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bandit2013

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I looked up all of the Mesa dealers along my path northward. Closest place I found that has the TC-50 in stock is in Hamilton NJ. A bit of a long drive from NC. Seems like a 6 to 10 hour drive if I want to play one first before buying. May as well take advantage of it before Christmas since I will be in that area (within 100 miles or more).

I am on the east coast, there may be one that is 3 hours away but chance they have it is slim. Besides, their showroom is only open on weekends and the chance they even have it is slim at best. I went their once looking for a vertical 212 cab that appeared they had in stock, only to find out that was only due to warehouse inventory not on site (probably reference to another distributor). Will have to see how things pan out and may be able to try out the TC-50 if I am lucky. No big deal, I can wait for a few weeks and order one in blind faith that it will impress me when I get my hands on one.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

This will be eating at me during my entire vacation...... :|
 
Found a Mesa Dealer within 100 miles of my vacation destination for the family Holiday gathering. It was about an hour and 40 minutes drive from Allentown PA area to Hamilton NJ (Russo). They had just about all of the Mesa amps I could want. I should have tried a Lone Star while I was there but I did not. Could have also plugged into the Mark V 25 or 35 but did not. I did have to try the Mark V combo to see how it compared to what I have at home. Actually sounded better..... As for the TC-50..... Very nice amp. I was being courteous as the store was busy so volume level was low (did not open the amp up or push the tubes as the phone kept ringing and such). Experience at the store was great, it was definitely worth the trip over there.

I would definitely consider the TC-50. Love the feature set on this amp. A step up from the RA100 in terms of versatility due to the separation of the high gain channel controls from the lower gain channel. Similar from moving up from a Mark IV to the Mark V. I tried all of the modes on each channel, although I was playing at bedroom level due to the amp being so close to the front desk. If I was planning on taking the amp home that day I would have requested to move into one of the class rooms for lessons so I could open up the amp. Also would have preferred one of my guitars for the trial but had to suffice with what was available. At least I had options of guitars to choose from. Really loved the character of the amp with an Ibenez semi-hollow body double cut guitar. Not sure what model it was but sounded like a great match. Would have loved to run my Carvin CT624C though it as that is my favorite guitar, or my Carvin Bolt C with SD rails. Not sure what I am going to do at the moment. May wait and see what becomes of the triple crown line (hoping for a 100W version to emerge). Nothing wrong with the 50W as that is enough to drown out an acoustic drum set. Have to use the RA100 at 50W anyways when I use it with a TC ditto in playback mode to practice drumming. The TC-50 I tried was the head version channeled into a Rectifier 212 horizontal cab. Still would prefer a 100W version as this will be replacing one of my RA100s if I get one.

Salesman at the store had said that those who have played the TC-50 spend lots of time comparing it to the JP-2C. No indication which is preferred over the other. The TC-50 seems to have more flexibility over the JP as the clean channel can be pushed into clip easily with the flip of a switch (no OD pedal required) for that early classic rock tone. Ch2 was sweet too, I spent more time on this channel. In comparison to the RA100 lo gain, the TC-50 was not as bright but could be dialed in brighter as it had a presence control. Seems that you get a little more for your money as each channel has a two voiced switch. I wish I could have opened up the amp to push the tubes a bit harder as this would have been fun to experience. I doubt that I would sell any of my current RA100s but the TC-50 would be a great asset to add to my collection. I will wait for the 100W version if that is in the planning stages.
 
Thanks for the update. I'm glad you were able to play one.

I, like you, have my RA dialed into my liking with my speakers and a good tube cocktail for my needs.
The added presence control and voicing switches are tempting with the TC50.

I always feel the blue on the RA is bright until I play with the band, then it sits great. I also am one of the few who like the red channel a lot for heavier rhythm stuff, but a presence control would be nice on that channel alone. More control, in theory, makes sense, but I also don't want to make the big swap for what could be a neglible control difference...aka if it's not broke, don't fix it.
Less weight Is definitely tempting. 50 vs 100 watts always varies amp to amp to me, but it's definitely a "feel" thing that I notice, so I'll just have to wait to play one to reserve judgement there. Strangely enough, Nashville no longer has a Mesa dealer, so its tough to get one pon hand to give a go.

I think I will stay in a holding pattern for now and see where it goes much like yourself. Thanks for the update.
 
World of Music, Nashville was a Mesa dealer a few years ago. (7069 us-70S, (615)425-0256) I did check their website and they have a few Mesa amps but not the TC-50. Humbucker Music in Roseville GA would has the TC-50 and others, also have a dyne on their listing.

If you have not had a chance to run the JP-2C, they have that too. 194 miles one way to get there....that is a long haul.
 
world of music is where I used to go to check out new mesa gear but I'm not sure they are a current dealer. Mesa no longer lists them on their website. I'll have to pop over to see what's going on.
I'm hoping one of the artists I play with will book a show in a city where there's a good mesa dealer sometime in this first quarter. Fingers crossed.
 

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