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15W: CLASS A
CLASS A power has long been touted the Holy Grail of power wiring schemes for all out Tone and there is good
reason. It produces an extremely smooth transition into clip, lush harmonics and an angelic quality to the sound. When pushed to clip, it
responds with soft transients and never sounds harsh ever at the extremes. The TA-15 puts this to good use by combining it with some of
the most classic preamp circuits to allow a collection of the most sought after vintage circuits to exist in one very portable instrument.
The 15W Mode is great for both clean and overdrive sounds with enough power to provide ample headroom but low enough sweet sounding
power to ride the edge of soft clip easily and controllably. This 15W Mode works great for players who prefer using the guitar’s Volume
control to step seamlessly in and out of the soft clip realm. This concept works well in both the two low gain preamp Modes NORMAL
and TWEED as well as the three higher gain choices. The most dynamically responsive however will be TWEED (and to some degree
NORMAL) as TWEED has just enough gain at the top of its range to assist in being the perfect zone between clean and drive.
The 15 W Mode is by far our favorite for the TOP BOOST preamp Mode and this combination holds true to the legendary circuit and
performance this Mode pays tribute to. This power choice sweetens the jangly harmonics and cutting high mids present in the preamp
and sounds open and bouncy as you roam between soft clip and all out overdrive. It is especially cool when the GAIN is cranked for
single note soloing as the harmonic content is lush and creates an easy to play feel. Just remember to dial back the BASS a bit to
keep things tracking well.
The same goes for using 15W in combination with HI 1 and 2. This combo produces a beautiful harmonic richness, but watch the
amount of BASS you dial in, for it can get “slow” real fast if your not careful. Remember that these lower power settings simply don’t
have the horsepower to lead a bass-heavy signal around with any confidence.
25W: DYNA-WATT
™
POWER
As we mentioned earlier Dyna-Watt™ has been appearing on lower power MESA amplifiers since
1986 when we released our STUDIO 22 combo. This patented power harness delivers way more sonic impact that you would expect
from an amp of this power rating and it does so with shocking speed and clarity.
It’s all about dynamics! By storing up extra energy, releasing it at the instant of attack and then allowing the power to sag at a specific
rate, a dynamic envelope is created that translates into a musical bounce. The strings come alive and everything has a bouncy, alive
feel. Along with this tactile benefit there is the increase in perceived headroom and, because this extra energy is available at the instant
of attack, Dyna-Watt can manage larger amounts of low end than that of your more commonly-wired 25W power section or the 5W
and 15W Power Modes.
For clean work 25W has the headroom and spank to get over other instruments in a mix (in a situation realistic to its obvious limitations).
It will stay the tightest at the upper limits of the TA-15’s powerband as well as having more bold midrange punch and attack.
When searching for high gain sounds – especially for heavy, tight rhythm parts - that can track well and stay percussive Dyna-Watt
is definitely the choice. This will allow you to dump in the maximum amount of GAIN and BASS and still have some dynamic control
over things. It also works well for low gain Bluesy solo sounds where you want to jab in and out dynamically, sparring with the vocal
to create an exciting interplay.
Th e MO d e s : (Co n t i n u e d )
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