MESA BOOGIE DUALCALIBER DC - 5 Owner's Manual The Spirit of Art in Technology 1317 Ross Street, Petaluma, CA 94954 USA
Hello from the Tone Farm... YOU, the smart player and all around intuitive human, have put your trust in us to be your amplifier company. This is something we do not take lightly. Our reward is that we've made a classic amplifier and by choosing this amplifier, you have become part of the MESA family...Welcome! Our goal is to never let you down. Your reward is that you are now the owner of an archetypical guitar amp bred of fine all tube amp heritage...
DUAL CALIBER DC - 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS Precautions Overview ______________________________________________________________________________ 1 FRONT PANEL: _________________________________________________________________________ 1 Power-Up ______________________________________________________________________________ 2 CONTROLS: Gain _______________________________________________________________________________ 2 & 3 Rhythm Channel Pull Boost ______________________________________________________________ 3 T
Your Mesa/Boogie Amplifier is a professional instrument. Please treat it with respect and operate it properly. USE COMMON SENSE AND ALWAYS OBSERVE THESE PRECAUTIONS: Do not expose amplifier to moisture, rain or water, direct sunlight or extremely high temperatures. Always insure that amplifier is properly grounded. Always unplug A.C. power cord before changing fuse or any tubes When replacing fuse, use only same type and rating Avoid direct contact with heated tubes.
DC-5 Operating Instructions Overview: Your DC-5 amplifier was designed to deliver maximum performance in a format based on simplicity. Its easy to dial nature allows each of the two channels to deliver a wide range of sounds in both clean and overdrive styles. The Dual Caliber uses two 6L6 power tubes to fuel its healthy fifty watt power section. We are pleased by its surprising headroom, yet truly musical “clipability” when pushed.
FRONT PANEL: First familiarize yourself with the layout of the Front Panel and locate the Lead / Rhythm switch on the right side of the chassis, next to the STANDBY Switch. This toggles you between the top (Rhythm) Channel and the bottom (Lead) Channel. If you don’t have the Rhythm/Lead Footswitch connected, this switch will activate the channel switching function.
CONTROLS: (Continued) GAIN (continued) example, somewhere between 2 thru 6 . In the RHYTHM Channel try setting this control somewhere between 3 thru 8 . Use of moderation here will reduce the likelihood of pesky tube microphonic problems ever occuring, while at the same time making the two channels easier to balance in volume and effects send strength. RHYTHM CHANNEL PULL BOOST: By now you have probably noticed the top channels’ GAIN Control is fitted with a PULL BOOST.
CONTROLS: (Continued) BASS: This control blends in the lower frequencies and its effectiveness, again, depends on the setting of the TREBLE Control. It should be set with moderation as extreme settings in either low or high directions can produce an unbalanced tone. Be “especially” careful in higher Gain settings of either channel.
CONTROLS: (Continued) MASTER (continued) When using the direct Recording jack found on the Rear Panel to interface directly to a mixing board or recorder, this control will determine the amount of signal you will be sending via this jack. In this application it is usually best to start with the MASTER Controls set to 0 and gradually increase them to the proper level.
CONTROLS: (Continued) OUTPUT LEVEL: This lonely knob is the DC-5’s final Output knob or overall master. After the relative balance of the two channels has been set with the channel MASTER controls, use this OUTPUT control to increase or decrease the listening volume. It is also the effects return level control, a point we thought you should know. This design element makes setting up a lot easier and gives you one less knob to deal with when interfacing to your favorite effects.
REAR PANEL: 1.25A IN OUT RHY LEAD FT SW SLAVE FUSE 2.5A SB 10 0% 0% EQ SELECT SEND FX MIX FTSW EQ/REV RETURN RECORDING SPEAKERS MUTE SPKR ON SILENT RECORDING MESA BOOGIE HANDBUILT IN PETALUMA PATENT APPLIED FOR 8 OHM 4 OHM 4 OHM FUSE: This is the A.C.’s (Alternating Current) main fuse and provides electrical current protection from outside A.C. fluctuations, as well as power tube failure damage. Should the FUSE blow, replace it with the same rating in a slo-blo type package.
REAR PANEL: (continued) FX LOOP: SEND / RETURN: These two 1/4" jacks are the patch point for external effects. The Effects Loop is wired in parallel with the normal signal. Connect the SEND jack to your Effects Input jack. Connect the RETURN jack to the Output jack of your effect. The Effects Loop is a patch point between the pre-amp and power section. Therefore, the Return jack can double as a “Power RHY IN LEAD 1.25A Amp Input” jack.
REAR PANEL: (continued) SLAVE: This 1/4" jack and control provide a signal derived from the speaker jack. Perfect for using the DC-5 as a master pre-amp, or additional power amps may be connected for more power when needed. Some players use this to derive an FX Send Signal and go to other amps for their wet sound. NOTE: Once a signal is taken from the SlAVE, it can not be inserted back into the FX Loop Return jack or a feedback loop will occur. Much like holding a microphone into the PA system’s cabinets...
SUGGESTED SAMPLE SETTINGS Sparkling Clean SAMPLE 1 INPUT PULL BOOST 5 5 1 CHANNEL Rhythm 4 2 4 2 RHYTHM ON ON LEAD STANDBY POWER 3 FOOT SWITCH GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER OUTPUT LEVEL 80 240 750 2200 SAMPLE 2 Pushed Bluesy Rhythm/Solo INPUT PULL BOOST 8 7 7 2 DUAL CALIBER DC-5 6600 CHANNEL Rhythm 0 4 3 RHYTHM ON ON LEAD STANDBY POWER 2 FOOT SWITCH GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER OUTPUT LEVEL 80 9 BOOST 7 6 3 0 750 220
PERSONAL SETTINGS PAGE SAMPLE 1 INPUT PULL FOOT SWITCH 5 GAIN CHANNEL BOOST 5 TREBLE 1 MID 4 BASS 2 PRESENCE 4 2 REVERB RHYTHM ON ON LEAD STANDBY POWER MASTER OUTPUT LEVEL 80 240 750 2200 SAMPLE 2 INPUT PULL FOOT SWITCH 5 GAIN DUAL CALIBER DC-5 6600 CHANNEL BOOST 5 TREBLE 1 MID 4 BASS 2 PRESENCE 4 2 REVERB RHYTHM ON ON LEAD STANDBY POWER MASTER OUTPUT LEVEL 80 240 750 2200 6600 SAMPLE 3 INPUT PULL FOOT SWITCH 5 GAIN DUAL CALIBER DC-5 CHANNEL BO
TUBE NOISE & MICROPHONICS You may occasionally experience some form of tube noise or microphonics. Certainly no cause for alarm, this quirky behavior comes with the territory and the Tone. Much like changing a light bulb, you don’t need a technician to cure these types of minor user serviceable annoyances and in fact, you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to cure tube problems...
DIAGNOSING PRE-AMP TUBE PROBLEMS: Because your amplifier is an all tube design, it is quite possible that you will at some point experience minor pre-amp tube noise. Rest assured - this is no cause for alarm and you can take care of the problem yourself in a matter of minutes by simply swapping tubes. Let us begin by saying; It is a “very good” idea to keep at least a couple of spare pre-amp tubes on hand at all times to insure uninterrupted performance.
BIAS ADJUSTMENT: (Part of a continuing series) NOTE: An article written by Randall Smith that we thought you might find interesting. CATHODE ( ) GRID ( , ) SCREEN GRID ( ) Here’s a question we often hear: “Why doesn’t Mesa put bias adjustments in their amplifiers?” Well, there’s a short answer and a long answer to this question. BEAMCONFINING ELECTRODE ( ) ... .... . ... . ... . .... PLATE ( , ) Structure of a 6L6 / 5881 Beam Power Pentode.
BIAS ADJUSTMENT (Continued) Voltage and current are NOT the same. Current is the AMOUNT of electricity, the “quantity” — and is measured in amperes. Voltage is the degree of electric charge — like the “pressure” to use the old water analogy. Let me illustrate how different voltage and current are: When you scrape your feet across a carpetted floor in dry, wintery conditions, your body can become charged with 50,000 to 100,000 volts of static electricity.
BIAS ADJUSTMENT (Continued) Some of the other recommended biasing, “methods” — such as -”.. tubes running red hot, increase the bias .. sounds harsh and runs too cool, turn it down ...” are guesswork at best. Luckily, one of the great things about tube amps is that they can usually stand some abuse without causing any real harm ... at least not immediately.
DC 5 Front View JACK pt# 610120 EQ pt# 588535 KNOB pt# (all knobs) 409108 LED LIGHT pt# 395631 SWITCH pt# (all 3) 601073 EQ SLIDER KNOB pt# 408535 INPUT FOOT SWITCH PULL BOOST POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# 592737 POT pt# 592148 592737 592151 592737 TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER 591047 POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# 592148 POT pt# 592737 POT pt# 592738 592151 592737 OUTPUT LEVEL POT pt# 591842 POT pt# POT pt# 592148 GAIN 592737 POT pt# 592739 RHYTHM ON POT pt#
MESA BOOGIE The Spirit of Art in Technology Thank you for trusting MESA/Boogie to be your amplifier company and we wish you many years of toneful enjoyment from this handbuilt all tube instrument.
The Spirit of Art in Technology (707) 778-6565 FAX NO.
