Mesa/Boogie guitar combo amps | All-in-one rock machines
Take all that Mesa/Boogie tube head goodness, grab a Mesa speaker, put it all together in a single cabinet, and you get some of the best combo amps on the market for all-in-one rocking power!
The Mesa/Boogie Mark series of combo amps are based on the beloved sound of the Mark series of tube heads. Check out the small-but-mighty Mesa/Boogie Mark Five 35 combo amp to add tons of portable tube-driven power to your rig.
For a little more power and vintage sound, check out the Mesa/Boogie Fillmore series of combo amps. The Mesa/Boogie Fillmore 50 combo tube amp has been dubbed one of the most expressive, nuanced, and organic amps on the market today. Some might even call it “vintage-inspired magic!”
Vintage sound is great, but what about looks? The Mesa/Boogie California Tweed series has you covered. With classic cream colors and tweed covering (naturally), the Mesa/Boogie California Tweed 2.20 combo amp brings that lovely low-wattage vintage sound and matching looks to your rig.
Mesa/Boogie guitar amp cabinets | Amplify your sound
How do you get all that incredible Mesa/Boogie amp head tone to your screaming fans? With a Mesa/Boogie guitar cabinet!
The Rectifier series is by far one of the most popular lines of amp heads on the market, and you have to have a matching Rectifier cabinet to make sure you maintain that incredible Mesa/Boogie tone. Check out the Mesa/Boogie Rectifier cab series — especially the ever-popular 2x12 Compact Rectifier cab for that extra punch and balance.
Want a little more presence and openness to your tone? The Boogie Cab Series takes the already-amazing Mesa/Boogie guitar cabinets and removes the back panel. These open-back amp cabinets are perfect for a more natural and room-filling guitar tone.
Mesa/Boogie bass amps and cabinets | Low-end boogie
Mesa/Boogie might have changed the guitar world with their iconic high-gain sound, but that doesn’t mean they forgot about the bassists. Even if you prefer to play the bass clef, you can still get that incredible Mesa tone with Mesa/Boogie’s line of bass amps and cabinets.
The Mesa/Boogie Subway TT-800 Hybrid bass amp head brings a whopping 800 watts of peak power to your rig. Not only is it powerful, but it also sounds incredible. Paul McCartney used one; need we say more!?
If 800 watts is a bit too much for your needs, check out the smaller (but still serious) Mesa/Boogie Subway D-350. This powerful amp can adapt for use with active and passive basses to maintain an amazing tone no matter which style of instrument you prefer.
And of course, don’t forget to pair your incredible Mesa/Boogie bass amp with an equally incredible Mesa/Boogie Subway bass amp cabinet. They come in all shapes and sizes, so it’s easy to find one that fits your ideal bass setup.
Tubes and accessories
What makes Mesa/Boogie amps sound so good? It’s all about that hardware! They use some of the best tubes and circuits in the industry, all developed in-house. And those amazing components can be all yours by checking out Mesa/Boogie accessories here.
Swap a pair of genuine Mesa/Boogie tubes into your amp to give it that extra oomph you’ve been looking for!
History of Mesa/Boogie
Is it Mesa/Boogie, Mesa Engineering, or Boogie? Well, throughout its 50+ year history, the company has been called all of them!
Back in 1969, an amp technician and engineer named Randall Smith was becoming more and more popular with musicians for his incredible and creative amp mods. One day, he was commissioned to pull a prank on Country Joe & the Fish guitarist Barry Melton. Melton’s guitar tech asked Smith to modify a simple 20-watt Fender Princeton amp to pump out a ridiculous 100 watts of power.
Smith agreed to the joke and built the ridiculous amp. As he was looking for someone to test it, a young Carlos Santana walked into the shop. After a bit of convincing, Santana agreed to test the amp. He played a long, loud, and inspired test that attracted several onlookers to the shop. At the end of the test, Santana said, “Man, that amp really boogies!” And the name “Boogie” was born.
Originally, Smith’s amps were called Boogies, and his company was called MESA. But over time, the two names converged to create the Mesa/Boogie brand musicians all over know and love.
The first “Boogies” were simply hot-rodded Fenders, but Smith eventually got a custom job from local California guitarist Lee Michaels. Michaels wanted a new preamp for his new Crown DC-300, and he knew just the guy to go to! Smith added an extra tube gain stage to the amp, which was designed to add a little more gain — naturally. But everyone was surprised when they finally turned it on. It blew their socks off with the incredible high-gain sound! Thus, the first “Princeton Boogie” was created.
Officially released in 1972, Boogies immediately gained a huge following because of their ability to bring the gain without sacrificing sustain, even at lower volumes for smaller venues.
Santana was an early adopter of the Boogies (since he basically coined the term). He took an early Boogie to a jam session with the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan at a little place called Madison Square Garden, and the Stones absolutely loved the sound. They played Boogies at their following shows for years to come.
With insane growth from the popularity of the Boogies in the hands of rock royalty, by 1978 Smith started to develop the Mark II: the Boogie’s successor. The Boogie soon became known as the Mark I.
Over the next few years, Smith honed his designs to include more features to meet the ever-growing demands of players, like the first effects loop and channel switching capabilities. The Mark IIC+ was developed to have even heavier voicing compared to its already-high-gain predecessors. This version of the beloved amp found fame with heavy metal guitarists like Metallica’s Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield. These amps are still sought after today for their “holy grail” status with rockers.
As the ‘90s came around, Mesa/Boogie released the ever-popular Rectifier series that helped spawn the Grunge and Nu-Metal movements in the hands of bands like Korn, Soundgarden, Tool, Foo Fighters, and Blink 182.
The brand continued to produce new and innovative amp models over the early 2000s, cementing their reputation as one of the best and highest quality amp brands in the industry. In 2021, Mesa/Boogie officially joined the Gibson family. Smith continued to oversee production as the “Master Designer and Pioneer of Mesa/Boogie and Beyond.”
If you’re looking for a high-quality amp that really brings the gain, it’s hard to beat a Mesa/Boogie in your rig. With their undying dedication to quality and the latest innovations in amp technology, it’s no wonder that Mesa/Boogie has gained such a following from musicians in so many different genres.
