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Mesa/Boogie
The cult manufacturer is back
The company Mesa/Boogie, also known as Mesa Engineering, is a US manufacturer of amplifiers based in Petaluma, California. The name "Boogie" is said to go back to the famous guitarist Carlos Santana, who, during the first test of a Mesa amplifier, reportedly said: "Man, that little thing really boogies!"
You can find detailed information about the history of Mesa/Boogie, the products and the clever technology inside the amplifiers in our product overview.
Mesa/Boogie’s most popular series
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The history of Mesa/Boogie
Here you'll find everything you need to know about the history of Mesa/Boogie. We tell you about amplifier design and the modern technology used in all Mesa amps. Enjoy browsing!
Tweed amps from the '50s as inspiration
In the late 1960s Randall Smith, one of the most famous amp technicians in the San Francisco Bay Area, was inspired to build his own amplifiers after growing fond of the Tweed circuits of the 1950s. He loved their organic sound, the responsive controls and the way the tone smoothly changed from clean to distortion and back when he adjusted the gain control.
To push his own amp designs and concepts forward, he settled in Pentaluma, California in 1969 and worked on developing his amplifiers.
Found the perfect sound by accident
The typical heavily distorted sound of Mesa/Boogie amplifiers was initially the result of a preamp that had been electrically mis-specified. Founder Randall Smith wasn't sure whether the preamp's output would be enough to drive the power amp, and designed it with four double triodes, of which the first seven triodes are still used today to amplify the input signal.
Many years later Mesa/Boogie has grown into one of the major global players on the market for high-quality guitar and bass amplifiers and is a leader in the development of modern amp designs and circuits.
Modern technology and useful features
The American company also holds several patents on special features and circuits, such as Multi-Watt™, Dyna-Watt™ and the Mesa CabClone™ cab simulator, which you'll certainly come across while browsing our selection of Mesa/Boogie products. Here are some of the most important ones:
- The patented Multi-Watt™ power amp combines Duo-Class™ and Dyna-Watt™ technologies from Mesa and gives you the sounds of several power levels, style modes and circuit options in a single amplifier.
- The Dyna-Watt™ technology is controlled by your attack or picking technique and automatically adds a dynamic accent when you play harder.
- The Mesa CabClone™ cab simulator with internal amp load offers closed-back & open-back simulations in your amp and lets you play even without a speaker. You can even enjoy your sound via a headphone output.
The return of the legends
In January 2021 Mesa/Boogie was acquired by the Gibson Guitar Corporation. For a long time it was almost impossible to get hold of a Mesa/Boogie amp in Europe. In 2024 the popular amplifiers like the Dual Rectifier, the Mark VII, the Subway bass amp series and the speakers from the Boogie Cabinet series finally return to Europe and we're pleased to have these great products back in our range.
A large fan base
Of course, a manufacturer of such innovative and high-quality products has long since gathered a large fan base among professional musicians who have taken to Mesa/Boogie amps. The best-known users of Mesa/Boogie amps include the already mentioned Carlos Santana, Larry Carlton, Angus Young, Robben Ford, Eric Johnson, Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, Adam Jones, Mark Tremonti and Dave Grohl. Of course, those are by no means all the famous Mesa/Boogie users, and Mesa/Boogie also boasts a large and steadily growing following among studio musicians and hobby guitarists. Maybe you'll soon be part of the next generation of Mesa/Boogie fans?
