It is currently Mon Mar 16, 2020 6:18 pm

All times are UTC - 7 hours



Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 12 posts ] 
Author Message
Post subject: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2015 6:15 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Tue Nov 10, 2015 2:45 pm
Posts: 21
I'm a hack, buying my first electric guitar in, dare I say it, 50 years.

I'm planning to have some fun and get a little better by playing my new Strat in my home, and only in my home. I think one of the Mustang amps will be fun. I like the features on the Mustang III, but I'm fully aware that I'll never need the volume it can produce, which brings me to my question:

Played at the same low volume, would a Mustang III actually sound worse than a Mustang II since its volume would have to be at a very low number on the dial?

I'm a bit confused about this, on one hand it seems like I could simply turn the III down and enjoy its features, but on the other hand some people seem to say that turning the volume way down will prevent the amp from sounding as it should sound, and the II, presumably turned to a higher number, would end up sounding better despite it perhaps not sounding as good as the III at a normal volume. (Taken a step further, would the Mustang I be even better still for me?)

I'm not so concerned with cost as I am concerned with getting the one that suits my needs better -- trying to balance the "fun" of the extra features against the sound quality. (I'm expecting to buy on line, and my testing in a store isn't apt to happen.)

Any thoughts for me? Thanks.


Top
Profile
Fender Play Winter Sale 2020
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2015 11:44 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician

Joined: Sat Apr 02, 2011 9:49 am
Posts: 441
Hi HM, the "50 years" remark is ubiquitous on the internet. The number may differ. Mine was 35 years which started back in 2006. I started with a Marshall MG 15 DFX, a SS analog amp with digital effects, then moved to a Roland Cube, a digital modeling amp, similar concept to the Mustangs. I also bought a Boss GT10 multi effects processor. Just mentioning these things to show that I've been through the DSP stuff. After all this I would prefer a small handful of pedals and a small analog amp, either a solid state or small tube amp for home use. All of those DSP options seem fun at first but they get boring and you realize that most are superfluous and you can find yourself getting bogged down looking for a tone that you may not find. This is my conclusion after 9 years. I still use my Cube for practice and it's very suitable for that. But when I want tone I go to my Deluxe Reverb reissue, not exactly a small amp but you get what I'm saying. There's a definite difference between DSP and analog amps regardless of the manufacturers hype. These days there's some fairly decent small tube amps for home practice. That would be my first recommendation. I'm not saying that DSP is useless or unusable, I'm just giving you my personal experience and opinion. Good luck.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2015 12:21 pm
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician
User avatar

Joined: Mon Dec 22, 2014 11:39 am
Posts: 763
Location: Southern California, USA
Cost aside, the LCD Display panel and Data Wheel on the MIII provide easy access to the far wider range of features and nearly everything the MIII offers without the need to run Fender FUSE all the time. The User Interace of the MII and MI pales by comparison, and these lower models have far fewer features.

As you may know, the MIII's 17 Factory Amp Modeled Presets plus it's additional 83 Preset examples comprising the 100 Factory default Presets are at very different Volume, Gain, Drive and FX Level combinations!

By reducing the the Volume, Gain, Drive, and FX Level parameters in the Presets to more closely equalize them for lower overall volume and then resaving them, you can operate the MIII with its Master Volume set to higher than the typical in home 1-3 setting. Running the MIII with the Master Vol set at 4, 5, 6, or higher, brings the amp to an entirely different response level than at a lower Master Vol setting, and without blowing out your ears and windows. Should you ever need to get loud the MIII can always do that with ease.

The Magic of the Mustang is found in the Advanced deep Amp Page 2 settings accessed on the MIII by Pressing the Amp button 2x. Here once you customize the Sag, Bias, Noise Gate, Cabinet Simulation, and more, for each of the 17 Amp models and 100 Presets (the Basic Preamp has the fewest parameters) the MIII really begins to shine! Dial these in to your needs and satisfaction and you'll have a Mustang entirely differenet than what came out of the box!

The MII and MI are simply not in the same realm!

If you have an Android device, the Remuda App gives full deep amp control and preset editing with many easy to use features not found in FUSE! It is a massive time saver when exploring custom Amp settings, Editing Presets and FXs, and reorganizing the Presets! It has quick and easy drag & drop to reorganize the Presets, Sorting by Number or Name, Remembers your Preferred Amp and FX settings, and lets you create Song and Set Lists for your Presets, that get automatically assigned to the Mustang's footswitch Quick Access buttons.

If you add the optional 4 btn fsw (works with or w/o the 2btn fsw) it adds a Tuner Display/Mute Mode, and three additional modes (Quick Access, Navigation, FX Toggles) for improved amp control. You can also consider the EXP-1 FX Expression and Volume Pedal.

_________________
Mustang v2 III/IV●EXP-1●FUSE●REMUDA
Epi LP Florentine Pro●LP Cstm Pros●LP PlusTop Pro●Sheraton-II Pro
Cstm Strat Vntg Noiseless●Guild D-55
So Creek Cables●BOSS RC-1●RS7500
D'Addario Strings●Vari-Grip●Planet Lock Straps


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 3:43 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sun Apr 21, 2013 1:17 pm
Posts: 27
Welcome back to the electric guitar! You might get additional feedback on the specific Mustang Amp forum (viewforum.php?f=27). Personally, I think a Mustang is a great choice for someone in your situation. Might you prefer the sound of a tube amp with some killer pedals? Quite likely. But I think the versatility and monetary value of a Mustang is really hard to beat. There will be plenty of time for a tube amp later should you decide you can't live without one.

To me, the choice between a Mustang I/II and a III/IV/V for someone in your situation is probably most dependent on ease of use. The III/IV/V have an improved user interface directly on the amplifier that allows easy access to just about all of the amps features. They also have more memory banks in which to store presets. The I/II have basically the same capabilities, but (in a practical sense) they need to be tethered to a computer via USB running the FUSE software in order to really access all of the features. Some people hate FUSE and others like it.

In terms of sound and volume, the Mustang I is probably sufficient for what you are doing. I have an original Mustang I, and I find the FUSE software easy and intuitive to use. Even if I upgraded to a III, I would probably still use the FUSE software with it. Being tethered to a computer is not really a big deal for me in my situation.

As far as sound quality at low volume, I think you would be fine with a Mustang III. I play my Mustang I at very low volumes, and I'm pleased with the range of tones it's able to provide. It depends on how picky you are, I guess.

This is all just one guy's opinion. Good luck with whatever you decide, and have fun!

Cheers,
Dave.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 7:55 am
Offline
Roadie
Roadie

Joined: Tue Jan 27, 2015 3:00 am
Posts: 261
MusicLaw wrote:
Running the MIII with the Master Vol set at 4, 5, 6, or higher, brings the amp to an entirely different response level than at a lower Master Vol setting

Could you please elaborate what you mean when you say "response level"?

I agree that using a lower patch volume makes the master volume less jumpy and more controllable, but other than that, I can't say I noticed any effect on the amp's sound.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 1:03 pm
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star

Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2012 7:37 am
Posts: 4099
Location: New York
to answer the specific question, no, I don't believe the Mustang III set to a lower volume setting would necessarily sound 'worse' than the Mustang II at a comparable volume setting.

Theoretically, you are not gaining anything by pushing a Solid State amp close to its upper limit. Tube amps are known to sound 'sweeter' at higher volumes, but not Solid State.

In reality though, there are other factors. The 2 amps don't have the same speaker size or even manufacturer. And the MIII is just plain bigger. I think it would be hard to guess what effect those factors would have on the tone at low volumes.

Best bet would be to figure out how to experiment with them side-by-side before buying.

I realize you said,
HM wrote:
(I'm expecting to buy on line, and my testing in a store isn't apt to happen.)
. Maybe someone here on the forum has both and would be willing to run that experiment for you....

_________________
Please subscribe to my Image Channel!
https://www.youtube.com/user/b7567


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 1:18 pm
Offline
Roadie
Roadie

Joined: Tue Jan 27, 2015 3:00 am
Posts: 261
As I have told here before, I bought a Mustang III for rehearsal and gigging and a Mustang II for home.
I sold the Mustang II after like two weeks and got another Mustang III for home. If you compare them to each other, the Mustang III just sounds so much better. It's not the volume, it's the bigger speaker and the open cab.

If you only know the Mustang II, it's fine. But it doesn't stand a chance in an A/B test.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 1:30 pm
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star

Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2012 7:37 am
Posts: 4099
Location: New York
What ChrisH1 states falls right in line with my assumption: I seriously doubt there is anything about the Mustang II that makes it better than a Mustang III (at any volume, in any situation) other than the weight.

_________________
Please subscribe to my Image Channel!
https://www.youtube.com/user/b7567


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 4:31 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Tue Nov 10, 2015 2:45 pm
Posts: 21
Thank you all, I do appreciate your time and effort. I decided to go with the III, we'll see.

I'm trying to do this "right" the first time and not have to stumble around, though I suppose that's quite a challenge when one is discussing somewhat subjective matters.

I remember all the effort I went to as a kid when trying to buy speakers for my next "stereo." Probably drove 1,000 miles finding and listening. But that was in another place in time, when there was an abundance of brick and mortar stores and lots of things on display. Probably have to drive 10,000 miles now-a-days!


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 6:56 pm
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2007 5:59 pm
Posts: 3439
Location: ohio
earlier this year, I tried out a used v1 mustang 2. was very impressed with it, then I plugged into a v2 mustang 3. the three came home with me. nice and light, more power, and much easier editing with the data wheel. 6 months later, I still am digging it.


Last edited by phreddybee on Fri Nov 13, 2015 5:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 9:11 pm
Offline
Amateur
Amateur

Joined: Tue Jul 12, 2011 6:44 am
Posts: 198
If cost is not an issue than the mustang three would definitely be my choice. Not only does the mustang 3 sound great at low volumes ..it's also much easier to use in my opinion with its control layouts. I actually have the mustang 4 and I enjoy playing it at home at low volumes when I'm not out gigging with it.

_________________
musicmatty67 on Youtube


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Mustang II or Mustang III?
Posted: Mon Dec 07, 2015 10:31 am
Offline
Amateur
Amateur
User avatar

Joined: Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:30 am
Posts: 140
Location: USA
Howdy,

I hope I am not to late to have useful input. I did compare the to side by side.

I recommend the M3 if you can afford it for all the reasons listed above. To me it is easier to use. It's "on board" screen and controls are what made me choose this model over the Mustangs 1 or 2. It sounds great at low levels.

The foot print of the 2 is almost the same as the 3. Although The 3 wieghs more.


Top
Profile
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 12 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 7 hours

Fender Play Winter Sale 2020

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Search for:
Jump to: