Randall Smith fired from Mesa?

[narad]

It's a bit rumor-y at this point, but seems for sure he is leaving and insider sources say pushed out. This does not bode well:

Is This the End of an Era? Randall Smith Out of Mesa Boogie

Amplifier legend Randall Smith has reportedly been fired from Mesa Boogie. Learn about the potential impact on the amp industry and what could be next for the renowned designer.

guitarbomb.com

 

[soul_lip_mike]

Interdasting. I wonder why.

 

[AussieTerry]

Yes.

 

[Crungy]

If he doesn't start an amp company called Besa Moogie....

 

[nerdywhale]

If he doesn't start an amp company called Besa Moogie....

What about simply… “Randall?”

 

[Furtive Glance]

Without even reading the article and going entirely off speculation I’m gonna blame Gibson for ruining something else.

 

[crushingpetal]

I was just thinking yesterday how Gibson wasn't just milking the Mesa name, and not a lot has come out from Mesa in the last two years. Also speculation, I wonder if Randall was blocking whatever stupid ideas Gibson was proposing.

If it's true, it's dumb.

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

Are we getting a YouTuber signature Quadruple Rectifier?

 

[MaxOfMetal]

I trust Ryan Bruce about as much as I like his tone.

One of the reasons Randall Smith gave for selling to Gibson was that he, 75 years old at the time and now almost 80, was looking to retire in the near future.

What role he even still had at Mesa post sale doesn't seem to be entirely clear either.

If he wanted to do this until he's 90, he probably shouldn't have sold in the first place, but the dude is a legend. I like to think that he's riding off into the sunset to live out the rest of his days in a nice beach villa building Mk1 clones for the rich for five figures a pop while sipping maitais.

 

[G_3_3_k_]

What about simply… “Randall?”

Smith would work in all seriousness. Dude’s pretty old though. I wonder if he’ll just retire.

Without even reading the article and going entirely off speculation I’m gonna blame Gibson for ruining something else.

It’s not hard to believe. Guessing we have Mesa/Boogie headphones and Bluetooth speakers to look forward to.

I was just thinking yesterday how Gibson wasn't just milking the Mesa name, and not a lot has come out from Mesa in the last two years. Also speculation, I wonder if Randall was blocking whatever stupid ideas Gibson was proposing.

If it's true, it's dumb.

I wish I could say I wasn’t expecting this, but I was expecting this. Gibson wants to be a legacy brand associated with high end consumer goods and nostalgia for the glory days of rock. Selling Mesa to Gibson was a mistake. These situations when larger corpo companies come in and buy the smaller company and say “you keep running the company, we won’t change anything.” Until they want to change things. Peavey did it with Budda. It happened with Gibson before. It happened with Marshall. Outside of guitar shit, it happened recently with Bungie (though for good reason in this case). Disney has done it to Marvel. The problem with guitar people is that we don’t forget that stuff. That’s why there’s a market for certain manufacturing eras of guitars or there’s a higher asking price for a pre peavey Budda.

 

[Hollowway]

I wish I could say I wasn’t expecting this, but I was expecting this. Gibson wants to be a legacy brand associated with high end consumer goods and nostalgia for the glory days of rock. Selling Mesa to Gibson was a mistake. These situations when larger corpo companies come in and buy the smaller company and say “you keep running the company, we won’t change anything.” Until they want to change things. Peavey did it with Budda. It happened with Gibson before. It happened with Marshall. Outside of guitar shit, it happened recently with Bungie (though for good reason in this case). Disney has done it to Marvel. The problem with guitar people is that we don’t forget that stuff. That’s why there’s a market for certain manufacturing eras of guitars or there’s a higher asking price for a pre peavey Budda.

That's all true, but I can't say I blame him (Randy) for it. He build an epic, well respected, presumably profitable company. Not many people or corps could afford to buy it. And the dude deserves to make whatever he can on the company, because he sure paid his dues running that thing so well. There aren't many companies that have the amount of goodwill Mesa does.

 

[G_3_3_k_]

That's all true, but I can't say I blame him (Randy) for it. He build an epic, well respected, presumably profitable company. Not many people or corps could afford to buy it. And the dude deserves to make whatever he can on the company, because he sure paid his dues running that thing so well. There aren't many companies that have the amount of goodwill Mesa does.

Oh sure. I agree he deserves his retirement and the money. He built his empire.

 

[Crungy]

There aren't many companies that have the amount of goodwill Mesa does.

Honest question to that point, because I don't actually know: did Mesa ever really have a shit period like Fender or Gibson?

 

[Rubbishplayer]

His poor judgement (if he wanted to preserve Mesa's legacy) in selling to Gibson notwithstanding, Randall deserves to cash-in. I wish him all the best.

I'm sure some of his ex-apprentices will fill the void.

 

[oracles]

Pretty sure Steve Fryette mentioned in a recent Malcontents live stream that Randall was retiring?

I'd be substantially more inclined to trust Steve than I would Fluff.

 

[G_3_3_k_]

His poor judgement (if he wanted to preserve Mesa's legacy) in selling to Gibson notwithstanding, Randall deserves to cash-in. I wish him all the best.

I'm sure some of his ex-apprentices will fill the void.

I just see Gibson reducing quality to make more money and making lifestyle products with the company name on them that no one asked for. And for expanding the signature amps line. Which Randall never really wanted to do.

 

[technomancer]

I trust Ryan Bruce about as much as I like his tone.

One of the reasons Randall Smith gave for selling to Gibson was that he, 75 years old at the time and now almost 80, was looking to retire in the near future.

What role he even still had at Mesa post sale doesn't seem to be entirely clear either.

If he wanted to do this until he's 90, he probably shouldn't have sold in the first place, but the dude is a legend. I like to think that he's riding off into the sunset to live out the rest of his days in a nice beach villa building Mk1 clones for the rich for five figures a pop while sipping maitais.

So much this.

Honest question to that point, because I don't actually know: did Mesa ever really have a shit period like Fender or Gibson?

With players? Not really. With amp designers / techs? All of them

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

Honest question to that point, because I don't actually know: did Mesa ever really have a shit period like Fender or Gibson?

Nah they were pretty damn consistent. The only thing you can PROBABLY consider a "flop era" is maybe the MkIIA-MKIIB era in 1982 but that's pretty brief and from what I can tell people still liked those amps atthe time for the most part

 

[MaxOfMetal]

I just see Gibson reducing quality to make more money and making lifestyle products with the company name on them that no one asked for. And for expanding the signature amps line. Which Randall never really wanted to do.

It's been close to half a decade and all the doom and gloom about the Gibson acquisition has yet to materialize.

They've been coming out with steady iterations of the core amp line with smaller targeted releases at roughly the same pace Mesa has always moved at, and I haven't heard of any quality of material or workmanship issues becoming more prevalent. Has anyone?

I know folks are chomping at the bit for this to go pear shaped, and maybe under the last management regime at Gibson it would have been more likely, but as of now it feels like if that was going to happen a) it would have already, and b) Randall Smith's employment status probably wouldn't be what moves the needle in either direction.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

Also I would ask "Who the fuck is Guitar Bomb?" but the last time I questioned the credibility of a website... they were right re: the Dean fiasco last year lol

But otoh I know Fluff loves his drama so I wouldn't be surprised if he's blowing shit out or proportion lol