Opportunity to buy a used 5:25

Hi all,

I have a shot of buying a 5:25 that was bought locally last April. The seller has all the paperwork and receipt. He said that early on one of the tubes went down and he took it to a local authorized service center for a warranty repair. It was done sucessfully per the seller.

The sellers reason for selling has to do with a "nickle allergy". He say most all strings have nickel and his ring finger continues to split on the end because of this. Have anyone heard of a condition like this?

The price for the amp is 900.00 and the only question I have is do you think it is a bit risky to buy used? I kinda think it may be ok becuase the amp is operating. I intedn to go and look at it this weekend and then make a decision.

Any suggestions??


Nubbs.

I'm not sure but the warranty on these things my be transferrable. Find out.

Otherwise, turn it on and let it get good and warm before you play, then play it hard for an hour, really test drive it and make it wear you down if it can. Take a good overdrive pedal with you.

If it passes, and the warranty transfers, and he also has the foot switch, cover, and original Black Shadow speaker, then it's a decent deal. $900 aint bad for mint condition, but the chepaer you talk him down the more of a steal you will get. If it really is mint condition and no abuse or issues, then it's worth it......imo...... 8)

The owner has said that he has played it around four times on stage in a church group. He has all the things you have mentioned and I checked with MB about the transferrable warranty. Seems you only need the orginal sales reciept to prove it came from a MB dealer. In this case it has. He bought it last April from Discount Music in Orlando Florida.

I am going to take your advice and play her hard today when I go look at it. The only issue for me is I have a quote from an online retailer for one, they are checking with MB for the build time, at $1099.00 with 21.95 for shipping. This is a great price and if the build time is less than two months I might just do that.

Interesting thing is the one local to me that is used may be ok due to the fact that on the surface may not have any issues.

So it is another option for getting a brand spanking new one.

Thanks for the feedback.

Nubbs

Wow....saw the amp today and I am impressed.

It is in pristine new condition and comes with a great amp stand and a stand to hold a mike. The seller has the manual, warranty papers, and receipt showing it was bought in April or 2008 from an authorized dealer, Discount Music in Orlando Florida .

The only problem was he wanted cash and never said that to me and a check will not do. We made a deal at 900.00 and he will hold until Monday.

I will post my impressions of the amp on Monday night EST. So next I need to get a mike, any suggestions, and contact Design 2 Fit for a custom cover with a bottom and a pocket added.


thanks,

Nubbs

For me it would be worth the extra 200 for the new amp, and is the one your looking at a 10" or 12" speaker? I keep reading things about the 10" being "boxy" but have never played one (I have the 5:50)

I certainly have thought about whether or not to buy new long and hard and made the decision because the amp is perfect . Even if I bought brand new there is not guarantee it would not have a problem. The other positive is there is the transferrable warranty that still has four years.

Finally it would have cost 1099.00, plus 21.95 for shipping to get a new one for the additional 220.95. The savings allows me to purchase an instrument mic. I intend to buy a Sennheiser Evolution E906 mic for around 189.00 and since the seller has thrown in a amp stand and a mic stand for the stage it is even a better deal...yes?

Nubbs

Heckuva deal for the same money as new, with 4 years of warranty......

No brainer..... hope you enjoy it as much as the rest of us.

I thought it was a great deal also.

I have to tell you I have had Fender most all my playing life starting with a Super Reverb 410 back in the early 70's. Then a Fender Twin that was a absolute monster....I followed that, when the Twin got to be more than I wanted to carry, with a Ampeg ReverbaRocket and then I got a wild hair and bought the Fender ProSonic. Had that ProSonic for 10 years and really loved it. The only problem was it was loud as hell, I got married, had kids, bought a house, got a real job, found out what it really means to be in debt, got divorced, remarried and realized no one wanted to be in the room when I played the ProSonic. So I sold it and bought a Fender SuperSonic, which I still have today.

Since the SuperSonic was only to play at home....LOL, I needed something to play on stage that was relatively easy to transport with a almost decent tone. And yes, at the time it needed to be cheap. So I bought a Behringer Vampire 112.

Well about three weeks back, on stage, the amp squealed, smoked a bit and gave up the ghost altogether. It gave me the perfect excuse, at least the one I gave my spouse, to buy something new. I told my wife I was going to find a really good amp that had certain qualities that up to now had alluded me. First it needed to be light, to the point where I could carry it with one hand, and it had to play well at bedroom volumes and it had to have two channels with separate EQs that included a great clean and gains.

Well that led me to the Mesa line of amps. In all the playing and contact with other players I over the years I have only heard a handfull of Mesa amps. I knew that the players were loyal to the line and often wondered about it. I had not until now ever played one. So two weeks ago I stopped at a local music store and saw a 5:25. Although I did not play the amp the sales guy did give it a tour and explained what it did.

Following that I went online and researched the amp and found out it did, indeed, cover my requirements. Now the only thorny issue was the $1149.00 that the 5:25 cost. (I never looked at a 5:50 because of the extra weight.) I then started following eBay and seeing what used were going for. I also called Mesa and cleared how the warranty transfer worked. Here is a note for anyone looking for a previously owned Mesa amp. Make sure you find out if the warranty card has been sent to Mesa they have to have it in their system, get the sales receipt and make sure it has the serial number of the amp, it has to have been bought at an authorized Mesa dealer and a note or Bill of Sale indicating the original owner has sold to you and is transferring the warranty. The last two things are to fax all the paperwork, within 10 days to Mesa, and do a followup call to let Mesa know you are the new owner and to place it under your name for the warranty. This is exactly what I did.

Now the 5:25 is simply the most expressive and articulate instrument I have ever owned....period. My family said just the other night that I never sounded so good and how much they liked listening. That was a first for me!!!

I am going to put my SuperSonic up on eBay and just play the 5:25. With a Sennheiser E906 or 609 microphone it will be the best sound ever....without pedals.

I will report what the band thinks after Easter.....

Nubbs

Sell the Super Sonic?

So you will need a replacement home amp......

Let the Mesa do the hard work.

At home, you can start getting to know This Guy! You'll never look at Fender quite the same way again..... 8)

Any idea as to the cost of his amps??? When I get the Supersonic sold I will talk with them and see what can be built for under 1000.00.

Thanks and Peace and Grace to you.

Nubbs

Nubbs said:

Any idea as to the cost of his amps??? When I get the Supersonic sold I will talk with them and see what can be built for under 1000.00.

Thanks and Peace and Grace to you.

Nubbs

Click to expand...

This is the one I'm getting....

http://www.frenzeltubeamps.com/id13.html

you have to look at a specific amp and scroll down to the details to see the price. He has specials on ebay that are usually $100 bucks less.