Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

[dr.barlo]

Hi all,

I liked that amp, and I generally am not into Mesa's... I know, with some effort I can still get it I suppose, but the real question concerns Mesa's decision. And I am curious? Didn't TA series sell well?

B

[hydro]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

I had one, briefly. It was a TA-30 combo. I found it very hard to tame the high end. I also realized, after gigging with it once, that the top mounted controls didn't work well for me. I exchanged it for an Express 5:50+ which I like much better.

I'm also guessing that many who want an AC-30 sound would just go for the real thing. Mesas have their own sound, so it seemed a bit out of place for them to build an amp that was derived so much from another amp.

[allbutromeo]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

I don't think they were a high seller, as mentioned above most people looking for the Vox or Marshall sound would just get those amps and not really look at Mesa. It's too bad they discontinued the series though, I really liked the Royal Atlantic, and have considered buying a TA-30 on numerous occasions

[Lampy H]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Yeah, I figure either Mesa has decided to just keep their feet planted firmly in the American sound, or (and this is probably less likely) they're planning on dishing out the mother of all Marshall-killers soon.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Their product line evolves pretty quickly. There are a ton of Mesa models no longer made.

[DrNewcenstein]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Yeah, I figure either Mesa has decided to just keep their feet planted firmly in the American sound, or (and this is probably less likely) they're planning on dishing out the mother of all Marshall-killers soon.

Everyone already makes the "Marshall plus more" models, from the 5150 to the Carvin stuff, so I don't see Mesa chasing that rabbit. They have an established sound and I think they'll continue to focus on that, with variations, and let Marshall do Marshall.

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Guitar Center dropped them and they went from being a big dog amp company with a presence in more than 250 stores back to a small boutique catering to a niche audience. Orange is scooping up a lot of business that used to go to Mesa... seems like everybody who used to play a Recto or a JCM2000 now plays a Rockerverb.

[JeffB]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Their product line evolves pretty quickly. There are a ton of Mesa models no longer made.

This...

And my opinion-I doubt they were big sellers.

[hydro]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

I don't think they were a high seller, as mentioned above most people looking for the Vox or Marshall sound would just get those amps and not really look at Mesa. It's too bad they discontinued the series though, I really liked the Royal Atlantic, and have considered buying a TA-30 on numerous occasions

You know, there were a LOT of pro players out there who used Stilettos which, if I understand right, the Transatlantic/Royal Atlantic were sort of the next generation of. Maybe when the Stiletto was popular though, there was not as much competition in the Marshall voiced amp space and Mesa was offering a high quality amp to those players.

I remember when I was looking at amps several years ago, all the Marshalls I was looking at were either super buxx $$ or tarted up with a lot of onboard effects and processing, which really turned me off, and led me to Mesa. It seems like Marshall has adjusted that approach to offer more of the traditional configurations now, and also (as others mentioned) Orange has really come on recently too.

[dr.barlo]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Cool.

I may try to get one (TA-30) while I can... While I am not a fan of Mark series and Rectos, I kinda liked this amp for its versatality punch and tone. I guess I am not a Mesa guy at heart.

B

[some_dude]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Guitar Center dropped them and they went from being a big dog amp company with a presence in more than 250 stores back to a small boutique catering to a niche audience. Orange is scooping up a lot of business that used to go to Mesa... seems like everybody who used to play a Recto or a JCM2000 now plays a Rockerverb.

Word was GC wanted Mesa to give them product on credit, Mesa said no. Most GCs weren't allowed to carry Mesa anyway, so suggesting they lost presence in over 250 locations is a bit of an exaggeration.

Probably a good move as Mesa's reputation seems to have improved now that GC is no longer representing their products.

As for the TA-30, I was told that although the TA, ED and RA amps were getting lots of positive reviews it wasn't translating into sales. Further, Mesa wanted dealers to stock the entire line whereas dealers only wanted to stock what sold. The store I delt with dropped his dealership over it because he couldn't afford to have amps wouldn't sell just sit there occupying retail space. I remember that a year after the RAs release very few had ever seen one in the wild. Eventually Mesa consolidated their product lines; on the guitar side the Recto, Mark, Lonestar, and Express were kept, everything else was axed and the cab selection trimmed back.

[the toad]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Mk 5:35 took it's place as the 4x el84 amp in the lineup..

[Boogie Bill]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

I'm not really surprised as the TA-15/30 and the Royal Atlantic have been discontinued. I love the TA-30 and the RA, but I can cop many of the TA-30 tones with my Maverick, and the RA is just too much amp for my current situation. The RA's built-in attenuators were wonderful, and the amp has a great Marshall vibe. I love the clean tones too.

I think that Mesa is investing heavily in the Mark V trio, and for good reason--these are incredibly versatile and terrific sounding amps. I've had my big V for almost two years now and I'm still finding great usable tones. And the new V:25 might be even be better. Really fun hearing those little tubes get pushed and squishy.

Two of my friends are using TA-30s for classic rock/blues club gigs and they both have terrific tone (great players too!) If you find one at a closeout price, I'd advise you to grab it.

Bill

[ToneMeister]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?... I liked that amp... Didn't TA series sell well?

I know I'm resurrecting an old thread but I thought I'd give my perspective now that some of the dust has settled...

Back when the Mesa Boogie TA-15 was introduced (I believe in 2010?) I tried one out at the local Guitar Center and was instantly impressed. I ended up trading in my Rect-o-Verb 50 for it (I liked the rectoverb but it was starting to have issues). Well the TA-15 has been an awesome amp and I am so glad I have it.

Fast forward to now: I recently discovered that the whole TransAtlantic series has been discontinued so I started looking around to see what the TA-30's were going for on eBay and, to my surprise, got a TA-30 head for under $800! Score!



Anyway, as to WHY they were discontinued, I think there are several reasons:

a) There seemed to be concern over the reverb "hum" issue, which probably steered people away.
b) For a "lunchbox" amp they were very expensive, which no doubt turned people off.
c) While their intended purpose was described well, it still seemed to have gotten lost in translation.
d) Their complexity may have scared some away.

In other words; They may have seemed like too much of a specialty item for some, perhaps potentially unreliable for others and definitely a major investment for all the rest.

As for me, I love the TA-15 for what it is; A great amp for recording and small live performance situations.

Then there's the TA-30, which I am equally thrilled with as far as sound quality goes. I have to concede that there is some unwanted noise when the reverb is engaged. The good news is that the noise is not an issue when performing at higher output levels but, unfortunately, this noise can be a problem if using it for performing or recording at lower levels, which is no doubt a big factor for some.

I did contact Mesa Boogie about a "fix" they have for the reverb noise problem, but I'm too paranoid that it will alter the tone in some negative way, so I'll just have to live with the somewhat pesky inconvenience.

As for reliability, I think they've proven to be very reliable. I have read a couple instances were something fried, but for the most part that doesn't appear to be widespread (the TA-15 in particular seems to have a stellar reputation for rock-solid performance).

Besides all that, I think the bigger reason the TA's didn't sell was because they seemed to be such a "niche" item. I'm sure a lot of people probably considered getting one, and maybe even almost did, but something caused them to stop short of doing so.

All I can say is that I'm glad I have both my TA-15 and TA-30 and I'm sure I will cherish having them for years to come...

[allbutromeo]

Re: Why is Mesa Boogie TA-30 discontinued?

Try swapping the V6 12AX7 for a 5751 or maybe even a 12AT7. 30-40% gain respectively should quiet down the reverb.