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The trick with the lower wattage modes on the V is to respect them as there own unique tonal pallets, not just “make amp quieter” switches

if you have l you good settings at 90 watt modes use the master volume to go quieter

If you want to explore the rich and new tonal variations offerred by the lower wattage modes use that as a starting point to dial in new tones, not to neuter 90 watt tones
 
Desertdweller said:
Don’t do this. I don’t need a Mark V as well lol - this sounds awesome actually and I never knew this about the full size V.
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Not to worry dude... it's also available in the VII in 25 Watt mode.

KMM2Nvd.png
 
Another interesting bit in the Mark V manual is that they recommend you change the speaker impedance if you regularly use the 45W mode. I guess there's an impedance drop when set to half power mode, which is not uncommon on tube amps with this kind of feature. My Bogner Goldfinger was the same.

While the Mesa can handle the mismatch just fine without changing impedance, you would get a better tone in 45W mode by dropping from 8 -> 4 ohm.

Speaker Impedance has a large sonic effect on the sounds as the MARK V power section is switched between its’ three different Modes. We prefer a matching 8 Ohm speaker load connected to the 8 Ohm SPEAKER OUTPUT for the most balanced sound and overall performance in all 3 Channels. However, the Simul-Class™ Output Section is a mysterious animal and will produce some interesting and musical results when different loads are applied.

One favorite is connecting the 8 Ohm speaker load to the 4 Ohm SPEAKER OUTPUT when using the 45 Watt (Half Power) setting. Feel free to experiment with different load combinations. You can’t hurt your amplifier and you may discover an impedance scenario that, though is a technical “mismatch”,produces a unique response that fits your needs. The only penalty might be that your power tubes can wear a bit faster with certain load conditions, usually with mismatches in the low direction (4 Ohm load on the 8 Ohm OUTPUT).

Mesa manuals are dangerous reads because you kinda get interested in buying one of them. I've been half-assedly considering a Mark V 90W 1x12 combo I've seen on the local market, but it's quite expensive and I'm not even sure if I want a Mark V in the first place!
 
On the Mark V, the 10watt and 45watt modes definitely make a difference to the final tone, when the volume is set to match what you had in 90w mode. It is a very interactive and opinionated amplifier, which I love.

The only other amp I've tried that had a similar feature that actually works well is the Orange Rockerverb MKIII, and the built in attenuator. It is fantastic for turning stuff down, but also for enabling you to explore a whole boatload of tones on the clean channel; you can get Plexi-ish gain tones from it by cranking the gain and the volume knobs full whack. It can also help crank the volume on the gain channel, which brings out more brightness and cut, I'm presuming as a specific downstream gain stage gets more saturated.

Before I got the Mark V, I saw those Boogie 5 band EQ pedals and thought they were a bit of a gimmick. But now actually I'm interested in getting one so that I could stick it in the effects loop of some of my other amps to experiment with.
 
Orvillain said:
Before I got the Mark V, I saw those Boogie 5 band EQ pedals and thought they were a bit of a gimmick. But now actually I'm interested in getting one so that I could stick it in the effects loop of some of my other amps to experiment with.
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I've been keeping an eye out for one but they seem pretty rare and when they do pop up prices seem pretty absurd

The HX model of that EQ is amazing with my III (its a non GEQ model) but I tried it out with my badlander and 5153 and was not digging any of the results at all lol
 
spawnofthesith said:
Very stoked for you :love

They have slider caps in the Mesa parts store, but they're the newer shape thats a bit different so if you have OCD you'd possibly want to replace all 5 lol

https://store.mesaboogie.com/products/knob-408550-graphic-eq-slider.html

My old red stripe was missing several and I could never find any OGs for sale or exact reproductions available
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Marked for later. Thanks! Once I get it in; I'll probably just spend the $10 so it matches.
EOengineer said:
Which configuration? Simul?

Blue Stripes are absolutely brutal, but I’m biased.
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It's the 60 watter so no simulclass. I've been reading the manual and brainstorming how I am going to approach it. Been watching some vids and hope to hit the ground running \m/
 
JiveTurkey said:
Marked for later. Thanks! Once I get it in; I'll probably just spend the $10 so it matches.

It's the 60 watter so no simulclass. I've been reading the manual and brainstorming how I am going to approach it. Been watching some vids and hope to hit the ground running \m/
Click to expand...
Are you just in it for the brutalz or trying to cover a lot of ground?
 
Going to have my first band practice with the III tomorrow... took a lot of will power to not bring it last week and do my HX experiment instead :LOL:

Kinda eager to get past this EP recording and "new material writing" break and get back to gigging too. It's only been a little over a month since last gig but I'm starting to feel antsy now. Have a growing que of amps that need to be stage tested lol
 
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