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Post subject: Considering a Mustang (III or IV) - Advice?
Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2012 9:18 am
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So I currently have a “94 twin” that I bought used last year and have been using.

It has an amazing sound and also takes pedals well, but there are a few drawbacks:

It is very heavy (around 85 lbs) and I have trouble sometimes taming the volume, even running in the lower power options.

One thing I have toyed with is selling it in favor of something a little more manageable and one line I had previously considered was the Fender Mustangs, either a III or IV. Either of these would be loud enough for my playing situation (more on that in a moment).

I have briefly played through one and did like what I heard*, but what I’m most curious about is opinions on how these will hold-up long-term. Both in terms of not just falling apart with age (a concern because the relatively low-cost makes me wonder if durability will be an issue) and also in terms of holding a reasonable value for the long-term.

*If I decide to seriously consider this I’ll probably give one a more thorough test drive to make sure it gets the sounds I want.

In terms of my playing situation, I am playing with a group semi-regularly and we do occasional gigs (several times a year). I would like to step this up a notch. Normally these are fairly small, but if the need arises I prefer to be able to feed the PA directly rather than putting a mic in front of the amp. How well does the line-out in this work? As I recall it uses the headphone jack for this meaning that the amp’s speaker(s) cut out when this is used, right?

Other than that, most of my practice time at home is on the lower volume side. Currently my Twin almost never gets used for this, I’m usually playing through my Princeton Chorus, which has a permanent home in my office.

Stylistically, mostly rock and blues – ranging from clean to over-driven but nothing really heavy. Basic Fender-type sounds are great and I assume the Mustang nails those. I’d like to occasionally be able to get into Marshall or Voxy type tones as well – I assume the Mustang would have models for these – how are they? My main guitars right now are a Strat (hardtail with Fat 50s pick-ups) and a Blacktop Telecaster. I also have an Acoustic that I occasionally want to plug in (I have an external acoustic pick-up that installs in the sound hole).

And lastly - I already listed what I consider the advantages and disadvantages to the 94 Twin. What I could consider to be advantages for the Mustang would be something that is easier to move around and easier to get nice tones at a reasonable volume. Economics is also a factor - selling the Twin would net me anywhere from $100-400 left-over after buying a Mustang (depending on exactly how much I get for it and which Mustang I want).


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Post subject: Re: Considering a Mustang (III or IV) - Advice?
Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2012 10:13 am
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Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2012 11:37 am
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Location: England
Most of your questions have been discussed / answered before here, some many times and quite recently. Suggest you search the forum for a wealth of information that will help with your decision. But to get you started:

Quote:
not just falling apart with age

The cabinet is particle board rather than solid wood. It seems sturdy enough to me, but a few people have reported the cabinets not standing up to rough use. I suspect it depends as much on how you treat your equipment as how well it's made. Think of it (and treat accordingly) as a piece of electronic kit rather than a wooden chest and you should be ok. I don't think it will "just fall apart with age" if looked after, but it may not take being thrown around as well as amps designed for a life on the road.

Also, the jack sockets and other connectors are plastic rather than metal. There have been reports of these breaking. Some people replace them, others fit short leads permanently to these with sturdier sockets at the other end.

Quote:
holding a reasonable value

I don't think these amps will retain much second hand value - certainly not in the same league as good-quality valve/tube amps that are prized second-hand for many years. As above, the Mustang is more about technology than classic amp. As technology moves on, the current Mustang generation will fall out of favour and a newer/better modelling amp (whether Fender or someone else) will take their place. But the lack of resale value shouldn't put you off buying one; you're getting a great amp for the money, just use it for what it is.

Quote:
I prefer to be able to feed the PA directly rather than putting a mic in front of the amp. How well does the line-out in this work? As I recall it uses the headphone jack for this meaning that the amp’s speaker(s) cut out when this is used, right?

The line-out should work perfectly for this. With the Mustang 3 and 4 you have two options. You can use the headphone socket - as you observe, this mutes the amp speaker. You can also use the fx send (as that is post- all the internal effects) and that won't mute the internal speaker, enabling you to use the amp as a stage monitor.

Note the headphone socket is stereo on both M 3 and 4; on the M 3 the fx send is mono and on the M 4 it's stereo.

If you're using the fx loop for pedals etc, you can still use it as your PA feed; you just need a splitter at the end of your pedal chain, one wire going back into the amp's fx return and the other going to the PA. Again think about stereo connections for the M 4.

Quote:
most of my practice time at home is on the lower volume side

Being solid-state power amps, you can turn the volume down low on the Mustangs without affecting the tone, better than with your valve amps. This makes them versatile for both low-volume home use and gig use. Personally I think the M 4 loses some of its tone if turned down too low, but of course you can always use headphones for silent practice.

Quote:
Fender-type sounds are great and I assume the Mustang nails those

Yes.

Quote:
Marshall or Voxy type tones as well – I assume the Mustang would have models for these – how are they?

My opinion is that they're very good. I think the Mustang is generally considered the best, most realistic modelling amp available at the moment - certainly in its price range. There may be better sounding equipment, but it will cost three times more at least.

Quote:
hardtail with Fat 50s pick-ups... (etc)

My impression from other people's posts here is that the Mustang responds well to different pick-up types - in that it faithfully gives the different responses you'd expect for different guitars/pickups. There is another thread that discusses using it with acoustic guitars, so I won't repeat that here, suggest you search for topics with "acoustic" in the title. In brief, it can do a good job with an acoustic guitar but doesn't have a dedicated neutral setting for acoustic sounds.

Quote:
advantages for the Mustang would be something that is easier to move around

The Mustang 4 is quite heavy and bulky, although not as heavy as your Twin. The M 3 is more portable. But how easy it is to lift/move depends on each person. Best to find one and try carrying it around the shop to see how it works for you.

Quote:
nice tones at a reasonable volume.

That is exactly what it does very well.


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Post subject: Re: Considering a Mustang (III or IV) - Advice?
Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2012 2:35 pm
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Joined: Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:15 pm
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Location: Waxahachie, Texas.
Picked up an MIII last weekend and I must say it is very impressive in it's own right. Connected to my laptop it becomes another galaxy of tonal possibilities in my small beginner world. I do not find the amp to be too heavy. I will be toting it to church with me on sundays. I think for the price it should have come with a cover but I can aford the extra $25 for one. I have played with most of the pre-sets and found some of them to be to my taste but it has to many face frying hi-gain settings for me. No problem there, just delete them and replace with "Bare" amp settings. The non-locking footswitch to change channels or activate reverb or a stomp box is nice. cable will be upgraded but good enough for getting out the gate. I think you would enjoy the versitality of an MIII and the "Bang for the buck" factor seems to be on time. My amp does not appera to be suffering from the dreaded "Fizz" situation that I read up on so that could be a "Dice roll" but I may go so far as to make them unbox it at the store and let you play it before slapping your plastic down on $275 plus tax. If they won't accomodate you that way, just have a plan to possibly return it for an exchange ASAP or a different model amp. All in all, I love my MIII. It's playable in my living room at decent volumes, through headphones or when the family is away, the cat edge toward 5 or 6 and play away. :wink:

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