Well I've been playing in this local Dad's band where we jam once a week. Last night I played the IIA with a Monty Allum modded Boss GE 7 GEQ newly installed in the loop. OMFG what a huge difference. Like I had a new amp. The Cleans where crisper with more bottom, the Lead channel was way more focused and articulate and the previously unusable gain boost mode was unbelievable. We got to this one song where I was jamming and the band made me keep on playing because they were in love with the sound. It must have gone on for 10 minutes before I had to stop. If you ever have a chance to snag a Mark w/o eq or verb, just buy it and outboard because the heart of the beast is chained within.