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Post subject: Hindsight
Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 3:16 pm
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Rock Star
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If you had it to do over again, would you buy a Mustang. I'm on the verge of buying something and value opinions.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 3:24 pm
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Yes. I have an MIV and an MIII. In fact I just ordered 5 MIs for one of the schools I teach at. I have no regrets and haven't had any problems with the amps that I have.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 3:39 pm
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I've heard a lot of good things about them. My biggest problem will be deciding which one to get.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2011 8:01 am
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oxfan wrote:
My biggest problem will be deciding which one to get.
I've got a Mustang III and a Mustang V. The III is incredibly portable and great for rehearsals, but I prefer the V for gigs since the stereo config gives a much fuller sound. I think the IV is a nice compromise with just a little extra weight...

Great amps - and the price is unbelievable.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2011 8:24 am
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I'll admit that the price is a huge drawing point. Had the opportunity to play through a couple recently, they were impressive.

Thanks for the reply.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 9:16 am
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I have a IV and I'd certainly buy it all over again. Big difference in the warmth and "oomph" over the III in my opinion (2 x 12) but worth the weight and cost differential. If it's not for gigging, I'd go with the III. Bottom line for me I think, is if you like Fender tones, of all kinds, they have that down pat, and I get plenty of grit to go with them when I want.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 11:39 am
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I traded in a Frontman 65 for my Mustang III and am generally quite satisfied. It has been a MAJOR upgrade form the Frontman which I didn't care for. Having said that, it's not without some quirks but I can live with them.

What I Really Like:
*The Fender-based amp tones are great.
*The Reverbs and Delays are also great.
*The Overdrive is flexible enough to dial in mild drive to heavily OD'd sounds.
*It's lightweight and portable...much nicer to tote around than my TRRI!
*FUSE offers access to TONS of other great user patches... I've really been digging the AngryTwin. If you're looking for big, clean, tone... check it out, it's a great place to start working from.
*I'd suggest picking up a 4-button footswitch it really opens up some cool options.
*Quality stock speaker.

What I'm not so nuts about:
*The quality of construction is borderline... I'd have been willing to pay a little extra for metal inputs, a solid power cord, and a more solid USB interface. The covering is a bit thin too... again, I'd have been willing to pay a bit extra for real tolex. This is my practice amp and so it doesn't often leave my studio so it's easy to baby it at home. If I was gigging with it, I'd be concerned that it might show some signs of wear pretty quickly.
*A line out would have been a nice feature...
*It's very sensitive to what guitar you use. I have 10 or so different electrics, 3 strats, a tele, an LP, a SG, a Gibson L6-S, a Cort ES-335 knock-off, and a few others. All of them behave differently through the amp. Some are a perfect match, and others don't seem to play well together. In particular, I've had much better success with single coils than humbuckers... the Cort doesn't get along with the Mustang at all... neither does the LP. Oddly, the L6-S, SG, and my tele (which has a humbucker in the neck) get along just fine. I know that I could set up user patches to address the different outputs of various guitars and lump them together using FUSE but I'm too lazy to deal with it... Instead, I just grab a guitar that seems to work better with the MIII.
*Some of the effects are marginal... the envelope filter and fixed wah are two that don't really do it for me. I love envelope filters and have experimented with many in my regular guitar rig. I've settled on an Emma Discumbobulator but have also used different Q-Tron models. IMO, Fender should just start from scratch and try again... I know they doctored up the original functionality of their envolope filter and it's better than it was, but still not very good.
*As many have mentioned on different posts, the high gain amps are WAY to high-gained out and almost all of them need to be tamed... maybe this is just because I don't play super crunched out guitar. Maybe they're assuming that when you plug into a Marshall, you're going to be after that hair metal sound.

Conclusion:
As long as you can deal with the Fizz (if you have it... or if you're OK with the idea of it developing) these amps are absolutely amazing for the price. TONS AND TONS of flexibility (though you'll have to really spend some time with tweaking the factory settings) and with 99 presets, a variety of tones and settings for anything under the sun. One last word about the fizz... my amp has a little of this "digital artifact" going on...not enough to bother me. Maybe if you were playing really delicate jazz pieces that require the sort of clean you get from a Roland JC-120, it might be a problem. But for what I use this amp for, it's fine. Just be aware that it exists (or potentially will exist down the road) and make your purchase decision accordingly.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 12:24 pm
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Thanks for the advice. I'm pretty well set on the Mustang II. By the time I get it though, who knows?


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 4:48 pm
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oxfan wrote:
Thanks for the advice. I'm pretty well set on the Mustang II. By the time I get it though, who knows?



I have the MII with an Eminence Cannabis Rex speaker and a beam blocker installed - I absolutely love it!

O.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 9:02 pm
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Had a II and traded up for the III when it came out. HIGHLY recommend the III over the II. The extra bucks are well worth it and you might regret not doing it latter.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2011 6:43 am
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Stinger22 wrote:
HIGHLY recommend the III over the II. The extra bucks are well worth it and you might regret not doing it latter.
I have to strongly second this - I had II originally, but after playing a III, the II sounds really boxy to me. I put a Cannabis Rex in my III, and it's just bomb for whatever I need - jazz, R&B/Funk, Classic Rock... For the extra $100 bucks, it's really a no brainer. Also, for gigging, the foot switch options on the III are indispensable...


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2011 8:51 am
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not to hijack this thread, but how are you guys running 50 watt speakers in a 100 watt amp? I've never been sure of this... please explain, cheers.

And yeah, I'd go for the MIII over the MII as well.... the features of the MIII are worth it (IMO).


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2011 8:59 am
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Of course the III is better and it's only $100.00 more. that's the story of my life, the one that suits my needs is always the most expensive, lol.

By the time I get ready to buy, there will be a Mustang VI for only $899.99, or they'll raise the price of the III to $399.99


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2011 10:47 am
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JamGuy wrote:
not to hijack this thread, but how are you guys running 50 watt speakers in a 100 watt amp? I've never been sure of this... please explain, cheers.


He's not. He specifically said the Mustang II...MUSTANG TWO. The M2 is only 40 watts. Pay attention.


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Post subject: Re: Hindsight
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2011 5:02 pm
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I put a Cannabis Rex in my III, and it's just bomb for whatever I need - jazz, R&B/Funk, Classic Rock...

Looks like somebody else needs to pay attention!


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