TC compared to Royal Atlantic- Similar?

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rich

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Hey guys - I know the amp was only recently released, but does anybody have experience with both the TC and the Royal? How would you say they compare, especially on the hi gain channels? From the demo videos, they seemed somewhat similar. I'm looking forward to playing one when I can locate a mesa dealer nearby with stock.
 
I've got a RA-100, and I have a TC on order, so hopefully I'll be able to give you an answer soon!
 
I was able to try out the TC-50 last week. My thoughts:

Amazing cleans, Not quite Lone Star but more JP cleans. Great reverb!!

Low gain - This section covers ALOT of ground. From low again Electra Dyne ( but not as good IMO) to very heavy gain.

High gain - Again very flexible. Cool how you can even get a great lead blues tone from this channel as well.

Loved the cleans and really liked the high gain channel. I could not dial the fizzle out of the low gain channel which is the channel I wanted to love the most. I am going back tomorrow to play with it some more.

In regards to your specific question. This amp is similar to the RA but again I own an Electra Dyne so I have more experience with it.. But this amp is its own monster.
 
The fizz may be a factor of the EL-34. Only reference I have is the Roadster on EL-34. The RA100 is killer with the right power tubes. Unfortunately the Mesa EL-34 are a bit harsh for my tastes. I like the Mullard re-issue EL-34 the best overall in the RA100, not just for the gain character but these are the least noisy in terms of mechanical noise. I have a quad of =C= EL-34 but those seem to rattle the most so I would suspect quality or change in workmanship at the end of the last run that Svetlana Electron Devices (SED) made before they shut down production of consumer products. Mesa EL-34 have been the EH variety. I have a new set of them (Mesa) but have not put them to use. Blues and Grey color codes. I was hoping for a matched set but the offset between the two should not be that bad. At least the TC-50 only uses one pair. I have listened to the other videos from different sources, so far the one I like the best is by Sweetwater. The Royal has certain qualities that I like so I will not part with either of them.... I may part with the Mark V as the JP is much better performer (in my opinion anyway).

Question is.... can I live with the 50W? The 6V6 (25W) option is quite tempting.
 
OK, I finally tried the TC50. Relative to RA100, I would say:

Cleans on RA100 have more headroom. The 50W EL34 just doesn't get super clean clean. It would most certainly be cleaner with 6L6, but it ships with EL34. In the RA100 I ran the clean channel at full power always.

Gain channels: I typically ran -4dB attenuation on the RA100, so 50W is fine for blue and red channels.

Blue channel. The RA100 had a pretty tame blue channel. It was quite like the Electradyne. Not a lot of gain stages, so lots of punch, not a lot of compression. But a real limit on gain. It's a blues/light rock channel to my taste. The TC50 is similar, but more gain available on the blue channel, and it had more mid harmonic content to my ear. I had trouble getting the RA100 to give me bite. The TC50 seems to have that, though not as much as more metal amps. I liked the controls, and found the presence to be very useful.

Red channel is off the hook. More tooth, plus insane gain. Again, presence was helpful. I also like the per channel tone controls. I found with the RA that going from LO to HI gave more gain and more lows, but not much real change in character, and both channels were a bit smooth, especially at higher gain.

The TC50 seems more aggressive and you can get totally different character from the blue and red channels.

I did not find that the blue channel could do Dyne blue, but drive on the clean channel was pretty close. It's nice, but as always with Mesa, I wish I could rearrange to get clean, clean with drive, and blue channels, or some other combination. So greedy...
 
I played it hard for an hour. Not much knob-twiddling, but enough to get an impression.

The thing has balls. Big ones. I don't think it would be a mistake for anyone to buy one.
 
That may take a while for me..... currently working on a complete mic set and mixer for my drum set.... So very tempting though.... I want one really bad......may even hold off on the expense of the mic and mixer for the drums and grab a TC-50 instead. I can do both with no issue, I have so much stuff now as it is that my home is looking more like a music store :roll: My fix would be the head version and use the vertical or horizontal 212 cab. For now I am trying to keep it out of mind. This amp will be in my future and this time I plan on buying new before it gets dropped from production like the RA100..... I jumped on the JP-2C just in case it was a short lived product like the king snake. Now the question is.... how large is the reverb tank? Is the same size as the main stream tank used on the Mark V, Roadster, Roadking, etc.....

Something has to go.....more reason to sell the Mark V as I no longer use it any more since the JP-2C entered my life (the clean channel is the only reason why I am keeping the V). I can tell by the demos that the TC-50 is a killer amp. The latest video created by Mesa using 6L6 was the tip of the icing. :shock: Sweet idea, I can run both the JP-2C and the TC-50 at the same time and use the midi to switch channels. That in itself is eating at me at the moment (me thinks that would require a midi switcher as the footswitch controls are different between the JP and the TC, also are the commands compatible between the two amps or not?).

I can always let go of the RA100 head too as I have the combo which gets used more and that one is in better condition (mint). New rule, do not sell anything...... Just get more... figure out where to put it later. 8)

Now that the clean channel has some bite to it, very tempting as this is lacking on the JP-2C (still a keeper for me as that amp has taken me by storm and so far my favorite out of all of the Mesa amps I have at the moment). Also since the TC takes OD pedals well, I have that covered. May pick one up after the new year if the immediate funds are available.
 
Perhaps next month I will join the TC-50 crowd (by the 2nd week in January as I have went over my finances). At least the price is just half of a potato and two hundred clams and a carrot less than the JP-2C, priced similar to the RA100 back in 2013 but lower than that even. RA100 in 2013 was $1999 JP at $2499 and the TC-50 at $1799 The studio can wait as I was preparing for $1850 in recording gear so I can capture the acoustic drum set I just got. I need more stuff but not getting board with the JP yet :p

I could pull the trigger now but would rather be home when it arrives. Next month I will be mulling over the TC-50 as I will have to buy it sight unseen...... No place close enough to play though one first, at least not within a few hundred miles. Rather just order it and wait, vs driving a few hours to get there and... what do you mean it sold 10 minutes ago?

Sounds like a winner since others have taken the TC-50 plunge into the darkness of the boogie abyss (sounds bad in some way but not really as I get lost when I plug my guitar into most of my amps). Must be that good as they are speechless...... :shock:

With all due respect, I thank Dlpasco for going first....or was it sloanthebone..... When I get mine, well.... perhaps I will try to keep things short if I can.... if it blows my mind like the JP-2C did I will write more than one page as I have the RA to compare too, plenty of Mesa tubes on hand so 6L6, EL34 shoot out will be one topic. Heck, I may even jump on the other amps with same (except the JP-2C as that is 6L6 only).

Also wanting to put the EV's back into the old Recto cab, move the Creambacks into a traditional size cab and see how that sounds. I like having options (sometimes). Still have not recorded a project using the RA100 or the JP-2C, a few test runs is about it. (new drum set got in the way... :roll: )
 
elvis said:
Cleans on RA100 have more headroom. The 50W EL34 just doesn't get super clean clean. It would most certainly be cleaner with 6L6, but it ships with EL34.

I have to ask...how loud were you running the clean channel? I can't get that thing to break up, no way, no how, unless I've got the drive switch on and the gain at an appreciable level. It's specifically designed to be a high headroom clean channel, even with EL34s.
 
not much of a review....as I did not spend that much time on it... but I would get one if I did not have the JP-2C (keeper).
I had a chance to play one, was at low volume though. Clean channel was nice and typical for EL34 clean. I would almost say it was comparable to the JP-2C clean as that is not super clean either. Mark V has to have the cleanest clean channel I have yet to hear (have not tried a lone star though).

Super clean = piano like tone such that your electric guitar will have an acoustic character to it (depends on what type of guitar and pups are on it).
Warm clean = plenty of headroom but has some subtle grain to the sound but not dirty or onset of clip. JP-2C, Roadster, and RA100 falls into this. Usually has more bottom end to it. TC-50 was similar but not as boomy as the RA100.

What I liked about the clean channel on the TC-50, presence control. Added in brightness and cut some of the bottom end, more balanced in tone. Loved the drive switch too (whish that was on the JP-2C).

Lo Gain: Very nice, crunchy Well balanced tone. I wish I had the chance to push the volume up on this channel but I was only a few feet away from the front counter and the phone kept ringing. If I was going to buy this amp that day, I would have asked to be moved to one of the practice rooms used for lessons. Definitely different than the RA100. I find the lo gain on the RA100 though a 412 can be bright. I normally run the bass control high on the RA100 head (almost at 3 o'clock) as the v30 loaded 412 will definitely pronounce the top end without reservations. The RA100 Combo is a bit different due to the open back cab, run the bass at noon and push the treble. Note that both of my RA100 sound identical though the 412 cab. The TC-50 remained well balanced across the frequency spectrum at the volume I was playing it at. I did not notice the compression as much with moderate to high gain settings like I get with the RA100. I did not spend enough time with the amp to really compare. Also at low volume I was using, I did notice some difference between normal and tight but not as much as I would expect. I am sure things would change at a more suitable volume setting.

Hi gain: :p a bit better than the RA100, perhaps more than a bit better. again, at low volume it was nice but could have wowed me due to my sub conscious preventing me from disturbing the business I was in. Very tempting to get one of these but I want to see where the line takes off and if there will be 100W version...... The TC-50 is worth getting and may cave in and buy one. Tone controls overall were great. I did not feel the amp needed something to alter its character like the JP or the Mark V. Beside, I have the 5 band eq pedal I could add to the loop if needed for that alternate tone.

The sales guy that helped me out with setting up the amp had said that many who have tried this amp have compared it to the JP-2C. Customers go back and forth between the two amps. He did not indicate which one they settle on. I did not notice the JP-2C until after I was ready to leave. They had so many Mesa amps it was hard to distinguish between the JP, Mark V models, and the express. Why is it that things always look smaller in the store than they do at home?
 
Based on my experience I would say that the TC50 is a direct descendant of the RA100. It has similarly voiced channels (Ch3 is gainier and has more low end than Ch2, which is a bit thin-sounding). The added presence controls help a lot. I think it is a touch more aggressive as well.
 
It is similar but not as mid boosted like the RA. TC-50 remains very tight on all three channels. RA is a bit spongy in comparison. Hi channel is amazing on the TC-50, Hi on the RA is a bit darker in tone and sounds Mark'ish in its gain structure. TC somewhat borrows it gain character from a DR but there is plenty of feel and harmonics similar to the RA. Lo channel on the RA is bright and smooth with mids, lower bass. TC remains tight and more accurate for most vintage rock that does not have the iconic Mesa tone embedded in it. I can hear some similarities but the amps are not all that much alike. Clean channel is rich for the sad style blues, TC-50 is a bit more upbeat in mood but has a very nice clean channel that is not boomy like the RA.

It you had both, there is every reason to keep both as they are that much different from each other.
 
The interesting thing about the RA vs TC is that most of the difference you're hearing is the difference in the power section. The preamps on the two are the same with the exception of the the extra master and separate tone controls on the red channel of the TC. It's amazing how much difference the power amp makes in the tone and feel between the two.
 
Do you know this for a fact? that the preamps are identical? I can do a master slave and find out.
Topographies are different to some extent. Have not opened up the chassis to look at components and figure out the differences in the circuits. Note that the tone controls do not function the same way as they do on the RA but may be due to adjustable presence vs fixed presence.

Actually I can even slave the Roadster for a better comparison and exclude the RA power section and the TC power section.
 
Hint: it matters what cabinets you are using. Vertical rec. 212 with a TC-50 will sound very much the same as the RA100 running an OS Rec.412. I just found this out about an hour or so ago. The TC-50 is a bit tighter on the Hi/Lo channel but the RA100 can be re-tubed to be very close. Feature set is very attractive with the TC-50. Love the independent reverb settings for each channel. Tone wise with proper cabinet matching (and stock tubes) they sound very close.
 
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