Mesa/Boogie LoneStar Amplifier manual

O O G I E B M ESA Owner's Manual[...]

H ello from the T one F ar m ...Y ou, smar t player and intuitive human, have put your trust in us to be your amplifi er company. This is something we do not take lightly. By choosing this instr ument to be a part of your musical voice, you have become part of the M esa family...WEL COME! Our goal is to never let y ou down. Y our rewar d is that y[...]

O VER VIEW _______________________________________________________________________ 1-2 HELPFUL HINTS __________________________________________________________________ 2-3 INST ANT GRA TIFICA TION _____________________________________________________________ 3 FR ONT P ANEL CONTROLS & FEA TURES INPUT ____________________________________________[...]

PRECA UTIONS & W ARNINGS Y our MESA/Boogie A mplifier is a professional instrument. Please treat it with r espect and operate it properly. USE COMMON SENSE AND AL W A YS OBSER VE THESE PRECA UTIONS: READ AND FOLLO W INSTR UCTIONS OF PROPER USA GE. Y OUR AMPLIFIER IS LOUD! EXPOSURE TO HIGH SOUND V OLUMES MA Y CA USE PERMANENT HEARING D AMA GE ! [...]

P A GE 1 I nstruction Manual REAR VIEW : LONE ST AR WARNING: Unplug powe r before replacing fuse or removing bolts mounting chassis SLA VE PO WER FUSE 4 A SLO BLO 120 V~ 60 Hz 4 A WER FUSE FUSE FUSE SILICON DIODES TUBE RECTIFIER TRACKING F A N ON F A N OFF First set sound with LOOP bypassed. Then set SEND & OUTPUT to 50% for unity gain. With LO[...]

P A GE 2 Overview: (Continued) The OUTPUT control is joined by our SOLO feature that provides an additional master output that you can trigger remotely f or a f ootswitchab le boost when you want to f eature a par t. These two F ront P anel controls are brought on line with the activation of the Eff ects Loop . When the Loop is not active , the ind[...]

P A GE 3 6.) When the F ootswitch is not a vailab le or desired, use the F ront P anel mini toggle to select the two channels. 7.) The F ront P anel OUTPUT and SOLO controls are not activ e until the Eff ects Loop is switched to the LOOP ACTIVE position. Use the Channel MASTER controls f or output volume le v el when the LOOP is set to HARD BYP ASS[...]

P A GE 4 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features INPUT : This is the instr ument INPUT jac k. This jack feeds the preamp and since the LONE ST AR is a high gain amplifi er and theref ore very sensitive , alwa ys use a high quality shielded cable between the instrument and the amplifi er . This will pre vent unwanted noise and microphonic cable sound[...]

P A GE 5 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) CHANNEL SELECT : This 3 position mini toggle allows manual selection of the Channels when the F oots witch is not connected. Set it to the center FT -SW position to use the Channel Select Foots witch. DRIVE / CLEAN: Thi s s wit ch is resp onsi bl e f or a ctiv at ing t he DRI VE ci rcuit r y[...]

P A GE 6 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) GAIN: This control adjusts the predominant gain stage in each channel’ s circuit with the function and taper being optimized f or each individual channel. Remember that your LONE ST AR is really two amplifi ers b uilt onto one chassis, so though each channel looks identical, the GAIN cont[...]

P A GE 7 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) TREBLE: As in most tube guitar amplifi ers, the TREBLE control ( in both channels of your LONE ST AR ) is the most powerful of the rotar y controls and is next in line only to the GAIN control as a shaping tool. Because it is fi rst in the signal path of the tone controls - and from here t[...]

P A GE 8 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) B ASS: (Continued) Note: The B ASS control in both channels of y our LONE ST AR is very pow erful and though we hav e taken steps to ensure a balanced tone is easy to achie ve , it is wise to blend with subtle nuance in mind. This is especially tr ue in Channel 2 when using either the regula[...]

P A GE 9 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) 100W / 50W: Channel P ower Select (Contin ued) tone. This sche me w ould be fur ther enhanc ed b y selectin g the TUBE RECTIF IER: TRA CKING setting on the Rear P anel RECTIFIER SELECT switch. Or , you might want the opposite and set Channel 1 to 50 watts of sparkling, y et f orgiving clean [...]

P A GE 10 FRONT PANEL: Controls & Features (Continued) OUTPUT & SOLO CONTROLS: (Continued) SOL O: This contr ol can onl y be activ ated if the correct Foots witch is connected to the F oots witch DIN jack. SOLO is an additional fi nal output le vel control wired in parallel with the OUTPUT control. It is capable of a setting abov e that of[...]

P A GE 11 REAR PANEL: FUSE: This is the A.C . ’ s (Alternating Current) main fuse and provides protection from outside A .C. fl uctuations as well as po wer tube f ailure damage. Should the FUSE b low , replace it with the same rating in a Slo-Blo type package . The domestic U .S. version requires a 4 amp Slo-Blo FUSE . A power tube shor t or fa[...]

P A GE 12 REAR PANEL: (Continued) FX LOOP: Series The LONE ST AR handles outboard processing by providing an on-board patch point between the preamp and power section. This loop is wired such that the dr y signal is in ser ies with the eff ected (wet) signal. The circuit also incor porates a SEND LEVEL control allowing y ou to fi ne tune the outpu[...]

P A GE 13 REAR PANEL: (Continued) REVERB: The LONE ST AR incorporates a stunning analog Re verb circuit that is fi tted with individual Channel Mix controls and a unique Re verb V oicing f eature that off ers a choice between two classic re verb sounds . REVERB BRIGHT produces a vintage guitar amp style brighter sound fi lled with canyons of harm[...]

P A GE 14 BIAS SELECT : (Continued) NO TE: Using the AC POWER switch set to TWEED will reduce the str ain on EL34 tubes (and 6L6 as well). If y ou pref er the sound of this setting, you will reduce the lik elihood of tube problems and g reatly extend their toneful lif e, as the y are basically coasting. NO TE: It is possible to r un the smaller oct[...]

P A GE 15 REAR PANEL: (Continued) REVERB REMO TE JA CK: The Rev erb feature contains a Remote Switch jack that allows y ou to control the Rev erb effect from a separate foots witch. The 1/4” jack is located on the underside of the chassis just below where the SLA VE jack is located on the e xtreme r ight side of the Back P anel. Connecting an y t[...]

P A GE 16 INPUT FT.SW DRIVE CH 1 FT SW CH 2 THICK THICKER CLEAN MAL GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER 100 W 50 W 100 W 50 W OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO NOR F ACT OR Y SAMPLE SETTINGS SAMPLE # 1 SAMPLE # 2 SAMPLE # 3 SAMPLE # 4 INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO DRIVE CH 1 FT SW CH 2 THICK THICKER CLEAN MAL 100 W 50 W 10[...]

P A GE 17 INPUT FT.SW DRIVE CH 1 FT SW CH 2 THICK THICKER CLEAN MAL GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER 100 W 50 W 100 W 50 W OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO NOR F ACT OR Y SAMPLE SETTINGS SAMPLE # 6 SAMPLE # 7 SAMPLE # 8 INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO DRIVE CH 1 FT SW CH 2 THICK THICKER CLEAN MAL 100 W 50 W 100 W 50 W NO[...]

P A GE 18 INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO PERSONAL SETTINGS SHEET SETTING # 1 SETTING # 2 SETTING # 3 SETTING # 4 SETTING # 5 INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER OUTPUT LOOP ON SOLO INPUT FT.SW GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE MASTER [...]

P A GE 19 TUBE NOISE & MICROPHONICS: Y ou ma y occasio nally e xperience some f or m of tube noise or microphonics . Cer tainly no cause f or alar m, this quirky behavior comes with the territor y and the T one. Much like changing a light bulb , you don’t need a technician to cure these types of minor user ser viceable annoy ances and in fact[...]

P A GE 20 DIA GNOSING PRE-AMP TUBE PROBLEMS: Because your amplifi er is an all tube design, it is quite possib le that you will at some point e xperience minor pre-amp tube noise . Rest assured - this is no cause for alarm and y ou can tak e care of the prob lem yourself in a matter of minutes b y simply sw apping tubes. Let us begin by sa ying; I[...]

P A GE 21 LONESTAR 6L6 6L6 REAR OF CHASSIS - viewing chassis from its bottom side NOTE: POWER TUBES ARE HOT ! BEFORE CHANGING TUBES TURN POWER SWITCH TO OFF AND LET COOL OR USE A RAG FOR PROTECTION. TUBE TASK CHART A B A B A B A B A B RCA Jacks for Reverb 6L6 6L6 5U4 COOLING FAN Description of Tube Functions V3 B = FX Loop Return V4 A = Reverb Retu[...]

P A GE 22 BIAS ADJUSTMENT : (P ar t of a continuing series) An Ar ticle wr itten by Randall Smith that we thought y ou might fi nd interesting. Here’ s a question we often hear: “Wh y doesn’t Mesa put bias adjustments Mesa put bias adjustments Mesa in their amplifi ers?” W ell, there’ s a shor t ans wer and a long ans wer to this questi[...]

P A GE 23 BIAS ADJUSTMENT : (Continued) control gr ids. V oltage and current are NO T the same. Current is the AMOUNT of electricity , the “quantity” — and is measured in amperes. V oltage is the degree of electr ic charge — lik e the “pressure” to use the old w ater analogy . Let me illustrate ho w different v oltage and current are: W[...]

P A GE 24 BIAS ADJUSTMENT : (Continued) Again, this has some mer it .. b ut it’ s still not as good as using tubes that are matched in the fi rst place because compensating for the mis-match causes the push-pull circuit itself to become unbalanced. T wo wrongs don’t really make a right. Some of the other recommended biasing, “methods” — [...]

P A GE 25 SPEAKER IMPED ANCE MA TCHING & HOOK-UP GUIDE: IMPED ANCE: Wir ing up speak ers to provide the most eff ective load and making sure that all of them are in phase will help in creating the best sound possible . This is not too diffi cult, as long as you understand a f ew things about loading and how to connect your speak ers to provide[...]

P A GE 26 SPEAKER IMPED ANCE MA TCHING & HOOK-UP GUIDE: (Contin ued) P ARALLEL: When wiring in parallel, the resistance of the speakers decreases . T w o 8 ohm speakers wired in ( hooked-up ) P arallel results in a 4 ohm load. It’ s easy to calculate the effect of a resistiv e load when all the speak ers are all the same resistance. It is rea[...]

P A GE 27 1 2 5 4 4 Ohm Cabinet 3 8 OHM 4 OHM 4 OHM Partial back view of some Mesa amp 8 Ohm Cabinet SAFE MISMATCH WIRING SCHEMES...Amplifier to Speaker Cabinets 4 OHM 8 OHM 16 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 16 Ohm Cabinet 4 OHM 8 OHM 16 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 16 Ohm Cabinet SAFE MISMATCH 8 OHM 4 OHM 4 OHM Partial back view of ampli[...]

P A GE 28 8 OHM 4 OHM 4 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 8 Ohm Cabinet 8 Ohm Cabinet 6 8 Ohm Cabinet 16 Ohm Cabinet 8 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier SAFE MISMATCH 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier SERIES BOX 8 Ohm 4 Ohm 4 Ohm 4 Ohm Cabinet 4 Ohm Cabinet 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier PARALLEL BOX 8 Ohm 16 Oh[...]

P A GE 29 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 8 Ohm Cabinet 8 Ohm Cabinet SERIES BOX 16 Ohm 8 Ohm 8 Ohm 8 Ohm Cabinet 10 SAFE MISMATCH 12 4 OHM 4 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 16 Ohm Cabinet 16 Ohm Cabinet 11 8 OHM 8 Ohm Cabinet 16 Ohm Cabinet 16 Ohm Cabinet 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amp PARALLEL BOX 8 Ohm 16 Ohm 16 O[...]

P A GE 30 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 8 Ohm Cabinet 8 Ohm Cabinet SERIES BOX 16 Ohm 8 Ohm 8 Ohm 16 Ohm Cabinet 13 SAFE MISMATCH WIRING SCHEMES...Amplifier to Speaker Cabinets 4 OHM 4 OHM 8 OHM Partial back view of amplifier 16 Ohm Cabinet 16 Ohm Cabinet PARALLEL BOX 8 Ohm 16 Ohm 16 Ohm 16 Ohm Cabinet SAFE MISMATCH 14[...]

P A GE 31 ON TRIODES, PENTODES & IRISHMEN: With apologies to F riends and Relatives from the Emer ald Isle - who will make their appearance soon enough - the humor which f ollows is dedicated to the memories of Spec McAuliff and F ae (Rafael) McNally , two of the T r ue Greats. As their numerical ref erences suggest, the ter ms Diode, T riode a[...]

P A GE 32 ON TRIODES, PENTODES & IRISHMEN: (Continued) Thus a diode tube - one with a cathode and an anode - is mostly used to rectify alter nating current into direct current by passing it without restriction, b ut in one direction only . This also explains wh y closing time is strictly enforced at Irish pubs: During nor mal operation, the tra[...]

P A GE 33 PENT ODES: (Continued) Thus the proper coc ktail waitress - visible through the louv ers - is scantily clad so as to be all the more eff ective at reinf orcing the attractiv e infl uence of her bar and by being located in betw een the door and the bar , she ser ves as bait to lure customers past the door’ s negativ e infl uence. Once [...]

P A GE 34 REAR VIEW : LONE ST AR WARNING: Unplug powe r before replacing fuse or removing bolts mounting chassis SLA VE PO WER FUSE 4 A SLO BLO 120 V~ 60 Hz 4 A WER FUSE FUSE FUSE SEND RETURN NORMAL MIN SEND LEVEL TUBE LOCA TIONS 1 x 5U4 4 x 6L6 1 x 5U4 4 x 6L6 LOOP IN HARD BYP ASS O O G I E B M ESA LONE ST AR CH 2 REVERB CH 1 REVERB BRIGHT REV W A[...]

The Spirit of Art in Technology O O G I E B M ESA 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 1317 Ross Street Petaluma, CA 94954 USA (707) 778-6565 FAX NO. (707) 765-1503 9/07/06[...]