Mesa/Boogie DC5 manual

Owner's Manual The Spirit of Art in Technology 1317 Ross Street, Petaluma, CA 94954 USA M B OO G I E ESA D UAL C ALIBER DC - 5[...]

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 dow[...]

T ABLE OF CONTENTS Precautions Overview ______________________________________________________________________________ 1 FRONT P ANEL: _________________________________________________________________________ 1 Power-Up ______________________________________________________________________________ 2 CONTROLS: Gain __________________________________[...]

Y our Mesa/Boogie Amplifier is a professional instrument. Please treat it with respect and operate it properly . USE COMMON SENSE AND AL W A YS 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 co[...]

P AGE 1 DC-5 Operating Instructions Y our 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 po wer tubes to fuel its healthy fifty watt power section. [...]

P AGE 2 First familiarize yourself with the layout of the Front Panel and locate the Lead / Rhythm switch on the right side of the chas sis, next to the ST ANDBY 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 swi[...]

P AGE 3 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 maki ng the two channels easier to balance in volume and effects send strength. By now you have probably [...]

P AGE 4 This control blends in the lower frequencies and its effectiveness, again, depends on the setting of the TREBLE Control. It sho uld be set with moderation as extreme settings in either low or high directions can produce an unbalanced tone. Be “especially” carefu l in higher Gain settings of either channel. T oo much Bass will cause a fl[...]

P AGE 5 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 MAST ER Controls set to 0 and gradually increase them to the proper level. This minimi[...]

P AGE 6 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 retur n level control, a point we thought you should know . This design element mak[...]

P AGE 7 This is the A.C.’s (Alternating Current) main fuse and provides electrical current protection from outside A.C. fluctuations, a s well as power tube failure damage. Should the FUSE blow , replace it with the same rating in a slo-blo type package. The domestic U.S. version requires a 2.5 amp slo-blo fuse. A power tube short or failure is o[...]

P AGE 8 These two 1/4" jacks are the patch point for external effects. The Effects Loop is wired in parallel with the normal signal. C onnect the SEND jack to your Effects Input jack. Connect the RETURN jack to the Output jack of your ef fect. The Effects Loop is a patch point between the pre-amp and power section. Therefore, the Return jack c[...]

P AGE 9 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 SlA VE, it can[...]

P AGE 10 SUGGESTED SAMPLE SETTINGS GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER PULL BOOST INPUT FOOT SWITCH 80 240 750 2200 6600 OUTPUT LEVEL DC-5 C ALIBER D UA L 5 5 1 4 2 2 4 3 STANDBY POWER LEAD ON ON RHYTHM GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER PULL BOOST INPUT FOOT SWITCH 80 240 750 2200 6600 OUTPUT LEVEL DC-5 C ALIBER D UA L 8 7 720 3 4[...]

P AGE 1 1 GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER PULL BOOST INPUT FOOT SWITCH 80 240 750 2200 6600 OUTPUT LEVEL DC-5 C ALIBER D UA L 5 5 1 4 2 2 4 STANDBY POWER LEAD ON ON RHYTHM GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER PULL BOOST INPUT FOOT SWITCH 80 240 750 2200 6600 OUTPUT LEVEL DC-5 C ALIBER D UA L 5 5 1 4 2 2 4 STANDBY POWER LEAD ON ON[...]

P AGE 12 Y ou may occasionally experience some form of tube noise or microphonics. Certainly no cause for alarm, this quirky behavior comes with the territory and the T one. 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 cur[...]

P AGE 13 Because your amplifier is an all tube design, it is quite possible that you will at some point experience minor pre-amp tube no ise. 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 tu bes. Let us begin by saying; It is a “very good” idea to keep at least [...]

P AGE 14 NOTE: An article written by Randall Smith that we thought you might find interesting. 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. The short answer is that during my 12 years of repairing Fenders, one of the most fre[...]

P AGE 15 V oltage and current are NOT the same. Current is the AMOUNT of electricity , the “quantity” — and is measured in amperes. V olt age 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[...]

P AGE 16 Some of the other recommended biasing, “methods” — such as -”.. tubes running red hot, increase the bias .. sounds harsh and ru ns too cool, turn it down ...” are guesswork at best. Luckily , one of the great things about tube amps is that they can usually s tand some abuse without causing any real harm ... at least not immediate[...]

P AGE 17 GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER PULL BOOST INPUT FOOT SWITCH 80 240 750 2200 6600 OUTPUT LEVEL STANDBY POWER LEAD ON ON RHYTHM DC-5 C ALIBER D UA L DC 5 Front View JACK pt# LED LIGHT pt# KNOB pt# (all knobs) POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# POT pt# EQ SLIDER[...]

The Spirit of Art in Technology OO GI E B M ESA Thank you for trusting MESA/Boogie to be your amplifie r 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[...]