From a Deluxe Reverb to a LSS, TA-30, or RA-100

I've been playing through a Deluxe Reverb Reissue for a long time, getting my overdrive from pedals(Fulltone Fulldrive Mosfet, Fulltone GT-500, and TS-9).
Recently I've been wanting to get a channel switching amp and get my overdriven tones from the amp, and just use pedals to push it a little further sometimes. I like Mesa Boogie's amp concepts. I like the fact that they have so many power options and different voicings and I like that 2(or more) channels have independent tone stacks and the like.
I've been looking at the LSS for a long time, but now there's the TA-30 and the RA-100. The clean tone is very important for me. I play alot of country, southern rock, hard rock, and gained up stuff like Andy Timmons. I like the British gain and the American clean(who doesn't ) I guess what I'm asking is: what do you think about overdrive from the amp vs. pedals?

I'm thinking about the RA-100: using the clean mode for cleans and American overdrive using pedals, and the Lo/Hi modes for higher gain British stuff and pushing it over the top with pedals. Or do you think the LSS or LSC would be better?
I've scoured the internet for months watching videos, reading reviews, etc. My local GC had a used LSS that I tried out, and I really liked it, but I couldn't crank it up, and at the time I didn't have the money to take it home. Right now I'm on the fence about the RA-100 and the LSS. I know there's been a million "what amp is for me?" threads, but I really need some opinions from some Mesa owners. I come from playing a one-trick pony and have never owned a Boogie.
I don't care about the wieght, I only care about tone!! 8)

I played a 1965 Deluxe Reverb for 20 years. I was really hooked on the tone. I sold it when I found that the '65 reissue is an exact copy, and played them enough to decide it's really the same tone.

I doubt I will ever get the DR reissue, since I like the Dyne's clean a lot more. It has a fender tone, but with more low end and headroom, and more dynamics. The 2 vintage modes are also really in the vein of the kinds of music you mentioned.

I am also a Timmons fan, and I think I get a tone that is really close to his through my Dyne when I want to.

I have heard, alternatively, that the RA is similar and not similar to the Dyne. I like the TA, but don't love it.

WARNING: Going from the 22W DR to a 90W Dyne is a big jump. However, my DR always sounded easily as loud as a 50W amp, so that's also a loud amp. But the Dyne is deafening. At the 45W setting, the Dyne is closer to 20W, and more manageable, but the tone also changes. Personal preference at that point.

I use an OD808 and a Timmons signature BB Pre with all the modes of the Dyne, and they play well with it. I also use a Tube Driver (like Timmons, I know, I'm ridiculous) with it.

If I were shopping today I would still buy the Dyne.

The Good news you can't go wrong with any of those choices. You should add the ED to your list as its clean is as good as any is my favorite. I currently own an ED, an RA and a Deluxe reverb.

If you really want Deluxe reverb tone then the ED or LSC are the best choices. The RA-100 would be right up there, but is not quite as traditional. The Reverb is not as deep and more British sounding to me, but I wouldn't say it isn't as good.

When I was purchasing my ED, I was on a mission to get Fender Black face tone so I could play SRV tunes etc, but I also wanted Marshall crunch so I could play AC/DC and Brit blues like Claptons Blues breakers days. The LSC certainly has great Black face tones and has more options than the ED clean, but I couldn't find the lead tones I wanted in Channel 2. The ED can do almost anything the Deluxe reverb can do and side by side neither one really has anything on the other, but the ED does have more headroom and can produce way more bass if you want it. So far I have only found a few drive pedals that I like with the ED. Generally I prefer the amps own overdrive tones.

From what I have heard the TA-30 sounds thinner, thats not a bad thing, it's just more British than American. The TAs and RA are not really very similar despite the fact that they are all part of the Atlantic family, so don't be fooled into thinking that the RA is just the bigger brother. I'm not a big fan of the LSS either and I think that just comes down to me not liking EL84 tubes. It took me three EL84 amps to finally work that out :mrgreen:

The RA-100 has only been mine for a few days, so it is a bit early for me to tell yet. I think the ED or Deluxe reverb will be going. So far the RA is a bit like the EDs big sister. It isn't as big sounding, but it makes up for that by being more angry and aggressive and will still kick you in the *** real hard.

Thanks guys, that is really insightful. Upon reading the posts here on this forum and watching some of the videos on the ED, I must admit it may be a contender. At first I was put off by the global controls for all 3 modes, but it seems like Mesa has that covered with the trim switch and knob. Also, a whole other tone stack may just not be nessesary on this amp. The videos of this amp just sound so good, exactly the tones I'm looking for. I guess the only other issue would be the volume. Everyone says it is so LOUD. One of the features of the RA-100 I like is the attenuators because I do play at home a lot. Hmmm, so I think it's between the ED and RA-100......

Yes, the ED and RA are both top shelf choices.

I think most of the comments about the ED being loud relate to the Vintage gain channel. The master volume is touchy, but I can always get a tone I like without waking the kids. The ED has been my practice amp of choice for a year and a half now.

You would think that the built in attenuator of the RA would be great, but from shop testing and now that I own one I am yet to find a tone at any volume that I like better using the attenuator. There is just something about that raw tone that gets dulled by using attenators to my ears. Another RA user I know does not bother to use the attenuator as he also likes the raw tone. He only uses his RA in his band though and does not practice with it.

The Shared tone has worked very well for me. I find that if I set the Vintage lo to the tone I want that both Vintage hi and Clean are usually pretty close. Then you have the gain and volume trims to play with which can be very usefull.

The two things that slightly annoy me about the ED is that vintage lo can easily get muddy if the bass is set to high and the reverb defeat does not allow you to have reverb only for the clean mode. The RA has fixed the reverb defeat issue and vintage low is very tight.

The RA is tighter and more cutting in general than the ED and I would say the ED has a generally warmer sounding character.

I think that both the ED and the RA-100 would be a great match for me. This will also be my first high powered amp. While I love the clean tones I get from my DRRI, I do not like the way it breaks up. After about 3 on the volume knob, it looses it's mojo a little for me. This gets compounded with overdrive/boost pedals. Some people love cranking these amps, but I need more headroom and punch.
I still like the RA-100 a little bit more than the ED. But, the reason is not exactly for the tone of the amp. I like that the RA-100 has a seperate clean channel. And while the attenuators might not be perfect, they could be useful when playing at home - we'll see when I get it home and start using it. I also like the reverb defeat options better, as you mentioned. One more thing is that I want to get the head version and I don't like the oval shape the ED has in the head version :roll: .lol
Now I just need to conquer that massive price tag and get it home!! Thanks for everyone's opinions. Any other contributions will be greatly appreciated. I love talking about amps!

I'm the same with the DRRI, I don't like the breakup, but everyone else seems to love it. The ED and RA don't breakup like the DRRI though. Both having solid state rectifiers, they don't sag and mush out like the DRRI with it tube rectifier.

The Attenuator works best in clean mode for the RA and it is hard to tell if it is even on most of the time. The funny thing is that clean mode least needs an attenuator. Unless you want the power section to break up in clean there is not really any point in using it. The other thing is that even at max attenuation, according to Mesa you are still getting 3 watts output. A V30 speaker cab should be cranking out nearly 105dB @ 1 meter with that, so don't expect to be able to get cranked tone at TV volumes. The preamps edge of breakup and soft breakup is fantastic and I am finding I am happier leaning on the preamp than the attenuator all said.

There is a fair amount of overlap between the ED and RA clean modes. The ED does warm Blackface tone really well. The RA emphasizes the harmonics more, but is not as sweet. At some point I want to swap the EDs 6L6 Tubes with the RAs El34s and see what happens. Others have told me that the EDs clean tone does take a hit when using EL34 tubes.