EOengineer
Rock Star
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If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.'81 IIB, 60/100, Graphic, no mods...my main amp for the last 42 years. Probably won't sell until I can't do it anymore...by "it" I mean able to lift it.
View attachment 43059
TGF Official Amp Mesa Boogie Mark series. Join the fun and get one today!
- Thread starter CorrosiveMatter
- Start date
newholland
Roadie
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- 554
ive heard mark i's sound absolutely deplorable, but ive also head them sound just outrageously great! weirdest amps ever until you get them.
laxu
Rock Star
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I really wish there was some mod you could do to it to shave off like half the bass because even bass on zero is a lot. It'll hog the graphic EQ to correct that because it needs so different settings from other channels.
I think it works best as a mid-gain lead type thing rather than going for high gain. It's definitely the weirdest mode on the amp, and easiest to make it sound terrible.
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For sure.
I reckon dedicating the FX loop to that channel when using that mode, and chucking a GEQ into the loop, is probably the best approach.
When you handle the bassiness of it, it does sound quite different compared to Edge and Crunch, so it is definitely worth exploring.
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@SillyOctpuss the MXR Reverb 'Mod' mode has the same issue really. Even with the tone control tits'd, it is still rolled off and soft sounding.
Out of all of these pedals, the only ones that you could even really begin to describe as Kevin Shields-y Mogwai in your face post-rock epicness.... is the RV5 and the MercuryX.
The others are just far too subtle.
Out of all of these pedals, the only ones that you could even really begin to describe as Kevin Shields-y Mogwai in your face post-rock epicness.... is the RV5 and the MercuryX.
The others are just far too subtle.
laxu
Rock Star
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Absolutely.
I really wish the fx loop had options like "use this for channels 1/2, 2/3, 1/3 instead of "all, f.sw or one of them".
MIDI control for channel switching and a MIDI controllable EQ would probably be the best workaround.
SillyOctpuss
Rock Star
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So two things.
1- If I get them cheap enough I'll probably keep both. I have a real soft spot for the plate on the MXR
2 - They're both small enough that having both on my board for different things would be fine and...
Oh ok three things
3 - wrong thread dude
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Oopsie!!!So two things.
1- If I get them cheap enough I'll probably keep both. I have a real soft spot for the plate on the MXR
2 - They're both small enough that having both on my board for different things would be fine and...
Oh ok three things
3 - wrong thread dude
- Messages
- 8,354
Can I talk to you, this fine Sunday, about our lord and saviour, Randall Smith. Designer of the Mesa Boogie Mark V amplifier, the vessel within the vessel within, where molten tone is forged and channeled through sacred circuitry, bestowing upon mortal guitarists the divine power to whisper, wail, and roar with the voice of the gods themselves. The Mesa Boogie Mark V is not merely an amplifier—it is an altar of sonic alchemy, where shimmering cleans, chewy crunches, and apocalyptic leads coalesce in reverent harmony. Randall Smith, in his infinite tonal wisdom, etched into this amp the legacy of decades, wrapping the soul of the Mark I, IIC+, and IV into a single chassis like scripture carved in steel. Praise be to the multi-watt, the tri-mode channels, and the sacred 5-band EQ—eternal be thy tubes, glorious be thy tone stack.
newholland
Roadie
- Messages
- 554
i think this isnt quite a mark i, but to my mind this is the thing theyre way best at- which kinda does exatly the 'midgain thing' laxu was talking about!
this is kinda the genius of earlier marks as far as im concerned.
Mikael Dez
Shredder
- Messages
- 1,338
I spent the last week just running plugins and models in my QC, purely laziness etc.
I got such great tones and here and there I’d think “do I really need that amp head I bought?”
Cranked it up today and spent a couple hours with it. Yes, I do need this amp.
I got such great tones and here and there I’d think “do I really need that amp head I bought?”
Cranked it up today and spent a couple hours with it. Yes, I do need this amp.
laxu
Rock Star
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- 7,234
I think that's closer to e.g "Blackface with an overdrive pedal" territory, just possible with the amp alone. I'd probably use Ch1 Tweed mode on the Mark V to seek those type of tones.
To me the Mark V's Mark 1 mode is good for up to Carlos Santana level lead tones. It's that cutting, kinda nasal tone that will sound great in a mix. Something like this:
But push it more, especially with more treble, and it starts to sound a bit ugly, like each tube stage is getting pushed too hard so you can hear some sort of "scratchy" character behind the note that is not there in ch3 which has more cascaded gain stages.
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TIL that Acoustic made a mark III clone in the 80s. I guess mesa shut that down super quick so they're extremely uncommon
One popped up on my marketplace (no I'm not buying it lol) but kind of surprised how shockingly little info/discussion there is out there on these. Mesa must of cracked down before too many got out the door
One popped up on my marketplace (no I'm not buying it lol) but kind of surprised how shockingly little info/discussion there is out there on these. Mesa must of cracked down before too many got out the door
- Messages
- 17,469
You are a far superior proselytizer of the Glory that is the Mark V than I could ever hope to be.
I'll be the Sancho Panza to your Don Quixote.
Mikael Dez
Shredder
- Messages
- 1,338
I kinda love the sound of the fan whirring up while it sits in standby 
EOengineer
Rock Star
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- 2,632
Really enjoyed this, probably because I’m using a very similar approach playing ambience and delay in front of the amp as basically its own instrument.
I’m usually using Particle Verb and Cosmos Echo for those sounds over in Helix land, but loved some of the stuff you had going on around the 10 minute mark.
Great stuff.
laxu
Rock Star
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- 7,234
Is it weird that I keep chasing my BluGuitar sounds out of the Mark V? I felt I was getting stellar tones from the Mark V into my 4x10 with 10" Greenbacks today, but then I plug in my BluGuitar and it feels like it's got another thing going that I enjoy even more.
There's just something that makes the Mark V more "precise" feeling but also not have the raunch of the Marshall-based BluGuitar. Like I'm at a fine wine party with the Mark and at a rowdy bar with the BluGuitar.
I did get the Crunch mode more to my liking by using Variac mode at 90W with treble and presence pretty high, mids about half and bass turned up to about 1 o'clock too. No preset or graphic EQ.
Playing at about 100 dBA @ 1m volumes...my ears are shot for tonight but it was fun!
There's just something that makes the Mark V more "precise" feeling but also not have the raunch of the Marshall-based BluGuitar. Like I'm at a fine wine party with the Mark and at a rowdy bar with the BluGuitar.
I did get the Crunch mode more to my liking by using Variac mode at 90W with treble and presence pretty high, mids about half and bass turned up to about 1 o'clock too. No preset or graphic EQ.
Playing at about 100 dBA @ 1m volumes...my ears are shot for tonight but it was fun!
EOengineer
Rock Star
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- 2,632
Not weird. I’ve NEVER played a Mesa Mark series amp that does the raw Marshall crunch. They are just too refined/compressed for that.
IMO it’s best to let the Mark do Mark stuff, and keep the Marshall flavored stuff around for that.
FWIW I’m probably 50/50 between my 2204 and Mesa stuff.
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