a moot point, finally.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it before, the DC3 is very very similar to the Maverick. I believe the 2 share the exact same output section. The Maverick's clean channel is brighter, it's overdrive sounds like a dead wringer of the DC3.

amrose57 said:

jestaudio said:

Is the Mesa Vintage speaker the same as a V30 or just similar, tubes are going to be great fun getting as we don't have many decent dealers in the UK that you can trust lol, anyone got a link to some of the more common mods on these, ie series effects etc

Click to expand...

If your speaker says Black Shadow VS-12 it's an Eminence, not Celestion.

Al

Click to expand...

and somes are EV , i guess !

out of any closed cabinet, the V30 is too high medium, don't like it !