NAD Mesa Badlander 50

  • Thread starter Thread starter cobrahead1030
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cobrahead1030

cobrahead1030

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Forum member diezelduder posted this in the classifieds a while back, and we were able to work out a local pickup. I finally get to spend an hour or two with it, running direct into a v30 loaded mesa 2x12 (attenuator in picture is just sitting there) with my PRS Holcomb Svn.

Initial impression, I dig this amp a lot! It's not a bedroom amp at all, you have to crank it a bit to really get it going, and the 20w mode changes the sound more than it lowers the volume. That works for me because I got it for band practice and live shows. It sounds like a rectifier, slightly different flavor, but not vastly so. Super easy to dial in, it took me about 5 minutes to get exactly what I wanted out of it. 50W, variac, crunch mode, gain around 2:30, start eq with everything at noon and adjust slightly to taste. The gain knob is usable throughout pretty much it's entire range, which I like. Around noon-3:00 sounds best to my ears, but you can dime it and it's not completely ridiculous.

I like the 2 channels being identical. I've got one set up with a little more bass & gain than the other. The clean mode is pretty good, but I didn't buy the amp for that. Crush sounds fun, but a little scooped for my liking. Crunch mode is where I felt right at home on this amp.



mesa.jpg
 
I keep going back in my mind to a video posted somewhere on this forum of a Badlander a/b’d with a true early 80s OG JCM-800. The JCM sounded as good as all the legends and lore of those first run 800s. Maybe the best hard rock rhythm tone ever with just enough sauce for leads - but you know how killer it would sound with your boost of choice out front.

And they had the Badlander dialed in so closely that you literally could barely tell when the video switched between the two. And of course, the Badlander had plenty more gain in reserve, ready to go.

That video alone made me want a Badlander BAD!
 
awesome dude...congrats! I would love to try one. PDC's post makes me really want to try one out....
 
PDC said:
I keep going back in my mind to a video posted somewhere on this forum of a Badlander a/b’d with a true early 80s OG JCM-800. The JCM sounded as good as all the legends and lore of those first run 800s. Maybe the best hard rock rhythm tone ever with just enough sauce for leads - but you know how killer it would sound with your boost of choice out front.

And they had the Badlander dialed in so closely that you literally could barely tell when the video switched between the two. And of course, the Badlander had plenty more gain in reserve, ready to go.

That video alone made me want a Badlander BAD!
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Clips are deceptive and always make amps sound much more similar than they would in the room.
ITR an 80’s JCM will sound much more vintage and raw.
 
Nice amp, man! I've never tried one, see if you can post some clips of what you're hearing.
 
Congrats man. :cheers:

I've always wanted to try one. Not what I was expecting though. So this is a rack version in a sea foam green headshell? Your settings are similar to how I dial in my Rectoverb.
 
Killer amp, i got mine (100w) last year and still loving it. I have a Rev D Recto that’s pretty close to it when boosted. Congrats!
 
You can dime the bass and gain on the Badlander and neither is too much…even if boosted.
 
nightlight said:
Nice amp, man! I've never tried one, see if you can post some clips of what you're hearing.
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I've got a few tunes I'm demoing at the moment that would work well with it, I'll see if I can throw something together in a few days.
 
311splawndude said:
Congrats man. :cheers:

I've always wanted to try one. Not what I was expecting though. So this is a rack version in a sea foam green headshell? Your settings are similar to how I dial in my Rectoverb.
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Yes, this is the rack version, seller threw the headshell in with it.

I'm tempted to get an orange 4x12 to pair with it for live shows, just to annoy my bandmates.
 
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