Available Now at Northeast Music Center!

MESA/Boogie Subway WD-800 Bass Amplifier Head w/ Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 Vertical Cabinet

Tube warmth, enormous headroom, serious tonal control, and an 800-watt 2x12 cabinet designed to take everything the WD-800 can deliver. This MESA/Boogie Subway rig combines the WalkAbout-inspired tube preamp of the WD-800 with the punch, fullness, projection, and portability of the Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 Vertical cabinet.

For the bassist looking for a complete professional MESA rig without the weight traditionally associated with big-power bass amplification, this combination makes tremendous sense.

The MESA/Boogie Subway WD-800 delivers 800 watts at 4 or 2 ohms and 400 watts at 8 ohms, using a two-stage Class A tube preamp built around a MESA 12AT7 feeding a lightweight Class D power section. MESA specifically developed the WD-800 by combining the warm, soulful character of its celebrated WalkAbout tube preamp with the power and portability of the Subway platform.

Pair it with the Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 Vertical, and the system becomes beautifully matched: the cabinet is a 4-ohm, 800-watt RMS design, allowing the WD-800 to deliver its full 800-watt output into a single cabinet.

Available from Northeast Music Center, this is a serious bass rig built for the player who wants warmth and character without sacrificing modern power, articulation, portability, or control.

KEY FEATURES — COMPLETE RIG:

• MESA/Boogie Subway WD-800 Bass Amplifier Head
• MESA/Boogie Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 Vertical Bass Cabinet
• 800 watts @ 4 ohms
• Perfect electrical match: 4-ohm cabinet / full 800-watt amplifier output
• Class A tube preamp
• 1 × MESA 12AT7 preamp tube
• Lightweight Class D power section
• Variable 25Hz–125Hz High-Pass Filter
• Fully active 5-band EQ architecture
• 3-band semi-parametric EQ
• Passive Mid control
• Variable Power Amp Damping
• Balanced XLR DI
• Headphone output
• Auxiliary input
• USB power outlet
• 2 × SpeakON amplifier outputs
• WD-800 gig bag with shoulder strap included
• 2 × Subway Neodymium 12" speakers
• High-frequency horn
• Premium horn attenuator
• Tuned front-ported Tri-Porting™ cabinet
• Lightweight Italian poplar cabinet construction
• 800-watt RMS cabinet power handling
• 4-ohm cabinet impedance
• 100.2dB average sensitivity
• 129.7dB maximum SPL
• Cabinet fitted slipcover included
• Built in Petaluma, California

THE WALKABOUT SOUL — REIMAGINED FOR THE MODERN BASSIST

The WD-800 has an interesting place in MESA's bass history.

MESA didn't simply take one of its existing Subway amplifiers and insert a tube.

The inspiration came from the WalkAbout, an amplifier remembered for its warm, round, harmonically rich tube-preamp character.

Players wanted that personality with considerably more power and the portability of MESA's newer Subway architecture.

MESA listened.

The WD-800 combines a two-stage Class A vacuum-tube preamp with the company's lightweight Class D output architecture, creating a hybrid amplifier capable of delivering vintage-inspired warmth with modern power and control.

800 WATTS — AND THIS CABINET LETS YOU USE ALL OF IT

This is one of the most important advantages of this particular package.

The WD-800 delivers:

400 Watts @ 8 Ohms

800 Watts @ 4 Ohms

800 Watts @ 2 Ohms

The Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 Vertical is:

4 Ohms

with:

800 Watts RMS power handling.

That means connecting this cabinet to the WD-800 allows the amplifier to deliver its full 800-watt rated output into a cabinet designed to handle 800 watts RMS.

That's an exceptionally logical pairing.

No second cabinet is required to access the amplifier's full rated output.

One head.

One cabinet.

800 watts.

TWO-STAGE CLASS A TUBE PREAMP

Inside the WD-800 is a genuine:

MESA 12AT7

operating within a two-stage Class A vacuum-tube preamp.

That's fundamental to the personality of this amplifier.

The WD-800 isn't trying to be an ultra-neutral bass head.

It's designed to have character.

There's warmth.

Dimension.

Harmonic complexity.

And a slightly rounder, more organic response that connects the WD-800 to the WalkAbout amplifier that helped inspire it.

For bassists who appreciate the convenience of lightweight amplification but sometimes miss the dimensional character of older tube-based rigs, the WD-800 occupies a particularly interesting middle ground.

SERIOUS EQ CONTROL

Warmth doesn't mean giving up precision.

The WD-800 provides a remarkably comprehensive EQ section built around:

Bass

Passive Mid

Treble

plus a selectable/bypassable:

3-Band Semi-Parametric EQ.

The three sweepable mid bands cover approximately:

80Hz–1kHz

150Hz–2.5kHz

300Hz–5kHz.

That gives the player tremendous control over the frequencies that determine how a bass actually sits in a mix.

Need more fundamental body?

You have control.

Need to remove an unpleasant room resonance?

Find it and pull it down.

Need additional articulation from a five-string or active instrument?

You have the tools.

The WD-800 gives you warmth without taking away precision.

VARIABLE HIGH-PASS FILTER

One of the most useful controls on a modern professional bass amplifier is also one of the least glamorous:

The High-Pass Filter.

The WD-800 provides a continuously variable 25Hz–125Hz HPF.

This lets you remove unnecessary extreme low-frequency energy before it consumes amplifier and speaker power.

In a difficult room, the HPF can help control boom.

With certain instruments, it can tighten the response.

And when playing loudly, it can help the cabinet concentrate more of its available output on frequencies that actually contribute to the musical sound.

It's an extremely useful professional tool.

POWER AMP DAMPING — CHANGE THE FEEL, NOT JUST THE EQ

This is one of the WD-800's most interesting features.

The variable Power Amp Damping control changes how tightly the power amplifier controls the loudspeaker.

MESA describes the lower damping range as producing a looser, more relaxed and blooming response reminiscent of tube amplification.

Increase the damping and the low end becomes tighter, punchier and more accurately controlled.

The middle range provides a blend of the two personalities.

That's important because this isn't simply another EQ control.

It changes the relationship between amplifier and speaker.

Want vintage-inspired bloom?

Move one direction.

Want modern precision and tight tracking?

Move the other.

That's a sophisticated way of tailoring the rig to your instrument and playing style.

THE SUBWAY ULTRA-LITE 2x12 VERTICAL

Then we get to the cabinet.

And this isn't simply two 12-inch speakers in a box.

MESA designed the Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 to combine qualities players traditionally associate with several different bass-speaker formats.

MESA describes the cabinet as combining the punch associated with 10-inch speakers, warmth and fullness reminiscent of 15s, and a musical midrange particularly well suited to pick-style playing.

That's exactly what makes the 2x12 format so appealing.

There's substantial low-frequency authority.

But there's also speed.

Midrange presence.

Projection.

And enough high-frequency extension to work with modern instruments.

TWO SUBWAY NEODYMIUM 12" SPEAKERS

The cabinet uses:

2 × MESA Subway Neodymium 12-inch speakers

mounted in a tuned front-ported enclosure.

Neodymium construction helps MESA achieve serious output while controlling cabinet weight.

And these aren't generic drivers dropped into a lightweight box.

The speakers, porting, enclosure dimensions, crossover, and horn system are designed as a complete cabinet.

That's important at Northeast Music Center, because we want customers to understand that the cabinet is every bit as important to a professional bass rig as the amplifier sitting on top of it.

TRI-PORTING™

The cabinet uses MESA's tuned front-ported Tri-Porting™ architecture.

This allows the enclosure and speakers to work together to produce the low-frequency extension and efficiency expected from a serious bass cabinet while maintaining a manageable footprint.

Published low-frequency performance includes:

F3: 57Hz

F6: 49.1Hz

F10: 43.5Hz

with high-frequency response extending beyond:

12kHz.

That's a broad useful range from one relatively compact cabinet.

HIGH-FREQUENCY HORN WITH ATTENUATOR

The Subway 2x12 also includes a dedicated high-frequency horn with premium attenuation control.

That's especially important for players using:

Active basses.

Slap techniques.

Modern strings.

Extended-range instruments.

Pick attack.

Effects.

The horn allows the cabinet to reproduce the upper-frequency information those sounds require, while the attenuator lets you decide how much high-frequency presence actually reaches the room.

129.7dB MAXIMUM SPL

This cabinet can move some air.

MESA publishes average sensitivity of:

100.2dB @ 1W/1M

and maximum SPL of:

129.7dB @ 1 meter.

Those numbers help explain why the Subway 2x12 can function as a legitimate professional standalone cabinet rather than merely a lightweight rehearsal enclosure.

Pair that efficiency with 800 watts from the WD-800 and you've got a rig capable of serious stage output.

LIGHTWEIGHT — BUT NOT LIGHT-DUTY

The WD-800 weighs only:

7 lbs.

The 2x12 cabinet weighs:

52 lbs.

So the complete amplifier-and-cabinet system weighs approximately:

59 lbs.

Think about that.

A professional:

800-watt

tube-preamp

2x12

MESA bass rig at roughly 59 pounds total.

Not long ago, a single high-powered bass cabinet could easily weigh more than this entire system.

That's a major advantage for working musicians.

BUILT IN PETALUMA, CALIFORNIA

Both the WD-800 and Subway Ultra-Lite 2x12 are built in Petaluma, California.

The cabinet uses lightweight Italian poplar, while the amplifier uses a lightweight aluminum chassis.

This is a purpose-built professional system designed around a very clear goal:

Deliver serious MESA bass tone and stage-level performance without forcing the player to transport yesterday's heavyweight rig.

That's exactly why this combination makes so much sense to us at Northeast Music Center.

ONE COMPLETE PROFESSIONAL BASS RIG

The WD-800 gives you:

Tube warmth.

800 watts.

Power Amp Damping.

Variable HPF.

Extensive parametric EQ.

The Subway 2x12 gives you:

Two Neodymium 12s.

800-watt RMS handling.

4-ohm impedance.

Horn and attenuator.

Compact vertical footprint.

Put them together and you have something more important than an impressive specification sheet.

You have a properly matched bass system.

At Northeast Music Center, that's what makes this package so attractive.

It's powerful enough for serious professional use.

Flexible enough for very different instruments and playing styles.

Warm enough for players who miss the personality of older tube rigs.

And portable enough that you won't dread moving it before and after every gig.

One 12AT7. Two Neodymium 12s. 800 watts. One beautifully matched MESA bass rig.

 

 

Northeast Music Center is a full line Music retailer located in Northeast Pennsylvania- We are an Authorized Mesa Boogie Dealer and purchase these products direct from MESA HEADQUARTERS IN PETALUMA CALIFORNIA. We do not obtain our MESA AMPLIFIERS or other MESA products from "jobbers" or other dealers. Our MESA AMPLIFIERS AND CABINETS come to you in the factory boxes with factory packing material. We will, upon request, and also randomly, open the box prior to shipping to check that all contents are included and that no damage has been found in shipping from MESA to our Store location. Northeast Music Center does reserve the right to sell these products in our store to daily walk in customers. It is our goal to always have this product in stock and if for any reason we sell out, we will reorder immediately as long as this MESA AMPLIFIER is currently produced for resale by the company. We will order the amplifier in a ample quantity to fill your order. It is our goal to make your experience a good one; We invite you to ask any and all questions about this product.  Please do not purchase this item if you can not pay. This is a new Mesa with full 5 Year factory warranty to the Original Owner. 3 Year Warranty on Speakers.